Phil Schiller started the WWDC keynote by detailing a revamped line of notebooks. Along with a number of hardware updates, the entire line got price cuts across the board, bringing pricing more in line with comparable PC laptops.
Apple has taken the sealed battery of the MacBook Air and 17" MacBook Pro and added it to the rest of the unibody machines. While some people are opposed to a nonchangeable battery, Schiller claimed that by making the battery nonchangeable, Apple can power its laptops for up to 7 hours per charge, and last for up to three times longer than similar replaceable batteries. He also noted that Apple has a recycling program via its retail stores for those that do need a replacement.
Additionally, the unibody machines are getting improved LCD screens with a 60 percent increase in color gamut, increased RAM capacity to 8GB, speedbumped Core 2 Duo processors, and increased hard drive capacity. And all come standard with backlit keyboards.
There are other interesting changes as well. The 15" MacBook Pro has had its ExpressCard slot replaced with an SD memory card slot. "An increasing number of customers use digital cameras, and they prefer using the SD card slot instead of USB," said Schiller. More notably, the 13" unibody MacBook has finally been given the MacBook Pro name, also getting an SD card slot as well as a FireWire 800 port to complete its transformation to a "pro" machine.
These improvements come with price reductions across the board. The 13" MacBook Pro (née MacBook) will start at $1199, the 15" MacBook Pro will start at $1699, and the 17" MacBook Pro will start at $2499—the latter two offer a $300 cut. The MacBook Air will also get a $300 cut to start at $1499, and a version with SSD will start at $1799, a $700 price cut. Clearly, Apple is paying attention to Microsoft's recent "Laptop Hunters" ads.
Source: Ars Technica
