Apple has officially unveiled its brand new MacBook at its Spring Forward event, introducing an impressively thin and light device with high-end specs and a stunning display.
The company's latest laptop made its debut on Monday, March 9, boasting a top-notch Retina display like the highest end MacBook Pros, as well as a svelte design that makes it thinner and lighter than the MacBook Air. More specifically, the new MacBook is 13.1mm-thin and 2lb-light.
"With the new MacBook, we set out to do the impossible: engineer a full-size experience into the lightest and most compact Mac notebook ever. That meant reimagining every element to make it not only lighter and thinner but also better. The result is more than just a new notebook. It's the future of the notebook," Apple touts on its website.
When it comes to the display, the new MacBook's 12-inch screen rocks a 2304 x 1440 resolution, a thin bezel, and delivers vivid and sharp visuals that can show even the smallest details.
Although the new MacBook is amazingly thin and light, it still features a full-size keyboard with keys that are 17 percent larger compared to those on current MacBooks, according to Apple. The keyboard is not also backlit, but each key has its own LED light so all keys are just as bright.
The trackpad, meanwhile, no longer has the top hinge, which enables it to support a new Force Touch gesture. Tapping or clicking something will select it as usual, but pressing down harder on the pressure-sensitive trackpad will trigger a Force Touch, which in turn acts as a shortcut to new functionality. For instance, users can Force Touch on an address in order to see it on a map. It's faster than right-clicking and dealing with contextual menus, and it's worth trying out.
Perhaps the biggest change the new MacBook brings to the table is a USB-C port with various functionality, which replaces all other ports except for the headphone one. It serves for purposes such as charging, connecting USB peripherals, as well as connecting HDMI, VGA, and DisplayPort external screens. Needless to mention, users will need adapters for each type of connection, you can't just shove a USB or HDMI cable into this single port and expect it to work. Adapters, meanwhile, will be available separately.
That said, the new MacBook doesn't have a Thunderbolt port, which means that users will not be able to connect Thunderbolt devices.
"The most efficient way to charge a notebook is by connecting a charger to a port. And as long as we were going to include a port for charging the new MacBook, we wanted to make sure it was the most advanced and versatile one available," Apple further touts. "The new USB‑C port puts just about everything you need in a port all in one place. This amazing port provides charging, speedy USB 3 data transfer, and video output in a small, reversible design that's one-third the size of the current USB port."
Under the hood, the new MacBook packs a fifth-generation Intel Core M processor that runs on just 5 watts of power, and OS X Yosemite optimizations further increase efficiency.
"Together the processor and OS X sip so little energy that the system generates very little heat, so no fan is required to cool the computer. That means when your MacBook is working, you won't hear a thing. And the logic board on which the processor sits has been completely redesigned to pack all the capability you expect in a Mac into as little space as possible."
The new MacBook will start at $1,299, with shipping set to commence on April 10.
