Apple introduces the new super-thin 12-inch Retina MacBook
- mar
- 09
Apple has launched an all-new MacBook today at the Spring forward event.
After months of speculation, Apple took the wraps off their all-new, all-redesigned Retina MacBook. In a device that harkens back to Steve Jobs' unveiling of the original MacBook Air, it blends bleeding edge technology with forward reaching engineering to make a laptop that's both high-density and highly power efficient.
Said Apple CEO Tim Cook:
We challenged ourselves to reinvent the notebook. And we did.
The new MacBook has a 12-inch Retina display with a resolution of 2304x1440. The pixels of this display also have a wider aperture for a brighter display (and a less-powerful backlight needed).
But also this is the thinnest MacBook ever, measuring just 13.1mm thick. And the lightest at just 2 pounds. It's an all-metal unibody design, even the antenna enclosures are metal now. The logic board that goes inside has been shrunk by 67% over the 11-inch MacBook Air's logic board. It's powered by an Intel Core M processor running at up to 1.3GHz (with turbo boosting up to 2.9GHz) that consumers just 5 watts under use. All of this means it runs cooler than ever and doesn't need a fan. The rest of the inside is stuffed with battery cells — up to 10 hours of battery life.
The keyboard is all new with larger keys and a new butterfly mechanism and individual LED backlights for each key. The trackpad offers a new "Force Touch" system for sensing pressure and opening new dialogs (such as searching Wikipedia from the browser) or actually translating that pressure into things like signatures or faster fastforwards in QuickTime. They've also done away with the single-hinged trackpad clicking mechanism with one that clicks all over and uses the taptic feedback engine to respond.
The new MacBook also does away with all of the connectors we've come to know from current MacBooks, going with a single USB-C connector. This one port carries USB, VGA, DisplayPort, HDMI, and power, all with one cable. Apple will be offering adapters, naturally, for those of us that need more than a single port.
The new MacBook will come in gold, silver, and space gray and two configurations. For $1299 you'll get a MacBook with a 1.1GHz dual-core Core M processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD. Jump up to $1599 and you'll get a 1.2GHz processor and 512MB of RAM. Both models are shipping on April 10.
Apple Unveils All-New MacBook
The Notebook Reinvented
SAN FRANCISCO―March 9, 2015―Apple® today unveiled the all-new MacBook®, a new line of notebooks reinvented in every way to deliver the thinnest and lightest Macs ever. Every component of the new MacBook has been meticulously redesigned to create a Mac® that weighs just two pounds and is 13.1 mm thin. The new MacBook features a stunning 12-inch Retina® display that is the thinnest ever on a Mac, an Apple-designed full-size keyboard which is dramatically thinner and highly responsive, the all-new Force Touch trackpad that brings a new dimension of interactivity to the Mac, an incredibly compact USB-C port for data transfer, video out and charging in a single connector, and a new battery design that maximizes every millimeter of space to deliver all-day battery life. And, for the first time, MacBook is available in three gorgeous aluminum finishes—gold, silver and space gray.
"Apple has reinvented the notebook with the new MacBook, and at just two pounds and 13.1 mm, it's the thinnest and lightest Mac ever," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. "Every component of the MacBook reveals a new innovation. From its fanless design, ultra-thin Retina display and full-size keyboard that's 34 percent thinner, to its all-new Force Touch trackpad, versatile USB-C port and breakthrough terraced battery design, the new MacBook is the future of the notebook."
Measuring just 13.1 mm at its thickest point, the new MacBook design is an amazing 24 percent thinner than the 11-inch MacBook Air®. With a new precision-milled unibody enclosure featuring integrated Wi-Fi antennas and a top case with polished stainless steel Apple logo, MacBook is available in three elegant finishes—gold, silver and space gray—and is the first MacBook with an all-metal enclosure.
A comfortable keyboard is essential to the Mac experience and the new MacBook is designed around an all-new full-size keyboard. To fit the full-size keyboard into the amazingly thin MacBook meant completely re-engineering how a notebook keyboard works. The new keyboard is 34 percent thinner and uses an Apple-designed butterfly mechanism that is an amazing 40 percent thinner than a traditional keyboard scissor mechanism yet four times more stable, providing greater precision no matter where your finger strikes the key. New stainless steel dome switches located beneath each key deliver a crisp and responsive feel when typing, and every key on the new keyboard is individually backlit with its own single LED to deliver precisely calibrated, uniform brightness behind each keycap.
