Apple Finishing Up Work on an Ultra-Thin 15" Notebook

[bushido]

smart choice actually, force the customer to use iTunes and the Mac Store without them even realizing it and by 2013 we'll have a closed platform just like the "iOS" on mobile devices and by 2015 no one will have the "freedom" of their own machine anymore. by 2019 skynet is gonna destroy the world (ok i went a bit far with this one)

(wanna bet how many "dislikes" i get now?)

 

[BornAgainMac]

Apple keeps making stuff that I want to buy.

 

[parapup]

Wrong thread.

 

[benjs]

I think that pre-Thunderbolt I would not have been a believer in this. Now, with Thunderbolt, it would be a very easy thing for Apple to put one USB 3.0 port, one Thunderbolt port, and the power port on board; and include a Thunderbolt hub that contains multiple USB 2.0 ports, FW 800, ethernet inputs, and HDMI or Thunderbolt or DisplayPort outputs. I would very rarely need more than one USB port when I'm on the go. In addition, the idea of coming home and rather than plugging in my three external hard drives and my monitor - only having one cable - is really a nice dream.

 

[MagnumOP]

One of my computers is a white 2006 macbook (the first one released). I used that computer for a while to rip my dvd collection. After about 2 years the dvd drive died. I guess 100s and 100s of hours of ripping killed it. Instead of getting overcharged and buying an internal replacement I bought a third party external drive.

I paid maybe $60 bucks 3 years ago for a LG external drive. This drive is full desktop quality and speed. I use it to rip dvds when I ocasionally get them. In fact I don't use the dvd drive in my 2010 21.5" iMac. I use this external drive. The dvd drives apple ships are all mobile drives and are SLOW. I would not miss it if they removed the drive from all of their machines. My little cheap external is better than them all (except the mac pro).

BTW I hope you guys don't buy the macbook air super dive if you are complaining about performance. If you are a "pro" shouldn't you be using a better external drive anyway?

I would love a macbook pro without an optical drive. But, I would want the space for a second internal hard drive. I don't really need such a diminutive form factor like the air.

 

[wizard]

Who says they need internal storage, obviously most of the people in this thread.

My MBA can do all that. Who says the ODD needs to be internal ?

From the looks of it not many need an ODD internally, but many need substantial secondary storage with in their laptops. It is a real problem for many and sticking ones head in the sand doesn't change the fact that many need more storage than is provided in the current AIRs.

"Internal this, Internal that". Guys the way to upgrade and expand laptops is all through external connectivity. Internal stuff is overrated.

"Internal Stuff" is the most rational way to address the lack of storage in a computer.

External peripherals also don't need to be host based, they can live off your network, creating your own private cloud infrastructure that your whole household can use. Shared infrastructure in a household saves money on purchasing equipment.

That is certainly true but has noting to do with the problem being discussed here.

I now couldn't live without my NAS and home server.

I suspect that most people would agree with you after installation of such a server. However that is a server and frankly has nothing to do with the need for more storage than we are getting in the AIRs.

 

[Liquinn]

smart choice actually, force the customer to use iTunes and the Mac Store without them even realizing it and by 2013 we'll have a closed platform just like the "iOS" on mobile devices and by 2015 no one will have the "freedom" of their own machine anymore. by 2019 skynet is gonna destroy the world (ok i went a bit far with this one)

(wanna bet how many "dislikes" i get now?)

Hmmmmm.... I agree.... and software piracy will be low/minimal? You won't be able to Torrent Final Cut Pro now that it's only on the App store, just an example. You'd be forced to buy it.

 

[tatonka]

Such a device would make no sense to me at all .. either you want super portability .. then 15" is to big or you want the power, the connections, possibly the optical drive, the disk space .. then this ProAir is nothing either. I am not sure who would be interested in such a device ..

I am super happy with the 15" MBP .. provides a great compromise between the horsepower I need to work and the portability I require (and I carry that thing forth and back to University every day).

I would be ok with removing the optical drive from the current MBP form factor .. but use the cleared room for an extra SSD drive to store the system or another battery cell.

T.

 

[wizard]

I highly doubt that we will see a Thunderbolt only computer.

I would not at all be surprised if this is the 15" MacBook Pro (Pro spelt A-i-r) - especially if they can manage a quad core in it.

As others have posted, by cutting features, Apple makes more $$$$ on fewer parts all in the guise of "thinness" and they get to push more people the iTunes and Mac App Stores.

Somewhere on the roadmap is probably a notebook where the only port is Thunderbolt - assuming manufacturers make the peripherals and hard drives stay more cost effective per GB than solid state.

Thunderbolt is targeted at totally different use cases than USB. USB will be around for a very long time as a lower performance port.

 

[Megagator]

Haha... the MacBook Prair

 

[Sjhonny]

I wish you could upgrade graphics cards in MBPros and iMacs...it's the one big thing that really hurts those machines. I'd like to update mine every 2 years or so...and the life of the machine is usually 4 years easily.

You can upgrade the GPU in an iMac ... You can't in the MB P, simply because, like in most other laptop mobo's, the GPU is a part of the mobo. Maybe some alienware laptops or one of Asus's mobile gaming rigs supports for GPU upgrades, but not the sleek VIAO's or the MacBook Pro. Since you're talking about swapping the GPU's you've probably seen a 16x PCI-E bus. Even if the GPU in this laptop only uses 8 lanes, it's would still take up a gianormous amount of space, in comparison to any other part.

