New Lineup Of Retina Display MacBook Pros With Ivy Bridge Chips Set For WWDC Release

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Rumors surrounding Apple’s new lineup of MacBook Pros have been picking up steam over the last couple weeks, with several reports over the last several days revealing more and more details surrounding the next-gen notebooks.

According to a new report from Bloomberg, Apple will announce its new MacBook Pros at its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) on June 11th. The new MacBook Pros will feature super hi-res ‘Retina’ displays, Intel’s Ivy Bridge processors, and solid-state drives. We can also expect more announcements at WWDC regarding OS X Mountain Lion, iCloud, and iOS 6.

Bloomberg reports:

Apple Inc. is preparing a new lineup of thinner MacBook laptops running on more powerful chips made by Intel Corp., people with knowledge of the plans said.

The MacBook Pro machines, to be unveiled at Apple’s annual developers conference starting June 11, also will feature high- definition screens like those on the iPhone and iPad, as well as flash memory to cut startup times and extend battery life, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans haven’t been made public.

The report also notes that the new MacBook Pros will sport a “slimmed-down body design from the current 0.95-inch thickness.” They are also reported to feature Retina displays like the 4th and 5th generation iOS devices. Retina graphics have been showing up in OS X for many months.

Interestingly, Bloomberg’s report says that Apple “may announce” the release date of Mountain Lion, the next major iteration of OS X that is currently in its third developer preview. It would seem odd for Apple to release new notebooks that don’t run Mountain Lion, so perhaps there will be an announcement followed by an actual product launch weeks later. That could give Apple time to get Mountain Lion ready for prime time and ship it on the new Macs out of the box.

Benchmarks for a supposed prototype MacBook Pro with a high-end Ivy Bridge processor surfaced last night, and Apple is also expected to refresh its iMac lineup with Ivy Bridge architecture soon. The new MacBook Pros are also widely expected to feature next-generation NVIDIA graphics.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier today that new iCloud sharing features will be announced at WWDC as well, including what looks to be a photo-based social network of sorts and video uploading to iCloud. A developer preview of iOS 6 is also expected to be unveiled during Apple’s public keynote on June 11th.

Both Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal are reputable sources when it comes to Apple rumors, as they are often given controlled leaks from Cupertino to create buzz before an announcement. What Bloomberg is saying falls right in line with mainstream consensus on the new MacBook Pros, and Cult of Mac has independently heard that Apple will be abandoning the optical drive and focusing on a slimmer, more ‘Air-like’ design. The smaller end of the MacBook Pro lineup is Apple’s main concentration right now (13-inch and 15-inch). There may not be much of a future left for the 17-inch model.

Stay tuned for more rumors and leaks as Apple’s June event draws near. Things are about to get very exciting!

Source: Bloomberg

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