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Ultra-Portable MacBook Likely at Macworld San Francisco 2008?
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What about Asus Eee PC, thats $399 and is great!
If I could get an Apple branded one with OSX I would buy it today!
Thats exactly what I want. I want an iMac at home for web development and work, and somthing with a proper screen, min 800x480 res screen and wi-fi for web browsing, calender, notes, odd bit of coding when on the move or just pottering around the house.
I really want an Asus Eee PC and you can tell (look at sig) but i think i should wait to see what apple brings, it may be worth double the money to just have a glowing Apple on the lid and OSX.
BWhaler
macrumors 68040
How is that even possible? You do understand Apple hasn't released anything and this rumor has been around for two years.
I hate to say it, but it's totally true.
Spaces is an absolute train wreck.
The Asus Eee is a 900Mhz Celeron (single core, limited cache) processor, 512MB of RAM, 7" 800x600 screen, 4GB SDD. There is absolutely no comparison in specs. The device I described will have 4 to 5 times more processor horsepower, up to 8x the RAM, up to 16x larger SSD, almost 4x the screen surface area and resolution. This is a good approximation of what to expect in January, and with all those multipliers I listed alone you can see how the Apple ultraportable (if/when it is unveiled) will easily cost 5 times the Asus. This is not taking into account extras like dedicated graphics, aluminum casing, and so on.
Despite that, I can agree with you that there is a market for a smaller screen, lesser capable device (like the tablet concept floated here). Some would argue that the iPhone or iPod Touch are that device already. Either of those can beat out the Asus Eee PC in almost every spec already except screen size and resolution. An iPod Touch-like tablet with 6"-8" screen sounds like what you're interested in. Come to think of it, I'd probably buy one of those too 🙂
Clive At Five
macrumors 65816
A. Don't trick yourself (or anyone else here) into thinking the CPU in the iPhone is comparable in any way to a desktop-class (or even laptop-class) Core 2 Duo. It (and ARMs/SOCs like it) are designed to uni-task: they don't handle a wide range of computing tasks well. And remember the Megahertz Myth: Equal clock speed does not mean equal power.
B. Don't trick yourself (or anyone else here) into thinking the "OS X" in the iPhone is comparable in any way to the desktop-class OS X. They may share certain APIs, kernel, and processing layers, but the OS X in the iPhone is missing so many of the components that make the full version desktop-ready.
As ARMs and SOCs become more advanced they'll be able to take on more of the full requirements of OS X. The iPhone's small size really limits what what it can do. While I do think there will be some minor hardware enhancements (faster connection speeds & bigger capacity), I believe this is about as good as the iPhone OS will get.
As for a tablet with a bigger screen, there's more room to manipulate and maneuver. Tablets could become a very powerful computing tool with time, though it'll still be limited to the tasks that take up less space than that of a sheet of paper - limited Photoshop, limited gaming, limited movie-editing - but could prosper very well at other tasks - word processing, web browsing, Excel sheets, iPhoto browsing, casual gaming, movie watching, etc.
-Clive
happydude
macrumors 65816
how is spaces a train wreck? i use it all the time with no problems and find it ridiculously useful when putting together manuals requiring screen shots (an unfortunately tedious and boring part of my job). at any rate, space for me is a life saver and would be amazing to have a 12" laptop with spaces to allow me to continue my work on the road (right now working on 24" imac).
MrCrowbar
macrumors 68020
Ultra portable NOT a tablet!
Why is it that soon as some rumor mentions Apple releasing an "ultra portable" everyone writes about a "tablet pc"???
First of all, I don't think it's everyone, perhaps just the same handful of techno geeks(no offense) writing those posts.
And second of all...WHO needs a friggin tablet??? When was the last time you EVER saw a person walking around with a tablet? I bet NEVER.
Seriously. Tablets don't have full keyboards. They are gimmicks at best.
People WANT to be able to TYPE on a keyboard and look at a screen. If Apple gets rid of the optical drive and thins the laptop to a ridiculous degree that should satisfy those that want ultra portability. For those that want even smaller...get an iphone or ipod touch. Really.
Of course NO ONE knows what Apple will release or if they will release ANYTHING close to the rumor. Heck...maybe they will release a tablet some time down the road. The iphone and ipod touch are kinda tablet like. But at least those fit in your pocket. I just don't see the need or desire for a tablet.
