Kuo predicts Super-MacBook Pro is coming: Kaby Lake, 32GB ”desktop-class RAM”
A new era for the MacBook Pro has just begun, according to KGI Securities chief analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who has communicated in a note to investors, that Apple could be releasing an updated MacBook Pro powered by an Intel Kaby Lake CPU, and with the option to configure the laptop with as much as 32GB of “desktop-class” RAM, doubling the upgrade option of any other MacBook currently available.
If anywhere near accurate, these predictions could be telling of a renewed focus on performance, matching the pace of Apple’s commitment to design and user-experience.
The keywords, in case you’ve missed them, are “desktop class RAM”, which in this case, could very well be taken at face value, within context, as two scenarios could materialize.
In one case, Apple could simply integrate desktop class RAM, embedded into the logic board, as it did many times before, which could, in theory, allow Apple to still maintain the same thin design of the MacBook Pro.
The alternative to that, would be to literally allow for desktop-class RAM slots to be embedded in the logic board, causing the design of the MacBook to thicken considerably, since desktop RAM can often be as thick as the thinnest point of a MacBook.
The latest RAM technology allows for increasing amount of memory to be stored on one DIMM, which means that the upcoming MacBook Pro, if real, will require only a single module, rather than multiple DIMMS.
It’s unclear at this stage how Apple plans to solve the problem with heat dissipation, since desktop-class memory will equate to desktop-class cooling requirements. Another problem that Apple needs to solve with high-performance desktop-class specs, is noise from internal fans, since, at such level of performance, fans will still be required to ensure proper airflow, as a fanless design will be impossible to implement.
Kuo believes that the design won’t necessarily veer off from what we have seen at the end of last year, with Apple’s most recent line of MacBook Pro laptops, but there will be considerations to make in regard to internals, especially if Apple truly intents to push the boundaries with desktop-grade hardware.
Optimistically, Kuo is projecting September as the beginning of production for this next-generation MacBook Pro, which means we won’t see it until sometime in 2018.
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