MacBook Pro gets retina display, super-thin case

Apple has released a long-overdue update to its MacBook Pro.

The company's new top-of-the-line MacBook features a 15-inch retina display (that is, the same super high-resolution screen used on the iPhone 4S and the new iPad).

It's also 1.80cm thick, or 25% thinner than its predecessor.

"Crap it's thin. I need it now," exclaimed Christchurch app developer Layton Duncan on Twitter.

Mr Duncan is in San Francisco for the Apple World Wide Developers Conference this morning NZ time, where the new MacBook Pro was unveiled.

He had to wait in vain for a 17-inch model, however - the MacBook Pro Retina Display tops out at 15 inches, as does a refresh of Apple's "standard" MacBook Pro (below).

Apple slimmed down the new model, in part, by eliminating a DVD drive.

There's also no hard drive. The new MacBook Pro comes with a choice of 256GB or 512GB solid state (Flash) memory.

The weight is 2.02kg.

Stunning display, stunning price
The starting price is a robust $3499 for the 256GB model and $4499 for the 512GB model (which again seems a little off compared to the US price of $2799 - $NZ3658, even allowing for the US price excluding sales tax.)

Both come with 8GB of memory (upgradeable to 16GB) and a 2.6GHz quadcore Intel Core i7 processor.

Other specs include a Nvidia GeForce GT 650M Kepler graphics (good enough to play Diablo III, Apple says), up to 768GB of flash storage in custom-build options and up to seven hours of battery life, or 30 days on standby.

The new design has ports for SD, HDMI, USB 3.0 on either side, two Thunderbolt ports, a headphone jack and a slimmer MagSafe charging port. The laptop also has an HD camera for FaceTime and dual microphones.

Through a Mac OS X upgrade, also announced today, the new MacBook and other models also gain dication ability - but not full-on Siri-style interpretative commands.

MacBook Pro, Air get refresh
Apple also announced incremental upgrades its (non-retina display) MacBook and Air laptop lines this morning.

Both get what Apple says are 60% faster graphics, USB 3 ports and Intel Ivy Bridge processors.

The Air also gains a 720p high def webcam.

Full specs and pricing here.