Best Buy Guesses at a March MacBook Pro Release Date as Supplies Constrain

[AndrewClarke]

You have to understand that there are groups of people who'll want to keep that physical media around. They absolutely prefer to have their content on a physical disc as opposed to digitally. It gives the feeling of actually 'owning the product' rather than leasing the digital 0's and 1's (though that's how the content providers like to view it). I'm even that way myself sometimes. If there is DLC out for a game, I'd prefer to have a GOTY version that has it on disc. Similarly, most of my music collection is ripped CDs that I bought. I don't want to have to depend on Apple's or Microsoft's servers telling me what I do or do not have the right to own.

How many times a month or year do you use your CD drive? How many of those times in the last year would plugging in an external CD drive have been a major inconvenience, or outright impossible?

Personally, I'd rather have the space in my computer used for something I actually use. I don't mind making the decision whether or not I'll toss a CD drive in my laptop bag when I go out. A USB key has replaced 80% of what I would have used a CD drive for anyway.

 

[chrmjenkins]

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And that is why apple will push on without you. The industry as a whole is not going to be put on hold because of some people who still use optical discs. You can be afraid all you want but there is really nothing to fear. A digital copy is just the same as a physical one. And even if servers crash they aren't going to be down forever. Sure maybe once in your life while trying to redowbload something you might be delayed a few hours maybe a day but come on apples servers aren't going to crash and they forget all of the music you purchased and apps you had and everything else.

You fit into the category of people who still think they need an optical disc drive but really you don't. Someday you will be forced to change and will then see. Having your music collection on your Mac, iPod, and a time machine backup would seem a he'll of a lot better than a box full of CDs in your closet.

I actually already have. I can't remember the last time I bought a CD. There are people (including audiophiles) who are not going to give up the physical formats easily though.

And I don't think a promise is going to assuage the fears of data loss. With physical media, the owner is in direct control of its fate. Even with their own hard disk, that can die too, but physical media is always there.

More still will balk at Apple's media quality. To this date they only offer 720p content and refuse to adopt Blu-Ray. Even if they did offer 1080p content, it likely wouldn't be blu ray quality (especially streaming).

How many times a month or year do you use your CD drive? How many of those times in the last year would plugging in an external CD drive have been a major inconvenience, or outright impossible?

Personally, I'd rather have the space in my computer used for something I actually use. I don't mind making the decision whether or not I'll toss a CD drive in my laptop bag when I go out. A USB key has replaced 80% of what I would have used a CD drive for anyway.

I actually completely agree with you. I rarely use a CD drive anyway because I don't own my own computer, but if I did, I'd use it a lot more. It would only be a minor inconvenience, however. My overall point was that its on its way out, just not yet. Maybe next gen. I'd say it has a good probability of happening on Haswell for 2013.

 

[asdf542]

Responding to you people is starting to become a part time job.

I'm done with reading any more of this, I'll see you on refresh day.

 

[Rollout]

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Ah!!! Hope for a sooner, rather than later, refresh. Hooray!

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

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And that is why apple will push on without you. The industry as a whole is not going to be put on hold because of some people who still use optical discs. You can be afraid all you want but there is really nothing to fear. A digital copy is just the same as a physical one. And even if servers crash they aren't going to be down forever. Sure maybe once in your life while trying to redowbload something you might be delayed a few hours maybe a day but come on apples servers aren't going to crash and they forget all of the music you purchased and apps you had and everything else.

You fit into the category of people who still think they need an optical disc drive but really you don't. Someday you will be forced to change and will then see. Having your music collection on your Mac, iPod, and a time machine backup would seem a he'll of a lot better than a box full of CDs in your closet.

I actually already have. I can't remember the last time I bought a CD. There are people (including audiophiles) who are not going to give up the physical formats easily though.

And I don't think a promise is going to assuage the fears of data loss. With physical media, the owner is in direct control of its fate. Even with their own hard disk, that can die too, but physical media is always there.

More still will balk at Apple's media quality. To this date they only offer 720p content and refuse to adopt Blu-Ray. Even if they did offer 1080p content, it likely wouldn't be blu ray quality (especially streaming).

How many times a month or year do you use your CD drive? How many of those times in the last year would plugging in an external CD drive have been a major inconvenience, or outright impossible?

Personally, I'd rather have the space in my computer used for something I actually use. I don't mind making the decision whether or not I'll toss a CD drive in my laptop bag when I go out. A USB key has replaced 80% of what I would have used a CD drive for anyway.

