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New MacBook Case Leak Rumors 243

Someone noted that there are more macbook case leaks which look to all but confirm a new MacBook and possibly a MacBook Pro expected to be announced for later this week. There seem to be fewer ports, and no leaks of a 17" aircraft carrier laptop.
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New MacBook Case Leak Rumors

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  • whoopdifriggindo (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Plantain ( 1207762 )

    whoopdifriggindo.

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      I wonder why this is "offtopic"? I know this is what I was thinking when I read the article. Do we need a /vertisement each time a vendor releases a new product? No innovation here.
      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by Jugalator ( 259273 )

        I've been waiting for several months for an updated product line from Apple, so it's at least news to me. OS X has an even larger market share than Linux on the desktop, and we damn sure read about every little Ubuntu release here... I don't really see the problem. Apple is getting bigger too, not smaller.

        • by KeX3 ( 963046 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @10:26AM (#25356029) Homepage
          Difference is that apple has not released anything, nor have they confirmed that they are releasing anything, it's all just speculation - ergo not newsworthy at all. In other news: Scientists say that the sun will rise again tomorrow. Stay tuned for more information, and pre-rise photos of famous landmarks.
      • by cryptoluddite ( 658517 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @11:01AM (#25356665)

        whoopdifriggindo is a tag, not a post.
        whoopdifriggindoisatagnotapost is a tag.

        That's why it's offtopic.

      • by billstewart ( 78916 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @12:22PM (#25358037) Journal

        It's not the best of headlines - my interpretation of "case leaks" was "it's dripping battery fluid" or "RF leaking enough to interfere with nearby devices", etc. That would have been worth a Slashdot article.

        But if the leak is just not-yet-announced marketing information, then it needs to be pretty interesting.

    • by denzacar ( 181829 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @12:35PM (#25358263) Journal

      In my humble opinion, there should be a law that would make linking of The Apple Product Cycle [misterbg.org] with every single mac/slashvertisement mandatory.

  • Wait for Tuesday.... (Score:5, Informative)

    by PlatyPaul ( 690601 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:08AM (#25354869) Homepage Journal
    Seriously, we knew more laptops were coming [cnet.com], but it's just one day away to get the actual announcement.
    • by morgan_greywolf ( 835522 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:28AM (#25355089) Homepage Journal

      Seriously, we knew more laptops were coming [cnet.com], but it's just one day away to get the actual announcement.

      Yeah, but the Mac fans are all on the edge of their seats! Gotta know in advance of the announcement! Of course, true Mac fans will all be watching the actual announcement live on podcast tomorrow because The Great and Mighty Steve may actually say something important!

      The true Mac fan will, of course, be meditating on all The Great Steve has to say....ooooohhhhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmmm......must achieve enlightenment.....oooooohhhhhhhmmmmmmmmm......

      • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

        by poetmatt ( 793785 )

        Is that when they have the annual chair throwing competition?

      • Yeah, but the Mac fans are all on the edge of their seats! Gotta know in advance of the announcement! Of course, true Mac fans will all be watching the actual announcement live on podcast tomorrow because The Great and Mighty Steve may actually say something important!

        The true Mac fan will, of course, be meditating on all The Great Steve has to say....ooooohhhhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmmm......must achieve enlightenment.....oooooohhhhhhhmmmmmmmmm......

        Yeah, gee, if only I could get excited about OOv3 being released I could sit with the cool kids at lunch.

      • by Phroggy ( 441 )

        Of course, true Mac fans will all be watching the actual announcement live on podcast tomorrow

        You know Podcasts aren't live, right?

      • Or maybe its because we follow the one of the last American innovative companies! Apple's stock was flat last week... how about the rest of the tech sector?

    • by The Great Pretender ( 975978 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:49AM (#25355379)
      I like the recessed keyboard. It'll act like a drain and funnel spilled liquids into the computer rather than letting them leak on my desk.
      • actually, the Lenovo x-series tablets have spill-resistant keyboards [lenovo.com] that channel spills out the bottom of the system without damaging internal components. having a recessed keyboard or not doesn't make much of a difference when there are open gaps where liquids can seep through between the keys. it's what you do with the liquid that gets under the keys that matters.

        i don't know if Macs have this safety feature, but having a raised keyboard won't protect it from spills any more than a recessed keyboard.

    • The best news is refurb store is going to be flooded. I'm looking to replace my 1st Gen Intel MBP with a newer Core 2 Duo Multi-Touch pad.

      Full 1 year warranty (just like the new stuff) at a pretty good discount.

