MacBook Pros Departing from Current Design, New Models to Emerge - Report

In addition to refreshing the iMac line of desktop computers, Apple is planning a major MacBook Pro refresh, people with knowledge of such matters are saying.

Quoted by rumor-site MacRumors, these people have reportedly leaked “reliable confirmation” that Apple’s next revision of the MacBook Pro line will employ an all-new case design, marking the first major aesthetic change since the unibody-refresh in late 2008.

Two years ago, Apple unveiled a new range of MacBook Pro computers that embodied some of the manufacturing processes undergone by the MacBook Air, then a novelty.

The precise unibody design was so successful that Apple applied it to almost every product it sold that relied on an aluminum enclosure.

Apple may not part with the lightweight metal just yet, but it will engage in different practices when crafting out MacBook Pro enclosures, according to the aforementioned source.

The new MacBook Pros are almost sure to borrow key design elements from the MacBook Air computers, recently refreshed with more attractive, sturdier bodies.

While the current MacBook Pro lineup is still leading the pack in the mobile computing industry, Apple does not want to wait for competitors like Sony and HP to catch up with impressively slim designs, and specs to boot.

The Mac maker’s next attempt at setting the bar will most likely be an Air-like range of MacBook Pro laptops with curvy lines, thickest and thinnest (advertising) points, and so on.

As mentioned above, an iMac refresh is also anticipated. Overdue, in fact, for a revamping both internally and perhaps even externally, the new iMacs set to arrive as soon as next week are expected to employ Sandy Bridge processors and Intel’s Thunderbolt I/O technology.

The latter is only present on the newest MacBook Pro computers.

Bringing all Macs up to feature parity has always stood high on Apple’s priority list, and we shouldn’t expect things to be any different this year.