Apple's 15" Ultra-Thin Notebook Due in March 2012 - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple's 15" Ultra-Thin Notebook Due in March 2012

mbathin
MacBook Air

Digitimes is reporting that small numbers of components for a 15" ultra-thin notebook from Apple will start shipping this month with mass shipments of the notebook beginning in March.

Upstream suppliers of Apple have recently started shipping a small volume of components for a 15-inch ultra-thin notebook model from Apple in November and the device could be either MacBook Air or just a thinner MacBook Pro. The new MacBook is expected to appear as early as the second quarter of 2012, according to sources from the upstream supply chain.

Digitimes is unclear if the parts are intended for a 15" MacBook Air or a thinner 15" MacBook Pro. In July, we reported that Apple was finishing up work on a new ultrathin 15" notebook, and at the end of October, it was rumored that new machine was nearing production.

It seems likely that a thin 15" MacBook would use a SSD rather than HDD, similar to current MacBook Air models, and would forego an optical drive. The MacBook Pro line was refreshed earlier this fall with minor processor, graphics and storage upgrades.

Popular Stories

iphone 17 pro dark blue 1

Apple Preparing 'Most Significant Overhaul in the iPhone's History'

Sunday March 29, 2026 8:18 am PDT by
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has high expectations for Apple's first foldable iPhone. In his Power On newsletter today, he said the foldable iPhone will be "the most significant overhaul in the iPhone's history." "iPhone 4, iPhone 6 and iPhone X were clearly a big deal, but this is a whole new design," he said. Like Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 7, the foldable iPhone will reportedly open up like ...
Apple Event Logo

Apple to Launch These 15+ New Products Later This Year

Friday March 27, 2026 2:03 pm PDT by
March has been an incredibly busy month for Apple, with the company unveiling more than 10 new products and accessories. We said hello to the MacBook Neo at the start of the month, and we bid farewell to the Mac Pro at the end of it. Nevertheless, there is still a lot more to come this year. Beyond the usual annual updates to iPhones and Apple Watches, Apple's all-new smart home hub is...
Apple Apps Grid

Apple Releasing Two New iPhone Apps This Year

Saturday March 28, 2026 8:00 am PDT by
Apple is expected to release two new iPhone apps this year, including an Apple Business app and a Siri app with chatbot-like functionality. With the Apple Business app, employees at businesses using the new Apple Business platform will be able to install apps for work, view contact information for colleagues, and request support. Apple Business is launching on April 14, and it replaces Apple ...

Top Rated Comments

GLS Avatar
188 months ago
Umm..no thanks. Id take windows 8 reasonably priced laptop over this garbage. Tim Cook, you are the beginning of the end! Watch out for Wild Bill. I cant wait to see windows 8 own this, completely. This will be I bet 2 grand! Rip apple, 2k7-2k11

Meth does a body good.
Score: 43 Votes (Like | Disagree)
188 months ago
Liquid metal baby
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
188 months ago
Umm..no thanks. Id take windows 8 reasonably priced laptop over this garbage. Tim Cook, you are the beginning of the end! Watch out for Wild Bill. I cant wait to see windows 8 own this, completely. This will be I bet 2 grand! Rip apple, 2k7-2k11

I see Momma let the troll out of the basement...
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jca24 Avatar
188 months ago
Umm..no thanks. Id take windows 8 reasonably priced laptop over this garbage. Tim Cook, you are the beginning of the end! Watch out for Wild Bill. I cant wait to see windows 8 own this, completely. This will be I bet 2 grand! Rip apple, 2k7-2k11

Ok, you use a winblows pc that doesn't work and we will use Macs that do!

:apple:
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
188 months ago
MacBook Pro and MacBook Air will be merging. We'll have 11", 13", 15" ... 17" is questionable. I could be wrong, but would be surprised if I was. If the MacBook Pro loses the optical drive and becomes thinner, I don't see enough differentiation between it and the Air. I see Apple calling the new product simply MacBook or another name all-together with a new design taking cues from the Air.

I don't think Air and Pro will be merging.
That's coz both categories targets 2 different types of market.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
188 months ago
Since SSD prices are still very high, and Apple is aware that pros want high storage capacity (500-750 GB), why not use a HDD/(blade) SSD combo, as they do in the iMac and Mac mini? Seems like the best of both worlds to me.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)