Apple has launched its new Back to School deals, and if you've been considering a new iPad or Mac for the classroom - either remote or in-person - you could get a treat for your ears, too. The Cupertino company is adding to its usual education discount with an AirPods promo, and a discount for Apple Care+.
Apple's WWDC 2021 keynote went down earlier this week, and if you were expecting the reveal of new MacBook Pros during the show - as many of us were - you probably walked away disappointed. Indeed, there were no MacBooks anywhere in sight, just talk a lot of talk about what's new on the software front. While Apple may not have announced new MacBooks at WWDC, we may have an indication that some kind of announcement is on the way.
Apple's new 16-inch MacBook Pro, expected to switch to the most potent version of Apple Silicon we've seen so far, could have been spotted cropping up in new filings for the first time. The flagship notebook would not only give Apple's homegrown chips their most pro-user focused launch so far, but is widely believed to bring a considerable change in design after years of MacBook Pro iteration.
There are many versatile Windows laptops that boast great performance, extreme power and decent battery backup. Joining the ranks is the new Surface Laptop 4, the latest entrant from the house of Microsoft that touts a massive upgrade in battery and performance from its predecessors. This Surface rendition is very nicely priced and is billed as a competitor to the M1 chip-powered 13-inch MacBook Pro.
Apple will release a new Mac mini in the relatively near future, according to reports this week. This would be a bit of a shock, given the timing of the release of the otherwise most recent release of a Mac mini - just this most recent December. The Mac mini M1 could potentially be joined this year by a tentatively-titled "Mac Pro mini" with a shape slightly more cube-like.
This week a set of leaks suggest that the 2021 version of the MacBook Pro will bring back some long-lost must-have features. Where the MacBook Pro used to come with a variety of ports: USB, HDMI, headphone jack, and SD-card included. With the latest data leak on the next MacBook Pro release from Apple, it would seem that we could get at least SOME of that variety back later this year.
A hardware leak this week shows a set of MacBook devices that made we want to switch back to using an Apple computer. I've used either Windows or Mac OS computers for the past couple of decades - at this point I could go either way with the software. With what I do on either platform, apps I use pretty much roll right, regardless of OS. For me, the hardware now needs to make the case for my next purchase.
The next big chip on the Apple Silicon roadmap is already in mass production, according to a new report, with what's believed to be the Apple M2 being lined up for new MacBook models later in 2021. The leak follows the debut of the new iMac 24-inch last week, which tapped the existing Apple M1 chipset, and the revamped iPad Pro 2021 which also adopted the M1.
A ransomware gang suggests this week that they've broken past security of the Apple contractor Quanta. They've suggested that they're holding secret and/or private information hostage, including data and drawings on a pair of Apple products that have not yet been released to the public. One of these items appears to be a new MacBook Pro, likely set for release in the year 2021. Specifications indicated in one drawing say MacBook Pro 2021 could have more ports than it's had in a number of years - which is good.
A new rumor is going around that suggests Apple is gearing up to launch new MacBook Pro models that feature additional outputs later this year. One of the complaints that many MacBook fans have about Apple's high-end notebooks are the lack of connectivity options. Ports standard on any other computer brand require Apple users to buy expensive Apple accessories like docking stations or dongles.
Every so often, we hear about software updates that bring their own set of bugs even as they fix others. Most of the time, these bugs only affect software features but there are rare times that they may affect even a device's hardware. The past few days have been a stressful one for MacBook Pro owners exactly because of that rare case of bad luck over battery issues and Apple is now offering free battery replacements for those affected by a highly inconvenient bug.
The Surface Pro 2-in-1 detachable tablet was arguably a stroke of genius and a gold mine for Microsoft but the company may have already milked the cow dry. The product line has seen very little significant innovation or upgrade in the past generations and the Surface Pro 8 doesn't sound like something terribly exciting either. Still, Microsoft seems quite insistent on pitting the current Surface Pro 7 against the MacBook Pro and while it does make some strong arguments, it might have also missed the point, especially with Apple's latest iteration.