Apple October 2012 Media Event Notes

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Apple today announced a ton. They pretty much did a bit of everything. An extravaganza, if you will. And as usual after an Apple event, here are some of the finer points that you may have missed from today’s releases.

Interesting Statistics

  • Over 300 billion iMessages have been sent.
  • Over $6.5 billion has been paid out to developers.

13” Retina MacBook Pro

  • 2560x1600 resolution, second highest resolution in a laptop display only to the 15” Retina MacBook Pro.
  • It has dual mics (like the 15” model does).
  • You can get up to a 768GB SSD, but only up to 8 GB of RAM.
  • There are two fans in the 13” MacBook Pro — a first for the size.
  • The base model costs $1,699.

Mac Mini

  • Almost all the internals were updated with a starting price of only $599.
  • Ports on the back include: USB 3.0, SD Card Slot, HDMI.
  • You can also get a server option starting at $999.

iMacs

  • Apple Fusion Drive combines, through software, an SSD and HDD to give you speed and high storage capacity. What an excellent idea. Over time, the OS will copy over most used programs to the SSD for faster speeds. It’s always swapping. Incredibly clever.
  • The iMac, with its new amazingly thin design, is indeed more enticing now than ever before (not that it ever wasn’t). But, you really don’t realize how amazing having a Retina display computer is. Things look astonishingly better. For me, a user of the 15” Retina MacBook Pro, I could never go back now. No matter how awesome the new iMacs look. Besides, I like having a laptop.
  • The resolution of the screen doesn’t seem to have changed since the last model, but glare has been reduced (thank god) by a supposed 75%. And if the Retina MacBook Pro is anything to go off of, that is a good statistic.
  • There is no optical drive on the new iMacs.
  • 720p HD FaceTime camera.
  • Starts at $1,299.

iPad with Retina Display

  • A6X chip, double CPU and and graphics power to put it on par with the iPhone 5.
  • Lightening connector.
  • Some Apple stores seem to be offering free upgrades if you purchased the last model within 30 days.
  • It looks like Apple is now calling this model the “iPad with Retina Display”. So much for consistency.

iPad Mini

  • The display is higher density than a regular screen, but it is not Retina. It has the same resoltuion as the iPad 2 did, but in a smaller screen — 1024x768. Sounds like a decent compromise.
  • There are both Wi-Fi and LTE models.
  • The Smart Cover does not have metal hinges, so no more scratches. It uses the same material for the hinge as the rest of the case.
  • A quote from Apple about the bezel and thumbs:

    Rethinking the screen meant we also had to rethink the software behind it. iPad mini intelligently recognizes whether your thumb is simply resting on the display or whether you’re intentionally interacting with it. It’s the kind of detail you’ll notice — by not noticing it.

  • 10 hours of battery life.
  • Starting at $329 and available on Novermber 2nd and cellular models two weeks later. Pre-orders start on October 26th.

Misc.

  • No new Thunderbolt Displays were announced.
  • iTunes 11 is still, as of yet, unavailable. They have until the end of October to meet their deadline.
  • No new Mac Pro was announced. Of course.

Apple continues to make absoltuley beautiful hardware. They are, and continue to be, the epitome of masterful engineering. And today really highlighted than in more ways than one.