[sirnick4]

Thanks for the advice guys.

I'm student teaching next (school) year at school. I am required to analyze video a lot on the go as well as the videos that I already have. I need something that is faster than what I have now, more hard drive space, more screen real estate, etc.

I'm not looking for an HD screen or anything like that. I'm actually getting the computer for a specific academic purpose. Saving the money wouldn't do me any good because I actually need the compy.

Thanks again for the great advice! It's much much much appreciated.

[Moogs]

Isn't likely Santa Rosa machines will ship sometime in June?

[sirnick4]

Originally Posted by Moogs Isn't likely Santa Rosa machines will ship sometime in June?

According to BusinessWeek, Santa Rosa will ship in May.

[mooty]

Now that ThinkSecret are pointing to apparent orders for 15" LED screens - what else can we expect to hope for if WWDC will be the release date?

• LED display
• Santa Rosa chipset
• Replaceable Hard Drive
• Mag-Latch ala Macbook
• Updated graphics card

That's what I'm hoping for anyway

[Mugge]

Originally Posted by mooty Now that ThinkSecret are pointing to apparent orders for 15" LED screens - what else can we expect to hope for if WWDC will be the release date? LED display Santa Rosa Processor chip-set Replaceable Hard Drive Mag-Latch ala Macbook Updated graphics card That's what I'm hoping for anyway

It's still Merom.

Otherwise I think you have a very plausible speculation going there.

[Mugge]

UPDATE:

Or perhaps an Nvidia solution? El Reg reports Nvidia is rolling out new laptop centric GPU's.

[jcoley2]

Looks like Intel finally announced the Santa Rosa chip and manufactures are jumping on the bangwagon--from Today's WSJ:

Newest Laptops
Tap Intel Chips For Faster Links
By DON CLARK and CHRISTOPHER LAWTON
May 9, 2007; Page D8
A new crop of portable computers is about to hit the market, exploiting Intel Corp. chips that offer benefits that include longer battery life and faster wireless connections.

The Santa Clara, Calif., semiconductor giant estimates that the chip technology -- to be identified by the brand Centrino Duo, replacing the code name Santa Rosa -- has been chosen for use in more than 230 new laptops.

Those systems offer a slightly faster version of Intel's Core 2 Duo microprocessor chip. But there are two other elements: a set of accessory chips that can display more realistic computer graphics, and Intel's adoption of draft industry specifications called 802.11n in wireless chips that send data at about five times the speed of today's Wi-Fi technology.


Fujitsu's LifeBook T4220 convertible laptop uses Intel's new chip technology.
Dell Inc., at an Intel event today in San Francisco, plans to announce two new Intel-powered laptops that are about 15% faster than previous models, said Brett McAnally, a senior marketing manager for Dell's Latitude product line. He added that battery life on the machines, which start at around $1,200, has been improved by up to an hour and a half -- to either six or nine hours, depending on battery configurations.

Hewlett-Packard Co. is discussing Santa Rosa-based systems at a "mobility summit" in Shanghai that includes innovations of its own -- including a $2,999 entertainment notebook with a 20.1-inch display, software that exploits Intel technology for remotely managing laptops and a backlighting technology that can help extend battery life by 90 minutes. Fujitsu Ltd.'s products using Intel's technology include the $1,750 LifeBook T4220, which can be converted from a conventional laptop to a "tablet" system that can be used with a pen-like stylus.

One optional feature -- dubbed "Turbo Memory" by Intel -- uses chips known as flash memory to help laptops boot up faster. Samir Bhavnani, an analyst at Current Analysis West, predicted it will help spur faster adoption of Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Vista operating system, which helps exploit the feature.

Intel hopes its technology and branding will take sales from Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Besides the Centrino Duo moniker -- which offers marketing subsidies for buying three kinds of chips from Intel -- an offering called Centrino Pro includes beefed-up security and other features for businesses.

AMD executives say the company and partners can match or exceed Santa Rosa's capabilities. Dell, which only used Intel chips until last year, also today plans to announce a second AMD-based laptop for businesses.

[BenRoethig]

Originally Posted by Mugge UPDATE: Or perhaps an Nvidia solution? El Reg reports Nvidia is rolling out new laptop centric GPU's.

Rumor has it the 8600M is twice as fast as the 7600.

[zippy]

Hmm. So, based on the article that jcoley2 posted above, are the benefits from the new "Centrino Duo" really that impressive in a Mac?

The new wireless n component is no big deal for Mac owners since Apple does their own wireless n thing anyway.

It sounds like only a slight speed bump.

"a set of accessory chips that can display more realistic computer graphics" - what do they mean exactly? If this relates to new 3rd party dedicated graphics chips, then this will benefit the MBP. But if this is integrated graphics, it will only help the MBs.

More battery life is always good, but by itself is not necessarily a good reason to hold off.


In a nut shell, if I were going to wait, it would be more for a potential re-design - mag latch, swappable hard drives, led display, etc, and not so much for the new chipset.

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by zippy "a set of accessory chips that can display more realistic computer graphics" - what do they mean exactly? If this relates to new 3rd party dedicated graphics chips, then this will benefit the MBP. But if this is integrated graphics, it will only help the MBs.

It's talking about integrated graphics (Intel doesn't do dedicated graphics), which will help not only the MB, but also the Mac mini and the low-end iMac.

[zippy]

Originally Posted by fcgriz It's talking about integrated graphics (Intel doesn't do dedicated graphics), which will help not only the MB, but also the Mac mini and the low-end iMac.

So that reinforces my opinion that the new chipset is not that big of a deal for MBPs. Some of the potential Apple design improvements would be great, but I wouldn't feel bad about not having the new Centrino Duo in a laptop.