Ultra portable laptop yes...tablet no. But thats just me.
I'm in the market for a new apple laptop. I can wait to see what happens in January at Macworld. I like the portability of the macbook alot...but would prefer a dedicated graphics card. If Apple does release an ultra portable, I am sure it will be thinner and lighter...but it may be even LESS powerful than even the macbook. For me, I want portability since I travel alot, but I also want alittle power too. Right now the macbook is it. So I'd probably choose that over the ultra portable since the difference in weight and size shouldn't be too great. I do hope that the macbook does get a dedicated graphics card tho.
An ultra portable will obviously have a much smaller HD if they use a flash drive. I think the technology is super cool. But to have a laptop with a 64 meg HD would kinda suck...even with instant boot times. It'll be the first step toward the future and you KNOW Apple will make it drool worthy...but it just wouldn't be practical for me. Heck...If I'm gonna just use an ultra portable to check email...I'll just carry my iphone or ipod touch in my pocket. You see what I mean?
For those wanting a full mac os on an ultra portable...keep in mind for the smaller size, you'll have no optical drive, no ability to play dvds or cds on the road, plus a way smaller flash drive(maybe only 64 megs!!) and not alot of power to work on anything much more than emails and light light work.
Maybe it'd be cool and worth it for some. But I think the majority of people won't mind carrying a macbook in their backpacks.
Just my opinion. Can't wait till January. 🙂
Why is it that soon as some rumor mentions Apple releasing an "ultra portable" everyone writes about a "tablet pc"???
First of all, I don't think it's everyone, perhaps just the same handful of techno geeks(no offense) writing those posts.
And second of all...WHO needs a friggin tablet??? When was the last time you EVER saw a person walking around with a tablet? I bet NEVER.
Seriously. Tablets don't have full keyboards. They are gimmicks at best.
People WANT to be able to TYPE on a keyboard and look at a screen. If Apple gets rid of the optical drive and thins the laptop to a ridiculous degree that should satisfy those that want ultra portability. For those that want even smaller...get an iphone or ipod touch. Really.
Of course NO ONE knows what Apple will release or if they will release ANYTHING close to the rumor. Heck...maybe they will release a tablet some time down the road. The iphone and ipod touch are kinda tablet like. But at least those fit in your pocket. I just don't see the need or desire for a tablet.
Ultra portable laptop yes...tablet no. But thats just me.
I'm in the market for a new apple laptop. I can wait to see what happens in January at Macworld. I like the portability of the macbook alot...but would prefer a dedicated graphics card. If Apple does release an ultra portable, I am sure it will be thinner and lighter...but it may be even LESS powerful than even the macbook. For me, I want portability since I travel alot, but I also want alittle power too. Right now the macbook is it. So I'd probably choose that over the ultra portable since the difference in weight and size shouldn't be too great. I do hope that the macbook does get a dedicated graphics card tho.
An ultra portable will obviously have a much smaller HD if they use a flash drive. I think the technology is super cool. But to have a laptop with a 64 meg HD would kinda suck...even with instant boot times. It'll be the first step toward the future and you KNOW Apple will make it drool worthy...but it just wouldn't be practical for me. Heck...If I'm gonna just use an ultra portable to check email...I'll just carry my iphone or ipod touch in my pocket. You see what I mean?
For those wanting a full mac os on an ultra portable...keep in mind for the smaller size, you'll have no optical drive, no ability to play dvds or cds on the road, plus a way smaller flash drive(maybe only 64 megs!!) and not alot of power to work on anything much more than emails and light light work.
Maybe it'd be cool and worth it for some. But I think the majority of people won't mind carrying a macbook in their backpacks.
Just my opinion. Can't wait till January. 🙂
Brianstorm91
macrumors 65816
Digital Skunk
macrumors G3
Honestly... I have seen three people using tablets. I can't say that they love them or not, but they do use them, and much of the features tablets offer.
I should say convertable notebooks, not tablets. Those machines have the very useful and practical keyboard and trackpad. The illustrator I know uses his to draw directly onto his screen.
I think there is a need for both machines, a convertable notebook that can flip its screen around and become a tablet. Not an ordinary tablet though. I don't think many people want an over sized iPhone.
I should say convertable notebooks, not tablets. Those machines have the very useful and practical keyboard and trackpad. The illustrator I know uses his to draw directly onto his screen.
