New Entry-Level Mac Notebook Expected to Adopt Retina Display, Likely Launch at WWDC in June

[Lancer]

Right now I don't see the point go the MBA, its meant to be a compact and light laptop but its neither of those things when compared to the MacBook. Its also slow and has an outdated screen. Now wiht an internal upgrade like this its back on many peoples shopping list. We were warned off the MacBook and MBA because when it comes to speed they can't compete with the MacBook Pro.

But none of this helps me as I need something for a road trip in a few months and might have to try my luck with a 'preloved' MBP on eBay!

 

[subjonas]

Wouldn't it be cheaper to just offer the MacBook at a lower price and stop selling the Air?

The air will probably retain the old body, battery, fans, ports, trackpad, and keyboard, with probably only slight updates to the logic board, cpu, and maybe ssd and ram. The only major upgrade being the retina screen. I can see this keeping the cost significantly lower than the rMB’s newer tech. My guess is it will take a couple more years for the retina MacBook to come down to sub $1000, and this is Apple giving the air one last update to hold it over.

 

[Abazigal]

Ming Chi Kuo’s sources are from the supply chain side. There is no way he has any intel on what the final product will cost.

 

[Loge]

Just to put another perspective on things.
I really want a new MBPr to replace my 2012 MBPr (maxed out), but:

- still only a quad-core (I'd be upgrading nothing)
- still only 16GB (I'd be upgrading nothing)

We need the same approach that brought us the iMac Pro applied to the MBP. But it looks like it's not happening.

 

[mscice]

this is great news!! I have a MBA for last 5 years.. i7/256/8gb I have to say I replaced the battery in it, but i think this is the best product Apple created.

My brother has a 2017 MBP without touchbar and his fans are kicking in almost all the time... its annoying.

I will be getting this new laptop, and max out all settings.

 

[NamE_O]

If true then the 12” MacBook will need some serious improvements to even compete with this 13.3” rMBA, especially at its current price range of 1299-1599$.

 

[BornAgainApple]

Still no sign of a redesigned Mac mini

 

[Ploki]

We need the same approach that brought us the iMac Pro applied to the MBP. But it looks like it's not happening.

Agreed. I'd buy an iMac Pro in a heart-beat, if it didn't come with a giant screen attached...
I'd buy a trashcan Mac Pro in a heart-beat, if it only had TB3 ports and a price-point of 2013 hardware.

Apple at this moment doesn't offer a feasible pro-machine except the iMac Pro, which you have to take with the (albeit gorgeous) 27" screen.

 

[simonmet]

Just to put another perspective on things.
I really want a new MBPr to replace my 2012 MBPr (maxed out), but:

- still only a quad-core (I'd be upgrading nothing)
- still only 16GB (I'd be upgrading nothing)

What I'm totally hyped about and think really is Pro:
- 4 TB3 ports -> (120GBPS of external bandwidth completely transformable into anything you could want!), meaning any pro can connect anything they want. You don't get ports you don't need/won't ever use. Else you wouldn't need to cram gazillion ports on it, or make a separate photography/presenter/whatever version.
- 3000mb/s+ SSD speed (fastest in the industry)
- touchbar (works wonders in pro apps such as FCPX in LPX)
- 4GB video RAM (oh yes)

what I (personally) don't think has anything to do with pro:
- HDMI (I only use it when i watch movies on TV. I can live with a dongle here). It doesn't support any contemporary resolutions really, it's like including a VGA/DVI on 2012 Laptop at this point (and the argument for VGA/DVI in 2012 was the same actually). I can't even run my packed pixels Retina off SSD because it doesn't support it. Let alone 4K and HIDPI monitors. (Or even TVs for that matter). In 2-4 years, this port will be useless, just like VGA/DVI would be in 2012 retina.
On the other hand, if you have a super-highspeed TB3 port, you can make it into any standard you want even after 5 years.
And CPU/RAM (obviously) won't be dated in 5 years (judging by how things are now)
- I don't think laptop for doing a lot of presentations needs to be Pro in terms of CPU/RAM/SSD. It needs to be portable. Would make sense to make a 12" MacBook with HDMI.
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I hope the specs means Hexa for 15" finally. It's long overdue

I think the 15” rMBP has two Thunderbolt 3 controllers for a max theoretical bandwidth of 80 GBit/s, but don’t quote me on that. Even 80 GBit/s is still a lot. These are theoretical maximums and you’d be unlikely to max out both controllers at the same time. A video card is pretty much the only thing that can come close to maxing out 40 GBit/s at this point.

