MacScoop, aka MacOSXRumors, claims to have reliable sources confirming that Apple is in the final development stages for an ultra-thin 12-inch MacBook Pro sub-notebook. Details are sketchy, as they tend to be with these kinds of rumors, but here's what you can get your hopes up about:The new portable would be, as the term "ultra-thin" implies, lighter and thinner than the current MacBook Pros, but will still have all the frills you've come to expect from a rumor. like a dual-core CPU, widescreen aspect ratio and a built-in SuperDrive. The price tag is undefined, but allegedly well-informed people say the Apple sub-notebook would be priced around $1700-$1800 and you can expect to see it in stores sometime between now and, oh let's say... the year 2099.
While I might be the first in line to buy such an animal, should it ever come to fruition, there is simply nothing in this "report" that makes it a viable rumor, in my opinion, other than the fact that it's a given that Apple is constantly striving to do new things and is always developing new products, some of which actually make it to market. It's perfectly logical to think that Apple might want to trim some fat from their notebook lineup. The technology circle of life is almost always "make it faster, smaller, lighter, cheaper - and sooner, rather than later." Why confuse matters by turning that inevitability into a top-secret rumor? This just smacks of publicity-seeking wishful thinking to me. And there aren't even any fancy Photoshop mockups to go with it! Shame on me for even mentioning it...
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-04-2006 @ 1:48PM
Ben H said...
Hmm. Would be nice and all but...
The MB Pro is already very thin, and i know this is not a wise thing to say in the tech world, but do u think they really could make it any thinner? esp since the overall footprint of the thing would be smaller too. Although it is Apple, i suupose. :P
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12-04-2006 @ 2:06PM
Jay Contonio said...
"Shame on me for even mentioning it..."
exactly.
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12-04-2006 @ 2:55PM
tim said...
i think you handled this new rumor pretty well. i get VERY tired of the countless repeat rumors (read: iphone and tablet), but a one time 'bringing it to the table' post isnt bad. and you just give information, which you label is all speculation, so its not like youre misleading us.
nice post, just dont mess it up by updating us daily on it
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12-04-2006 @ 3:00PM
Stefan said...
A simple reason why Apple needs this product:
12" iBook users can move to the 13" MacBook
12" Powerbook users have nowhere to go.
The MacBook is a students laptop. Not even the black one could be called a 'premium' machine.
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12-04-2006 @ 3:01PM
Zeke Zander said...
i can confirm this rumor. I just bought a macbook, "not yet shipped" and everytime I buy something from apple they come out with something better exactly one week later!
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12-04-2006 @ 3:55PM
Mohamed Medhat (AKA: The Wizard) said...
Laurie. I really liked the way you delivered this piece of news/rumor.
You have such a lovely smart way of saying things.
I envy you for your cool job.
As for the coming mac ultraportable laptop. Whether it would be a pro or sans pro; it's just about time that Apple gets into the ultraportable arena as all the current laptop line is way to heavy (starting at 2.2 KG - that's a shame -).
So I have been waiting on my next macbook purchase till Macworld hoping Apple would give me an ultraportable so I am very happy to hear this rumor and I hope my dream would be realized by Jan 2007 in shaa Allah :-)
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12-04-2006 @ 3:55PM
Tom said...
Ummmm yeah if there's nothing to report then what's the point of this article?
"errrrr... there's this rumor about an awesome thin macbook pro... but we don't want to be labeled as a rumor spreading site... but if it turns out to be true we want to make sure we reported it"
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12-04-2006 @ 3:59PM
Holly M said...
"Shame on me for even mentioning it..."
DAMN RIGHT.
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12-04-2006 @ 4:15PM
Adrian said...
apple neeeeeds this. i need this. i hope the powers that be make it happen.
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12-04-2006 @ 4:23PM
Matthew said...
Apple has said to me when I was an employee there, the 13" Black MacBook is the replacement for the 12" Powerbook. I do not think we'll see a 'performance' laptop at 12". The old 12" was not a 'performance' laptop.
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12-04-2006 @ 5:02PM
Stefan said...
I just upgraded from my trusty 12" PB to a new 15" MacBook Pro. And I have to sa, as great as the new MacBook Pro is, being much faster, and with a larger screen, I absolutely loved my 12" PB. I mainly use my laptops at home, together with a 23" screen and a keyboard, and now and then I use them on the road. And that's where the 12" was unbeatable. That power and those specs in such a small package, that had a smaller footprint than an A4 size sheet is incredible. You could always just put it in any small bag, or backpack and take it with, and had most of the power of its larger siblings. But software gets better and bigger, and needs more memory, that's why I needed to upgrade. The MacBooks with no dedicated Video RAM are useless, as soon as you plan to do any work with Motion, or play the occasional game.
I just can't justify having 2 Macs, and then keeping Mail, photo and projects libraries synched all the time, in case, I need to take my stuff with me.
So bring back the small size books, I say.
But as Matthew mentioned as well, I don't think the sings are good, as STeve Jobs, and the ads always said that the MacBooks replace both the 12"PB and iBooks, and the "Family is now complete".
on the other hand - Familys expand... So we'll see.
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12-04-2006 @ 5:13PM
andrew said...
A replacement for the 12" Powerbook? Please?
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12-05-2006 @ 8:08AM
mrtotes said...
MacBook Nano presumably...
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12-05-2006 @ 10:37AM
JHFarr said...
I'm such an ignorant bastard. I've never understood the attraction of "thin." The first iBooks, for example, are beautiful machines, and I'd still rather be typing on the tangerine one my wife uses than on this MacBook.
To my mind, "thin" = flimsy, as in the case of my trusty TiBook, whose CD drive can still get wonky from my holding the case in the wrong place when I pick it up. I also hate rectangularity. Give me a lovely blob any day.
Weight is a consideration, I'll grant you that. But even back in '99, I never understood what some commentators were bitching about when they criticized the new iBooks, and I'm no superman. Jesus, get a life or work out, what's the problem?
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12-05-2006 @ 11:55AM
John Yen said...
I would be interested in buying an ultraportable MacBook, especially with widescreen. It would make sense for Apple to officially announce the product soon given the competition from other ultraportables. The things sell like hotcakes.
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12-05-2006 @ 9:05PM
Esteban said...
"...lighter and thinner than the current MacBook Pros, but will still have all the frills you've come to expect from a rumor..."
I love you guys... and I haven't even been drinking! :c)
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