Last
month we came across a report where KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo
mentioned that Apple is working on ‘thinner and lighter’ MacBook Pro with OLED touch bar placed about the keyboard. Now a
couple of spy shots of the MacBook Pro chassis have surfaced online, which
shows off its refreshed design. The refreshed MacBook Pro lineup is likely to
be announced sometime in the fourth quarter of this year. It is likely to take
some design cues from the 12-inch MacBook and might include a Touch ID sensor
as well.
According
to CultOfMac, which has put out pictures showing the OLED Touch Bar, they got
these from one of Apple’s manufacturing partners in China. The report says the 2016
MacBook Pro series will come with four USB-C type connectors.
The
pictures show the OLED touchpad panel will be placed above the keyboard, and
will replace the function keys, thus letting users customise their own
shortcuts or add some shortcuts for specific apps.
Previously
MacRumors had reported Apple was working on a revamped version of the MacBook
Pro, with a thinner form factor, and Touch ID fingerprint scanner to be
included in it. MacRumors’ report was based on a note by well-known Apple analyst from KGI
Securities Ming-Chi Kuo.
His note
says, “This is particularly true of the two new MacBook Pro models, to be
introduced in 4Q16, as they will have a thinner and lighter form factor, Touch
ID, use OLED display touch bar and adopt USB- C / Thunderbolt 3.”
He also
said the new MacBook Pro notebooks will come with “butterfly
mechanism keyboard,” which was introduced in the 12-inch MacBook. Additionally the new
MacBook Pro series will come with the latest Intel Skylake chipset, and updated
graphics performance with AMD’s new 400-series Polaris GPU.
Apple is
all set to host the WWDC 2016 developer conference on June 13 and chances of
getting a glimpse at the redesigned 2016 MacBook Pro are slim as Apple would
focus on software. However, the new MacBook Pro’s may not launch until the
fourth quarter. Apple is also expected to show off a Siri-powered speaker that
will take on Amazon Echo and Google Home, along with new software for iOS
devices, Macs and more.
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