I actually completely agree with you. I rarely use a CD drive anyway because I don't own my own computer, but if I did, I'd use it a lot more. It would only be a minor inconvenience, however. My overall point was that its on its way out, just not yet. Maybe next gen. I'd say it has a good probability of happening on Haswell for 2013.

That's the point. There is always someone who isn't ready to make the switch. There will be people on here bitching and moaning that there is no more optical drive but in 2 years everyone will see how much they really never needed them to begin with.

That's also why apple will continue to make an external drive for a number of years. There are always going to be people who aren't ready for the next format or to take the plunge. You can't punish the rest of the industry for those peoples retarded fears. I really fail to see when I would really ever use a DVD drive other than if I were wanting to burn a music cd but at the same time it would be easier just to put on my iPod or iPhone and plug it into the car than to make a playlist and burn it to another cd that I'll have to keep around in the car. Funny that you mention people like physical media more but what do you think is more prone to damage a bunch of discs in your car or an iPod that is also backed up to your computer and likely has a time machine backup as well. As soon as you lose or scratch a cd your screwed. A digital copy would be much easier to re obtain

 

[chrmjenkins]

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That's also why apple will continue to make an external drive for a number of years. There are always going to be people who aren't ready for the next format or to take the plunge. You can't punish the rest of the industry for those peoples retarded fears. I really fail to see when I would really ever use a DVD drive other than if I were wanting to burn a music cd but at the same time it would be easier just to put on my iPod or iPhone and plug it into the car than to make a playlist and burn it to another cd that I'll have to keep around in the car. Funny that you mention people like physical media more but what do you think is more prone to damage a bunch of discs in your car or an iPod that is also backed up to your computer and likely has a time machine backup as well. As soon as you lose or scratch a cd your screwed. A digital copy would be much easier to re obtain

And that's something I've explained people aren't ready to accept. If they lose or scratch a CD, it's their fault. If they lose their content, it may be Apple's fault. Some people aren't willing to trust corporations like that.

 

[Prime Mover]

In my case, loss of an internal optical drive isn't a huge loss. Externals are cheap, and if you're going to need to use a disk on the go (like watching a DVD on a plane), you can quickly rip it to a dmg first.

However, I don't yet see a huge gain for going to flash/ssd storage, besides weight/size. For some people, weight is a huge deal, for some, it isn't. That's what the MacBook Air is there for. For many pro applications, halving the available hard drive space is a deal breaker. Remember that the "Pro" in the "MacBook Pro" name is supposed to indicate a computer designed with professionals in mind. And keep in mind that one of Apple's most faithful user bases are various designers. They also make some of the top selling video and audio software, both of which would be made practically unusable by shrinking hard drive size. They would effectively be crippling their own software packages. They're not going to do that.

Pros TEND to prize speed/power/space over portability. They're not concerned with squeezing the nth degree of space out of the sucker just to get a half a pound lighter.

Honestly, if they get rid of the HDs in the Pro line, they should consider renaming the line, because it just won't be suitable. Also, people are in love with the "Air" moniker, and making all the Pro line flash storage would essentially make the Air line moot. No, I think the current setup works really well:

Air - lower speed, space, and power in exchange for light weight and size
MacBook - lower speed, space, and power in exchange for low price
Pro - higher speed, space, and power in exchange for less portability and higher price.

Works for me. I think the problem is that the "Pro" line has become their standard line, and the "MacBook" has become their "cheapy" line. It shouldn't be like that. They should introduce a broader "MacBook" line.

Eh, I don't care. Whatever drive they put in the 13" will be too small for my needs. As long as I can replace it with a 500Gig or more, I'll be happy. Maybe I can get away with a 256Gig, but my sample library grows every year, so that's a bad idea. My piano is 70Gigs as it is.

But on second thought, I'm not sure 2011 is quite ready to ditch physical media either. You only have to look at the number of people in line at Blockbuster to realize that. I'm sure that will change fairly soon, but I don't quite see it yet. Floppies was one thing because basically it was replaced by CDs/DVDs, But streaming 4Gigs of DVD over the internet still takes a long time. Maybe fine for watching movies in realtime, not so great for downloading 4-DVD software packages. Even then, internet speeds in my area aren't so hot, if I watch something online, I have to stop and buffer a lot. So in 2011, streaming isn't quite as nice as physical media. Check back in 2012 or 2013.

 

[yoowho]

maybe they become one ???

Any chance that the macbook pro 13" and macbook air 13" become one???

 

[fblack]

Those of you who think Apple can't drop DVD and HDs at the same time - you haven't been around long, have you? Apple has a long history of being the first to drop obsolete tech.

