Welcome to a Laptop Battery specialist of the Apple Laptop Battery
Apple’s MacBook Pro has been around since 2006, but, unlike the Air, the Pro has been substantially redesigned several times since its introduction. Unibody design was added through 2008 to 2009, starting with the 15-inch Pro, and the Retina refresh axed the 17-inch model while putting the other two models on a diet.
A year has passed since the announcement of Retina, and Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference is scheduled for next month. Intel’s planned launch of its 4th-gen Core processors, which is also scheduled for next month, makes an update of the Pro line almost certain. Here’s what we want to see Apple include.
When Apple released the Retina Pro, it also split the Pro line in half. There are now the Retina models with battery like Apple A1175 Battery , Apple A1185 Battery , Apple M9324 Battery , Apple M8403 Battery , Apple M7318 Battery , apple PowerBook G3 Battery , Apple PowerBook G4 Battery , Apple PowerBook G4 15 inch Battery , Apple A1012 Battery , Apple M8511 Battery , Toshiba PA3285U-1BRS Battery , Toshiba PA3191U-1BRS Battery , which are thin and light; and the vanilla models, which are outdated and chunky. Yet Apple is still charging at least $1,199 for the old Pro.
PC manufacturers are upping their game, however, and the value of the vanilla version is starting to slip. The 13-inch Pro without Retina weighs a surprising 4.5 pounds and has a 1280 x 800 display. How is that attractive next to, say, an Asus Zenbook or Dell XPS 13? Answer: unless you refuse to use Windows, it isn’t.
We’re also surprised by this split because it’s confusing. Apple has preached simplicity for years, yet is currently selling two laptops with the same name and an entirely different chassis. That’s just wrong.
Rumors suggest that Apple will axe the vanilla Pro next month, but arguments against that say some consumers aren’t ready for a MacBook without an optical drive. We think, and hope, that Apple will be bold and put the vanilla Pro out to pasture for good.
Our skeptical minds find any major updates to the Pro unlikely. We certainly don’t think the laptop will be redesigned, and though some kind of new input hardware and/or software is possible, Apple’s likely to just bring over Siri if it does anything at all.
What we do think will happen is a simplification of the model line that will toss out the vanilla Pro, making the Pros all Retina, all the time. If combined with a slight price drop, this would not be so extreme. Even if Apple decides to hedge its bets and keep around one MacBook with an optical drive, that model will probably be the 13-inch vanilla Pro, which means the 15-inch will be gone for good.
What do you think? What would you like to see in the next version of the MacBook Pro?