We've always heard that Apple deliberately sends out misinformation to distract the rumor sites, and it looks like that may actually be true -- check out these shots of the Future Shop inventory system, listing the
upcoming MB402LL/A and MB403LL/A SKUs from Apple as being priced at CA$1149 and CA$1349, respectively. That's MacBook pricing, if we had to make a guess -- but remember that earlier
Best Buy shot that showed a box size of 17 inches square, which is way bigger than any non-Pro MacBook. So, to recap: there are definitely new Apple laptops coming soon, but we have almost no idea what kind -- based on product cycles, we'd say it's the MacBook Pro, but signs point to the MacBook as well. Confused yet? Yeah, we thought so -- but hopefully answers are coming
soon.
posted Feb 25th 2008 8:02PM
Futureshop is actually owned by Best Buy, so may be related. Also, I have a friend who says something about something called an iFlip being in the Best Buy system under Apple Mobile Computers, the same category that macbooks are under.
the iflip is an ipod dock that plays video not a computer
Well yea I do know that the iFlip is a video player, but an Apple branded, ranging in price $1099.99 to $1499.99, and in the Best Buy system under mobile comupters?
As of 5:17 pm on Monday 2/25, the Apple online store, phone store, and order checking is down for a scheduled upgrade
Is that all you do all day? Go to the Apple Store?
what? as far as i can tell, the store is still up and taking orders. i see NO updates to the store right now. im guessing any updates will be updated during the night.
prophet- they never update at night
they do it during the day so that people can read on engadget and tuaw about it.
apple wants attention and they get it.
http://applestorestatus.pingdom.com/?id=2
"Applicable for PSP"?
what?
Its probably some acronym for something else.
PSP is also an acronym for "paint shop pro", which is still unrelated, but is still a acronym.
PSPs at best buy are Product Service Plans.
I remembered this because the one on my iPod came in handy when my hard drive starting crapping out on me :(
oh, that would make sense.
i'd hope you could buy a service plan for a laptop.
Performance Service Plan -- Best Buy's extended warranty program -- there are various laptop PSP tiers, depending on laptop price and coverage options.
Also keep in mind that until you actually see any of the products on the shipping manifest, the SKU, description and price are subject to change. It's actually very, very common for stuff to even appear in the system and never actually show up in the store. In this case, I'm sure it will show up in the store, but the in-stock dates are estimates and not final because they don't have any on order and it doesn't look like these are going to even be on the regular trucks, but directly from the distributor.
actually PSP isn't an acronym as it isn't pronounced as a word. RADAR is an acronym.
IBM isn't.
Don't be too hasty. That's not a hard and fast rule for acronyms. Some say it has to be a pronounceable word, some say it doesn't. Webster's in fact allows for both.
Alright fine then, it's an alphabetisms.
Your mom is an acronym.
What's a MacBook?
Apple's line of sucessers for the iBook and the PowerBook.
I think powerbook was a really cool name. Then again, I've never owned a mac in my life.
whats an ibook? (note: don't actually tell me *cough* mushrooshi *cough*)
An iBook was Apple's consumer line of notebooks.
Back in the day - which was a Wednesday, by the way - Apple used the i suffix for consumer models, and power for the pros. Personally, I liked that method better.
Whoops, sorry Chris... I didn't read the comment fully. My bad.
ur kidding me right?
a boot.
I always thought that a MacBook was just a piece of Scottish literature. XD
.. i think it is an old, old wooden ship that was used during the Civil War era ..
PSP means Performance Service Plan, meaning they can sell a service plan on the unit
It's about time for a facelift anyway. The design hasn't changed in what, eight years? It's about as cutting edge as a New Beetle.
I'm completely open for a redesign of the MacBook Pro, I just find it unlikely. Nothing's really wrong with the design, so I doubt Apple will bother to change it. The MacBook on the other hand is in dire need of a facelift. Give it an aluminum case, maybe thin it up a bit more, possibly more display sizes, etc. Like a mini MacBook Pro, so to speak. They should have done that from the beginning, instead of introducing the feature-raped MacBook Air.
If you think the MBP has a good design, it's evident that you've never had to something as trivial as upgrade the hard drive. I did. I lost count, but I recall needing to remove about two thousand microscopic screws, detach a bunch of wires, remove the bluetooth dongle, and sacrifice a chicken. This is not good design unless you consider a $2000 machine to be disposable.
This, compared to the Macbook where you remove something like one screw to swap out the drive. Lame.
no way macbook will be aluminum since they are targeting consumer, student and education people who inherently are clumsy and rough with portable computers (or personal computer PC. PC DOES NOT mean microsoft window os. MACS are PC as well. They just use a different OS.). I think they will shift to a light and durable composite material.
note: sorry for the rant.
