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Yes, quad core mobile Core i7 laptops are here or almost here (said to ship in November, I haven't seen any confirmation that they're readily available).

These use the Clarksfield45nm mobile Core i7 CPU.

Arrandale is a 32nm dual core part.

So yes, the Windows Core i7 mobile chips are different from the upcoming chip. The HP Envy (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2009/11/16/review_laptop_hp_envy_15/) is one such system.

So, we're only getting DualCore yet again, no Quad's??
 
Isnt i7 mobile chip already release on window laptop? So are window i7 different from the i7 that is due in jan?

If you're referring to the Alienware laptop with the i7, that uses a desktop i7. In other words, you get about 10 seconds of battery life with it.
 
Core i5/i7 is definitely a big step up from my (Merom) Core 2. I'll be watching the specs...
 
256GB SSD would double the price to the OEM.
You must have missed the reports of Apple manipulating the Flash market.

In any event I put forward this, the price of SSD's is extremely high because the manufactures are trying to recover their development costs. Not the Flash chip makers (flash chips aren't that expensive) but rather the drive and chip set manufactures.

If Apple rolled their own chipset for interface the flash and put that on a simple PC board the drive would be reasonably priced. What needs to be noted here is that writes speed isn't that important for a SSD used this way. For an SSD that simply acts mostly as a read only file, the read speed is what is important. Fast read speeds can be achieved with low cost Flash and the proper controller arrangement.
With 500GB drives @ $70 retail Apple will be using HDD for a while.
I was pretty damn clear that Apple wouldn't be discontinuing the use of HDD. they would simply be relegated to data storage, user files and the like. The stark reality is that it is not possible to build a reasonably priced high capacity SSD at the moment and user demand for storage is sky rocketing. I hardly see HDD going away anytime soon for most users.
You can always drop in your own SATA solution (AFAIK, there's no standard PCI daughtercard interface for SSD)

There is a standard PCI-Express card format for use in portables. What you put on the card is up to you. Many of the netbooks on the market use the format for SSD storage. It is a feature that makes the netbooks feel fast at the expense of mass storage.


dave
 
I'm not sure what you are missing here but these new CPU's should offer a significant improvement in the same way that the architecture did on the iMacs. In any event read up on i5 & i7 and what they bring to the table.

dave
I've read about them, but I'm still not sure it's something I would pay a premium for.

My point, at least I think, is that since the macbook's aren't updated too often, that we will be stuck with these stinky chips for years. I want to scroll Firefox without hesitation. I want Handbrake not to take all night. I want quad-core. After living with this slow C2D piece of macbook, I'm not sure I could buy a computer without it.
 
Your happiness is what is important.

I like the Air except that the RAM is limited... If the Air had upgradable RAM I likely would have bought one last time. The other limitations of Air don't effect me.

Actually on a Mac 2GB of RAM isn't that bad. What really burns my @$$ with respect to AIR is the total lack of any hard wireable port for high speed connection to external storage. It is the one thing I can't ignore about AIR as even with my MBP I travel with an external HDD all the time.

Right now that means either a Firewire or Ethernet port.

On the flip side, Apples last upgrade to AIR (with the NVIDIA chipset) did eliminate many issues with the AIR. The device certainly has potential, but right now it is way overpriced in my mind considering what it provides. What AIR could really use is a Light Peak connection.

Dave
 
Just ordered a 13" MBP 2.53ghz w/ 4gb, 250gb for $1300 AR w/ free printer and WMware fusion at Macconnection. Really wondering if I should cancel this order. Been debating because of the new chips in January. Wont really be needing a laptop the whole month of January anyways.

What I am concerned with is, has any of the past updates upped the ram and hd space? Would really like to see a better graphics card, but I any speculation on whether 4gb of ram and 250gb hd will be standard?

I really want to get in on the entry level price point on the MBP just wondering what other people are speculating. Right now at $1300 I get a lot of the extras basically topping out the current MBP 13" for 200 less than retail.

I assume you need the machine now. You should not cancel your order. You just ordered yourself a wonderful and superfast laptop.

Yes a faster revision will be out, probably in Q1 2010, after that an even faster revision in Q3 2010, after that an even faster revision in Q1 2011 etc. etc. You should buy a Mac exactly when you need it. Except when theres a huge, gamechanging update ahead (such as when Apple went from PPC to Intel). This isn't such a time.

Right now is a great time to buy a Mac. Sounds like you got yourself a great deal. Enjoy it. Relax.
 
If you have a near-headless, wireless, battery backup Mac in say a thick iPod Touch form factor, you stuff a Core i7 in there so you have CPU, GPU, SSD in a dense chipset. You add a HDD for mass storage.

