I’m not one to talk much about speculation and things yet to be released but AppleInsider has some compelling information regarding the ultra-portable MacBook we have all been hearing about. It won’t feature a 12.1-inch LCD but will use a larger ultra-thin 13-inch LED-backlit display. Like other ultra-portable notebooks, it won’t have an optical drive but the inclusion of onboard NAND flash “for faster application launching and boot times” and integrated iSight makes up for it. A MagSafe power connection and 802.11n wireless capabilities round out the package.
My biggest concern is whether Apple will market this notebook as a part of the MacBook or a MacBook Pro line. Naturally, it would seem like this would remain in the MacBook line since there is only one MacBook form factor at the moment compared to the two within the MacBook Pro line. Also the MacBook and MacBook Pro lines are oriented in a kind of “smallest to largest” format: 13-inch in the MacBook line and 15, 17-inch in the MacBook Pro line.
However, even with that knowledge I hope this cutting-edge ultra-portable makes it into the MacBook Pro line with a sleek metal body rather than (discoloring) plastic.
Another thing to analyze is whether or not the 13-inch ultra-thin display will have the resolution capabilities of the 13-inch display used in the regular MacBooks (capable of 1280×800 resolution). With ultra-portable notebooks, screen resolution isn’t something people pay much attention to. For example, the 12-inch PowerBook G4 of yesteryear was among the most popular Apple products regardless of the lackluster 1024×768 resolution. Of course, it would definitely be nice to have a small laptop with incredible resolution.
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I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’ll be marketed almost separately from the two lines. It’s just got so many differences and targets a different market. I mean the smallest/lightest laptop Apple’s got in their lineup right now’s at least 5lbs, which is quite hefty for extremely mobile users.
I’d also imagine the NAND they’re talking about is a SSD drive. Turbo Memory (512MB or 1GB NAND flash) is already an option with the Santa Rosa platform and does relatively little to reduce power consumption/heat dissipation, which will be important for Apple in an ultraportable. These will be truly used on one’s lap and can’t be scorching.
The LED backlight has more to do with reducing size more than increasing the color gamut, although that happens to be a nice byproduct as well.
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You’ve got a good point Charlie. There is a good chance they would want to heartily distinguish the new laptop from the others. People have started thinking it will be called the “MacBook Pro Thin” but that seems like it’s too many words for Apple’s taste.
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1280×800 is about the right resolution for a 13-inch screen. Anything bigger and you’ll end up squinting; anything smaller will reduce your productivity. Also, NAND flash does have a limited number of write cycles, so you might have to end up purchasing a new drive every 2-3 years I reckon.
How about “MacBook Nano”? Or “MacBook Shuffle”? :-)
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I’m thinking along the lines of Macbook Featherweight.
“Light as a feather but packs a punch.”
Whatever it is, I’m sure Steve Jobs will wow us all.
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No optical drive? Didn’t acer or toshiba try to make one of these before which ended up being a complete bust?
Don’t most programs / games / OS’s come in cd format?
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@Ash – Many ultra-portables don’t come with an optical drive.. in fact I think the “ultra-portable” genre is pretty much limited to those without optical drives. Before my MacBook I had a 3 pound 12.1-inch Dell ultra-portable with no optical drive and the form factor was great. If you absolutely need an optical drive, you can attach an external one, but during class and such you really don’t need one.
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Was that a Latitude X1 by any chance Paul? My co-worker just bought a used one on a whim this week to have an ultra portable machine for running Ubuntu.
Anyway, the optical drive is potentially a deal breaker for me. I’m on the fence as to whether or not I’d miss one if it wasn’t built in. I agree that at most times, it’s not used, but I wouldn’t want to have to lug around an external drive, just in case of the event that I needed one without any advance notice. To me, that’s the whole point of having my 12″ Powerbook G4, it’s pretty damn small, and has everything I would need in one package.
A solid state hard disk would totally rock, but I wouldn’t want anything less than 120GB. I don’t think anyone makes one with that high of a capacity, and I believe the 30GB drives out there now are currently quite pricey.
Boo to 13 inches, bring back the 12!!
I’d really like to see a MacBook Pro version of such a portable. I am still using my trusty 12 inch PowerBook and am waiting a while before I upgrade to an Intel based machine. A move to a MacBook Pro tablet with a similar interface to the iPhone (where you use your hand to navigate and perform actions) would probably be one of the coolest things around and would make the move worthwhile …
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What if they supplied the optical drive with a decent ExpressCard interface / frirewire800 – I used to have an Acer Tablet that came with an external USB DVD reader, slow as hell though – so I’d want a release with an external optical drive on a decent interface.
M
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I seriously doubt they are putting an SSD in this. It’s obvious that this IS the Turbo Memory that is part of the Santa Rosa platform. Why you would think it is an SSD is beyond me. See Intel’s official page for Turbo Memory, which says “for faster application launching and boot times,†exactly like we’re hearing from Apple. SSD disks are in the works, for sure, but I really doubt Apple will bring them out in their next notebooks.
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I would really like to see this model as part of a different line, because now that apple laptops are going mainstream, I think soon they might be seeking new designs and looks in order to keep the new apple fans happy and enthusiastic. I dont know it might be me but I think the white and grey (metallic) may start to look monotonous.
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@Adim: monotonous, or classic?
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I’m late to the game, but I got an ultraportable Fujitsu P7120 last year and love it. It isn’t Apple hardware, granted, but it’d be awesome if Apple made something like it. 10.6″, 1280×768 (widescreen?), less than 3 pounds, suede on the bottom, no fans(!).. a very nice machine. Battery life is excellent, ~4 hours on the single-cell. I get stopped and asked about mine all the time when I’m out in coffee shops, etc. And they come in multiple colours, including white. ;)
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