2012 Macbook Pro Redesign

[skaertus]

I personally don't want to see "retina displays" in MBP.

1 - It'll kill battery life. See what happened with iPad 3. They needed a bigger capacity battery just to keep up with iPad 1 because they had to boost backlight so much.

2 - 1440x900 on 13", 1680x1050 on 15", 1920x1200 on 17" is "retina" enough for me. Please don't tell me your eyes can resolve individual pixels in a 1920x1200 17" screen. Mine can't. Doubling the pixels with HI-DPI icons would not add that much detail, and surely wouldn't add desktop space. A 2880x1800 display in a 15" would give you the same desktop area as the current 1440x900, wich is ridiculous.

3 - Too much unnecessary work from the graphic card. See battery life. 3D gaming would be unthinkable at those resolutions with current mobile graphics, so you would have to lower the resolution and the panel would have to scale a lower resolution. LCD screens look bad not running their native resolution, period. So much for image quality.

1. Not necessariliy. The iPad has a quad-core graphics processor that may drain the battery. Ivy Bridge has integrated graphics that support retina resolutions, so it should handle battery consumption better.

2. Yes, it will add lots of detail. Fonts look a little blurry on the screen of current Macs due to que sub-pixel rendering technology used by Apple (Quartz). You should have noticed that fonts look much sharper on Windows due to ClearType sub-pixel rendering (although fonts look distorted too and not exactly as they appear on a printed page). A retina display would make fonts look sharp on a Mac screen using Quartz.

As for desktop space, tale a deeper look at 9to5Mac. It says that the user will be able to choose if it wants a larger or smaller desktop using retina resolution.

3. Standard resolution games should run fine on retina displays as they do on retina iPads.

 

[Tobias Funke]

Do i sense sarcasm?

99% of people on this forum seem to be devoid of this sense.

 

[KohPhiPhi]

I personally don't want to see "retina displays" in MBP.

1 - It'll kill battery life. See what happened with iPad 3. They needed a bigger capacity battery just to keep up with iPad 1 because they had to boost backlight so much.

2 - 1440x900 on 13", 1680x1050 on 15", 1920x1200 on 17" is "retina" enough for me. Please don't tell me your eyes can resolve individual pixels in a 1920x1200 17" screen. Mine can't. Doubling the pixels with HI-DPI icons would not add that much detail, and surely wouldn't add desktop space. A 2880x1800 display in a 15" would give you the same desktop area as the current 1440x900, wich is ridiculous.

3 - Too much unnecessary work from the graphic card. See battery life. 3D gaming would be unthinkable at those resolutions with current mobile graphics, so you would have to lower the resolution and the panel would have to scale a lower resolution. LCD screens look bad not running their native resolution, period. So much for image quality.

I agree to EVERY point you made.

Retina was needed for the iPad because A) the old model sported a sub-standard 1024x768 resolution and B) you hold it much closer to your face. But for a laptop? Nah, no need. Like you said, 1440x900 on 13", 1680x1050 on 15", 1920x1200 on 17" is "retina" enough for me.

I would certainly not like to trade battery life and GPU performance for an ultra-high resolution that's not even necessary.

 

[PeterJP]

Hi Skaertus,

The 5to9Mac report says that the a new 15-inch MacBook Pro will be released soon, probably in June. Re-designed, ultra-thin (but not tapered), Ivy Bridge processors, Retina Display, same-sized trackpad, no optical disk drive, two USB ports (at least one USB 3.0), two Thunderbolt ports, no Ethernet.

That "no Ethernet" makes a lot of sense, also for so-called "pro" users, if Apple adds 802.11ac Wi-Fi, which has the potential of being about as fast as Gbit Ethernet.

In fact, MacBooks are stuck with the current resolutions for several years now. Nobody seems to notice that the industry of screens should evolve as much as the other technological ones. (snip) The 13" MacBook Pro has a screen resolution of 1280x800, and the 4.6" Galaxy Nexus has a screen resolution of 1280x720, which almost matches that.

Good point. You're the first one that I see pointing this out. A clear hint that retina is most likely not just a rumour but about to happen.

There are reports of Apple replacing the current AMD cards for NVIDIA cards. Apparently the NVIDIA mobile cards can now handle 3840x2160 resolutions, which is not enough for doubling the current resolution of the 17" MacBook Pro, of 1920x1200 (that would be 3840x2400).

Amid all the confusion about what constitutes a "Real Pro", I see a few points coming back over and over (and over) again. One is the 17" MBP. Another is the optical drive. Yet another one is 16:9 resolution. So to make all "Real Pros" (on steroids, too) happy, Apple could make a 17" with a 16:9 resolution and an optical drive.