4 GB VRAM isn’t really special by pro standards.

 

[maerz001]

Happy with my 2013 MBP 15inch 512 GB, 16 GB RAM with all ports. Display still looking good since I have mostly used external monitor (LG 27 inch ultra wide monitor) . No intention of replacing it sooner.

what does an external monitor have to do with the "good looking" of the build in one???
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Like the Dell XPS 13 where the lack of bezel forced them to put the camera down on the hinge so it looks up your nose when you use it? That doesn't sound like an Apple move.

for me they could axe the camera as well as the headphone jack. but put in a second usbc port

 

[Ploki]

I think the 15” rMBP has two Thunderbolt 3 controllers which means a max theoretical bandwidth of 80 GBit/s. Still a lot. These are theoretical maximums and you’d be unlikely to max out both controllers at the same time. A video card is pretty much the only thing that can come close to maxing out 40 GBit/s at this point, but don’t quote me on that.

4 GB VRAM isn’t really special by pro standards.

Oh, so 2ports 2hubs actually. disappointing

I don't know about pro video standards since i'm an audio guy so thanks on that.
Which is another point as why TB3 is what makes Pro a Pro. I don't care about it. But if a video gets it he can connect an external GPU if necessary! Everyone can morph it into what they want.

Just give me CPU and RAM, this is what all Pros need and use.

 

[berrymetal]

oh how exciting! a NEW macbook with OLD hardware to justify a cheaper price. SIGN. ME. UP.

I know a lot of people who cannot afford macOS because of the expensive hardware, so it might be useful to a specific type of consumers.
Aside from that, well, you can never make everyone happy, there will be always someone like you who whines about things

 

[Guy Clark]

A Retina MacBook Air is long overdue hopefully this is actually going to happen unlike in 2015.
http://lureofmac.com/rumors-apple-macbook-air-retina-display/

If a Retina MacBook Air is released lets hope Apple retain the current keyboard, Multi-Touch trackpad, MagSafe and USB 3.0 and possibly add a Thunderbolt 3 port topped off with an i7 Dual Core Processor and 512GB SSD. Such a machine would cause the MacBook to show its already obvious inflexibilities.

Bring it on Apple and you will go some way to restoring my faith.

 

[swingerofbirch]

Here's my fuddy duddy luddite Mac laptop wishlist:

13"
quad-core - double fans
4 USB-A ports
SD card reader
Retina display
User replaceable battery
Great keyboard

I know it will never happen because Apple is so "pure," but I think it would sell really well among people who still care about laptops and don't want to switch to Windows.

 

[Basic75]

If the MacBook Air gets a 13.3" 2560x1600 screen, I'd like to see the 13" MacBook Pro move to a 2880x1800 screen and the 15" MacBook Pro move to a 3,360x2,100 screen. I often like the extra desktop space of scaled 1440x900 on the 13" MacBook Pro and it'd be great to get that as a native scaled density.

I can't upvote this enough. Seeing that the 13" Air has 1440x900 since before the Pro went retina, this increase in resolution is long overdue.

 

[Bacillus]

We need the same approach that brought us the iMac Pro applied to the MBP. But it looks like it's not happening.

Euh? iMac Pro is an ad-interim solution for the lack of a decent, upgradeable tower design.
A nice machine specwise, but a failed, blocked development direction in the first place.
The easy/fast way to save some face.

 

[DeepIn2U]

I’ve had my air for close to 8 years. I’d easily replace my current for a retina air!

Like you I’d like a better MacBook but not another Air.

- physical trackpad; many issues with broken trackpad over time. I’ve not yet experienced this but one less movable part would be better.
- updated Thunderbolt and having USB-C would unify products.

Confusing product line.

You got that right, compliments of the Tim & team show.

Remember when they should've f**king done this in like 2014.

Yea the MBA should’ve died 3yrs ago, luckily for many of us it didn’t. Considering the exhorbitant pricing.

Wouldn't it be cheaper to just offer the MacBook at a lower price and stop selling the Air?

Exactly!!!!!

 

[manu chao]

If the MacBook Air gets a 13.3" 2560x1600 screen, I'd like to see the 13" MacBook Pro move to a 2880x1800 screen and the 15" MacBook Pro move to a 3,360x2,100 screen. I often like the extra desktop space of scaled 1440x900 on the 13" MacBook Pro and it'd be great to get that as a native scaled density.

Do you notice a difference in screen crispness between a 'simulated' 1280 x 800 and a 'simulated' 1440 x 900 resolution on your 13" retina MBP?

