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question

I do not see a whole lot of difference between the two chip sets, but the advancements to improved battery life and graphical performance will be worth it, however the cpu speeds and over clocking seem to be just about the same.

can you overclock a macbook pro cpu? just asking...

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I think apple will continue the different set between air and pro, it would hurt sales, if air and pro are very near comparable. Plus me as a pro, i dont want the drive tobe remooved and i dont need it thinner. I love my macbook pro, as it is now, just want the ivy bridge inside and 8 to 16gb ram if possible. If they take the drive away, then they should make macbook pro at least 200 dollars cheaper or whatever the price is for a external dvd drive, because this would be unfair...
 
I think spring 2012 - the line-up will look like this:

(Macbook air --> simply called Macbook, 4GB ram min. for all models, 128GB SSD min?)
Macbook - 11 inch
Macbook - 13 inch
Macbook - 15 inch


(Macbook Pro - Superdrive will stay for prosumers, better graphics, 13 gets dropped)
Macbook Pro - 15 inch
Macbook Pro - 17 inch

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I don't think they will redesign the Macbook Pro because it still looks amazing. The only thing they could do is make it thinner - but that's what the Airs are for. Plus, apple would have to drop some important ports on the pro to make it thinner (like ethernet) - which is not going to happen.

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I also don't think the iMac will see much redesign other than thinner. If you look at the current iteration of the iMacs, it is just a continuation of the previous design - but not really that different.
 
(Macbook Pro - Superdrive will stay for prosumers, better graphics, 13 gets dropped)

I've read this around the forum but the 13 inch mbp is apple's best selling laptop, especially around students, so why would they drop it?

+ i think digitimes has never been accurate with anything before.
 
I think spring 2012 - the line-up will look like this:

(Macbook air --> simply called Macbook, 4GB ram min. for all models, 128GB SSD min?)
Macbook - 11 inch
Macbook - 13 inch
Macbook - 15 inch


(Macbook Pro - Superdrive will stay for prosumers, better graphics, 13 gets dropped)
Macbook Pro - 15 inch
Macbook Pro - 17 inch

----

I don't think they will redesign the Macbook Pro because it still looks amazing. The only thing they could do is make it thinner - but that's what the Airs are for. Plus, apple would have to drop some important ports on the pro to make it thinner (like ethernet) - which is not going to happen.

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I also don't think the iMac will see much redesign other than thinner. If you look at the current iteration of the iMacs, it is just a continuation of the previous design - but not really that different.

well said...

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I've read this around the forum but the 13 inch mbp is apple's best selling laptop, especially around students, so why would they drop it?

+ i think digitimes has never been accurate with anything before.

They would drop it, cause air is a good alternative for example...
 
Do you have a MBP with a busted CD drive? A buddy of mine does (3-year old CD drive assault!), so he's always talking about his Air-like no optical experience :D

Anyway, I believe I did read that if you gen up this bootable USB drive from an Air, it can be used on non-Air machines (but I'd have to cross check that).

It's my understanding the bootable USB option (from a Windows 7 ISO) is available specifically in the Air version of Bootcamp 4.0. A friend of mine setup a Win 7 Bootcamp on his 11" Air, and then created a VM instance in Parallels from that install as well. So he can go native Windows, or Windows in OSX as he prefers. I think last time I spoke he was seriously thinking of removing his Bootcamp to recover the space.

I took out my optical drive and replaced it with a 1TB Western Digital HD. My main drive also got replaced with a 120gb Intel 320 SSD. I used the SSD for OS X boot partition (only) and the 1TB split into two partitions (850gb and 150gb, one for storage and the other for Windows 7 respectively).

I need to now reinstall windows on the 1TB but dont feel like opening up the macbook and shuffling around the hard drives multiple times. I'm expecting an enclosure for the optical drive in the mail within a couple days, so it would be nice to reinstall Windows 7 without any hassle.
 
Ivy Bridge

but will it bring Ivy Bridge with it?

It would make no sense whatsoever for Apple to update the MacBook Air with Sandy Bridge CPUs immediately before the availability of Ivy Bridge CPUs. The next update to the MacBook Air (whether or not it includes a new 15" model) will come when Apple can get enough Ivy Bridge CPUs to satisfy expected demand. That might be anytime from February to June.

Memory prices have fallen a lot during 2011, so I think we can safely expect the 2GB option to go away with the next update. 4Gbit DDR3 chips may be cheap enough by Q2 2012 for Apple to offer an 8GB BTO option for the MacBook Air, but don't expect it to be cheap.

I don't expect Apple to support USB3 because they do not want to raise the network effect value for peripheral suppliers to support USB3 because Apple have strategic interest in raising the relative network effect value of supporting Thunderbolt.

