Rumored “Ultra-Thin” 15-Inch MacBook Pro

 

Follow up rumors have hinted at the long-awaited “Macbook Air”-esque MacBook Pro being near its launch date. 9to5mac reports of a new 15-inch Macbook Pro’s design sporting a thinner body without both an optical drive and Ethernet port. Both of these features have been excluded in the MacBook Air line and would make sense for the Pro line to follow suit as Apple is aiming for a thin notebook standard.

The report hints at possible USB 3.0 capabilities as well as Thunderbolt connectivity. With the new design, the layout will consist of the MagSafe power connector, two USB ports, with an audio in/out jacks and battery indicator on the left side. Along the right side, it is said to consist of two Thunderbolt ports, one more USB port, an SD card slot, and a Kensington lock slot. Another very exciting feature is Apple’s Retina display that will most likely be taking advantage of OS X’s “HiDPI” option. 

While an exact launch date has yet to be released, we can only guess at possible release dates. Apple’s WWDC which is in just four weeks have been in the past one of the major events where Apple introduces their major products. Digitimes suggests that Apple may be pushing for a possible June release. 

Update on 2012-05-15 04:58 by Bobby Zhang

Bloomberg has come out to confirm reports of the 15-inch MacBook Pro being announced at this year's WWDC. They have also suggested the revealing of Apple's new OS, Mountain Lion sometime this late summer.

iPad 2 Announced

Announced by Steve Jobs only moments ago, the sequal to the iPad has been announced, imaginatively named the iPad 2. The next baby to come out of Apple uses the all new A5 duel core processor with 9x faster graphics, there are front and back facing cameras, it is 2lb lighter now at 1.3 pounds, a 1/3 thinner at 8.8mm thick (which is thinner than the iPhone 4 by the way) and all in a brand new design with a white version that will ship on time! The iPad 2 will come in the same 16Gb, 32Gb and 64Gb models, all at the same price as the previous model and will ship on March 11.

There is the usual Apple accessories like a keyboard dock and USB/SD card dock connector that was available last year but we have some now we have some new ones. The first is a HDMI connector that can go straight to a TV which mirrors the iPad screen and exports in 1080p, which will be good for app demos and the like. The next new accessory for the iPad 2 is a new "case" called Smart Covers. It apparently adds no weight or bulk to the iPad while keeping it protected, the inner material is micro-fibre which will get rid of any fingerprints made while using the device and comes in either Polyurethane ($39) or Leather $69). But the coolest thing about these Smart Covers is that it uses magnets to wake and sleep the iPad when you open and close the case. Fancy!

But there is one missing chunk in this announcement. The lack of a Retina Display. Probably too costly for this iteration but I would of blown away every tablet on the market right now if it had that awesome screen.

So will you get one or is it just a pointless announcement?

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iPad 2 Leather Case Gets The Hands-On Treatment

Chinese case manufacturers may or may not know the exact dimensions of the upcoming Apple iPad. This video shows a leather case made for the iPad 2 and features a camera cutout. The annotations in the video state that this leather case doesn't fit the current iPad because the iPad 2 has a thinner bezel and a thinner overall design. You gotta love that BumbleBee Tuna song.