The perfect match to a full-size keyboard is a 12-inch display, and the new MacBook features a stunning 12-inch Retina display with a 16:10 aspect ratio. Measuring just 0.88 mm thin, the Retina display on the new MacBook is the thinnest display ever on a Mac. With a larger aperture for each pixel, the new Retina display is also extremely efficient and uses 30 percent less energy than existing Mac notebook Retina displays, while delivering the same level of brightness. And with a resolution of 2304 x 1440, text, photos and movies come to life with astounding clarity.
MacBook also features the all-new Force Touch trackpad that brings a new dimension of interactivity to the Mac. The new trackpad features built-in force sensors that allow you to click anywhere and haptic feedback that provides a responsive and uniform feel. You can even customize the feel of the trackpad by changing the amount of pressure needed to register each click. The Force Touch trackpad also enables a new gesture called Force Click, a click followed by a deeper press, for tasks like pulling up the definition of a word, quickly seeing a map or glancing at a preview of a file.
Applying miniaturization techniques used in iPhone® and iPad®, MacBook features the most compact logic board ever in a Mac, measuring an amazing 67 percent smaller than the logic board of the 11-inch MacBook Air. With no moving parts or vents, the new MacBook was designed from the ground up to be the first fanless Mac notebook for silent, efficient performance. MacBook features the new fifth-generation Intel Core M processor that runs at just 5 watts and Intel HD Graphics 5300. The highly efficient processors work in conjunction with optimizations throughout OS X® to make the new MacBook the world's most energy efficient notebook.*
The new MacBook features a breakthrough terraced battery design that is layered in individual sheets that are precisely contoured to fit the MacBook's sleek, curved enclosure. As a result, the new MacBook has 35 percent more battery capacity than would be possible with traditional battery cells and delivers all-day battery life with up to 9 hours of wireless web browsing and up to 10 hours of iTunes® movie playback.**
Designed for the wireless world, MacBook is perfect for tasks like streaming content from your MacBook to your HDTV using AirPlay®, exchanging files quickly using AirDrop®, or using wireless headphones. MacBook is equipped with the latest wireless technologies, including built-in 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 for fast wireless connectivity.
The new MacBook also features a next-generation USB-C port that is incredibly small, yet extremely versatile and even more user friendly. A new industry standard, USB-C supports higher wattage charging, USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5Gbps) data transfer and DisplayPort 1.2 all in a single connector that's one-third the size of a traditional USB port.
Every new Mac comes with OS X Yosemite, a powerful new version of OS X, redesigned and refined with a fresh, modern look, powerful new apps and amazing Continuity features that make working across your Mac and iOS devices more fluid than ever.
iMovie®, GarageBand®, iPhoto®, and Pages®, Numbers® and Keynote® come free with every new Mac. iMovie lets you easily create beautiful movies, you can use GarageBand to make new music or learn to play piano or guitar and you can edit and share your best shots with iPhoto. Pages, Numbers and Keynote, make it easy to create, edit and share stunning documents, spreadsheets and presentations. Pages, Numbers and Keynote for iCloud® let you create a document on iPhone or iPad, edit it on your Mac and collaborate with friends, even if they are on a PC. The new Photos for OS X app keeps your growing photo and video collection automatically organized and easy to navigate and will be included in an OS X Yosemite update this spring.
Pricing & Availability The all-new MacBook will begin shipping Friday, April 10 through the Apple Online Store (www.apple.com), Apple's retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers. MacBook comes with a 1.1 GHz dual-core Intel Core M processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 2.4 GHz, 8GB of memory, 256GB of flash storage and Intel HD Graphics 5300 starting at $1,299 (US); and with a 1.2 GHz dual-core Intel Core M processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 2.6GHz, 8GB of memory, 512GB of flash storage and Intel HD Graphics 5300 starting at $1,599 (US). Additional technical specifications, configure-to-order options and accessories are available online at www.apple.com/macbook.
*Claim based on energy efficiency categories and products listed in the EPA ENERGY STAR database for Notebook Computers as of March 5, 2015. **The Wireless Web protocol testing was conducted by Apple in March 2015 using preproduction MacBook configurations. Battery life and charge cycles vary by use and settings. For more information visit www.apple.com/macbook.
Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad.
