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MBP 17" revision estimations?

W

wuwwla

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 5, 2009
9
0
Going to get my first Mac with this release but since I'm on a relatively new notebook now I was wondering what you could expect in terms of revisions for the MBP 17" the coming half year or so? What kind of schedule does apple normally work after?

Any answers highly appreciated.
 
wuwwla said:
Going to get my first Mac with this release but since I'm on a relatively new notebook now I was wondering what you could expect in terms of revisions for the MBP 17" the coming half year or so? What kind of schedule does apple normally work after?

Any answers highly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Go for it now... trust me it will be over a half a year before another update.
 
Slowstick said:
Go for it now... trust me it will be over a half a year before another update.
Click to expand...

I agree, the only update in the next 18 months will be Snow Leopard, which is the new Mac operating system coming out, but noone knows for sure when its going to be released, probably this May, however when it comes out you'll be able to get it and upgrade your existing operating system anyway. I wouldnt bother waiting. I havn't.
 
wuwwla said:
Going to get my first Mac with this release but since I'm on a relatively new notebook now I was wondering what you could expect in terms of revisions for the MBP 17" the coming half year or so? What kind of schedule does apple normally work after?

Any answers highly appreciated.
Click to expand...

With the brand new 17" MBP, you are getting a BRAND NEW just released product that is the same price as the previous generation you could have bought two days ago. In fact, it will be shipping in a few weeks.

Meaning, if ever you are going to buy a Mac computer, the closer to the release date, the better the value. It could be that they sell the same MBP 17" specs now as five months from now. Sometimes they update hardware in as little as four months, but sometimes it's over six months and with the MacMini it has been over a year. So, no time like right now for the 17" MBP.

At the same time, you will be able to buy the last generation MBP in the clearance store for probably $700 less than you would have paid two days ago. Don't know for sure, but that is the way it was when they introduced the new 15.4" MBP a few months back. I would assume since they announced the new 17" MBP yesterday, the prices in the clearance store are at least that low.

I think the brand new MBP 17" is an amazing computer. With the unibody construction, the dual graphics, the faster CPU, and the anti-glare screen, it's an awesome computer. I would upgrade if I could afford it.
 
Not sure if anybody answered the precise question you asked, although I'm also not sure what type of answer you're looking for.

The next update to the 17" will involve the introduction of Intel's next big mobile processors, possibly quad core, although I'd rather have the dual core right now because they're likely to be faster. Even if they go with the dual core, expect lots of other improvements that will result in higher speed. It will probably come in June or July, although it's Apple, so perhaps August. :p

The hardware is going to stay nearly the same, but perhaps Apple will work things out with Sony regarding content protection, and they'll put the Blu-ray player in it. Also, I'd expect Apple to fix the graphics card switching feature so that you don't need to log out of your account in order to switch between the graphics card and integrated graphics chip.

Is that what you wanted to know?
 
Thanks for your anwers! - so no hardware updates (or more options) in the coming six months you'd say?

What about minor revisions? It seems like the MBP 15" had already got the keys replaced with new "curved" keys that would be present on the 17" as well (this according to the apple.com support forum).

I'd rather not be stuck with an early model with all the glitches they can have now that I have the choice to wait a little - but I can't wait for too long - so excited to enter the mac world after 15yrs on windows.
 
Abstract said:
Not sure if anybody answered the precise question you asked, although I'm also not sure what type of answer you're looking for.

The next update to the 17" will involve the introduction of Intel's next big mobile processors, possibly quad core, although I'd rather have the dual core right now because they're likely to be faster. Even if they go with the dual core, expect lots of other improvements that will result in higher speed. It will probably come in June or July, although it's Apple, so perhaps August. :p

The hardware is going to stay nearly the same, but perhaps Apple will work things out with Sony regarding content protection, and they'll put the Blu-ray player in it. Also, I'd expect Apple to fix the graphics card switching feature so that you don't need to log out of your account in order to switch between the graphics card and integrated graphics chip.

Is that what you wanted to know?
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Exactly what I wanted and don't wanted to know- can I really keep my hands off it until June, July? I would love a recordable BluRaydrive on it.
 
wuwwla said:
Exactly what I wanted and don't wanted to know- can I really keep my hands off it until June, July? I would love a recordable BluRaydrive on it.
Click to expand...

