; Date: Thu Jul 12 2018

Tags: Apple

Apple has updated the specs on the MacBook Pro line, addressing an issue raised a few days ago by a commentator claiming Apple is screwing its customers. The 8th Gen CPU's for laptops have been available since last fall, 9 months ago, and gave a huge performance boost. But, Apple was taking its own sweet time updating the laptops to use the 8th Gen CPU's, and in the meantime Apple's customers were paying the premium price for hardware that's inferior to laptops from other makers. Apple has fixed that today with new laptops incorporating those 8th Gen CPU's.

The top level change is the switch to 8th generation Intel Core processors. The 15-inch model will have a 6-core processor, and the 13-inch model will have a quad-core processor. Apple is claiming large performance gains -- "ideal for manipulating large data sets, performing complex simulations, creating multi-track audio projects or doing advanced image processing or film editing."

There's a lot of YouTubers like the guy who posted the video I summarized a few days ago who are rendering large quantities of video every day. For them, video rendering, and hence computing performance, is of extreme high importance. Most of the Hackintosh videos I've watched are by folks who are producing video, and need a high performance computer for video rendering, and Apple's Mac Pro is not up to snuff in that task apparently.

Therefore it is interesting to see Apple especially calling out audio and video production as a key task. Most of the complaints folks about Apple's hardware are from folks whose primary task is audio and video production.

Speaking for myself, that Apple then calls out software developers -- "Already the most popular notebook for developers around the world" -- helps me feel secure with Apple. Maybe.

The combination of a current generation 8th generation CPU, with 32GB of memory, and up to 4TB of SSD storage, sounds like an awesome machine. Especially as the memory system is updating from DDR3 to DDR4.

Another update of interest is this T2 CPU which Apple says will be used for the "Hey Siri" task. I recently turned Siri off on mhy iPhone and iPad because I did not want Siri to get accidentally triggered. I don't grok why one would want to ask questions of Apple's AI servers through Siri - what will Apple do with those questions? If I start asking Siri about bomb making materials (to write an article for TechSparx) will I suddenly get a visit from the FBI because Apple turns me in? But, since Apple added this feature to the MacBook Pro's it indicates that Apple believes lots of people will want this feature, and there may well be lots who do.

Adding leather sleeves to the MacBook Pro lineup is interesting -- as if the computer side of Apple is learning something from the Apple Watch side of the company. Apple sells a whole lot of Watch accessories, and surely makes a ton of money on those accessories. Sleeves are an interesting laptop accessory.

Long ago I had a Titanium 15" Power Book, and I added two very interesting 3rd party accessories. One was a sleeve not made of leather, but of a material somewhat like leather, and which was sufficient protection to carry the Power Book on its own. The other accessory was a handle that screwed into the attachment point for the display. That handle swiveled so that the laptop could also work as a stand. For transport, the sleeve plus that handle made for a very convenient way to carry the Power Book from place to place on its own with no other protection.

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Apple updates MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

Now Featuring Up to 6-Core Processors and 32GB of Memory, True Tone Display and the Apple T2 Chip

Cupertino, California — Apple today updated MacBook Pro with faster performance and new pro features, making it the most advanced Mac notebook ever. The new MacBook Pro models with Touch Bar feature 8th-generation Intel Core processors, with 6-core on the 15-inch model for up to 70 percent faster performance and quad-core on the 13-inch model for up to two times faster performance — ideal for manipulating large data sets, performing complex simulations, creating multi-track audio projects or doing advanced image processing or film editing.

Already the most popular notebook for developers around the world, the new MacBook Pro can compile code faster and run multiple virtual machines and test environments easier than before. Additional updates include support for up to 32GB of memory, a True Tone display and an improved third-generation keyboard for quieter typing. And with its powerful Radeon Pro graphics, large Force Touch trackpad, revolutionary Touch Bar and Touch ID, dynamic stereo speakers, quiet Apple-designed cooling system and Thunderbolt 3 for data transfer, charging and connecting up to two 5K displays or four external GPUs, it’s the ultimate pro notebook.

