MacBook Pro late 2011 may be 200MHz bump

Tentative specs rumored late Sunday for the late 2011 MacBook Pro by 9to5 suggest that Apple will almost exclusively focus on the processor speed. The 15- and 17-inch models would get 200MHz bumps to the refreshed Intel Core i7, starting at 2.2GHz for the entry 15-inch system and 2.4GHz for the higher-end 15- and 17-inch systems. The 13-inch models could be a more modest update still at just a 100MHz step up to 2.4GHz and 2.8GHz for their dual Core i5 parts.

Build-to-order 15- and 17-inch systems would have 2.5GHz Core i7s and 750GB, 7,200RPM hard drives. Only the 13-inch model would get significantly more besides processor speed, with a boost to the same 500GB and 750GB drives as the larger versions. Every system would still have 4GB of RAM.

If accurate, some details were still left open by the tip. Battery life will likely remain the same given similar power draws. Graphics, however, haven't been mentioned and stand a slight chance of upgrades, even if just to video memory.

The seemingly very conservative update, should it arrive in early November, is considered mostly a stopgap to keep up in performance due to Intel's longer than usual processor update cycle. Its Ivy Bridge processor may not arrive until March or later and could risk Apple having arguably its most important Mac going without an update for over a year.

By Electronista Staff