Want to get a Macbook Pro 15" now, but..

..am unsure about it. I mean, with the rather uninspiring recent refresh, to Apple's adament stand on almost extinct 16:10 screens and no Blu-Ray support, something tells me their's going ot be a major redesign Q4 this year. I mean, it'll be perfect timing would it not? A new Intel platform, GeForce 4xx DX11 graphics (512MB no doubt for the base model, further "enhancing" the difference), and finally fingers crossed Blu-Ray, everything would be in awe with the sudden major update to the Macs. Anyone else agree? Or is this hopeful thinking? Anyhow, I really want to get a Macbook Pro since I've been wanting one for as long as I can remember (despite all I said about the boring refresh), but if the Macbook Pros get a facelift this year I'm sure I'd end up shooting myself. Who here thinks I should wait?

 

Seriously? You have been a member since 05 so I am sure you have heard this same question asked over and over. But just in case you need a refresher...If you need it now buy it but if you can wait then wait since there will always be something better down the road.

 

Oh boy, if you're waiting on Blu-Ray you're not going to own an Apple computer this decade ... Blu-Ray drives are not even that popular on mainstream PC laptops.

That aside, what is wrong with 16:10 aspect ratio ... Does nobody actually do work on their laptops anymore? Apple seems to be the only non business notebook manufacturer out there who gets it ... We need vertical real estate on our screens, enough of this 16:9 rubbish, we don't watch widescreen movies all day; sometimes we edit word documents/photographs and need that extra vertical stretch of pixels.

As for DX11 ... The (very very few) games that utilize it are not even available on OSX. Forgive my ignorance but I cannot think of any other application but computer games where DX11 is a necessity.

 

I'm in the same boat; I also feel a face-lift may be coming in Q4.

If not the whole range then perhaps just only to the 13" Macbook/Macbook Pro as these two need to be redesigned for the new chips to fit internally (as I understand it anyway).

 

die shrink my solve the "fitting" problems.

either that or they're going to redesign the entire line to maintain appearance consistency across the line.

 

that wont solve anything.... they need to fit a lot more in there for a discrete GPU to be added.. the whole GPU chip, the interconnects.. the RAM chips... cooling...

I find it more likely they'll redesign the whole line with a new look, that also lets them get proper space for everything needed in all models.

 

+1 for sticking to 16:10, friggin despise 1600x900 on 15". and hell no to the blu ray. as a custom extra option sure. as a default option that i will have to pay another what $150? $200? hell no.

 

So then, what do you suspect to be the time-frame? Q4? Later?

 

I still dont get why people want a bluray player in their computers. A bluray burner now on the other hand is what I want. Well even then its still kind of whatevers to me since I have an external 1TB-2TB and bigger harddrives coming soon!

 

wild guesses? no one has more than that....

if I had to guess, based on Apples history, I'd say January.

 

On second thought, realistically, I think Q4 next year or later.

Apple just released the ipad...a major new release. And we all know the new iphone is coming out this year. That's one major new product release and another flagship redesign THIS year alone...oh, and the macbook pros received (seemingly reluctantly) a spec bump (but not the 13 inch which is now somewhat of an embarrassment in its current state).

Apple's done with doing anything else for the rest of the year. My guess is the next update will be for the macbook air....then the pro's/macbook. But I don't see any of this happening until next year...

Perhaps the real question is how high is Apple's tolerance for allowing the 13" line to live with its current tech spec's? How long will they allow it to remain as is? Less than 6 months? A year? Longer?

Because if the only way to get the new chips in that thing is to redesign it...well, then, Apple's max tolerance here = redesign.

 

thats not true at all, the new MBP 13" is an awesome machine.

 

Firstly, 16:10 > 16:9. Why would you want 16:9 over 16:10? 16:10 gives you that little extra bit of vertical space, why wouldn't you want it?

There are still people that won't buy a 16:9 laptop, because they prefer 16:10 by that much.

Secondly, as others have said, you're not going to see blu-ray support for a while most likely. It's still something that very few mainstream (and even few high end computers) sport as standard. Few users are willing to pay the premium for a blu-ray drive, so until the price comes down, they won't appear much in mainstream laptops at the very least.

 

Well the form factor for a 16:9 is different... and different in a way I prefer actually. Also, I'd hold off on this generation of MBPs due to issues with heat... maybe if they get redesigned they'll deal better with cooling.

 

Oh you must have not gotten the memo, the bad boy i5's are out! Anything with a C2D inside it is clearly no longer a computer.

 

I'm one of those people, still have my Vostro 1400 from back in the day. I just cannot tolerate 16:9 ... On my laptop, I work more than I watch movies. With 16:9 you have almost no vertical real estate ... I applaud Apple for sticking with 16:10 even though most LCD vendors carry 16:9 panels

 

Plus one for the 16:10 screen.
Now then, lets get this thread back to speculation on the next Macbook/macbook Pro update....