Sorry for the long post, but I wanted to comment on everything...

It was one of the more well-thought out things I read in this thread for long time, thanks


Peter.

 

[GoodOne]

2. Yes, it will add lots of detail. Fonts look a little blurry on the screen of current Macs due to que sub-pixel rendering technology used by Apple (Quartz). You should have noticed that fonts look much sharper on Windows due to ClearType sub-pixel rendering (although fonts look distorted too and not exactly as they appear on a printed page). A retina display would make fonts look sharp on a Mac screen using Quartz..

Exactly.

It's Not so much about photos looking better, they do Look stunning on e.g. The TBD. It.'s about Text Rendering and it's clearly Not as crip as Windows machines or Even New iPad.

Get Text as crisp as on the New iPad and I'm Sold on a MBP. Otherwise i'll Replace my t400s with another thinkpad.

 

[mond]

Ethernet is essential for a laptop

...Why are people complaining about the ethernet port...
YOU are buying a $1300+ laptop.. I think you can manage to buy a $50 ethernet adapter.

because it's just something else to carry. Unlike an optical drive (which are LARGE), an ethernet port is miniscule. They even have them that pop out the side. You could have a laptop 1/4" thick and STILL have a ethernet port. SO WHY NOT HAVE IT. Last time i checked the internet isn't becoming obsolete like optical drives.

Yeah, but you can turn that right around and say that since you are buying a $1300+ laptop you shouldn't have to spend $50 more for ethernet.

Exactly.

Boo hoo! Tell me, Einstein, what am I supposed to do if I travel to India on a business trip, because I'm a professional, and I try to make a professional business phone call, but the hotel doesn't have 3G - all they have is an Ethernet jack?

Maybe *you* /home users/ install all your /home software/ from the *app store*, but a lot of my professional software still comes on optical disks - do you want to tell me how I'm supposed to install that on this new (and much worse) iPad now that they took the optical drive out of it? And now you tell me they want to take it out of the MacBook pro? Optical disks have always been the signature technology of professionals. That was what made the IBM PC a professional machine and the Amiga a mere toy - IBM put an optical drive in the PC. And an Ethernet port!

Steve Jobs would be spinning in his grave if he knew they were making iPhones without Ethernet ports and optical drives.

You're comparing laptops to cell phones and tablets? Seriously?

There are many reasons to have an ethernet port.

1. Security, no1 can hack an ethernet cord w/o it being obvious
2. Reliable speed, don't have to worry about radio interference
3. THE standard for networking (& it's not going anywhere anytime soon)
4. The ONLY way to securely set up new network
5. Simplicity

There is NO reason it shouldn't be included. There have been ultra thin laptops w/ them for many many years. You can have a pop out receptacle (ethernet plugs in from top instead of side) and have a laptop 1/4" thick. you could even do it w/ 1/10" thick.

Unlike optical drives (which are LARGE, power hogging, heat producing dinosaurs); Ethernet is going to be around for a LOT longer & is still VERY useful.

If apple keeps taking away features you're all going to be using glorified consoles instead of computers.

 

[NutsNGum]

99% of people on this forum seem to be devoid of this sense.

You have a brilliant username.

 

[kaydot]

because it's just something else to carry. Unlike an optical drive (which are LARGE), an ethernet port is miniscule. They even have them that pop out the side. You could have a laptop 1/4" thick and STILL have a ethernet port. SO WHY NOT HAVE IT. Last time i checked the internet isn't becoming obsolete like optical drives.

Exactly.


You're comparing laptops to cell phones and tablets? Seriously?

There are many reasons to have an ethernet port.

1. Security, no1 can hack an ethernet cord w/o it being obvious
2. Reliable speed, don't have to worry about radio interference
3. THE standard for networking (& it's not going anywhere anytime soon)
4. The ONLY way to securely set up new network
5. Simplicity

There is NO reason it shouldn't be included. There have been ultra thin laptops w/ them for many many years. You can have a pop out receptacle (ethernet plugs in from top instead of side) and have a laptop 1/4" thick. you could even do it w/ 1/10" thick.

Unlike optical drives (which are LARGE, power hogging, heat producing dinosaurs); Ethernet is going to be around for a LOT longer & is still VERY useful.

If apple keeps taking away features you're all going to be using glorified consoles instead of computers.

Both of these points are pretty valid and one the forum seems to blindly ignore.

