Apple Said to Ship New 'Ultra-Thin' 13" and 15" MacBooks by June-July

[MacRumors]

While some customers were hopeful that Apple would release new Macs at its "Let Us Loop You In" media event yesterday, the product announcements were focused on the new 4-inch iPhone SE, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, and additional Apple Watch bands.

But those waiting patiently for a Mac refresh may not have much longer to wait, as DigiTimes today reported that Apple will begin shipping new "ultra-thin" 13-inch and 15-inch MacBooks at the end of the second quarter.

The second calendar quarter ends on June 30, meaning that new Macs could feasibly be introduced by WWDC 2016, which will likely take place between June 13-17 based on scheduling information available from the Moscone Center.

The new MacBooks will allegedly "share a design similar to the existing 12-inch MacBook" and be "thinner than [the] existing MacBook Air," which makes it difficult to infer which MacBook lineup the report is referring to.

DigiTimes has a mixed track record at reporting on Apple's upcoming product plans, but its report corroborates a previous rumor claiming Apple is preparing thinner 13" and 15" MacBook Airs with "fully redesigned" internal components. That report said the notebooks would be ready by the third quarter, which corresponds to a July-September timeframe -- possibly shortly after a WWDC announcement.

Apple currently offers the MacBook Air in 11" and 13" sizes, and it has never released a 15" MacBook Air. In fact, many have assumed the MacBook Air will be discontinued at some point as declining costs allow the MacBook to become Apple's mainstream notebook offering. A redesigned MacBook Air, possibly with a long-awaited Retina display, could be considered a bit of a surprise.

The current MacBook Pro perhaps better corresponds with the rumored 13" and 15" sizes, but whether Apple is able to fit pro-level hardware in an "ultra-thin" design similar to the lower-spec 12-inch MacBook remains to be seen. There is also the possibility that the new 13" and 15" notebooks will be MacBooks, but the notion seems questionable unless Apple discontinues the year-old 12" model.

Apple's refreshed Mac lineup is expected to feature Intel's faster Skylake processors and Thunderbolt 3 with USB-C, while the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro are also deserving candidates for an overall redesign.

Apple last refreshed the 13-inch MacBook Pro in March 2015, while the 15-inch model was updated in May. For this reason, the 13-inch model is classified as Early 2015, and the 15-inch model is Mid 2015. Both notebooks received Force Touch trackpads, faster flash storage, longer battery life, and improved graphics.

The Early 2015 13-inch MacBook Pro is based on Intel's last-generation Broadwell chip architecture, while the 15-inch model still has older Haswell architecture. Over the past year, Intel has announced Skylake chips appropriate for the 13-inch MacBook Pro, 15-inch MacBook Pro, 12-inch MacBook, and MacBook Airs.

Article Link: Apple Said to Ship New 'Ultra-Thin' 13" and 15" MacBooks by June-July

 

[Orlandoech]

Supra-Ultra-Mega-Thin or go home!

:rollseys:

 

[Corrode]

omg a Mac rumor.

 

[Blackstick]

Hopefully with a proper keyboard, this time...

 

[kevinkyoo]

Don't do this to me, Apple. Please. If you really make that thin of a MacBook Pro in a 15" form with Skylake, I will throw all of my money at you. Please include some USB 3.1 and C ports, keep the MagSafe, keep the battery life, force touch, and I will be satisfied with this year with Apple.


EDIT: And most of all, no butterfly keyboard

 

[Nunyabinez]

DigiTimes=unreliable noise.

 

[LordQ]

So what's going to be the difference between the Air and MacBook lineups?

 

[gpat]

Please make them as thin as possible, but not any thinner than that.

 

[zachcsnyder]

12 and 14 inch MacBooks along with 14 and 16 inch MacBook Pro's would be sweet.

 

[gaximus]

I'd be happy with MacBook Air power and battery in a rMacbook form factor.

 

[bushido]

hope it comes with a 4k camera sticking out.

 

[SSD-GUY]

And then a couple weeks later, Kaby Lake will be available, making your 1 month old shiny new RMBP, a generation behind in CPU terms.

 

[TMRJIJ]

Yes!! Yes!!!! Thank you, Tim! You listened to my request!

 

[zorinlynx]

That super thin USB-C MacBook is pretty but severely underpowered and the lack of ports is annoying.

If Apple redesigns the MacBook Pro to be thinner and lighter, I hope they don't nerf its power and expandability.

 

[nt5672]

Note to Apple, we don't need thinner MBPs. We need performance and ports. If we want thin we will get Airs or iPad Pros. Please, please Apple grace us with a real, powerful, portable laptop computer again.

 

[DoctorTech]

YEAH!!! Glad to see new MacBooks coming out soon. Thinner is fine but what I really care about is performance and battery life.

 

[arggg14]

Does thinner=underpowered? Not exactly the rumor I was hoping for... I just want a redesigned RMBP with useable ports built in. SD card, USB, etc.

 

[PFKMan23]

As long as the featureset is similar and the performance unaffected.

 

[bladerunner2000]

Non-removable RAM, battery, gimped GPU and an overpriced SSD are to be expected. Book it.

 

[oftheheavens]

So what's going to be the difference between the Air and MacBook lineups?

I think that the air is going away replaced by the iPad pro. The low end macbook model will be the 12'' (or 13). Just my guess though.

 

[shadowmatt]

Apple cannot make pro level laptops anymore. Their fetish with ever thinner cases means they are using substandard components and heat profiles guaranteed to destroy the chipsets after a couple of years.

Pretty much pro laptop made by Apple in the past 5 years have all had heat related failures

 

[BreuerEditor]

For my situation, I don't care about a thinner design...I want a high performance laptop (rMBP) that can handle editing 4K video with a larger/efficient enough battery. If that means a thicker (or same) design, so be it. I'm not using it for personal use so the whole 'thin' design means nothing to me if I can't work efficiently. .02

 

[accrama]

I am sick of thinner, thinner, thinner. I want better, upgradable, powerful computers.
Apple has become such a terrible expensive waste.

 

[Stella]

What compromises will have to be made?

No more discrete graphics card - integrated only(?) - which isn't good enough for a supposedly 'Pro' machine.

Thinner isn't always better.

Fortunately, this rumour comes from DigiTimes, who are usually wrong.. ball out of the stadium wrong / as reliable as England football team winning a penalty shoot out.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

I don't see how the Air and MB live side-by-side for much longer. Digitimes IS full of crap, but even a broken clock is right twice a day. I can see Apple going back to MB and MBP as the only laptop lines. The main differentiator between the two will be that the later has more ports and the former is barebones.