512GB SSD cards might be available by Q2 2012, but I wouldn't bet on it. A 15" MacBook Air might have two slots for SSD sticks.

It would be nice if the next MacBook Air would support dual Thunderbolt Displays, but I wouldn't count on it.
 
How would we install Windowa XP or 7? Windows will not install from an external usb dvd drive.

Yes it will. Just not officially. You can turn any external drive or penstick big enough to contain Windows into a bootdisk. As long as your BIOS/EFI supports "Boot from external device".

I have an old 500GB USB harddrive sitting around that functions as a Windows 7 install.
 
optical brick

Macbook Pro - Superdrive will stay for prosumers

With the optical brick already dropped from the Mac Mini, I don't see any chance of Apple retaining it in the MacBook Pro. I'm not sure whether or not Apple will drop the optical from the iMac in 2012 -- it might survive until 2013 in the iMac.

Sometime in 2012, there will be a thinner MacBook Pro, but still thicker than the MacBook Air and retaining ports like Ethernet -- don't expect Firewire except via a Thunderbolt dongle. The revised MacBook Pro might be tapered, but less so than the MacBook Air.
 
Having owned and still using a 15" Powerbook G4, I think the current Macbook Pro is too similar to my Powerbook, given it's been 7 years. I want something drastically different, better. A 15" Air would fit that bill. :D
 
MacBook Air --> MacBook (Rename) and 13" MBP gone!!

The hidden story here is what happens to the 13" Pro. Right no2 it's a bit of an odd product in the lineup. It's got a faster processor than the 13" Air but not by a huge factor. It has a slower (but larger capacity) hard drive, and a lower res (but higher color quality) display.

If the new 15" slim laptop replaces the 15" Pro, then I think it's pretty clear that the 13" MBP would go away and be replaced by the updated 13" Air with Ivy Bridge.

If the new 15" is branded as a 15" Air and the 15" Pro sticks around, then the 13" Pro has a chance but needs some serious upgrades to differentiate itself from the Air.

Maybe once Apple has an 11", 13", and 15" Air line from ~$1000 to ~$1500 respective starting prices, maybe they'll push the 13" and 15" Pro models to a higher price bracket?

A $1500-$1999 13" Macbook Pro with an Air-style SSD plus traditional hard drive, a discrete GPU made possible by dropping the optical drive, and a 1440x900 IPS display would probably sell pretty well.

Basically the 13" Pro either needs to become a serious high-end compact powerhouse or go away.

My 2 cents:

With the addition of 15" Air, MacBook Air will be renamed to MacBook with a line up of 11.6, 13.3 and 15.4 sizes.

Also, 13" MacBook Pro is removed from the line up and only 15" and 17" macbook pro will exists with quad-core processors, optical drive, discrete-GPUs, upgrade-able RAM, extra ports, etc. etc., serving the truly PRO users. For the VAST majority of regular users, the new MacBook (Airs) will serve as a perfect/portable machine!!
 
The MacBook Air 11-inch outselling the 13-inch model 10 to 1. That is why Apple should make also a MacBook Air 7-inch to outsell them all. Because true portability is the number one feature in this case!
 
It would be a joke to update with 15" model without using IVY bridge which is just around the corner in early 2012...and it is possible that Apple can get it early....

Also, I'm seriously holding out for an IVY bridge for my next laptop 13" AIR. Why would I want a sandy bridge AIR that is limited in memory and USB capacity.

This is what I want to see on the IVY bridge AIRS:

- upgradeable to 8 gb RAM
- USB 3.0 port or ports.
- cooler temps.

How is the Sandy Bridge Air limited in "USB capacity"... whatever that is. If you mean it only has two USB ports, you can buy a USB hub if you happen to need more. If you mean it doesn't have USB 3.0, that has nothing to do with capacity, and everything to do with transfer speeds. Furthermore, it has Thunderbolt. Why do you need USB 3.0? I've most likely seen an equal number of Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 devices out there. Wait for the Thunderbolt vs. USB 3.0 war to play out, before you wind up being on the HD-DVD side of the Blu-Ray war. ;)

Also, please tell me what English grammar textbook you have been reading that instructs you to CAPITALIZE each letter in random WORDS in a SENTENCE (acronyms aside, which "Air" and "Ivy" are not). :rolleyes:
It's somewhat annoying and makes it seem like you're shouting, or like you have Tourette's or something.
 
Changes in MBA/MBP resolutions and move to 16:9 aspect ratios

The real question for me is will it have a 15.6" 16:9 display or keep the current MacBook Pro's 15.4" 16:10 display proportions.