Colloquially, and until recently, the line between PCs and Apple Computers was drawn at the processor level. PC referred to anything that had an x86 processor, and a Mac was anything that had a power pc processor. Apple made the foolish performance, but smart business decision to dump the power pc chip in favour of the cheaper and more easily obtainable x86 and lately, x64 chips, which they can sell for the same price as the power pc machines, just less out of pocket for them, and potential to load multiple oses on their hardware (the only reason you aren't able to run OS X on a 'pc' is apple's licensing and driver support [read: lack thereof], but that is beside the point).
Semantically you are correct, but unfortunately, the urban dictionary is the etymologists nightmare of our time, and will continue to dictate how people speak. Those who don't think for themselves, that is.
I'm so excited, yet so very confused...
Cubs will lose
I'm sick and tired of these stupid comments on my sports team. I bet some other people have teams they are a fan of but they truthfully suck.
Wouldn't a box for a MacBook be 2-4" bigger than the actual MacBook itself?
nvm, stupid comment.
No, I actually thought it was a great comment.
No sarcasm intended. I just suck at these kinds of posts.
my mommy says that no questions are stupid! :P
That was my thought exactly.
If you look at the specs for current models, none of the macbook/pros show any dimension as being 17". Even the 17" MBP is only 15" wide.
There is no such thing as stupid questions...just stupid people.
Ok so a MBP update is coming.... do we have have to dwell on it?
I'm really suprised to see all these DPS screens from Circuit City and Best Buy because both these stores make you sign a confidentiality agreement which basically claims you are risking your job if you share confidential info with the outside world.
I worked in a BBY (store 483) and I shared info with bestbuysux (BBY had 15 DS's and 8 PSP's stolen the day prior) and the manager found out. Bitch acted out around me so I just plain old quit. I'm doing ALOT better now than that $8.50 I was pulling way back then. You should have seen the look on managements faces when I came back there in my S550 and bought some DVD's.
OhHO! You really showed them, hotshot!
How does one go from making 8.50 an hour to driving a $100,000 car?
You become a car salesman and stop off for DVDs on the way to deliver the car to the new owner?
hey, cap the sarcasm, buddy. I thought it was a good story.
As far as remember you park your car outside the store not inside. And if I really wanted to show off, I would have bought couple of Sony Bravias rather than couple of puny $20 DVDs.
I think sarcasm is appropriate here. This is certainly an example of people just not being able to escape the confines of their youthful indoctrination. For more information on this phenomenon. see: britney spears.
Uhhhh, the posters are smart enough to cover the store number and all that. The screens are the same in all stores, so as long as they don't find the name of the poster, or see a store number (or even date and time), there is nothing they can do about it.
It could have been any of ~100,000 people (1000ish stores and 100ish staff per)...
I used to work at Circut City, I then posted information about an upcoming product I found in the RSS on Circutcitysuckmyballs.com and my manager found out. So I quit before she could do anything about it.
The funny thing is I stopped by the other day to grab a candy bar, everone was shocked to see me driving my Lamborghini Reventon. I don't know why I am telling you this, seeing that it is entirely irrelevant.
Oh, yeah, I suck at life, am missing my left testicle, have never been laid, live with my mom, and like to makeup bullsh*t as well.
Ok engadget, how about "It will probably be both the macbook and macbook pro being upgraded, seeing as they are both still on the merom line, and other manufacturers have already released quite a few penryns."
Come on! More posts hyping something that could possibly happen tomorrow sometime during the morning! I need sustainment until someone posts tomorrow morning that *gasp* the store is down!
Wonder how many more rumour stories Engadget are going to post about this. I mean this makes what? Four in the last twelve hours all just saying the same thing that certain stores have new Apple SKUs on there systems? Next we will get a story about the Apple site being down and how it foretells the coming of something new.
Perhaps this is advanced pricing for the Intel Penryn processor that should be released soon. I have seen a discrepancy in pricing for the 17" MacBook Pro and this may signal a new release from Apple soon.
I wish engadget would stop *anticipating* perceived breakthroughs (which aren't even breakthroughs). Just tell us when it's available at our local Best Buy, rather than get us excited about things we can never own.
You wouldn't be able to buy it yet anyway, what's the point?
I don't see anyone buying a computer right now and not returning it (or get pissed) so why not save some grief and tell us Apple?
Interesting, the MB402LL/A has a UPC code of 885909214235 in both this top screen shot and the earlier Best Buy one. The UPC is a valid and currently unused Apple code.
