Apple MacBook in May?

[steveh]

The whole reason for the PowerBook/PowerMac names was the transition to the PowerPC chip.

Sorry:

- First PowerBook was PowerBook 100, introduced 10/1991
- First PPC Mac was the 6100/60, introduced 03/1994

 

[tekriter]

Is it aestetics? Weight? Cost? Privacy? Or what bothers you?

If your concern is mainly about restrictions companies apply in respect to camera-phones and possibly camera-laptops, than I would add that banning camera-phones is not a very sophisticated safety measure. It might be effective in that it closes a loopwhole that can be exploited very easily but for a professional no real hindrance to espionage.

Using a laptop with a build-in iSight for espionage is not easier than using a wrist-watch with a build-in camera or other fancy devices. It is just that any hobby-spy will most likely not bother to buy such a watch but he might very likely already have a camera phone.

True, it's not hard to circumvent if you are really trying, but it IS a firm rule where I work. Not only a firm rule, but we were reminded just yesterday that it is a firing offense. They take security very seriously here.

 

[steveh]

I just cannot justify switching to OSX via an Intel Mac Mini or a $1000.00 "iMacBook."

Not everyone is going to buy them.

I understand that the addition of a "screen" costs money,
but now that Apple is using seemingly less-proprietary Intel-based hardware...

The Intel CPU costs more than the Freescale CPUs used in current iBooks.

And Intel chips are just as proprietary as any other common chips.

Hmmm...the open-sourced SPARCs may be a rare exception to CPU chip proprietarieness.

[/QUOTE]I've been waiting for years so far...
I guess I'll finally fold and bag a sub-par Celeron-based notebook to handle my minimal 'portable needs'
while I continue to wait for Apple (and also seek more lucrative employment opportunities.)
Knowing 'what's possibly around the corner' must discourage many folks from making such purchases.
I cannot be alone on this thought.
- Ultimatetone[/QUOTE]

Probably not.

There will still be a market for cheap-jack laptops that can't run Mac OS X.

 

[BlackLilyNinja]

Just like the changed the name of the iMac

iBooks will remain iBooks just like iMacs remained iMacs

the only reason Powerbooks changed is because of a copyright issue between the apple consortium (ibm, apple and motorola) it was a PowerPC. iBooks never had that issue. So they will remain iBook. The new TOWERS however will probably be called something like MacTower or MacPro or MacInTower. all equally lame sounding but i am sure it will be a lame sounding name.

as for them being released in May? WOOT!

 

[Cinch]

True, it's not hard to circumvent if you are really trying, but it IS a firm rule where I work. Not only a firm rule, but we were reminded just yesterday that it is a firing offense. They take security very seriously here.

Come to think of it, I don't think Apple would allow a camera like device on their campus especially in hardware/design area.

go figure

Cinch

 

[Ultimatetone]

Ok, here's what I think. I think the low end MacBook will be exactly the same spec as the low end Mac mini
except with what you'd expect in added in a 13" laptop. It'll have the Apple remote. It may have that iSight thing, but I wouldn't bet on it.

So I'm going to predict that the low-end MacBook is probably going to weigh in around the $900 mark, if not $800.
If that seems lower than Apple usually does things, bear in mind the market's changed a lot over the last few years.
You can get a generic PC laptop for as little as $500 (why you'd want it, I don't know, but even Dell sells them that low.)
And I think we all know that Apple is extremely keen on ramping up market share right now, as long as it keeps reasonable margins.
The notion that Apple's price for its low end laptop might be close to the price of Dell's highest priced low-end laptop isn't that silly.

What do others think?

I am still hoping for a 'mini-version' iBook under $999.00.
An Apple product that would quash any thoughts of buying a portable DVD player, a PVP/PMP, or an Archos-like product.

Aside from the 'widescreen pipedream,' I was really hoping for a iBook Mini (of sorts) under $999 - silly me!

An "iMacBook" with a 13+ display, FW 400, DVD±RW, Bluetooth 2.0, Gigabit eth. and 802.11n built-in for $750.00
(along w/comparison specs as to why the 'iMacbook' is the better investment) clearly spells WINNER to me.

Not dissimilar to the drug pusher who provides 'free' samples to get you 'hooked,'
Apple could have introduced an iBook Mini (for under 650.00, perhaps at a loss, too) to get fence-riders hooked into OS X.
With the battery recalls and screen issues of a few Apple notebooks in the past,
this makes a case against a potential 'switcher' opting to go for a pre-owned Apple notebook.