What you end up with is a ramdisc based computer where the disc access is no longer the bottleneck so you don't even realize that the lower Ghz lower wattage, lower TDP chip is even slower. Because the SYSTEM is not.

Need access to a CD or DVD? USB or wireless. Need to display HD video on a HDTV? MDP or Light Peak, or store-forward an hour in advance via 802.11n.

Dock it for continuous use or go portable for convenience or multi-site use.

Oh, one more thing, you have unlimited storage and co-processor purchase capacity in the cloud.

Thin client redefined. Client-server reignited.

Merely Rocketman
 
I understand the need for speed, but you will need to see shipping hardware to judge.

I've read about them, but I'm still not sure it's something I would pay a premium for.

My point, at least I think, is that since the macbook's aren't updated too often, that we will be stuck with these stinky chips for years. I want to scroll Firefox without hesitation. I want Handbrake not to take all night. I want quad-core. After living with this slow C2D piece of macbook, I'm not sure I could buy a computer without it.

I'd take a wait and see attitude. Basically this thread is built on rumors and as such we really don't know what the future holds. Arrandale should offer SMT which would provide for 4 hardware threads in the i7 variant. That would be a minimal configuration to cause me to upgrade.

In a nut shell I think you are right the i5 variant won't offer up the speed boost people are hoping for. It will be faster that C2D but not significantly so. Worst a dual core i5 with no SMT really isn't ready for the OS improvements seen in Snow Leopard (SL). The difference will only get wider as Apple improves upon SL and the app developers come around. The new iMacs and Snow Leopard clearly demonstrate the importance of hardware threads.

In any event I still believe that Arrandale will be plugged into the low end hardware. Otherwise I think many people will walk away with the same attitude you have which is where is the beef. It is pretty stupid to go into the next decade with SL installed on machines with two cores supporting no more than two threads total.


Dave
 
Just ordered a 13" MBP 2.53ghz w/ 4gb, 250gb for $1300 AR w/ free printer and WMware fusion at Macconnection. Really wondering if I should cancel this order. Been debating because of the new chips in January. Wont really be needing a laptop the whole month of January anyways.

What I am concerned with is, has any of the past updates upped the ram and hd space? Would really like to see a better graphics card, but I any speculation on whether 4gb of ram and 250gb hd will be standard?

I really want to get in on the entry level price point on the MBP just wondering what other people are speculating. Right now at $1300 I get a lot of the extras basically topping out the current MBP 13" for 200 less than retail.

I'm sure you'll be able to get just as good a deal in the "refurb" store after the new specs are released.
 
I assume you need the machine now. You should not cancel your order. You just ordered yourself a wonderful and superfast laptop.

Yes a faster revision will be out, probably in Q1 2010, after that an even faster revision in Q3 2010, after that an even faster revision in Q1 2011 etc. etc. You should buy a Mac exactly when you need it. Except when theres a huge, gamechanging update ahead (such as when Apple went from PPC to Intel). This isn't such a time.

Right now is a great time to buy a Mac. Sounds like you got yourself a great deal. Enjoy it. Relax.

Agreed.

I can't wait until tomorrow when my new MBP arrives. For what i use a computer for, and especially for the deal I got, I'll be perfectly happy for the next few years with my new MBP.
 
For those wondering how these may be better then a C2D or holding out for a quad:

These are 32nm chips, compared to 45nm for C2D. Smaller, less heat, more efficient etc. All that goes along with a die shrink. Also, its the Westemere (Nehalem shrink) uARCH which in itself is better then the Penryn C2D uARCH. Also it may only be dual core but its 4 threaded because they have Hyper Threading. Also there are no planned Quad cores coming out on Westmere. All 2c/4T for the mid to main stream and the 6c/12t for the high end. The next native quad core won't be coming out till the Sandy Bridge uARCH.


So In addition to turbo boost, these support 2 more threads (essentially the quadcore u all want) than Core2s that are currently in the MBPs.
 
Quad core

How will these new chips be better than the C2D, besides the Turbo Boost? When I look at them all I see is a slightly more efficient C2D. What's the improvement? Why aren't they quad-core? The clock speed surely hasn't changed or has gotten worse, and TB seems more like a tiny boost. I don't get how these dual-core are any different than the C2D.

These processors are dual core processors but with hyperthreading so 2 pysical cores and 2 logical quad core processor.

They will be alot faster than C2D chips due to some clever tech which allows for more to be done per core and clock cycle
 
I hope these make it into the 13", in some form. I'm really excited to upgrade my 06 CoreDuo macbook...

Same here! I got my white CoreDuo MB in Summer '06, so by January '10 it'll be about three and a half years old...though I'm eyeing the 15", now that I have some money. My MB is kinda limping along right now (battery doesn't hold charge, display flickers, etc.).
 