 

[asiga]

The price doesn't really matter when we are talking about a MacBook, but the display size does matter, and it's totally wrong. It should be 14 inch, so you'd have 12inch MB and 14inch MB for the ultralight MBs, and 13.3inch MBP and 15inch MBP for the (weird weight/performance) compromise that is the MBP nowadays.

 

[manu chao]

Euh? iMac Pro is an ad-interim solution for the lack of a decent, upgradeable tower design.
A nice machine specwise, but a failed, blocked development direction in the first place.
The easy/fast way to save some face.

I don't think that is quite the case. The iMac Pro was the official successor for the Mac Pro inside Apple for quite a while. Its development started way before the (2018) modular Mac Pro. It is said that when Apple had its press event about a year ago where they announced that a new modular Mac Pro was in the work and that an iMac Pro would come out towards the end of 2017, the decision to develop a modular Mac Pro was only a few weeks or at most a few months old (while the iMac Pro had been in the works for quite a while longer).

The iMac Pro might act like a quick stop-gap product. But that is not how it was conceived. And there definitely is a market for an iMac Pro. Almost everybody who has one really likes it.
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The price doesn't really matter when we are talking about a MacBook, but the display size does matter, and it's totally wrong. It should be 14 inch, so you'd have 12inch MB and 14inch MB for the ultralight MBs, and 13.3inch MBP and 15inch MBP for the (weird weight/performance) compromise that is the MBP nowadays.

And where in this lineup of either ultralight or (relatively) high performance laptops would a sub-$1000 laptop fit in? There is nothing wrong with the lineup you are suggesting (and maybe an ultralight 14" laptop might allow the 13" & 15" MBP to move up a bit in the performance ladder). But it still doesn't give us the $1000 laptop Apple needs.
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Here's my fuddy duddy luddite Mac laptop wishlist:

13"
quad-core - double fans
4 USB-A ports
SD card reader
Retina display
User replaceable battery
Great keyboard

You know often you are going to replace you laptop's battery? Most likely exactly once (after three or four years). Saving $50 for this because you can do it yourself instead of paying Apple to do it isn't really a feature, it's a $50 lower overall lifetime price.

 

[SBlue1]

799? This is gonna be a disposable MacBook with no upgradable parts.

 

[Stingray454]

The MacBook lineup is seriously messed up at the moment. Like many other here I'm starting to doubt apple will release a usable laptop anytime soon. Keyboard, only thunderbolt ports (= dongle hell), no touchscreens, no sd card readers, no hdmi, no nothing. And for a very high price.

I tried a hackintosh. Worked great as a desktop computer, but there are not many good alternatives for modern laptops where you can get all the hardware working, so I'm a bit reluctant to that.

At the moment I'm trying to dual-boot to linux mint. With a few tweaks you can get the look and feel of OS X, and it is honestly very very usable. I'd say you're within 90-95% of the OS X experience. Some things are better and some worse, but the hardware support is great, and for me personally, all the utilities / games and such I use are available. That pushes linux to equal to OS X imo. Keeping that door open, as there are tons of great laptops that works out of the box with linux. But I'd rather see Apple get their s**t together.

 

[kazmac]

Yay! A Mac rumor...

Huh? Another Mac laptop...

No: no Retina display, gimp the entry level with small storage, fewer ports.

For me to consider; make MBA display retina - minor upgrades to internals, keep some legacy ports.

QFT: everyone who has said how screwy the Apple laptop choices are, and no word on a Mac Mini.

 

[manu chao]

A Retina MacBook Air is long overdue hopefully this is actually going to happen unlike in 2015.
http://lureofmac.com/rumors-apple-macbook-air-retina-display/

If a Retina MacBook Air is released lets hope Apple retain the current keyboard, Multi-Touch trackpad, MagSafe and USB 3.0 and possibly add a Thunderbolt 3 port topped off with an i7 Dual Core Processor and 512GB SSD. Such a machine would cause the MacBook to show its already obvious inflexibilities.

Apple will rather throw in a USB-C to USB-A adaptor or two for free than re-add USB-A ports.

And you'd rather keep an old hardware design (MBA) to get USB-A, MagSafe, and SD-Card reader instead of (re)adding those to to the 13" MBP w/o Touchbar (which is the retina MBA in all but name)?

 

[DeepIn2U]

The day Apple killed the 17” was the day Apple started going downhill.

Lmao!

Like it was actually making Apple money, or did you forget that it’s dismal sales after 2yrs wasn’t doing anything helpful for Apple. Also consider what it would be like carrying around that beast today.