Ok, so $650.00 was clearly a pipe dream.
I was looking for a stripped notebook/robust PDA solution at the time...
Wait!
I am still looking for that now! I'd even sacrifice an optical drive altogether.
Can we say ORI-GA-MAC?

I've been waiting for years so far...
I guess I'll finally fold and bag a sub-par Celeron-based notebook to handle my minimal 'portable needs'
while I continue to wait for Apple (and also seek more lucrative employment opportunities.)

I'd say they have to have a core duo for $1299 or less to be competitive.
I'm hoping the $999 stays at that price with core duo but I know that's a huge stretch.
Hell, I'd love to see stripped down core solo for $899 and duo for $1199. (and a beefier one for $1399-1599)

I REALLY hope they don't bump prices, this is one model that needs to come in starting as cheap as possible.

I bought a cheap Compaq over last Thanksgiving, $499 after taxes and rebate. I couldn't wait for the low end Macbook anymore...
Apple needs a cheap laptop, looks like the $499 laptop is becoming more and more common.
Would be an atrocity if the low end Macbook at $1099 has the same specs as a $499 Windows one....

 

[jaxstate]

Steve Jobs said it himself. He wants "Mac" in all the computers names, and seeing that the iMac already had "Mac" in it, there was no reason to change.

iBooks will remain iBooks just like iMacs remained iMacs

the only reason Powerbooks changed is because of a copyright issue between the apple consortium (ibm, apple and motorola) it was a PowerPC. iBooks never had that issue. So they will remain iBook. The new TOWERS however will probably be called something like MacTower or MacPro or MacInTower. all equally lame sounding but i am sure it will be a lame sounding name.

as for them being released in May? WOOT!

 

[steveh]

iBooks will remain iBooks just like iMacs remained iMacs

the only reason Powerbooks changed is because of a copyright issue between the apple consortium (ibm, apple and motorola) it was a PowerPC.

Do you have a cite for that?

The PowerBook name preceded the first PowerPC product by several years.

 

[bill4588]

This may have been posted earlier, but I didnt read all the replies. I think that Apple will launch this for at least $1199 and keep the iBook available for $999 or possibly $899. Once the chip prices drop, the Macbook will be available for $999 and the iBook will be discontinued. Why else would they keep the iBook around for a little while after the release (other than emtpy inventory)? The price drop for iBook will mean more people will want to buy it so that will take care of the inventory problem. After they sell all the iBooks then they can drop the price of the Macbook (after the price drop of chips of course).

 

[daschim]

why macbook pro if there will only be one type of ibook/macbook??

Correct me if I'm wrong...
Why should apple use the 'pro' notation if, according to the rumors, there will be only one type of ibook/macbook.
If you have the macbook pro 15" and 17" and the 13" ibook is going to replace the 12" macbook. Why don't call them all macbook. If there will be only one line of notebooks there is no need to the 'pro' notation. You only want to call something 'pro' if there is room for something less then pro.

What most of you suggest doesn't make sence
- 17" macbook pro
- 15" macbook pro
- 13" ibook/macbook ???

Even if there will be different types of ibook/macbook with integrated graphics and stuf...it does not make sence. I think there will be 15" ibook/macbooks too...maybe not now, but certainly later.

 

[Cinch]

Ok, so $650.00 was clearly a pipe dream.
I was looking for a stripped notebook/robust PDA solution at the time...
Wait!
I am still looking for that now! I'd even sacrifice an optical drive altogether.
Can we say ORI-GA-MAC?

I am abosolutely behind you 100%
no seriously.

Give me a robust laptop/PDA that can do a few things well e.g. Word/Excel/Safari and email of some sort. Long battery life (greater than 6 hours after one year of use).

Sacrifice an optical drive? come on, who uses optical drive anymore. If you want to watch movies, do it on a TV. If you watch movies on your laptop, you have some serious social issue .

Cinch

 

[Yvan256]

iBooks will remain iBooks just like iMacs remained iMacs

the only reason Powerbooks changed is because of a copyright issue between the apple consortium (ibm, apple and motorola) it was a PowerPC. iBooks never had that issue. So they will remain iBook. The new TOWERS however will probably be called something like MacTower or MacPro or MacInTower. all equally lame sounding but i am sure it will be a lame sounding name.

Steve himself said in the last presentation that their computers would have "Mac" in their name from now on (or something to that effect).