“The latest generation MacBook Pro is the fastest and most powerful notebook we’ve ever made,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “Now with 8th-generation 6-core processors, up to 32GB of system memory, up to 4TB of super fast SSD storage, new True Tone technology in its Retina display and Touch Bar, the Apple T2 chip for enhanced security and a third-generation quieter keyboard packed into its thin and light aluminum design with all-day battery life, it’s the best notebook for pro users.”

Faster, More Powerful Pro Notebook Computing

The new MacBook Pro is now faster and more powerful, with 8th-generation 6-core Intel Core processors on the 15-inch MacBook Pro for up to 70 percent faster performance and 8th-generation quad-core Intel Core processors on the 13-inch model for performance that’s up to twice as fast.1 With the option to add up to 32GB of memory on the 15-inch MacBook Pro, users can run more apps simultaneously or load larger files into memory. And with up to a 2TB SSD on the 13-inch model and up to a 4TB SSD on the 15-inch, MacBook Pro gives customers the flexibility to work with large asset libraries and projects wherever they go.

Retina Display with True Tone Delivers Ultimate Viewing Experience

With 500 nits of brightness and support for the P3 wide color gamut, the Retina display on MacBook Pro is the best Mac notebook display ever. Now with True Tone technology, the display and Touch Bar deliver a more natural viewing experience for design and editing workflows, as well as everyday tasks like browsing the web and writing email.

Apple T2 Chip Delivers Enhanced Security and “Hey Siri” on Mac

Also new to MacBook Pro is the Apple T2 chip, first introduced in iMac Pro. With the Apple T2 chip, MacBook Pro now delivers enhanced system security with support for secure boot and on-the-fly encrypted storage, and also brings “Hey Siri” to the Mac for the first time.

15-Inch MacBook Pro Highlights

• 6-core Intel Core i7 and Core i9 processors up to 2.9 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 4.8 GHz
• Up to 32GB of DDR4 memory
• Powerful Radeon Pro discrete graphics with 4GB of video memory in every configuration
• Up to 4TB of SSD storage2
• True Tone display technology
• Apple T2 Chip
• Touch Bar and Touch ID

13-Inch MacBook Pro Highlights

• Quad-core Intel Core i5 and i7 processors up to 2.7 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 4.5 GHz and double the eDRAM
• Intel Iris Plus integrated graphics 655 with 128MB of eDRAM
• Up to 2TB of SSD storage2
• True Tone display technology
• Apple T2 Chip
• Touch Bar and Touch ID
• Back to School with MacBook Pro

The new MacBook Pro is also part of Apple’s Back to School promotion starting today and available to college students, their parents, faculty and staff through the Apple Education Store. The promotion includes a pair of qualifying Beats headphones with the purchase of any eligible Mac or iPad Pro for college, as well as education pricing on Mac, iPad Pro, AppleCare, select accessories and more.

New Leather Sleeves for MacBook Pro

First introduced with MacBook, Apple leather sleeves are now available for the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro in Saddle Brown, Midnight Blue and, for the first time, Black. Designed with high-quality leather and a soft microfiber lining for extra protection, the sleeves are a perfect complement to MacBook Pro for users on the go.

macOS Mojave Coming This Fall

This fall, MacBook Pro can be updated with macOS Mojave, the latest version of the world’s most advanced desktop operating system, with new features inspired by pros but designed for everyone. In macOS Mojave, a new Dark Mode transforms the desktop with a dramatic new look that puts the focus on user content. The new Stacks feature organizes messy desktops by automatically stacking files into neat groups. Familiar iOS apps, including News, Stocks, Voice Memos and Home, are now available on the Mac for the first time. FaceTime now adds support for group calling, and the Mac App Store gets a full redesign featuring rich editorial content and the addition of apps from top developers, including Microsoft and Adobe.

Pricing and Availability

Starting at $1,799 and $2,399 respectively, the updated 13-inch MacBook Pro models with Touch Bar and 15-inch MacBook Pro models with Touch Bar are available today through apple.com and in select Apple retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers later this week. Additional technical specifications, configure-to-order options and accessories are available online at apple.com/mac.