Right on Cue, New MacBook Pros Have Arrived
In what has to be one of the worst-kept secrets in recent tech circles, Apple has refreshed the MacBook Pro line with Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors.After a long two-plus hours of being down, The Apple Store online has roared back to life with a MacBook Pro refresh. Among the new features are Intel Core i5 and Core i7 for the 15-inch and 17-inch models as predicted over the last few months, next-generation NVIDIA graphics and a whopping battery life that nearly matches the iPad at up to 10 hours (at least in the 13-inch model). Keeping the same precision unibody enclosure design from recent models, the new MacBook Pros are available in 13-inch (starting at $1,199), 15-inch (starting at $1,799) and 17-inch (starting at $2,299) versions."The new MacBook Pro is as advanced on the inside as it is stunning on the outside," said Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, Philip Schiller. "With faster processors, amazing graphics and up to three more hours of battery life, the new MacBook Pro delivers both performance and efficiency."As predicted earlier today, the 13-inch is available in both 2.4GHz and 2.66GHz versions, although those are both using the last-generation Intel Core 2 Duo processors. The 15-inch model uses Core i5 processors for both the 2.4GHz ($1,799) and 2.53GHz ($1,999) variations, but also adds a Core i7 processor to the top-line 2.66GHz model for $2,199. For whatever reason, the higher-end 17-inch model is only available with a 2.53GHz Core i5 processor at $2,299.On the graphics front, the new NVIDIA GeForce 320M used in the 13-inch models has 48 processing cores and is said to be the fastest integrated graphics processor on the market; the 15-inch models use the NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M with 256MB on the 2.4GHz and 2.53GHz models, while the 2.66GHz 15-inch as well as the 17-inch model up the video RAM to 512MB. Apple claims that the GeForce GT 330M provides smooth, crisp on-screen graphics for the most demanding 3D games, creative software and technical applications.The big story with the new refresh has to be the whopping battery life, which stretches up to 10 hours on the 13-inch models and “eight to nine hours” on the 15-inch and 17-inch versions, likely due to their expanded displays. Apple’s new automatic graphics switching intelligently determines which graphics processor an application might need and switches instantly between them to help aid in longer battery life, not to mention top performance from the processor as well.Among the other new bits: The glass multitouch trackpad now supports inertial scrolling to help when browsing lengthy documents or large photo libraries, and all of the MacBook Pro models feature bright, LED-backlit wide-angle displays with a broad color gamut. The 17-inch model features a 1920 x 1200 display, and the 15-inch model is also available with an optional high resolution 1680 x 1050 display as well. Customers also have the option to upgrade their new MacBook Pros with 128GB, 256GB and 512GB solid state drives (SSD).The new MacBook Pro models are now available from Apple.com, with the 13-inch models showing 2-4 business days for delivery and the others shipping within 24 hours.
http://www.maclife.com/article/news/right_cue_new_macbook_pros_have_arrived
