Fantastic event overall. A phenomenal showing.
A new MacBook (previously known as the 'retina MacBook Air 12"'), with a lot of new technology (Force touch, new thin keyboard, new form-shaping battery technology, a new universal port, and most importantly, the return of the lettering under the screen). The full introduction and launch of the Apple Watch. A decent update to the MacBook Air series (making it still viable), and an update for the
Turns out I was correct in my previous post on the 2015 Apple Mac portables. Apple seems to be making a clear distinction between the Pro series, and the Air series1.
I really think the new MacBook was the star of the show; much more so than the Apple Watch. The MacBook Air series (I'm referring to the current MacBook with the 'Air' paradigm) really has, yet again, set the standard for the future of the Mac portables: Light. Thin. Well-designed. Powerful (in terms of screen resolution). Three colour optinos. A universal extensible port.
The unannounced MacBook Pro 15" (possibly 14"?), which was the only laptop to arrive without an update or a hint, is due to arrive late Q3 2015–early Q4 2015/early Q1 2016, with the introduction of the redesigned MacBook Pro with the Intel Skylake-series processor.
The upcoming new MacBook Pro 14"/15" will be bringing in the revolutionary new technologies (such as the Taptic Engine, first introduced in as 'Force Touch' in the Apple Watch) and a new design sense to the flagship prosumer line, in the form of the MacBook Pro.
The distinction will be akin to one between the iMac and the Mac Pro: one will be for casual consumers, and the other, for prosumers (computer enthusiasts, content producers, ...). The MacBook (or the MacBook Air) line will be the thinnest and lightest available, while the MacBook Pro will be thin and light, but yet at the same time, offer power and performance, and better battery life2. as well.
Really looking forward to seeing the late 2015/early 2016 redesigned MacBook Pro.
It'll be phenomenal, and set the benchmark for the portable computing industry for the rest of this decade.
Update (10/3/2015): Forgot about the removal of the iconic backlit Apple logo on the lid of the laptop. A real shame, but at least the lettering has returned. Hurrah!
1. They seem to have folded the MacBook 'Air' brand into the 'MacBook' series. Or, perhaps they're doing what they did back they called the MacBook 13" (cMBP 13") the "MacBook Aluminium", and then shifting it to become the "MacBook" and then afterwards calling it the "MacBook Pro 13". If they do do this in this case, with the laptop temporarily being called just the 'MacBook' (while they're slowly phasing out the current MacBook Airs), then they'll eventually shift this current MacBook to being called the 'MacBook Air' after the current 2010-era gen MBA is discontinued.↩
2. I wouldn't be surprised if the upcoming new MacBook Pro 14"/15" will have an all-day battery life (24 hours of normal web browsing and typical document editing.) The various technological improvements that the Intel Skylake platform will bring will be fairly significant (DDR4 RAM support, better integrated graphics card, ...).↩