  • Boring. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by LWATCDR ( 28044 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:13AM (#25354905) Homepage Journal

    Okay this is just dull. A new case? There really better be more to it.
    Things I would love to see.
    A new Mac Cube. A slightly larger mac mini with a PCIe slot for a video board ,a 7200 RPM drive, maybe room for an extra drive, and two to four dimm sockets.
    Price $499. It would kill HP and Dell in one fell swoop.
    A mac Netbook.
    Back in the day the Steves tried to make computers for everyone. Now the Steve makes them for the "elite". Kind of sad in a way.
    Yes I do like their good design work and great OS but they are making money hand over foot so why not go for a knock out?
    The Apple Volksputer.

    • Sorry, (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Shivetya ( 243324 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:23AM (#25355029) Homepage Journal

      Nothing is going to kill Dell/HP except for themselves. The simple fact is most people buying PCs don't care about Mac because it does not have Windows on it. I know some live in a fantasy world but it is true, people don't care. If it works and they are used to it they will keep it.

      As for those specs, Apple is doing a good job of moving further away from end user friendly hardware with each and every release. Steve isn't making computers for the "elite", he is making computers that make Apple money and making Apple money means that if you want an upgrade you buy a new computer.

      • Re:Sorry, (Score:5, Insightful)

        by LWATCDR ( 28044 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:39AM (#25355253) Homepage Journal

        I don't think you get it. People don't want Windows anymore. They want their software. I see more and more people buying Apples then running Windows on bootcamp, Fusion, and Parallels. The average home user just need a browser, email, iTunes, Quickin, and TruboTax. Maybe a few casual games.
        The average home user can already move to the Mac with little to no problem.
        The big thing is cost. If apple would come out with a Mac Mini that only cost $499 and was expandable You would see even more people buy them. The game market for the Mac would massively increase as would video card options.
        People only buy Windows machines for two reasons. They are cheap or they have to run some program under windows.
        Apple is already increasing their market share and more and more developers are porting to the Mac. Soon it will be only the the cost that keeps people on Windows.
        Heck I am a Linux guy at heart but If Apple produced a $499 expandable Mac I would buy it.

        • by bazorg ( 911295 )

          The average home user just need a browser, email, iTunes, Quickin, and TruboTax. Maybe a few casual games.

          so those guys wanting to exchange Linux netbooks for the WinXP version are not average users?

          • by LWATCDR ( 28044 )

            I didn't know that they had Linux versions of itunes and quickin?
            Actually nobody that buys a netbook is an average user. And that was from one manufacture. I believe it since none of the netbook versions of Linux I have seen have been that good.

        • Sure, Apple's engineering, for cooling and fitting stuff in, is one of the best, and I love the work they do.

          But do you really think you're going to get that 499$ expandable Mac? Do you really think that's going to be what you were expecting? Apple is notorious now for laptop parts in desktops. They want to make high margins. That's how Steve rolls. I really doubt you're going to get an open platform.

          And, who wants to be tied down to Apple? Really? Assuming it would come with a Core 2 Duo E4500 or Pentium-D

          • by LWATCDR ( 28044 )

            "OSX? What real advantage does it have?"
            System wide spell checker.
            Time machine.
            Quick look.
            And a much better development platform.

            Dell's are not bad machines and I think Apple can match them for price for quality any day. I think you are way under estimating the benefits of OS/X.

            • I'm just asking if OSX would be really worth the price of a new computer.

              I have system-wide spell checking under Linux; the programs just need to support it (I don't think it would be too tough to add in aspell support). Time Machine could be done; I thought about that one, but can't rsync have versioning? (assuming TM can do that...) Konqueror has been doing "quick look" for a while now thanks to KParts.

              And as for better development platform, although I'm a Python + Perl person, I hear GnuStep (if you like

              • by LWATCDR ( 28044 )

                I was comparing OS/X to Windows.
                Linux has one real problem I see left. It lacks an effective way to market software.
                The differences in distributions still makes selling off the shelf software a challenge. I keep hoping that Ubuntu will see the light and bring an iTunes like software store to Linux. I do not believe that you can have a successful desktop without a place for none FOSS software. I will even say that it is about freedom. The freedom to choose. If I feel a program is worth the money then pay f

        • I don't think you get it.

          Letting you in on a secret... /. is not the PC market, nor is Digg, nor are 90% of the other similar sites.

          If anything what is in the current Best Buy ad has more to do with what they want than some site.

          Really, are people this delusional and think that because they read it on the internet or it just "happens" to agree with their view that it must be that way?