-Actually I've had apple computers for over 20 years. I'm not saying they won't ever drop optical and normal HDs. I don't think anyone on this thread has said that. It just seems imho that to do that in the next refresh would be a little too early.

I'll make the case here:

1 - DVD/CD - this is a given. It's so trivial hardly worth spelling out here. DVDs and CDs are not needed in 2011 - the Mac App store removes the last reason to have them, installing software. A DVD will not be built into the next MBP - end of story. I personally can't believe they've waited so long - I haven't used my DVD drive in 2 years, and have actually replaced mine with an optibay SSD. Those who still use them for whatever reason - get an external drive.

-Well, I use DVDs to give to other members of my family copies of family videos. Not everyone in the world is computer savvy and believe it or not, there are still some people who don't own computers. However, my parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts can handle a DVD player. So yea, there are people who still use DVDs and it will be a serious challenge for some people in the older generations when everything finally goes digital.

-I also play games on my Windows partition, and well I have plenty of games that require the DVD in the drive.

2 - SSDs. I think there's a case to be made where 256GB is "enough".

-It sounds to me that what you want and need is a MacBook Air.

Sure you can use more if you are working in some fringe area of computing - but then you can probably shell out for a 512GB or even larger SSD too as you are a professional and use the computer for work.

-Sure because money grows on trees.

The only other reason to use more is gigantic music collections or wanting to carry your 4TB of pirated movies around everywhere you go. Apple figures people don't generally want to do that, and I tend to agree. I watch movies once, then move them to external storage - but I realize I might as well delete them as I never watch them again for the most part.

-I don't often watch movies over again, but I do tend to watch television shows over again, especially certain episodes that I really liked.

If you give up on carrying large movie collections around, 256GB is enough

-But I enjoy watching Venture Brothers, Invader Zim, etc., and I like that I carry all that variety with me and that gives me choice if I want to watch something.

-I also have a Windows partition with about 33GB worth of games that I enjoy lugging around. This doesn't include programs, audio recordings, music, my Photoshop work, my artwork, my photos and other projects. So 256 right now is a bit tight for me.

-Sure I think things are going to move more towards cloud computing and storing stuff in the cloud and therefore giant hard drives wont be necessary. But I'm not sure its going to happen with the next refresh, Maybe when Steve Jobs' fully operational Death Star<ahem> I mean data center comes online.

 

[Jdstew1234]

I'm in a similar boat.

I have a 2007 MacBook, 2.16Ghz with CTO 2GB RAM. I'm hoping for a 15" quad core, USB3 and perhaps faster firewire. That would be pretty tempting to upgrade to. If there's no quad-core then I'm more likely to hold off and wait longer. My machine does feel a bit old as well.

I doubt it, the simplest answer is the best answer, I bet dual core or quad core for a crazy expensive price and NO USB 3 because it is so new

 

[blue22]

history repeats...

... My overall point was that its on its way out, just not yet. Maybe next gen. I'd say it has a good probability of happening on Haswell for 2013.

No way José, you're smoking crack if you really believe that Apple won't drop the ODD in the MBP's until 24 months from now. Maybe not during this refresh but certainly by 2012 with Ivy Bridge & quad core processors in sight.

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That's also why apple will continue to make an external drive for a number of years. There are always going to be people who aren't ready for the next format or to take the plunge. You can't punish the rest of the industry for those peoples retarded fears. I really fail to see when I would really ever use a DVD drive other than if I were wanting to burn a music cd but at the same time it would be easier just to put on my iPod or iPhone and plug it into the car than to make a playlist and burn it to another cd that I'll have to keep around in the car. Funny that you mention people like physical media more but what do you think is more prone to damage a bunch of discs in your car or an iPod that is also backed up to your computer and likely has a time machine backup as well. As soon as you lose or scratch a cd your screwed. A digital copy would be much easier to re obtain

And that's something I've explained people aren't ready to accept. If they lose or scratch a CD, it's their fault. If they lose their content, it may be Apple's fault. Some people aren't willing to trust corporations like that.

People will accept it when it's no longer an option for them, and sometimes the masses have to be forced off the lawn in order to better come to grips with the new reality and greener grass just across the way. It's not like the MBP's are ever going to see a Blu-Ray drive in them, so what's the point of keeping an ODD now for broader considerations outside of this? None. Especially with portable flash drives becoming less expensive with higher capacities. So, just like that ol' floppy drive Apple kicked to the curb way back when, history will repeat itself, and soon. You'll see.