Mac mini has Mac in its name.
iMac has Mac in its name.
PowerMac has Mac in its name. Could be renamed to simply "Mac Pro", though.
PowerBook didn't have Mac in its name.
iBook doesn't have Mac in its name. It should be renamed to MacBook. Also, it would make no sense to have a "MacBook Pro" without a regular, non-Pro "MacBook".

 

[Yvan256]

Steve Jobs said it himself. He wants "Mac" in all the computers names, and seeing that the iMac already had "Mac" in it, there was no reason to change.

And there's already the visual similarity between the iPod and the iMac.

 

[Yvan256]

I am abosolutely behind you 100%
no seriously.

Give me a robust laptop/PDA that can do a few things well e.g. Word/Excel/Safari and email of some sort. Long battery life (greater than 6 hours after one year of use).

Sacrifice an optical drive? come on, who uses optical drive anymore. If you want to watch movies, do it on a TV. If you watch movies on your laptop, you have some serious social issue .

Cinch

If the next iPod is what we've seen in recent mock-ups and has a touch-screen display, it could become the "new Newton" (still called iPod).

An iPod connects to a computer, so it doesn't need an optical drive. All Apple needs to do is add basic computing functions to the iPod (wi-fi, Safari, Mail, etc) and they'll capture the whole PDA market overnight.

 

[Cinch]

If the next iPod is what we've seen in recent mock-ups and has a touch-screen display, it could become the "new Newton" (still called iPod).

An iPod connects to a computer, so it doesn't need an optical drive. All Apple needs to do is add basic computing functions to the iPod (wi-fi, Safari, Mail, etc) and they'll capture the whole PDA market overnight.

I'm down with this device. Just have this PDA/Laptop and my office desktop. I think this is the future of computer. Forget about those loser at the coffee shop with their wired laptop afraid to death of spilling their latte on their precious Dell/MacBook Pro.

Cinch

 

[milo]

Would be an atrocity if the low end Macbook at $1099 has the same specs as a $499 Windows one....

It won't. I assume your $499 machine has a celeron or similar crappy cpu?

Problem for apple is that they're only going to go down to core solo for their cpus. Other computer makers have been using older chips like celerons and such, but those are on the way out so it makes no sense for apple to use them now for a few months as a stopgap.

You and some others basically want a machine that's as cheap as possible and don't care how slow the processor is or how low the specs are. Apple is unlikely to do that. Along those lines, $499 laptops are more and more common...but how well do they sell? People have long complained that apple didn't have a $299 desktop machine, but on the PC side machines at that price generally don't sell nearly as well as more expensive ones. People like the idea of a cheap machine, but when they use it at the store, they realize they can't live with such poor performance and end up upgrading to a more expensive one.

iBooks will remain iBooks just like iMacs remained iMacs

the only reason Powerbooks changed is because of a copyright issue between the apple consortium (ibm, apple and motorola) it was a PowerPC. iBooks never had that issue. So they will remain iBook.

Wrong on both counts. Seriously, has nobody read the dozens if not hundreds of posts explaining both of these?

How much more could it be spelled out for you? STEVE JOBS specifically said that you're wrong. I think he could have said "THE IBOOK REPLACEMENT WILL BE CALLED THE MACBOOK" and some idiot would still insist the name will stay iBook.

And the laptops were called PowerBooks before PowerPC chips even existed, did you pull that "copyright issue" thing out of your butt? Seriously?

Ok, so $650.00 was clearly a pipe dream.
I was looking for a stripped notebook/robust PDA solution at the time...
Wait!
I am still looking for that now! I'd even sacrifice an optical drive altogether.
Can we say ORI-GA-MAC?

Not going to happen with a core chip, they'd have to use celeron or similar, and that's not going to happen. We'll see $650 mac laptops when the Core processor is a generation or two old and prices have dropped to what celerons cost today.

 

[weitzner]

I am abosolutely behind you 100%
no seriously.

Give me a robust laptop/PDA that can do a few things well e.g. Word/Excel/Safari and email of some sort. Long battery life (greater than 6 hours after one year of use).

Sacrifice an optical drive? come on, who uses optical drive anymore. If you want to watch movies, do it on a TV. If you watch movies on your laptop, you have some serious social issue .

Cinch

we college students don't even have tv's for the most part. we watch movies on our laptops. what i would really like to see is a TabletMac that has a docking station of some sorts and comes with a bunch of note-taking software for science classes and would recognize symbols that aren't usually used otherwise. those things would sell like crazy to the college student market, we wouldn't even need notebooks anymore!

 

[ChrisA]

.....as long as it has ..... independant graphics.

