this is the end of low-res MacBooks

[cookies!]

With GM candidate 1 demonstrating that the most likely final GUI of Yosemite isn't exactly easy on the eyes for users of non-retina displays, I think we can state that Apple won't be putting those low-res displays in their new laptops from here out.

Apple clearly is not going to be making the fonts much clearer, nor some of the graphics less shiny?? Of course, Yosemite looks like it SHOULD on Retina.

Even the disabling of the font smoothing option on Yosemite no longer makes a significant difference in font readability on GM C1, even though fonts do seem a bit better focused.

All hail the upcoming retina Macbook Air (which I will be buying, damn you Apple )

 

[oldmacs]

They're sure not going to be dropping the standard Macbook Airs. A retina Macbook Air is going to be more expensive, so both will coexist.

 

[cookies!]

They're sure not going to be dropping the standard Macbook Airs. A retina Macbook Air is going to be more expensive, so both will coexist.

not THAT much more expensive for Apple (certainly less than $75 at the volumes Apple purchases the screens at), and Apple has a trend of seriously cutting prices on MBA over its lifetime

 

[oldmacs]

not THAT much more expensive for Apple (certainly less than $75 at the volumes Apple purchases the screens at), and Apple has a trend of seriously cutting prices on MBA over its lifetime

I can hardly see Apple pricing a Retina Macbook Air at the prices it currently offers the current Macbook Air. I'd say it would be at least $300 more expensive. The Macbook Pro Retina was far more expensive at launch than the non retina.

Plus having only a 12 inch screen would be sucky. Some people like 11 and some like 13. The current airs are at a sweet spot. Perhaps they'll be rebadged Macbook and the new one will be the Air.

Theres no way Apple will be fully Retina only any time soon.

 

[NathanA]

I can hardly see Apple pricing a Retina Macbook Air at the prices it currently offers the current Macbook Air. I'd say it would be at least $300 more expensive. The Macbook Pro Retina was far more expensive at launch than the non retina.

Well, but keep in mind that right this very minute the base 13" rMBP is only $300 more than the base 13" Air. That's pretty amazing, especially considering that the extra $300 doesn't just get you a better screen, but also a much faster CPU (1.4GHz vs. 2.6GHz i5), twice the RAM (4GB vs. 8GB), and somewhat faster graphics (Intel HD 5000 vs. Intel Iris/5100), not to mention extra I/O.

The 13" rMBP is also only half a pound heavier than the 13" Air, so it's very nearly an Air itself. The tricky part is going to be battery life, I think, especially when you are trying to drive a display that has that many pixels on it. This might be where a 12" Retina Air comes into play...smaller screen, less pixels than either rMBP. There is a 3-hour difference in battery life that favors the 13" Air right now (12 hours vs. 9 hours), which I'm sure is due both to the screen as well as the difference in CPU.

Based on how the 13" rMBP is priced *today*, though, I don't see Apple having a problem trying to figure out how to price a theoretical rAir at less than $1,299. It might start out as being slightly more than the $999 13" cAir, but not significantly more, and I anticipate Apple will work to drop that price down pretty quickly. The 13" rMBP went from $1,699 to $1,299 in only 1 year (October 2012 - October 2013). Heck, it seems as though many people have already forgotten how much the original Air cost! $1,799!

-- Nathan

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

not THAT much more expensive for Apple (certainly less than $75 at the volumes Apple purchases the screens at), and Apple has a trend of seriously cutting prices on MBA over its lifetime

Not for Apple, but that doesn't mean that they won't charge a premium for it anyway.

 

[cookies!]

I can hardly see Apple pricing a Retina Macbook Air at the prices it currently offers the current Macbook Air. I'd say it would be at least $300 more expensive. The Macbook Pro Retina was far more expensive at launch than the non retina.

Plus having only a 12 inch screen would be sucky. Some people like 11 and some like 13. The current airs are at a sweet spot. Perhaps they'll be rebadged Macbook and the new one will be the Air.

Theres no way Apple will be fully Retina only any time soon.

That's retail price, not production price...