1. Laptops already exist that are extremely thin that still have ethernet ports.
2. Dropping the ethernet port actually is really irritating. It is quite useful in a number of environments. The biggest benefit on wired connections is the speed and reliability gain, and considering we are going to be using network/cloud hosted assets more often, I'd think that having it available without a dongle would be beneficial.
On the other hand, Apple's answer to everything seems to be "we have an adapter for that". And while this is what they will probably do, it is also very annoying. Mac users literally have to carry an accessory bag around with them.

 

[ninethirty]

Everything Apple does is based around the idea of simplicity and innovation. Why wouldn't they drop it? The Airs have done just fine with them, and let's be honest, having a hard wired connection to the internet isn't a 'Pro' feature. It's an 'old' feature.

because it's just something else to carry. Unlike an optical drive (which are LARGE), an ethernet port is miniscule. They even have them that pop out the side. You could have a laptop 1/4" thick and STILL have a ethernet port. SO WHY NOT HAVE IT. Last time i checked the internet isn't becoming obsolete like optical drives.

Exactly.


You're comparing laptops to cell phones and tablets? Seriously?

There are many reasons to have an ethernet port.

1. Security, no1 can hack an ethernet cord w/o it being obvious
2. Reliable speed, don't have to worry about radio interference
3. THE standard for networking (& it's not going anywhere anytime soon)
4. The ONLY way to securely set up new network
5. Simplicity

There is NO reason it shouldn't be included. There have been ultra thin laptops w/ them for many many years. You can have a pop out receptacle (ethernet plugs in from top instead of side) and have a laptop 1/4" thick. you could even do it w/ 1/10" thick.

Unlike optical drives (which are LARGE, power hogging, heat producing dinosaurs); Ethernet is going to be around for a LOT longer & is still VERY useful.

If apple keeps taking away features you're all going to be using glorified consoles instead of computers.

 

[PAPO]

"we have an adAPPter for that"

sorry, couldn't help myself, but yeh, with all the time and effort I've recently gone to in running Ethernet cables through parts of my house, I would hate to loose my Ethernet port (but once Belkin's Thunderbolt Dock comes out it won't bother me QUITE as much

and personally I don't want to loose my optical drive, my internet connection is way to slow to download things like Photoshop or pro-tools, as a mac book PRO they SHOULD retain optical drives for a little while longer

 

[samac92]

If apple keeps taking away features you're all going to be using glorified consoles instead of computers.

On the other hand, Apple's answer to everything seems to be "we have an adapter for that". And while this is what they will probably do, it is also very annoying. Mac users literally have to carry an accessory bag around with them.

Apple won't use some bizarre top down ethernet pop out thing, it isn't their style. So the only way for them to make it thinner is to get rid of the ethernet port and provide a dongle. Even the new Thinkpad doesn't have ethernet. I use ethernet every day but would much rather take a thin and light MBP with a dongle than what we have currently.

The dongle is a mild inconvenience, and the people that use them regularly (like me) can just leave them attached to the ethernet cable at their desk.

 

[GuitarG20]

Apple won't use some bizarre top down ethernet pop out thing, it isn't their style. So the only way for them to make it thinner is to get rid of the ethernet port and provide a dongle. Even the new Thinkpad doesn't have ethernet. I use ethernet every day but would much rather take a thin and light MBP with a dongle than what we have currently.

The dongle is a mild inconvenience, and the people that use them regularly (like me) can just leave them attached to the ethernet cable at their desk.

Most MBP's don't really have enough USB (assuming the dongle is USB) ports to plug ethernet in with a dongle. I already use all 3 ports on my machine, and have the ethernet plugged into the ethernet jack. Do you think they'll add more USB ports if they ditch the ethernet port?

 

[samac92]

Most MBP's don't really have enough USB (assuming the dongle is USB) ports to plug ethernet in with a dongle. I already use all 3 ports on my machine, and have the ethernet plugged into the ethernet jack. Do you think they'll add more USB ports if they ditch the ethernet port?

According to 9to5mac there will be 3 usb ports on the 15 inch, and two thunderbolt sized ports. The adaptor could be USB or thunderbolt. Of course we don't know until Apple announces it.

 

[cmChimera]

because it's just something else to carry. Unlike an optical drive (which are LARGE), an ethernet port is miniscule. They even have them that pop out the side. You could have a laptop 1/4" thick and STILL have a ethernet port. SO WHY NOT HAVE IT. Last time i checked the internet isn't becoming obsolete like optical drives.

Exactly.