 

[chrmjenkins]

No way José, you're smoking crack if you really believe that Apple won't drop the ODD in the MBP's until 24 months from now. Maybe not during this refresh but certainly by 2012 with Ivy Bridge & quad core processors in sight.

Quad core processors are already there. Apple just has to decide to accept the TDP to incorporate them. And I conceded it may happen by Ivy Bridge, but I'm anticipating Haswell. You have to remember that Ivy Bridge is the same socket as Sandy Bridge so Apple can squeak by with a processor bump only for those models when the time comes.

People will accept it when it's no longer an option for them, and sometimes the masses have to be forced off the lawn in order to better come to grips with the new reality and greener grass just across the way. It's not like the MBP's are ever going to see a Blu-Ray drive in them, so what's the point of keeping an ODD now for broader considerations outside of this? None. Especially with portable flash drives becoming less expensive with higher capacities. So, just like that ol' floppy drive Apple kicked to the curb way back when, history will repeat itself, and soon. You'll see.

Of course they'll accept it. It's just a matter of striking a balance between how many customers you'll estrange by doing so. The Mac App Store was a good step, but I don't think they've reached critical mass yet.

 

[blue22]

Quad core processors are already there. Apple just has to decide to accept the TDP to incorporate them. And I conceded it may happen by Ivy Bridge, but I'm anticipating Haswell. You have to remember that Ivy Bridge is the same socket as Sandy Bridge so Apple can squeak by with a processor bump only for those models when the time comes.

That's a good point regarding Haswell. Still, despite the lack of hard evidence saying otherwise, Intel's roadmap history is in all likelihood pointing in the direction of a Quad-Core iXX processor being available by 2012 to fit within a 35w MBP requirement. And if that proves true then I don't see why Apple wouldn't ditch the ODD by that year's initial MBP refresh. Otherwise, your point wins out.

Of course they'll accept it. It's just a matter of striking a balance between how many customers you'll estrange by doing so. The Mac App Store was a good step, but I don't think they've reached critical mass yet.

Although I too think it's unlikely Apple would drop the ODD for this upcoming refresh, for the very same reason that you just stated, the writing is on the wall for the ODD and I believe if it isn't removed for this coming refresh it most certainly will be by the next one as enough critical mass should be plenty built up for it by then.

 

[chrmjenkins]

That's a good point regarding Haswell. Still, despite the lack of hard evidence saying otherwise, Intel's roadmap history is in all likelihood pointing in the direction of a Quad-Core iXX processor being available by 2012 to fit within a 35w MBP requirement. And if that proves true then I don't see why Apple wouldn't ditch the ODD by that year's initial MBP refresh. Otherwise, your point wins out.

I don't see ODD and quad cores would be related necessarily. If you mean to imply it will allow for added cooling, then I'm with you there. It will also allow for higher TDP GPUs. I know a lot of MBP owners who would love that.

 

[acedickson]

I just want to know when exactly and the lineup.

I'm also curious why some of you seem to think if the optical drive isn't in the system you have no way to use physical media. It seems to make more sense to me to have better battery life than an optical drive that the majority uses 10%, if that, of the time. Removing it is an addition IMO not a subtraction.Just grab an external for the times you need it.

 

[blue22]

I don't see ODD and quad cores would be related necessarily. If you mean to imply it will allow for added cooling, then I'm with you there. It will also allow for higher TDP GPUs. I know a lot of MBP owners who would love that.

Yep, I meant for the cooling aspect.

 

[orthorim]

I just want to know when exactly and the lineup.

I'm also curious why some of you seem to think if the optical drive isn't in the system you have no way to use physical media. It seems to make more sense to me to have better battery life than an optical drive that the majority uses 10%, if that, of the time. Removing it is an addition IMO not a subtraction.Just grab an external for the times you need it.

^^ that! I won't buy a new MacBook Pro with optical drive. Why would I want to carry an ODD with me at all times when I never use it? Why should I buy a brand new system, then hack it with an optibay adapter? That makes no sense to me. It's not elegant.

That's the reason I sat out the last iteration.

 

[genosseinski]

As for me, I really don't need an optical drive anymore.
At least since the MacStore where I can easily install Office and other software there is not a real need anymore.
If I I want to watch a movie, I either go for iTunes or a normal dvd player at our TV. I mean seriously I think not many people watch full-length movies on the go. And if I desperately want to, I can still go for an external drive. The other 99% of time, I can use the gained extra space for even better battery, more space etc.

As for the hard drive, I either want a lot of space (512 GB HDD) or a small SDD. A 250 GB normal hard drive is not really enough for storing everything and again not as mobile as a SDD.

