While there was much speculation leading up to Apple’s October 22, 2013, event, some of the most anticipated revelations had to do with upgrades being made to the new MacBook Pro. Users were not disappointed, as it wasn’t long before it was revealed that not only would the new laptops come complete with a MacBook Retina Display, but they would also be sporting Haswell processors.
What Is a Retina Display?
Retina Display is the trademarked and patented named for a liquid crystal display technology that was developed by Apple. The idea behind the technology is that pixels are packed densely onto the screen, and the human eye will not be able to register pixelation, meaning the display will lose the blocky texture that has become traditionally associated with computer screens. The term “Retina Display” was actually derived from the idea that the human retina would not be able to discern the pixel count. According to the late Steve Jobs, the sweet spot is right around 300 pixels per inch (ppi), at which point a viewer staring at the screen from more than a foot away would not notice the pixelation.
Combining Vision and Power
While the inclusion of the Retina Display to the new MacBook Pro isn’t an especially new development, with the previous model already employing the technology, the fact that it will now be combined with the more powerful fourth-generation Intel Core i-series processor is a development of note. These Intel processors, code-named Haswell, are considered to be the top of the line as far as standard-build consumer processors go, and as such users will find them in almost every high-performance machine on the market today. Before the announcement of the new MacBook Pro line, these laptops, while equipped with the Macbook Retina Display, were still using less-powerful processors when compared to competitors. In fact, it wasn’t until the June 2013 release of the new MacBook Air that Haswell was introduced to its first Mac systems.
According to CNET, this created a problem for the MacBook Pro: although the Pro was supposed to be the most powerful of the Apple laptop line, now not only did the cheaper MacBook Air have a Retina Display, it had a Haswell processor backing it, too. And Haswell has the benefit of increasing not only the power of a machine but the battery life as well. Luckily for Mac users around the world,the new MacBook Pro line will boast a similar pairing, once again elevating the MacBook Pro to the forefront of the competitive laptop market.
The October 22 Apple event introduced plenty of new information that was very well received by Mac users and even by some PC fans, but the upgrades to the MacBook Pro have been by far the best news to come from Apple’s laptop division. The new upgrades are most welcome, especially when paired with the slashed price tags: $1,499 for the 13-inch and $1,999 for the 15-inch. And the increase in power makes it an option that appeals to a much more diverse group of hobbyists. Are you excited about the upgrades in these more affordable, more powerful versions of the MacBook Pro?
Image courtesy of Flickr
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