The price differences and especially wrong box sizing is really unusual coming from a manufacturer. If these are real screen shots and the mis-information originated from Apple... they just did some thing here that would get a lesser manufacturer kicked off the shelfs. It is a nightmare for both budget and ordering cycles and also warehouse slotting (picking the shelf it goes into)
Sorry, I meant the MB402LL/A and the MA402LL/A from the Best Buy post have the same UPC code.
this will be a piece of sh*t in 5 months. Just like all new computers.
You'd be amazed at how my G5 from 2003 still kicks b**t. Admittedly, the battery lasts no more than an hour now, but hey, that's 5 years, not 5 months. I'd say that is not too bad.
Please don't turn our beloved Engadget into Macrumors. I can't stand the lameness of that site.
I just bought a MB this weekend... of course there's going to be a freakin upgrade.
you said it, lando.
How long till they actually put a graphics card in the regular macbook? I'm not asking for much, mabe even an nvidia 8400gs.
why are there so many stories about mac part numbers today?
we get it, new macbook, gotcha.
thats lame, even for a mac-fanboy site.
Actually, just for the record. Bestbuy product sizes are usually wrong on RSS (the screen shown with the Model Numbers). Well, they are at least almost always wrong with Appliances.
~Shoe
PSP = Public Sex Performance
I used to work for Future Shop, up to 2 months ago, and they no longer use that computer inventory system so the shot you're looking at is quite old, at least 6 months. So its hard to believe that.
Incorrect, the old AIX system is still in use as of last week.
Amazing how a few inventory numbers can create such a stir up so much speculation. Every so often new Apple computers are released. Is this something that's so unusual?
So anyone ever wonder why the Future shop still uses a DOS like interface which could infact be DOS? I think it might be because it was the most reliable OS Microsoft outted ever. Or is it?
It's actually AIX.
well i work at best buy store number 531 and i just picked up this post so tmmrw when i go to work ill check our inventory system and grab down all the information i can out of rss (our inventory system) and i will be sure to post as much as possible
High five.
yippe lolz
I'm confoosed :(
All Starrbucks closes on Tuesday for 3 hours........does everyone else see the connection!
http://www.azcentral.com/ent/dining/articles/0225starbucksclose0225.html
I think it's just a coincidence, Tuesday is probably Starbuck's least busy day of the week
I think It's probably the Macbook simply because it isn't ... you know ... brushed alunimum yet.
It's also likely that both will be updated.
their entire product line has never been the same styling
remember the white?
remember the 90's colouring?
there was always 1 product different...
That's surprising that your G5 still gets an hour of battery life after 5 years... considering the G5 was never in any portables. Maybe your G4 still gets an hour of battery life or maybe your iMac or PowerMac are running off of battery.
In that case, yeah, not too bad.
-jb
Pardon me, that was in response to Roole. My bad.
-jb
Has anyone noticed that the refurb. iMacs at the apple store have a "Limited Time Special Price"? You don't see that often? Weird.
that pic says macintosh powerbook..
its from 2002
Aww man, what really blows is the poor sucker that sells one of these over at Futureshop will only make $16.87 of commission. They'd better bundle it with some Altecs and PSP if they don't wanna starve.
Man is it good to not work for Futureshop anymore... I'm doing way better now, you shoulda seen managements face when I pulled up in my Enzo to buy CD's. Oh wait, this story was already played out earlier by somebody else.
OMG DONT FORGET THE $99.99 SETUP IT'S THE COMPLETE PACKAGE.
DID YOU USE A PLANNER?
and.... /caps... (I mean )
I, for one, am hoping that the new MB Pro is not like this! Apple's quiet Apple Store surprise releases, while frequent and disruptive, are never very interesting; just new specs in existing products. It would be a shame for something so potentially awesome as the next version of their top-end laptop being a mere incremental adjustment.
Sounds almost like downgraded/cheapened versions of the macbook air (or penryn processors for the macbook) to compete with the super-portables perhaps? They're definitely going to throw something at us that isn't the macbook pro, just to keep us on our toes.
Interesting - they're selling it below cost by $50 - you can see in the bottom left corner.
It appears Engadget isn't reporting on the fact that the store is down today. A change in policy, perhaps?
Apple Store down now....
Interesting that it's listed $50 below cost (the 120000 in the bottom left corner means the cost price is $1200.00--I used to work for FS). I guess in order to make any money on this they will have to start selling some serious warranties...
and by that I mean the MB4-2LL/A
The future looks green...
Who still uses those old monitors!?