Come on Apple, I need space! Photo and music libraries don't get smaller the longer you live! Especially HDDs are so cheap, if they still go for them, they need to be big.

 

[nyctravis]

At least since the MacStore where I can easily install Office...

I thought Office wasn't available (yet?) on the app store? I'm eagerly awaiting the MBP update so I can ditch my pc, which means I don't have access to the app store yet so am not sure.

 

[dime21]

Let's see who is right at the end of the day. I think I've made my case already, see above - I don't hear any counter arguments here. "No way" is not an argument, by the way.

"Lots of people need more" isn't either - what people, and why do they need more, more importantly, why do they need a HD? Nobody's answered yet.

You are ill informed on TRIM - it's not needed. It's what wannabe geeks talk about IMO. Sounds great. But it's a dead end technologically. Managing flash storage must be the duty of the controller, not the OS. OT here but SSD controllers already do, using a variety of approaches.

how about a friendly wager then? new MBP comes with SSD as standard, and I will put "orthorim is brilliant and i am a fool." in my signature. If it comes platter HDD as standard, you will do the same but with dime21!

So how about it? Do you feel lucky?

 

[dime21]

^^ that! I won't buy a new MacBook Pro with optical drive. Why would I want to carry an ODD with me at all times when I never use it? Why should I buy a brand new system, then hack it with an optibay adapter? That makes no sense to me. It's not elegant.

That's the reason I sat out the last iteration.

I agree that a built-in laptop optical drive is no longer needed. But what I'm afraid of, is that they'll use the space for more battery. Or more of this "make it thinner" stupidity. I don't need more battery. I don't need thinner. I need more storage (and more cpu and more gpu). If they remove the optical drive in favor of a BTO second hard drive, then I'm all for it. But otherwise i would prefer to keep the ODD simply to reserve my option of swapping it for a second HDD.

 

[orthorim]

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I was simply saying you nor I know the numbers so we can't really say if it's feasible or not for apple to do ssd standard. I certainly feel it's possible they add 128gb ssd across the board, maybe 256 in higher up models. Higher cap in bto, I'm not saying they are going to put a 512gb ssd in the 13" and keep the price the same, but it is certainly feasible they go ssd across the board.

Well - we do know how Apple can make SSDs standard - using Flash memory, not actual SSDs. And we have the prices for the MacBook Air!

From that we can already say that the base low end guesstimate for a 256GB Flash based MacBook Pro is 1,599. That's the price of the 256GB MBA, and that already includes any discounts Apple might get from using bulk or doing whatever magic they're doing.

So we know it's not going to be less than that - the Intel processor is expensive, and a high end larger screen is, also, graphics cards and so on. I think a 256GB MBP at 15" is going to be more like 1800 at least, and the 512GB based one could then be 2,200 or 2,300. I know, less than I previously thought.

I'd also be thrilled about a $3k 1TB Flash option - imagine that. That would be the PC laptop killer, the ultimate mobile workstation, nothing could touch it. Ah, we can dream right

 

[ichliebe]

$3k 1TB .,..good!

 

[moosez3]

Late last month, we reported that we had received word of tightening MacBook Pro supplies, suggesting that an update to Apple's popular notebook line might be coming in the near future.

Information has continued to flow in regarding tightening supplies, with Japanese blog Macotakara reporting today that supplies in Japan are now pushing out to 2-3 week shipping estimates. The site also reports that the following Sandy Bridge configurations are likely for update MacBook Pros:

Also getting attention today is a BestBuy inventory screen pointing to a March 11th in-stock date for what may be a revised version of the entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro. We received word of the same database entry about ten days ago, but have little faith in its accuracy, as the company did the exact same thing in early 2010, guessing at a March 14th date for new models. The update didn't actually occur until a month after the proposed date.

BestBuy's predicted date from 2010
The other wildcard in the MacBook Pro update situation is Intel's "design error" that has forced the company to fix its manufacturing process for one of the chips in the chipset being used the Sandy Bridge processors presumably destined for the next-generation MacBook Pros and iMacs. A delay in availability of Sandy Bridge chipsets could easily push back MacBook Pro updates from Apple's original target date and result in an extended period of tight supplies of the current models.

Article Link: Best Buy Guesses at a March MacBook Pro Release Date as Supplies Constrain

Just like Last year
SURPRISE!

 

[D'Illusion]

The i7 2820QM is a mobile CPU. Apple should be designing laptops to fit this level of CPU like most other manufacturers are. Not designing some 'thin' thing so some trendy fool can look cool in Starbucks with their 'Pro' laptop.

Pro my arse.