Apple updates processors, makes MacBook Pro with Retina display, MacBook Air more affordable

Apple is making the MacBook Pro with Retina display faster and more affordable with updated processors and lower starting prices.

The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display now starts at $1,499 for 128GB of flash, and $1,699 for a new 2.6 GHz processor and 256GB of flash. The 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display now features a faster 2.4 GHz quad-core processor, and the top-of-the-line 15-inch notebook comes with a new 2.7 GHz quad-core processor and 16GB of memory. Apple today also announced that the 13-inch MacBook Air with 256GB of flash has a new lower price of $1,399.

The MacBook Pro with Retina display features the world’s highest resolution notebook display. Whether you’re reading emails, writing text, editing home movies in HD or retouching professional photography, everything appears vibrant, detailed and sharp, delivering an unrivaled viewing experience. The MacBook Pro with Retina display features flash storage that is up to four times faster than traditional notebook hard drives, and delivers improved reliability, instant-on responsiveness and up to 30 days of standby time.

The updated MacBook Pro with Retina display and MacBook Air models are available today through the Apple Online Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. Pricing details, technical specifications, configure-to-order options and accessories are available online at www.apple.com/macbook-pro and www.apple.com/macbookair.

Source: Apple Inc.

24 Comments

  1. I still like the 2.9 i7 regular 13″ MBP. You can max out the RAM to 16GB, throw in whatever drive you want in the main bay and then swap out the DVD for a second drive. I need as much storage as possible for DJing and I prefer it to all be internal. The Retina is awesome but not really needed for what I do and then I’d have to have an external drive for storage.

      1. You can actually go up to 16GB with them. May not be “technically” supported by Apple but it still works.

        Check out OWC (MacSales) for more info:
        16.0GB OWC Memory Upgrade – 2 x 8.0GB 1600MHz DDR3L SO-DIMM PC12800 204 Pin

    1. Don’t get all red-faced and be blue.
      Just take that bad boy back under Apple’s return policy!

      Your account will be Back in Black and folks will be hip-hoppin’ like white on rice…and maybe you’ll get some pink-eye.

    1. Indeed.

      Cook and Co are acting like timid, overly cautious leaders. No wonder Wall Street expects slow growth from here on out: Apple has offered almost nothing but modest predictable derivative product releases!!!

      1. you realize they’ve done this for YEARS, right? even with Steve Jobs at the helm, they release a mid-product cycle update with improved specs and *sometimes* lower pricing. i don’t understand why this spells death to apple, or why people think this is different.

        1. @ allthegeo:

          Dresden offered a very reasonable observation. 128GB of flash memory isn’t that much, and the competition is fierce. So why is Apple not offering options for significantly more storage?

          If asking these questions constitutes being a troll to you, then those of us who want Apple to push the envelope will be proud to wear your shallow label.

          A great company invents whole new industries. A typical boring company matches the competition’s specifications and tweaks the price to move units.

      2. Good luck around these parts, Mike with your reasoned, insightful, and correct conclusions about what is happening to the once great company under the hapless leadership of Tim Cook. Very very few of the participants in the MDN world will do any more than cast you aside as a troll. Even though it’s all they have to offer in response, they just keep wearing out the knee jerk label. You will be proven right so hang in there!

        Hey, MDN… iCal this!

  2. I got one of the last, fastest, 17″ MacBook Pros, even has Thunderbolt and PCM slot for my eSATA drives. Easy internal adapter for SD which usually lives in it when not using external drives. I love it. Would be great if it had USB3, but I’m all eSATA and FW 800 anyway. Retina would be nice. Come on Apple, we’re not all “consumers”. The 17″ is a true pro machine with screen space and interfaces. Even an optical, which I actually use.

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