Apple wont be putting Blu-ray drives in their Macbooks for a few years. The main reason for this is that having Blu-Ray drives in the computers would conflict with the Itunes store, and the Apple media business model.
 
wuwwla said:
Thanks for your anwers! - so no hardware updates (or more options) in the coming six months you'd say?

What about minor revisions? It seems like the MBP 15" had already got the keys replaced with new "curved" keys that would be present on the 17" as well (this according to the apple.com support forum).

I'd rather not be stuck with an early model with all the glitches they can have now that I have the choice to wait a little - but I can't wait for too long - so excited to enter the mac world after 15yrs on windows.
Click to expand...

I think you haven't completely understood the comments/answers till now, it is understandable since you state you're new to the Mac world.
From an aesthetical point of view the 15" had been the same, if I'm not mistaking, since 2006(the switch to Intel) till October 08. It used to have a silver bezel and silver keys. October 08, all of Apple's portables were updated, the 13" and the 15" got the unibody structure and the black bezel,black keys that resembled the one of earlier Macbooks and Airs. The 17" stayed the same for a few months longer, till last Tuesday.
The 17" is supposed to stay this way for a few years, especially given the Matte option. If the battery solution stands in the way of selling more laptops, this could change, but I doubt it.
The pros, however, get updated from an internal hardware point of view, every 8 or so months. It also depends on Intel's roadmap. Mobile quad-core Nehalems (from what I recall) are supposed to be be assembled in this year's last Quarter or 2010's 1st Quarter. This will be a huge deal. The 17" Pro already got the .133 GHz speed bump the other portables are expecting, same would go for the iMac and more of a bump for the Mac Mini, but I could be wrong here (..as for the rest of the post). In my opinion, other than a graphics card, and I have no idea what NVidia or others are up to, the 17" could actually stay the same till quad-cores are available. I'd suggest keeping the current "new" portable for a year longer, or if anxiously wanting to jump on the Mac wagon, buy a 15" if not too small or the current 17", selling your current PC, and selling that Mac if necessary next year, if the processor upgrade is needed.
 
svndmvn said:
I think you haven't completely understood the comments/answers till now, it is understandable since you state you're new to the Mac world.
From an aesthetical point of view the 15" had been the same, if I'm not mistaking, since 2006(the switch to Intel) till October 08. It used to have a silver bezel and silver keys. October 08, all of Apple's portables were updated, the 13" and the 15" got the unibody structure and the black bezel,black keys that resembled the one of earlier Macbooks and Airs. The 17" stayed the same for a few months longer, till last Tuesday.
The 17" is supposed to stay this way for a few years, especially given the Matte option. If the battery solution stands in the way of selling more laptops, this could change, but I doubt it.
The pros, however, get updated from an internal hardware point of view, every 8 or so months. It also depends on Intel's roadmap. Mobile quad-core Nehalems (from what I recall) are supposed to be be assembled in this year's last Quarter or 2010's 1st Quarter. This will be a huge deal. The 17" Pro already got the .133 GHz speed bump the other portables are expecting, same would go for the iMac and more of a bump for the Mac Mini, but I could be wrong here (..as for the rest of the post). In my opinion, other than a graphics card, and I have no idea what NVidia or others are up to, the 17" could actually stay the same till quad-cores are available. I'd suggest keeping the current "new" portable for a year longer, or if anxiously wanting to jump on the Mac wagon, buy a 15" if not too small or the current 17", selling your current PC, and selling that Mac if necessary next year, if the processor upgrade is needed.
Click to expand...

Thanks a lot for taking the time to answer my questions. I have ordered a pretty much maxed out mbp 17 now, and can't wait to get to know the mac thoroughly.
 
To the thread starter. You know the 17" MBP was just updated four days ago, right? It seems like you posted later that you don't want to be stuck with old generation... it is brand new. It hasn't even shipped yet. They will ship at the end of January, according to Apple. So, you are getting the newest latest and greatest with a Unibody Aluminum body, 8hr battery, dual graphics, amazing display, chiclet keyboard, and etc... Look at Apple.com. Sorry if you know this, I just couldn't quite tell from your posts whether you know this or not.

Probably no Blu Ray anytime soon in a notebook from Apple. And, the new release will probably have an update with minor hardware upgrades in five or six months. They usually upgrade the CPU speed and sometimes the graphics. Since brand new model, it will probably be the same for two or three years... just minor internal upgrades.

Congrats on the new MacBook Pro... It is an amazing notebook!
 
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