The new MacBook Pro may cost more than the current models due to the cost of the Retina display screen Apple is said to be using, but that won’t stop fans buying the new model.
When asked, Twitter users responded that they would still purchase a new MacBook even if it was priced at $100 more, according to Mac.Blorge.
In his Computerworld blog, Jonny Evans also suggests Apple could see “a lot of interested customers” when it launches its new laptop. He reflects on the iPod halo effect, and notes that due to the iPhone and iPad halo effect, Apple is “scooping up millions of mobile users who want a lightweight laptop alternative for general tasks.” Evans credits this halo effect as the reason “Apple’s Mac sales are setting new records.”
“These faster, better, slimmer new higher-than-HD def Macs will not be aimed at the 1999 audience of 20 million Mac users, but at a global audience comprised of every iPhone, iPad or Mac user on the planet”, he writes.
There is a lot of evidence that points to the arrival of Retina displays in future iMacs and MacBooks. In April, Intel revealed that its Ivy Bridge processors have been built for Retina display computers.
High-resolution displays are already in the supply chain, according to an analyst, but may cost Apple an extra $92 (£63) in MacBook manufacturing costs.
Another report quotes sources who claim to have seen a prototype of the new MacBook Pro, which has ‘jaw-dropping’ Retina display.
Retina ready application icons were also spotted in OS X updates issued by Apple.
A patent filed on 20 January 2012 titled “User-Interface Design,” is a continuation of a 2007 patent application covering the reformatting processes of graphical elements for higher resolutions.
Apple is expected to launch new MacBook Pros at its WWDC in June, alongside Mountain Lion, iOS 6 and iCloud updates.
Author: Karen Haslam, Editor
Macworld editor since 2008, Karen has worked on both sides of the Apple divide, clocking up a number of years at Apple's PR agency prior to joining Macworld almost two decades ago.
Karen's career highlights include interviewing Apple's Steve Wozniak and discussing Steve Jobs’ legacy on the BBC. Her focus is Mac, but she lives and breathes Apple.