A 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro is coming soon, analysts say
Apple's new 15-inch MacBook Pro with the Retina Display is just a precursor to a 13-inch model arriving in a few months, three analysts say.
If you want a MacBook Pro with a Retina Display, your current options are limited to a single 15-inch size. However that might not be the case in a few months time.
AppleInsider today relays a note from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI, who suggests that Apple is about three months from running up production on a 13-inch model of its new, top of the line MacBook Pro.
Kuo suggested that the smaller machine was originally intended to debut alongside the 15-inch version Apple unveiled on Monday, but that things didn't come together in time.
The information is similar to that from NPD DisplaySearch analysts Richard Shim and Jeff Lin, who yesterday noted that a 13.3-inch Retina Display-caliber panel was being readied for production. That panel, the pair said, would start being made in the third quarter of this year.
"Our Q1 report also indicated that a 13.3-inch 2,560 by 1,600 resolution panel was being prepared for production in the third quarter," the pair said. "ODM supply chain sources indicate that Apple will use this panel in a MacBook Pro unit to be launched in the fourth quarter."
A 13-inch model of the MacBook Pro with Retina Display would presumably be less expensive than Apple's 15-inch version, based on Apple's past and current pricing. For now, the 15-inch, Retina version begins at $2,199 and can run up to $3,750 when fully-loaded with add-ons. That's as opposed to the non-Retina version of the 15-inch model, which starts at $1,799 and has a substantially different hardware make-up.
The high-end MacBook Pro remains a difficult item to get. CNET spoke with numerous Apple retail stores yesterday, none of which had stock. Those who ordered the machine from Apple's online store on Monday only began receiving them today.
