For those on the fence -- early vs. late 2011 vs. 2012 MBP

[fjs08]

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Does the delay in Ivy Bridge men a delay in a 15" MBP/MBA??
Frank

 

[niuniu]

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Does the delay in Ivy Bridge men a delay in a 15" MBP/MBA??
Frank

Possibly not. We'll see two updates this year, one could well be Sandy and the later one Ivy..

 

[Adamantoise]

xxBurtonxx's post has all relevant information. I think for a laptop 200-250 ppi could be considered retina, since the normal viewing distance is higher than on the iPhone.

As far as I am concerned, I would consider a doubling of the resolution from the current MBPs as "retina", even if this would be more of a marketing term. My point is that compared to a normal bump in the resolution, e.g. when going from 1440x900 to 1680x1050, a doubling of the resolution would require new technology to keep applications and fonts at a reasonable size. This is exactly what Apple implemented in iOS.
It is different from just selling a screen with a higher resolution where everything appears smaller.

Driving a higher resolution screen is hardware. Making fonts appear smoother is all software.

In other words it really boils down to whether or not Apple can find a suitable GPU and Panel at a price point that customers are willing to pay.

 

[thundersteele]

In other words it really boils down to whether or not Apple can find a suitable GPU and Panel at a price point that customers are willing to pay.

Yes, this is a fair statement.

The integrated intel HD 4000 should be able to drive a "retina" display, although it might affect performance and the number of external screens that can be powered. The ATI 7XXX GPUs will also be able to power such displays.

I'm more skeptical on the panel side. Based on the current iPad rumors, 10'' panels seem to be available at an acceptable price - about a year later than expected. It wouldn't make sense to only provide the smallest 13'' MBP with the high-end panel, so they would at least need a 15'' retina display. I will be very surprised if we see a retina MBP in 2012.

 

[thundersteele]

Possibly not. We'll see two updates this year, one could well be Sandy and the later one Ivy..

The MBP is still relatively new, and would be fine without update through June/July. They might consider bumping the base RAM to 8 GB on the Pros, making these machines more attractive, but I think that's unlikely.

The Air is a bit older, but I don't know if any low voltage Sandy Bridge CPUs are available that would be an upgrade from the current models. If you look at the buyers guide, the Air has a quite irregular refresh cycle, so also here I wouldn't expect a new model.