On topic: I'm really looking forward to this machine. Since every new unibody MBP seems to be running hotter, a redesign seems inevitable to me. The only thing I fear for is that the GPU in this MBS (slim, speed, who knows?) will offer any decent performance. I believe that Intel said GPU performance of Ivy Bridge IGP's would outperform the Sandy Bridge's by a factor two. But that would still be crap in comparison to current gen dedicated GPU's. Nevertheless the dedicated GPU's suck power like a vamp on steroids ... so it wouldn't really be an option in this Ultrabook+, whit probably only half the battery capacity of the current gen 15".

So Apple: Please suprise us and fit in that dedicated GPU while still offering 8 hours+ of battery life

 

[nutjob]

In the end all MBP will have the MBA form factor. Meaning no optical drive and tear-drop shape. They will all have integrated SSD.

The teardrop shape is wasteful and more "optical illusion" for marketing purposes. The more sensible design is flat and filled with battery or maybe a extra drive bay.

 

[RKpro]

Yes! I wanted this forever. I want something light, but still want big display.

 

[cozmot]

If the rumor about the new iPhone 5 design is true (New Case Designs Revive Unlikely iPhone 5 Design), then it looks like Apple is moving to a new form factor.

 

[jonathandlopez]

People that rely solely on hard drives are going to wake up to reality when a power surge out of nowhere in the near future ruins ever last file on their computer...and because they didn't have an optical drive, they backed almost nothing up.

I'll be honest though, if you have your crucial files backed up online, it's not that bad...just the restore speed is horrible compared to hard copies.

Before they get rid of the optical drives, there better be a 4GB flash drive for 30¢. That's really not unreasonable given the continuous price drops over the past decade--give it another five...it's possible

 

[dba7dba]

Hum... no. The MBP 13" has more battery life than the MBA 13".

But MBA is thinner/lighter.

And if you start spinning the DVD drive in MBP, the battery probably won't last as long.

 

[WestonHarvey1]

makes me think about windows 8 and what the more consumer friendly windows market and hardware looks like.

It looks like crap.

 

[3N16MA]

Such a device would make no sense to me at all .. either you want super portability .. then 15" is to big or you want the power, the connections, possibly the optical drive, the disk space .. then this ProAir is nothing either. I am not sure who would be interested in such a device ..

I am super happy with the 15" MBP .. provides a great compromise between the horsepower I need to work and the portability I require (and I carry that thing forth and back to University every day).

I would be ok with removing the optical drive from the current MBP form factor .. but use the cleared room for an extra SSD drive to store the system or another battery cell.

T.

Some may want the screen real estate a 15" notebook offers but not the bulk. I think many would enjoy a 15" MBA that weighs less than a 13" MBP. The MBA line is no longer in ultraportable secondary computer status. It's growing popularity is due to it's lower price and it's ability to satisfy the needs of most users. It's becoming the mainstream Apple notebook.

 

[vartanarsen]

makes me think about windows 8 and what the more consumer friendly windows market and hardware looks like.

It looks very plastickyy...without metal or a glass trackpad.

 

[nutjob]

You can have both. MBAs still ship with the CD/DVD kexts intact and any USB solution works. Total. Non. Issue.

Yeah, who can explain why if you need a CD drive to occasionally read a CD you need one built-in and carry around with you all day? I bought an USB DL DVD burner for $25 that works fine, the external "superdrive" is overpriced, like most Apple peripherals, although their screens are competitive these days.

 

[nutjob]

But MBA is thinner/lighter.

And if you start spinning the DVD drive in MBP, the battery probably won't last as long.

Spinning a CD doesn't actually use that much power.

 

[MagnumOP]

People that rely solely on hard drives are going to wake up to reality when a power surge out of nowhere in the near future ruins ever last file on their computer...and because they didn't have an optical drive, they backed almost nothing up.

I'll be honest though, if you have your crucial files backed up online, it's not that bad...just the restore speed is horrible compared to hard copies.

Before they get rid of the optical drives, there better be a 4GB flash drive for 30¢. That's really not unreasonable given the continuous price drops over the past decade--give it another five...it's possible

Impossible to back up all 3 TB of my content on DVDs on a regular basis.

I have surge protectors, battery backups, and multiple hard drive for safety.

 

[tripjammer]

There were rumors back before the latest revamp came out that they were going for a new case design that was much slimmer and lighter. The last MBPro update was more of a speed bump then anything with the Thunderbolt port...nothing major.

I think it's the next logical step for the MBPro.

New case...maybe even new higher resolution screens?



I wish you could upgrade graphics cards in MBPros and iMacs...it's the one big thing that really hurts those machines. I'd like to update mine every 2 years or so...and the life of the machine is usually 4 years easily.

Dude this is never gonna happen...because then you would not have a thin light laptop. Plus there are not many laptops out there where you can upgrade the graphics cards...

 

[macNerd1]

My MBP

My hope for new MBP

15"
Current Air Design (looks cool but don't mind even if they maintain current MBP)
Default SSD (Must. at least 256GB, option to bump upto 512GB)
Dedicated graphics & bumped up resolution (Must. current resolution is joke)
3 USB (Must)
Thunderbold (know apple will put it but don't care as not many devices are ready at least in the near future)
Extra HDD (Good to have. )
Optical drive (Good to have.. just for watching some DVDs on a trip)

 

[macosxuser01]

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You are not alone. It's so easy for hard drives to fail and lose data. Not everybody backs up on the external drive every week.
Plus, an optical disc can last 20 years plus, while a hard drives usually last 3-6 years.
I bet somebody has lost data on there back up drive and had to go to fry's to buy there 4th external HD