I think there is a need for both machines, a convertable notebook that can flip its screen around and become a tablet. Not an ordinary tablet though. I don't think many people want an over sized iPhone.
minutePulsation
macrumors member
Apple please dont give me a Tablet.
Also there is no need for a high power ultra portable, what are you going to do on an ultra portable that needs the power?
Also there is no need for a high power ultra portable, what are you going to do on an ultra portable that needs the power?
So are they supposedly just releasing a new ultraportable or are they re-doing their whole MBP line?
So now we have Mac Pro redos and Ultraportable Macs. Would they drastically change two lines in one keynote?
I guess they did with the iPod line, but that was only one line.
I guess they did with the iPod line, but that was only one line.
Digital Skunk
macrumors G3
Right. Who wants an 11.1" notebook to use Photoshop on that has a battery life of 4 hours at best? It needs to be a long lasting portable beast. Something that can really be unplugged for at least 8 hours straight.
Paragraphs please.... seriously. There is no way I can read this post becasue it hurts my eyes and I get lost in a sea or words. It looks interesting, but it's just too hard to read without paragraphs and direction. I will check out the links though.
Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster believes that the likelihood of an ultra-portable MacBook is about 85% at Macworld San Francisco.
Munster bases this prediction on circulating rumors about the ultraportable MacBook that have been making the rounds amongst Mac rumor sites over the past few months.
The new ultraportable MacBooks are rumored to be aluminum clad, 50% lighter and "strikingly slimmer" than the existing 15" MacBook Pros. They are also expected to incorporate NAND Flash memory to improve battery life and boot times.
Macworld San Francisco takes place January 14-18th 2008 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, CA.
Article Link
Sounds cool to me, only thing I'd still like to know is the expected price and processor speed range
ClassicMac247
macrumors 6502
AHHHHHH!!!! All this macworld hype has me so psyched!!! New macbooks are fine as long as they dont replace the current ones!😱 
Rock On
Rock On
bluedoggiant
macrumors 68030
i bet you they are doing both, big revision to the MB, and either an update to the MBP, which is likely, but what gets me, is that the MBP hasnt had a major revision in a while, so you would expect that, but if you think about it, the MBP seems pretty well darn perfect, i have the 15 inch MBP 2gb ram, 2.16GHZ
Oooooh, a giant iPhone with a dock, maybe an optional slide-out keyboard or screen chiklets. Ooooh oooh ohhhhhhhh splat! splat! splat! splat!
What?
I bought one. Still using it daily. Even use it to edit video on the newest version of FCP Studio. Best laptop they ever made. To bad you didn't buy one, then you would appreciate its value. Runs Leopard fine, too. Apple will have to impress me with something pretty awesome to make me let this one go. The MacBook just didn't cut it.
I bought one. Still using it daily. Even use it to edit video on the newest version of FCP Studio. Best laptop they ever made. To bad you didn't buy one, then you would appreciate its value. Runs Leopard fine, too. Apple will have to impress me with something pretty awesome to make me let this one go. The MacBook just didn't cut it.
Jackou
macrumors newbie
Keyboard
Now why would the ultra-portable mb keep a keyboard if it's got touch screen just like the iPhone?! To waste some space??
Come on if you take the keyboard off you'll get an apple all in one and not all in... two, wich sounds quite imposing....
Tink about it: keyboard or touchscreen make your choice(the iPhone hasn't got a keyboard lol)
Now why would the ultra-portable mb keep a keyboard if it's got touch screen just like the iPhone?! To waste some space??
Come on if you take the keyboard off you'll get an apple all in one and not all in... two, wich sounds quite imposing....
Tink about it: keyboard or touchscreen make your choice(the iPhone hasn't got a keyboard lol)
would these be too small for optical drives cus im gunna buy a macbook soon and i don't want to carry around a cd/dvd burner, as im sure that no other university student/student will want to/be able to do this..
NONE, no chance at all that this product gets released. It is not because Intel releases a motherboard that could become one that apple will use it in its production. Get real people, stop dreaming. An ultra portable from Apple will not happen. Scrapyard these rumors! We've heard them for 3 years now ... Bluntly dissappointing. For technology to allow full/broad market production this one you need to wait at least another 2 years (cooling, battery, reliable flash drives, etc.)