          Hello.

          Yeah I am mocking your post but damn if people didn't rate it highly, what gives.

          People buy Windows because it works.

      • Steve can't just keep doing that as EFiX and Psystar will pass apple up and if Psystar where to win a fee key points in court then apple will have to respond and come out with a real desktop mid-tower.

        Also the mini is over year old with the same price how does that make people want to buy a new computer?

        nvidia on board video / chipsets is a good step in putting better video in mac systems as $1200 or less systems have better video then the $1500 mac book black and the $2000 mac book pro has weak video next

        • And when Pystar and EFiX win. Apple doesn't get as much revenue to continue to develop their OS. So they stop. Then what will Pystar and EFiX push?

          • Sales of mac os x will go up and apple will have to come out with better priced hardware that getting updated faster and have a desktop mid-tower with desktop parts and a real video card.

            starting at $600 - $700 and up they can keep a low end $500 or less mini for the people who want a small system.

            $2300 for a sever / high end workstation is over the top for most people and the mini is too week. The Imacs use laptop parts and have poor screen choice. If there was more choice matte or glossy. As well as scree

      • Re:Sorry, (Score:4, Informative)

        by Count Fenring ( 669457 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:50AM (#25355401) Homepage Journal

        Yeah... except that people do care. Maybe people aren't switching en masse out of hand, but Mac's percentage of the market has been rising, and (anecdotal evidence, yada yada) I know several people who've made the switch already, and several others who are just waiting for the end of their current computer's useful lifetime. Not that Mac is going to suddenly overwhelm the PC market, but it's not infeasible to compete with and/or overthrow monopolies, just hard. Plus, the likelihood of Dell/HP killing themselves isn't really small enough to discount.

        Also, people don't actually buy computers for Windows. In fact, if Vista showed anything, it's that people buy computers FOR THE COMPUTER. If the OS makes it look more likely that the computer will be buggy, well, that will inhibit growth.

        A lot of Mac's decisions do irk me, but I also feel that I have to point out that they're close to being as upgradeable as the PC in each product subcategory. Their laptop isn't particularly locked down by laptop standards, although it does lack a fscking manual eject on the CD-ROM*. The iMac is at least as upgradable as Gateway's or Sony's "Computer + monitor," and isn't a piece of crap, to boot. The Mini... well, the Mini is locked down, but it's also half the size of the Shuttle mini cases. The Mac Pro... I've not looked at it, but it seems upgradeable enough.

        * Off topic, but holy crap I hate that there's no way to physically force the Mac laptops to give back your CD if it can't recognize that it has it.

        • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

          by mattack2 ( 1165421 )

          * Off topic, but holy crap I hate that there's no way to physically force the Mac laptops to give back your CD if it can't recognize that it has it.

          If you mean that it literally never mounted or anything, I think holding down the mouse button at boot will do it. This dates from long ago (probably the original Mac) where the same technique worked for ejecting floppies.

      • Re:Sorry, (Score:4, Interesting)

        by loconet ( 415875 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @10:26AM (#25356039) Homepage

        I recently went back to school after some years of working in the industry. To say that people don't care if the computer does not have Windows on it is a conjuncture that might have had some validity in 2001. Now a days people are not afraid to leave Windows. I look around at most of my classes and 8/10 kids with laptops are actually using Apple! These are the same kids who in a couple of years will be graduating and going into the industry. I predict a major shift away from Windows. It has already started. Microsoft is slowly becoming less relevant.

    • by Hadlock ( 143607 )

      A mac mini with pci-e and adequate ventilation and I'd buy one tomorrow - and I don't say things like that too often. Dissapointed in the direction mac laptop keyboards have been moving. I love the "scissor action" of my "TiBook" powerbook but I can't stand the flat keys/odd feeling 'spacing'.

    • Re:Boring. (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Sockatume ( 732728 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @10:05AM (#25355651)
      The "new case" really is the interesting part if various rumours are to be believed. Word has it that Apple's fabricating the shells from aluminium using a proprietary laser/hydro cutter setup, and has slashed costs as a result. They may even be constructing the shells and assembling the machines in-house now, something they dabbled with in the past. A leaked price list for the new range of notebooks includes a $800 machine that may well be the new entry-level Macbook.
      • by LWATCDR ( 28044 )