If this is January, with a roughly 8 month lifecycle, would that then mean Light Peak comes Late 2009 for the MBP?
Intel gets to make a Lhght Peak interface SSD, keeps Intel sweet and maybe there will be some decent graphics for MBP by then. With Apple's work on the iMac, they could bring in the Light Peak interface to new ACDs, iMacs, Mac Pros pretty quick, no?
 
Actually on a Mac 2GB of RAM isn't that bad. What really burns my @$$ with respect to AIR is the total lack of any hard wireable port for high speed connection to external storage. It is the one thing I can't ignore about AIR as even with my MBP I travel with an external HDD all the time.

Right now that means either a Firewire or Ethernet port.

On the flip side, Apples last upgrade to AIR (with the NVIDIA chipset) did eliminate many issues with the AIR. The device certainly has potential, but right now it is way overpriced in my mind considering what it provides. What AIR could really use is a Light Peak connection.

Dave

I'll start by saying that my MBA is the best laptop that I have ever owned (I have owned dozens)... and none is in 2nd place. My 2nd laptop is a 15" MBP and I do not like it 1% as much as the Air. I also have a 15" ThinkPad... which I have not used in months (and have no intention to start).

I have no problems with ports on mine. I almost never use any. I would like a longer battery life... but honestly, I have never even come close to running out given my usage model. I would guess that I get over 3 hours. I would not be happy to tradeoff the low weight for a longer battery life.

In the past, I would always use a single laptop for both work and private use. Since I got the MBA, my 15" MBP only gets used for work. I find it too uncomfortable for casual use.

I think the MBA would be too limited if it was my only machine. I have a desktop at home (2TB 27" iMac) and I have a 7.5TB home media server, and a 2TB TC. I find the MBA is a perfect compliment to owning a larger home machine that holds all of my data... and I also think that having a Mobile Me iDrive works very well to connect the two.

/Jim
 
How about the NVidia GTS 250M for graphics:

http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTS-250M.17669.0.html

TDP is 27W, a bit higher than the 9600M 25W, with 96 stream processors compared to 32 in the 9600M. Additionally the idle power and low work consumption has supposedly been cut in half, being based on the newer NVidia core. It also officially supports OpenCL on the windows side at least, which the 9600M doesn't AFAIK. There is also a 260M with 10W more TDP amd a GT 330M (rebranded 240M) with 23W TDP.

The GT3XX are coming very soon, not sure if there will be mobile parts to go with them on release, I kind of doubt it.

The ATI options perhaps:

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-4830.14954.0.html
http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-4670.13881.0.html

Seems to have a TDP of ~27W. 64 stream processors I think. I've seen no rumors about the HD5XXX mobile processors.

Will apple be able to correctly support the hardware H.264 in these chips, and can they ever support a hybrid-SLI type mode!!! A large part of the problem with graphics is not the hardware, but Apple's glacial inability / incompetence to support this hardware in their drivers. This often results in very poor performance for graphics heavy tasks (3D rendering, compositing etc.) which Apple charges heavy premiums for.
 
Macbook CHristmas

omggg i was gona get a Macbook pro 13 inch for christmas ... rethinking it now , so anyway i saw this post "macconnection.com" is it trustworthy site? and i live in australia not sure if they ship here? can sumone help me? anyone kno a site wher i can get a cheap macbook pro wif mad offers like the free printer and freee fusion on macconnections
, but can ship to australia
Just ordered a 13" MBP 2.53ghz w/ 4gb, 250gb for $1300 AR w/ free printer and WMware fusion at Macconnection. Really wondering if I should cancel this order. Been debating because of the new chips in January. Wont really be needing a laptop the whole month of January anyways.

What I am concerned with is, has any of the past updates upped the ram and hd space? Would really like to see a better graphics card, but I any speculation on whether 4gb of ram and 250gb hd will be standard?

I really want to get in on the entry level price point on the MBP just wondering what other people are speculating. Right now at $1300 I get a lot of the extras basically topping out the current MBP 13" for 200 less than retail.
 
I think the GT 240M is a likely choice for the higher-end models. It's the direct successor the 9600M GT anyway, and has roughly the same TDP. (GTS 250M is likely too hot, although it would be sweet) It has 48 SP's instead of 32 on the 9600, and it's GT200 based.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GT-240M.17654.0.html


Should be a solid 50% performance boost across the board compared to the 9600M, and nothing need change as far as the enclosure goes. The ATI cards are all 55nm, which will hurt their performance/watt compared to these. While I'm sure a 40nm mobility 56** card is coming, it's looking like that won't be here for January.
 
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