You're comparing laptops to cell phones and tablets? Seriously?

There are many reasons to have an ethernet port.

1. Security, no1 can hack an ethernet cord w/o it being obvious
2. Reliable speed, don't have to worry about radio interference
3. THE standard for networking (& it's not going anywhere anytime soon)
4. The ONLY way to securely set up new network
5. Simplicity

There is NO reason it shouldn't be included. There have been ultra thin laptops w/ them for many many years. You can have a pop out receptacle (ethernet plugs in from top instead of side) and have a laptop 1/4" thick. you could even do it w/ 1/10" thick.

Unlike optical drives (which are LARGE, power hogging, heat producing dinosaurs); Ethernet is going to be around for a LOT longer & is still VERY useful.

If apple keeps taking away features you're all going to be using glorified consoles instead of computers.

Tldr. Ugly laptop in the picture.

 

[kaydot]

Apple won't use some bizarre top down ethernet pop out thing, it isn't their style. So the only way for them to make it thinner is to get rid of the ethernet port and provide a dongle. Even the new Thinkpad doesn't have ethernet. I use ethernet every day but would much rather take a thin and light MBP with a dongle than what we have currently.

The dongle is a mild inconvenience, and the people that use them regularly (like me) can just leave them attached to the ethernet cable at their desk.

There are other use cases for MBPs+ethernet when traveling between offices or even within the same office. Some offices have unreliable wireless and using ethernet in meeting rooms is sometimes the only option. Similarly when visiting someone else's office, it is often more efficient to connect to ethernet than it is to figure out the guest WiFi password if they have one.

 

[RodPinto]

WWDC Release Day

Hey Guys, i'm going to USA on the 2nd of June to stay until the 11th of the same month, with my flight leaving at about 21:00 of that day...

Assuming that the new macbook pros will be released at WWDC, do you think i'll be able to buy it on the very first day of the event, which is the 11th of June?

If your thinkings are NOT POSSIBLE, probably i'll be staying more time in the US to finally get it, specially considering that in the country where i live (Brazil), Apple products tend to take a very long time to arrive (probably we're forgotten by them )

Thank you for the attention!

 

[cmChimera]

Hey Guys, i'm going to USA on the 2nd of June to stay until the 11th of the same month, with my flight leaving at about 21:00 of that day...

Assuming that the new macbook pros will be released at WWDC, do you think i'll be able to buy it on the very first day of the event, which is the 11th of June?

If your thinkings are NOT POSSIBLE, probably i'll be staying more time in the US to finally get it, specially considering that in the country where i live (Brazil), Apple products tend to take a very long time to arrive (probably we're forgotten by them )

Thank you for the attention!

I would say that you are MOST LIKELY able to buy it on the 11th. That's not a guarantee of course, but likely.

 

[6-0 Prolene]

So has anyone heard whether the 13" is going to get all these updates too? The 9to5mac article only mentioned retina displays on the 15" model.

 

[d00d]

Everything Apple does is based around the idea of simplicity and innovation. Why wouldn't they drop it? The Airs have done just fine with them, and let's be honest, having a hard wired connection to the internet isn't a 'Pro' feature. It's an 'old' feature.

Innovation isn't dropping something that still has no viable replacement. The Macbook Air is based around being an extremely portable computer that isn't doing high intensity computing. Dropping the port in the interest of the form factor makes sense.

Macbook Pros are (or were) desktop replacements that while portable, were still capable of higher intensity work. Needing a high-reliability, high throughput network connection fits within that profile. And to anticipate the "wireless is good enough" argument, the current (and next) generation of wireless don't match the "ancient" gigabit ethernet wired standard.

A thunderbolt to ethernet adapter could be viable, but costly (and one more thing to carry). As for a USB to ethernet, I haven't read up enough on the USB 3 spec, but earlier iterations would incur a prohibitive amount of CPU usage because they didn't support DMA (incurring a performance hit on performance sensitive applications).

Let's not confuse "innovation" with "ahead of the curve". Removal of the floppy disk drive/SCSI/etc. wasn't innovative. It was ahead of the curve. That's not to say Apple wasn't pushing the industry, or that it wasn't positive. New things are innovative. Replacing old things with new things is innovative. Straight up removal isn't.

----------

Tldr. Ugly laptop in the picture.

Way to miss the point.

----------

There are other use cases for MBPs+ethernet when traveling between offices or even within the same office. Some offices have unreliable wireless and using ethernet in meeting rooms is sometimes the only option. Similarly when visiting someone else's office, it is often more efficient to connect to ethernet than it is to figure out the guest WiFi password if they have one.