        If apple started to manufacture systems themselves then yes that would be big news. The problem is all the leaks seem to come from China so I don't think that is a big deal.
        Machining the case? Well CNC milling is very old. A new production process that makes it cheaper. Mildly interesting to the end user and only if it drops the price of the case.
        Now if they where casting them then that might be interesting but milling seems like a waste. I know they will recycle the scraps but I would think casting would b

        • Oh, I agree, it's all about how much this affects the price rather than the details of Apple's manufacturing process (unless it's something they can make money from licencing to others, which I doubt). Whether it's through new fab methods or magic pixie dust, the staggering idea is that Macs might become spec-for-spec cheaper than PCs, in addition to their current aesthetic and software advantages. That would be really game-changing.
        • Machining the case? Well CNC milling is very old. A new production process that makes it cheaper. Mildly interesting to the end user and only if it drops the price of the case.

          Depends on who the end user is. I would imagine it could have a real interest if it means really solid cases without the premium price.

          • by LWATCDR ( 28044 )

            "I would imagine it could have a real interest if it means really solid cases without the premium price."
            Not really. Again all you care about is the results and the cost. Which is the way things should be.

    • Not dull to me-- they're apparently killing off FireWire in the MacBook!

    • Funny! You're asking for a Mac to be like an average WinPc but with the Mac OS. Why are we not simply begging for Apple to sell the OS like MS? Oh yeh, it would crap out with huge variety of hardware options and then have to deal with what MS deals with. Forget it. Leave the Apple monoploy like it is. If the Mac fanboys get their way, there will be no options on who you buy a computer from and what OS it will run. Apple will make MS look pale in comparison to the big-brother concept and a monopoly.
    • Back in the day the Steves tried to make computers for everyone. Now the Steve makes them for the "elite". Kind of sad in a way.
      Yes I do like their good design work and great OS but they are making money hand over foot so why not go for a knock out?
      The Apple Volksputer.

      Back in the day a computer "for everyone" was a proprietary product in an industry of proprietary products. Today's market is largely dominated by commodity hardware with more and more pressure towards commodity software as well.

      Commodity markets are difficult environments; especially to achieve growth. This market is difficult enough that IBM, the very company who introduced the platform that became the basis for this commodity market, has taken steps to distance itself from it (selling off their PC divi

  • by feepness ( 543479 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:16AM (#25354937)
    Well, there goes my plan for cooling with mineral oil! [tomshardware.com]
  • by thered2001 ( 1257950 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:22AM (#25355011) Journal
    It looks like they fixed a problem I have with the current MacBook Pro: hairs near my wrists get stuck in the tiny crack between the top surface and the gray plastic edge. The new design seems to have abandoned this (albeit, very minor) irritant. Not sure this needed /. front page position, though.
    • by argent ( 18001 )

      Sounds like you shouldn't hack on the night of the full moon. :)

    • by Phroggy ( 441 )

      My mom had complained about that too - not hairs getting stuck, but just it being uncomfortable. I'm glad to see that it's fixed.

  • by apodyopsis ( 1048476 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:23AM (#25355033)
    Love em, or hate em because of their proprietary leanings and nefarious practices - you have to admit that Apple makes *gorgeous* hardware.

    Well, maybe I'll settle for some of the best looking hardware around.

    If I could, then I would and extra 50 quid (that's great British pounds btw) for a bare PC in a nice milled metal aluminum case...

    When everything is knocked up in China on a cost basis, you lose something in the way of aesthetics..
    • When everything is knocked up in China on a cost basis, you lose something in the way of aesthetics.

      Apple's machines are knocked up in China, strictly speaking. Like HP, Dell, etc. they mostly contract Chinese firms to build hardware to their designs.
  • I'm going to venture a guess and say it will be all white and have a few USB/firewire ports.
  • What they need... (Score:3, Informative)

    by Vandil X ( 636030 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:28AM (#25355095)
    ...a Mac laptop with decent NVidia graphics card capable of playing most popular PC games and MMOs like WoW, EQ2, etc when booted into Windows via Bootcamp... and priced in the $800-$1400 range.

    The things would sell like hotcakes.

    The currently Macbook Pros underwhelm with their graphics cards at the prices they're listed at.
    • I think HP make some of those, just without OSX. I kid, but what they really need is a decent graphics card on their consumer range and to drum up developer support for MacOS-specific games.
    • nvidia graphics card

      Why no love for ATI? :(

      That HD4670 looks pretty sweet. I wonder if you could make a mobile version easily enough? Or would it be overkill?