Predictions:

11" Air : 1366x768 (16:9 ratio, no change)

13" Air : 1600x900 (bump from the current 1400x900, 16:10 ratio)

15" Air : 1920x1080 (Mythical ??, better than 1680x1050 16:10 ratio on hi-res 15" MBP)

Not a big fan of 16:9 rez, but since Apple already selected 16:9 on 11" MBA (and their iMac lineup), to be consistent across the board, they should bump it to 1600x900 on the 13" MBA and go with 16:9 rez on all MBPs as well.

Also, they can make 1600x900 default on the 15" MBP and 1920x1080 as BTO. 17" MBP can go up to 16:9 format with 2048x1152 (from the current 16:10 format, 1920x1200 resolution)

Along with the FHD 1080p on the 15" MacBook Air, it should get an extra USB port, Mic input, kensington lock, big battery for the big screen that gets ~ 10 hours and an option for 8GB RAM/512 SSD.

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I think spring 2012 - the line-up will look like this:

(Macbook air --> simply called Macbook, 4GB ram min. for all models, 128GB SSD min?)
Macbook - 11 inch
Macbook - 13 inch
Macbook - 15 inch


(Macbook Pro - Superdrive will stay for prosumers, better graphics, 13 gets dropped)
Macbook Pro - 15 inch
Macbook Pro - 17 inch

----

I don't think they will redesign the Macbook Pro because it still looks amazing. The only thing they could do is make it thinner - but that's what the Airs are for. Plus, apple would have to drop some important ports on the pro to make it thinner (like ethernet) - which is not going to happen.

-----

I also don't think the iMac will see much redesign other than thinner. If you look at the current iteration of the iMacs, it is just a continuation of the previous design - but not really that different.

Very well said. I second this idea.
 
What I would really like to see on the Macbook Air's is an SD/HC/XC slot...I can deal with the lack of an optical...But an SD card slot shouldn't affect the streamlined size Apple shoots for with the product....How about a poll ? Should the Mac Air's come with an SD slot?
 
I'm going to be severely disappointed if the new thin 15" is just a MBA and not MBP because I was expecting a new form factor, involving the thinness, in the redesign of the new MBP. I'm wondering if they did this because they realized there is no way they could hit the normal MBP price point if they released a thin version of it with the better specs the MBP carries.
 
What I would really like to see on the Macbook Air's is an SD/HC/XC slot...I can deal with the lack of an optical...But an SD card slot shouldn't affect the streamlined size Apple shoots for with the product....How about a poll ? Should the Mac Air's come with an SD slot?

The 13" Air already does:

features_connectivity_right_side.jpg
 
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According to wikipedia Q1 of 2012 is considered october 1, 2011 - December 31, 2011. I highly doubt a new MBA is due in the next month.

Edit: nevermind. That was for a fiscal year. For a calender year it's jan. - march.
 
I think spring 2012 - the line-up will look like this:

(Macbook air --> simply called Macbook, 4GB ram min. for all models, 128GB SSD min?)
Macbook - 11 inch
Macbook - 13 inch
Macbook - 15 inch


(Macbook Pro - Superdrive will stay for prosumers, better graphics, 13 gets dropped)
Macbook Pro - 15 inch
Macbook Pro - 17 inch

----

I don't think they will redesign the Macbook Pro because it still looks amazing. The only thing they could do is make it thinner - but that's what the Airs are for. Plus, apple would have to drop some important ports on the pro to make it thinner (like ethernet) - which is not going to happen.

-----

I also don't think the iMac will see much redesign other than thinner. If you look at the current iteration of the iMacs, it is just a continuation of the previous design - but not really that different.

I totally agree with this post.

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I've read this around the forum but the 13 inch mbp is apple's best selling laptop, especially around students, so why would they drop it?

+ i think digitimes has never been accurate with anything before.

They would drop the 13" MB Pro cuz the MBA is worthy alternative. Most of the students buying the 13" MB Pro were buying it to do work that the MBA is more than capable of handling. Those that need a true desktop replacement notebook will go for the 15" or 17" MB Pro.

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With the optical brick already dropped from the Mac Mini, I don't see any chance of Apple retaining it in the MacBook Pro. I'm not sure whether or not Apple will drop the optical from the iMac in 2012 -- it might survive until 2013 in the iMac.

Sometime in 2012, there will be a thinner MacBook Pro, but still thicker than the MacBook Air and retaining ports like Ethernet -- don't expect Firewire except via a Thunderbolt dongle. The revised MacBook Pro might be tapered, but less so than the MacBook Air.

"Sometime in 2012, there will be a thinner MacBook Pro...."

This rumor's been thrown around a lot but I'm not confident that that will happen. I think Apple will just add the 15" MBA and will keep the design of the MB Pro the same while upgrading the internals.
 
Just put a smaller bezel and a black glass option on a 15in mba. They should use that tech Samsung used in their 7 series Chronos laptops for the display. Plus some small(er) speakers would be nice. I'm thinking like PB G4 size.
 
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