MacBook Pro Gets New Ivy Bridge Processors, NVIDIA Graphics

Apple’s current generation 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pros have been updated with the latest Intel Core processors and powerful discrete graphics from NVIDIA, the company announced yesterday.

The announcement came right before Apple unveiled the all-new MacBook Pro with Retina display. The company apparently isn’t willing to let go of the current MacBook Pros, so it’s beefed them up with the latest Intel CPUs, and new graphics solutions from NVIDIA. According to Apple’s press release issued yesterday, which basically acts as a spec sheet for the newly-announced laptops, “The 13-inch MacBook Pro features the latest Intel Core i5 or Core i7 dual-core processors up to 2.9 GHz with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz.” “The 15-inch MacBook Pro features the latest Intel Core i7 quad-core processors up to 2.7 GHz with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.7 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M discrete graphics,” Apple said.

Both models can be configured with a 1TB hard drive or solid state drives (SSDs) up to 512GB. The advantage of using a solid state drive is faster reading & writing of data, which means faster loading times (including faster load times), and less battery drainage. The new MacBook Pro features a high-speed Thunderbolt port and two USB 3.0 ports, as well as 7 hours of wireless battery life. Apple says its Mac notebook batteries use advanced chemistry and Adaptive Charging technology to provide up to 1,000 recharges. The 13-inch MacBook Pro is available with a 2.5 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB of memory and 500GB hard drive starting at $1,199 (€959). It goes all the way up to $2,199 (€1,760) for a 2.6 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB of memory, Intel HD Graphics 4000 and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M, and a 750GB hard drive.

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