  • by ILongForDarkness ( 1134931 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:35AM (#25355193)
    Why less ports? My MacBook Pro has less ports than a mid line ThinkPad I had at my last job. I had 3 USB ports I seem to recall, my MacBook Pro only has two. I have one used for an external harddrive/keyboard (they are multiplexed through my monitor) and the other one for my cordless mouse. Great so when I need to use a thumb drive or something I got to choose between my full sized keyboard or my mouse :-)

    The sad thing is presumably these extra components have gotten cheaper as USB is old tech as is Firewire. While connectivity realestate is at a premium for a laptop I'd think you'd want to have at least comparable to your competitions mid range offering.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      You should be using BlueTooth for your cordless mouse and firewire for your external drive ;)
    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by SimonGhent ( 57578 )

      Why less ports?

      Because more people use wireless - the new Apple cordless mouse and keyboard are Bluetooth.

      If you have to use a USB mouse + keyboard + hard disk + pen drive you're obviously at home so just buy a USB hub. Extra bonus - only one thing to plug in each time.

    • It is Apple, so I would bet it is purely a matter of aesthetics.
    • I had 3 USB ports I seem to recall, my MacBook Pro only has two.

      What version is that? My Macbook Pro purchased last May has 3 USB ports, plus it has bluetooth that you could run a mouse or KB through.

  • Yawn. (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Stormwatch ( 703920 ) <(rodrigogirao) (at) (hotmail.com)> on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:39AM (#25355243) Homepage
    Apple used to do unique laptops. Now their stuff looks just like everyone else's (perhaps just a bit more refined). If they still offered the"clamshell" iBook, updated to the same specs as the current MacBook and same prices, I'd be more inclined to take the cutesy colorful one.
    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by entrex ( 580367 )
      You sir are possibly the only person in the world who misses the clamshell iBook.

      Good riddance.
      • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

        The thing that I really liked about the clamshell iBook is the handle. You close it and there's a handy handle to carry it with. Granted, someone described it as looking like a "drag queen's purse", but it was a tough handle. Most notebooks you just grab and hope for the best.

  • Having owned a macbook with a much thicker plastic case, and looking at this one, I can't help but comment on how the form factor to case thickness ratio is very similar.

    The macbook continues to warp very easily to this day, causing the fan housing to do the same, and the blades of the fan to scrape the housing.

    Apple is starting to value form OVER function rather than form AND function. I'm going to be waiting a good long time until apple starts introducing stiffening trusses. I'm pretty sure aluminum won'

  • Macrumors.com (Score:5, Informative)

    by 93 Escort Wagon ( 326346 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @09:50AM (#25355399)

    I thought I should mention MacRumors [macrumors.com], a long-established site for Mac-related rumors and news, since it looks like Taco wasn't aware there are already sites that do this sort of thing.

  • Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @10:06AM (#25355665)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • OMFG!! (Score:5, Funny)

    by chord.wav ( 599850 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @10:19AM (#25355903) Journal

    OMFG!! Did ...Did you see THAT!?? I can't believe it! Ohh noooo! He couldn't! Damn, Steve nailed it again! Ohh nooo, it is..it is sooo G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S! The first *aluminium* MacBook...Brilliant! And did you see the keyholes?? OMG it has soooomany! Damn I want one! And the bigger trackpad?...Astonishing! I better ran off to camp in the waiting line and keep posting from there...

  • It is hard to tell the size from the pictures. Fewer ports might indicate another very small macbook pro. As many recall, the missing link is the laptop line is a small pro device. Not much more than 4 lbs, 1 inch thick should be possible with the new tech. The 15" pro is few inches to big a over a pound too heavy.
  • by ChrisA90278 ( 905188 ) on Monday October 13, 2008 @10:47AM (#25356439)

    What's new here is not just another revision of an exxisting product. Apple has turned the physical structure of the notebook inside out. Older notebooks have an internal metal frame of some kind. Parts were screwed to the frame and then the case acted as a cover. What Apple has done is mde the cae out of very rigid aluminum. The parts are now screwed to the inside of the case and there is no internal frame. The case itself is the frame.

    Cars and airplanes went through this kind of transition too. In the early days of cars and planes each had an internal frame but now the skin itself is the frame.

    What we should expect is a stronger and lighter computer. Maybe better cooling too and easier to re-cycle later after it is no longer useful as a computer.

  • The article title and summary could have been worded better.

    In addition to the new case (which by any means can be considered a minor change), there is speculation that the new Macs will be using nVidia MCP79 chipsets [softpedia.com].

    Along with the comparatively better graphics performance, this will also add SLI support to the Macbooks.
  • New MacBook cases leak - Apple denies the problem!

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