Even more common is staying at a hotel when on travel. Most often hotel wireless is horrible, but the wired performs fairly well.

 

[Blu-Ray]

Hey Guys, i'm going to USA on the 2nd of June to stay until the 11th of the same month, with my flight leaving at about 21:00 of that day...

Assuming that the new macbook pros will be released at WWDC, do you think i'll be able to buy it on the very first day of the event, which is the 11th of June?

If your thinkings are NOT POSSIBLE, probably i'll be staying more time in the US to finally get it, specially considering that in the country where i live (Brazil), Apple products tend to take a very long time to arrive (probably we're forgotten by them )

Thank you for the attention!

If I were in your shoes, planned to get the new MBP on launch day and could extend my stay a few days, I would do that without a question. I think there is a chance that you could walk in a store on the 11th to get the new MBP if it gets announced on the 11th, but there is also a chance that they don't make the announcement on the 11th but wait until the one of the subsequent days of the event.

 

[cmChimera]

Innovation isn't dropping something that still has no viable replacement. The Macbook Air is based around being an extremely portable computer that isn't doing high intensity computing. Dropping the port in the interest of the form factor makes sense.

Macbook Pros are (or were) desktop replacements that while portable, were still capable of higher intensity work. Needing a high-reliability, high throughput network connection fits within that profile. And to anticipate the "wireless is good enough" argument, the current (and next) generation of wireless don't match the "ancient" gigabit ethernet wired standard.

A thunderbolt to ethernet adapter could be viable, but costly (and one more thing to carry). As for a USB to ethernet, I haven't read up enough on the USB 3 spec, but earlier iterations would incur a prohibitive amount of CPU usage because they didn't support DMA (incurring a performance hit on performance sensitive applications).

Let's not confuse "innovation" with "ahead of the curve". Removal of the floppy disk drive/SCSI/etc. wasn't innovative. It was ahead of the curve. That's not to say Apple wasn't pushing the industry, or that it wasn't positive. New things are innovative. Replacing old things with new things is innovative. Straight up removal isn't.

----------

Way to miss the point.

I didn't miss the point. People have been whining about the lack of ethernet ever since the mock-up showed up. Completely ignoring the fact that we're about to get the most innovative laptop in years, but that's no big deal. Also by definition, ahead of the curve IS innovation. It is promoting something new as opposed to something established. You can call removal of the ethernet port as ahead of the curve, or innovative but you would only be arguing semantics. USB 3.0 doesn't use up the same amount of CPU as 2.0 And for clarifications sake the next generation of wireless (ac) is FASTER than gigabit ethernet. So far, no one has a valid argument for ethernet's removal. They simply don't want to have a dongle. That's an extremely weak argument.

 

[blazeken996]

Soldered RAM & Flash on 2012 MBP?

Hey guys,

Just wondering, since its getting thinner. Do you think Apple's gonna solder stuff onto the logic board?

I'm kind of worried about the RAM and flash being soldered.

 

[AdrianMS]

We are going crazy

Let's see, the first thing it should be noted that this is building on something that not even become a rumor, the report said it was only a possibility and did not know with any certainty whether it would be well.

That said, I agree with all you say that you use the Ethernet from time to time and also with whom you claim is essential, but clearly always going to hear more the voices of people complain that the voices of who does not care.

It is possible that 15% of you still need the Ethernet, but when you delete any technology there is always some part of people who still need it.

To new forms of connection, as the new standard of wireless ac, matching and improve the performance, at some point must give change and it will be voices to complain, do so now or in 2020.

By this I mean that those who always need the Ethernet port you have to understand the change and that not even going to lose it, you can use it as simply as using an adapter as well say here.

That great disaster?

 

[Stetrain]

Hey guys,

Just wondering, since its getting thinner. Do you think Apple's gonna solder stuff onto the logic board?

I'm kind of worried about the RAM and flash being soldered.

Doubt it. Even in the Macbook Air the flash SSD is replaceable. They could do the soldered RAM thing if they were trying to get it to be super thin but the rumors say that it isn't going to be as thin as the Air. I would guess that they keep the RAM like it is now.

 

[GuitarG20]

Doubt it. Even in the Macbook Air the flash SSD is replaceable. They could do the soldered RAM thing if they were trying to get it to be super thin but the rumors say that it isn't going to be as thin as the Air. I would guess that they keep the RAM like it is now.

IIRC the storage in the air isn't the typical kind of ssd and requires a special replacement, although i guess technically it is still replaceable.