A new report is suggesting that Apple is in the final stages of preparing for the release of a brand new design of the MacBook Pro. According to 9to5Mac who cite sources in the Apple supply chain, the new MacBook Pro will be 15 inches in size and will have an entirely new form factor that sits somewhere between the design of the current MacBook Pro and the super thin MacBook Air. The new model will also drop the optical drive, and will have USB 3.0 as well as a Retina Display.
The site suggests that the new thin form factor is not quite as thin as the MacBook Air and doesn’t taper towards the front, rather it is simply a thinner version of the MacBook Pro. Apple will also apparently use this opportunity to unleash Mac Retina Display upon the world, a feature which is already being hinted at in the latest updates to OS X 10.7 Lion and 10.8 Mountain Lion, due for release later this summer, about the same time that this new MacBook Pro design is expected. The Retina Display will also apparently not be categorized by pixel size, rather big, medium or small, according to the report.
The new models will also be expected to sport the latest Intel Ivy Bridge processors and will apparently appear alongside a new variation of the iMac, also sporting the Ivy Bridge architecture. While the report notes that the World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) in June would be the ideal time for the new models to appear, but doesn’t give a firm timescale for the release.
Optimal…