14 DAY TRIAL // Recent indications that refreshed MacBook Pros are likely on their way to consumers this March should mount as evidence that Apple plans to hold a special event next month, not only to introduce said computers, but also to do its one-more-thing routine for the iPad 2.
It all began in November 2010, with a report by t-gaap.com, which confidently stated that “The new MacBook Pros will move to solid state storage, up to 512GB, remove the optical drive, and we believe light-peak is being pushed to make it's first-ever entrance into the market, another Apple exclusive.”
Light Peak is an optical cable interface designed to connect devices in a peripheral bus. The technology has a high bandwidth at 10 Gbit/s, with the potential to scale up to 100 Gbit/s by 2020.
If Apple wants to throw in new technologies (provided that t-gaap.com is accurate in its predictions), this MacBook Pro refresh deserves a special introductory event, not a mere pull-down of the Apple online store to simply update system specs and other listings.
The t-gaap report also claimed a new Final Cut Pro version was coming alongside the new hardware, citing an unconfirmed statement from Apple CEO, Steve Jobs which included such hints.
More recently, a Japanese blog that has been known to accurately predict previous Apple announcements claimed to have learned that Apple was planning a “small” event for March, to introduce its next-generation tablet computer - the iPad 2.
Pretty much everyone with ties to Apple agrees it’s high time the company took the cloth off the camera-equipped iPad 2, and Spring 2011 is the likely date to do so, with over a year past since the original tablet’s debut.
The Japanese blog, although vague in details concerning this alleged event, notes that iPad 2 will be Apple’s famous one-more-thing announcement.
Last, but certainly not least, 9to5mac.com claims to have received information that every MacBook Pro model’s stock is constrained at the moment, except for the higher-end 13-inch model.
A follow-up by the same source then notes that Best Buy’s inventory system now indicates that the launch of updated MacBook Pros is imminent.
So, how did they reach this conclusion?
Well, Best Buy stores have reportedly placed in “Dummy SKUs” for an updated MacBook Pro line set to go on sale March 11th (a Friday).
Furthermore, according to the listings shown in two separate pictures at 9to5mac, the new MacBook Pro line will have one model priced at $1199 model - the base price for the current 13-inch version of the laptop.
All in all, with this many updates planned, Apple will most likely host an event in the mid-February - early March timeframe.