[shinykaro]

Don't mean to be a rumor monger, but hasn't there been some talk of a Santa Rosa MacBook Pro annoucement tomorrow (5/22/07)? Can anyone add substance to those conjectures?

[Obi Wan's Ghost]

Not taking my wallet out until I can get 3Ghz, a Direct X 10 graphics card (for Vista gaming) and Blu-ray for HD video and large back ups. Anything less would be out of date too soon. I need long shelf life.

[SierraDragon]

Rumors yes, substance no.

-Allen Wicks

[Simon]

Rumors have mentioned all kinds of release dates. Nothing to be certain of.

When they do arrive you can expect 2.2 and 2.4 GHz Meroms running on a SR chipset with 4 GB RAM max. The new MBP will likely have the LED backlighting. Concerning the GPU performance I wouldn't expect a huge improvement and I somehow doubt we'll see BR or HD DVD.

[mac128k-1984]

I generally don't put too much stock in rumor sites. They've been wrong more then they've been right.

While it would be nice to see the new MBP's my only question on releasing them today is why? Why not release them with the macbook refresh, or why not wait a couple of weeks for WWDC.

[kaido]

Here's what I think we'll get:

-Santa Rosa processors (up to 2.4ghz)
-4gb ram cap
-LED back-lighting

Possibly a GPU upgrade, but if so nothing big. Probably not Blu-ray or HD-DVD since (1) both drives are very expensive and (2) there's no clear winner in the format war yet. I would really like to see an integrated eSATA port. If the MBPs get the Santa Rosa bump and LED back-lighting (providing it proves to be brighter than the current displays), I think I will snag one.

[Obi Wan's Ghost]

A new Vaio line up came out today with Santa Rosas. The GPU in the high end model is an ATI HD2300. It's likely the MBP will get the same because it is low power. It isn't a Direct X 10 card.

[mduell]

The Sony Vaio FZ (released a week and a half ago when SR launched) has a 15" widescreen XBRITE display, Intel's Core 2 Duo processors, NVIDIA's GeForce 8400M graphics card, support for 802.11n, HDMI out, audio in / out, USB 2.0, VGA and S-Video outs, ExpressCard slot, flash memory reader, FireWire, Blu-ray, and a webcam for $2k.

I expect to see the same from Apple.

[JoshuaZ]

Originally Posted by kaido 

Here's what I think we'll get:

-Santa Rosa processors (up to 2.4ghz)
-4gb ram cap
-LED back-lighting

Possibly a GPU upgrade, but if so nothing big. Probably not Blu-ray or HD-DVD since (1) both drives are very expensive and (2) there's no clear winner in the format war yet. I would really like to see an integrated eSATA port. If the MBPs get the Santa Rosa bump and LED back-lighting (providing it proves to be brighter than the current displays), I think I will snag one.

I think you nailed it there. The three very solid updates to the line are a shoe in. I only hope the GPU gets a nice bump, as the current set seems a bit underpowered for the price. I'm not expecting super game playing powers, but enough to run VISTA (If some fools actually wanted to) as well as Starcraft 2....

My wallet (if filled with the proper amount of yen at the time) will be open and waiting when the next update is announced.

[mduell]

Originally Posted by JoshuaZ 

I'm not expecting super game playing powers, but enough to run VISTA (If some fools actually wanted to) as well as Starcraft 2....

Vista runs fine and fully supported even on the MacBook's GMA950. The MBP is already well ahead of that.

[Dark_Lotus]

Is there any chance Apple will adapt the magnetic latch into the MBP's at WWDC?

[Obi Wan's Ghost]

Originally Posted by mduell 

The Sony Vaio FZ (released a week and a half ago when SR launched) has a 15" widescreen XBRITE display, Intel's Core 2 Duo processors, NVIDIA's GeForce 8400M graphics card, support for 802.11n, HDMI out, audio in / out, USB 2.0, VGA and S-Video outs, ExpressCard slot, flash memory reader, FireWire, Blu-ray, and a webcam for $2k.

I expect to see the same from Apple.

The 8600M parts offer twice the performance. There's a new 17" slim notebook from Evesham that uses it along with a 2.2Ghz CPU and all the regulars for only £1000 UK uncluding tax.

[tinkered]

If I see an HDMI port on a Mac I will be very disappointed. HDMI is clearly designed for TV's and not computers. It is limited in capability to save manufacturing costs and increase profits. It is not the cutting edge, but the dull blade of yesterday.

[Simon]

UDI was supposed to address that but Intel, Apple, and others in the UDI work group jumped ship so although it was finalized, it's not likely going to be adopted. DisplayPort would be another alternative, but AFAIK Apple isn't involved. Intel, Dell, HP, and ATI/AMD are though.