Why do people care if the Graphis processor has it's own RAM or if it shares RAM with the system? I would think what is more important is the speed of various common tasks. If you intend to edit HD video what you should care about is the render speed, not how the machine works internally

In every case the graphic process does run independently. The question is if the graphics chip wil access it's own RAM or share system RAM.

For most common tasks Video RAM goes unused and intgrated design allows this otherwise unused resource to be put to good productive use. For a given price point you may get best persomance with the integrated RAM. Of course for more money you can always buy more speed. But what Apple needs now is the "best" $950 notebook.

My bet is that the Intel iBook will share the same design as the Intal Mac Mini while the MBP will track the iMac design. This keeps Apples enginerring cost resonable by sharing some design work over multiple product lines.

 

[esaleris]

There's no reason not to have 3 or 4 options--since that's what Apple's been doing for the last gazillion years. More often than not, Apple has featured different graphics for different configurations. Apple may very well release a $999 or cheaper MacBook with integrated graphics. But they may very easily offer a higher-end model, say for $1499, with discrete graphics.

Well, if the difference is video memory, then I'd agree. There's not much difference between pin-compatible chips. In fact, that's one of the main reasons to keep things pin-compatible - so you don't have to change designs for different types of configurations. But to keep around completely different chipsets and options within one line isn't something Apple'd do. And that's smart, as it reduces the complexity required for a single product.

Every single one of Apple's products right now features the same design, with tiered BTO options. But the options are extensions of the same technological family. An integrated chipset and a dedicated graphics chipset are two different boards that would have had to go through two different design, testing, and QA processes to launch - and Apple isn't going to do that.

 

[d_and_n5000]

Oh, goody! Another Mac I'll want and can't get!

Anyway...I hope they call it the MacBook. I don't know why, it sounded horrible at first, but now I love it. And if it weren't for the Mac mini, I would say it would fit my desired naming strategy perfectly.

Desired Naming Strategy​

Color key: Green=desktop; blue=notebook
Pro: iMac pro; MacBook pro
Consumer: iMac; MacBook
Entry level: iMac mini; MacBook mini

Disclaimer: Most would argue that the 'MacBook mini' probably wouldn't be mini at all, just lower specs; Apple would never call the pro desktop 'iMac' anything due to the consumerish image of the iMac; and the 'iMac mini' has already been released as the Mac mini. I just thought that this would make sense and leave plenty of room to add new product categories. It really doesn't fit as-is, however. Some brand realignment is in order, Apple!

 

[Stridder44]

I think Apple will release low end portable called the MacBook sometime within this month. Damn Im good.

 

[bill4588]

I think Apple will release low end portable called the MacBook sometime within this month. Damn Im good.

ROFL

 

[blueimac'00]

I'm excited, but will it be able to play games like COD 2?

 

[Willis]

Correct me if I'm wrong...
Why should apple use the 'pro' notation if, according to the rumors, there will be only one type of ibook/macbook.
If you have the macbook pro 15" and 17" and the 13" ibook is going to replace the 12" macbook. Why don't call them all macbook. If there will be only one line of notebooks there is no need to the 'pro' notation. You only want to call something 'pro' if there is room for something less then pro.

What most of you suggest doesn't make sence
- 17" macbook pro
- 15" macbook pro
- 13" ibook/macbook ???

Even if there will be different types of ibook/macbook with integrated graphics and stuf...it does not make sence. I think there will be 15" ibook/macbooks too...maybe not now, but certainly later.

You have a good point. I hadnt really thought about it. But then you cant market two 15" laptops wilh similar specs (ie processors)and a small/large price difference. Even when Merom comes out, its still going to be called a Core Duo. Hmm, if they clocked the speeds WAY down, then they could, but then whats the point?

One thing I can say about remaining stock is this. Powerbook 12 and 17's were in short supply, so most likely why the 17 never hung around for much, so the 12 inch will go along when the Macbooks come out. For the iBooks, Apple have employed a company in the UK to take on surplus stock and sell off at discounted prices, but the company's named wasnt mentioned and I STILL havent found it. (if you know forward me it)

Chances are, the 12" iBook will go, and the 14" will linger for a bit longer. OR they could just go.

All i want is to see the specs! The amount of guessing going on is doing my nut in. PLEASE APPLE!

 

[daveL]

Duo Price Drop

The MacBook (no, it will not remain an iBook, as many others have mentioned) won't come out until Apple can get the lower prices for Duo chips that are scheduled to kick in toward the end of May.