 

I agree, any news about the next Macbook/Macbook Pro update would be good!

You know, what you said about the Macbook Pros being updated next year makes perfect sense. The Macbook and Macbook Air remains to be updated/refreshed, which I bet would be at least sometime next quarter.

It might be a little hypocritical of me since nobody buys Macs for gaming, but a part of the reason why I'm reluctant to get the current Macbook Pros is because of the limited video RAM on the base model (the only one I can afford unfortunately). 256MB of video is going to have a major performance hit on the 330m, nevermind the 1440x900+ resolution. Any chance a game like Dragon Age would run run at 25fps max details @ native res?

edit: After using a 16:9 moniter for a while, I've got to agree with you guys -- it's nowhere near as great as 16:10 for vertical scrolling. It remains to be the next screen ratio standard however, so I guess we'd have to settle sooner or later. Remember the "I'd never buy a 16:10 laptop -- glory 4:3!" days?

 

I tend to disagree.

a die shrink means more space for everything else for a bunch of different reasons. mostly secondary to the shrink itself. things like smaller heatsink piping.

but whatever.

 

it barely save any room.... its possible less cooling is needed, could free up a bit of room, but not nearly enough for a GPU, let alone 4 to 8 ram chips...

space is the main reason the 15 and 17s have 256 and 512mb for the GPUs

 

In my opinion, you should wait, if you are this concerned, you've come a long way waiting for updates, and if you are still unsure enough to start a thread on notebookreview.com you should wait more. I too love the macbook pro from the beginning, and a fan of apple products, but I didn't wait too long so I bought my first apple computer last year, 15MBP with C2D and 9400, now look at this update, with highres 1680x1050 and keeping the antiglare option, core i5/i7, gt300(relabelled faster clocked 9000/gt200 series) at almost no price change at all is really a no brainer. If what you want is 16:9, bluray, and DX11, why not get sony vaio, asus, toshiba, dell studio xps. Why wait for a macbook pro like that? Do you really even know what you're waiting for?

 

Wait till Q4???

I don't understand ... Do you guys use your laptops to decorate your homes or something?

If you're in need of a laptop you will not be talking about waiting till year's end before buying it.

 

Agreed. The new Macbooks were just introduced. I could understand if a refresh was right around the corner, but if you need a laptop NOW or in the immediate future, you might as well get one.

Personally, I think the 17" is all types of smexy from the form factor to the PSU which other makers should brazenly bite off of.

 

Even if they do get a facelift in Q4, you'll still be able to sell you new MBP for a very very decent price. Remember we're not talking about little Acer netbooks.

You will lose some cash, but then again, you should expect that when in the laptop market.

 

Exactly, don't wait for another update you don't need it. Just buy it if you need one now, otherwise it is totally up to you. However the things you are expecting are hardly ever gonna come to teh macbook pro line

 

Thanks guys for the advice, but I decided to wait for the next refresh, redesign or no. Truth is, I don't "need" a laptop right now. My desktop's still pretty decently speced, with a Phenom X3 processor, 4GB RAM and Radeon HD4850 512MB GPU. Wouldn't hurt to wait a little longer hey? I want my first mac-experience to be perfect lol.

 

Sorry to burst your bubble but you don't have realistic expectations. Do a little research on the reason(s) Apple has excluded your most wanted features per your first post.

You'll come to find that you will not be seeing those features for a long time. Blu-Ray in particular.

It's good you've realized you don't need one at the moment though, better that than spending money on something you don't really want.

 

+2. You realize (not you PowerUser123, but the guy who wants 16:9) that the vast majority of 15.6" laptops with 16:9 screens have 1366x768 resolution? So why wouldn't you want the 16:10 1440x900 which is larger both horizontally and vertically?

I'm wondering how likely will it be that the next revision (probably around next January) will have 16:9 screens?

 

16:9 stinks...

16:10 has more space and if you want to watch a movie in 16:9 whats wrong with some black bars at the top and bottom? its just as big as it would be if they switched to 16:9... unless they went with a 16:9 screen that has a high enough resolution... but Apple has a history of trying to use the lowest resolutions possible.

 

no, and all the video memory in the world wouldn't change that. the 330m just isn't fast enough.

 

Thinking about it, maybe I should wait for the next iMac refresh. More multimedia centric than the Mac Pro, I can get the 27" model for a mere US$400 extra. Besides, I really don't have the need for portability anyway.

 

Apple still holding on to 16:10 is one of the best decisions. From what i gather it should have cost them to do so considering most manufacturers are moving to 16:9 to save LCD costs. 16:10 is more usable work realestate.