According to a industry report from IHS Market, published by Forbes, Apple is set to launch a new 16-inch MacBook Pro later this year.
The report claims a 3072×1920 resolution, up from the 2880×1800 panel found in Apple’s 15-inch laptops since the first Retina MacBook Pro in 2012. As the 15-inch MacBook Pro was refreshed already this year, with newer processors and a revised keyboard design, people are expecting the 16-inch to forge a new, separate, tier in Apple’s product lineup. This suggests a price point around $3000.
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IHS Markit says the new 16-inch laptop has a target manufacturing date of September 2019 with a production rate of about 250,000 units per month. The panel would still be LCD (no OLED yet as previously reported) and supposedly manufactured by LG.
The redesigned MacBook Pro form factor was first floated by TF Industries Ming-Chi Kuo in February. It was described as a 16-16.5-inch MacBook Pro featuring an all-new design.
At the time, Kuo also said that the 13-inch MacBook Pro would receive a spec bump, with the addition of a 32 GB RAM option.
This mirrors what IHS Markit is also reporting; they suggest the 13-inch MacBook Pro and the Retina MacBook Air would get minor spec bumps around the same time period as the wholly new 16-inch MacBook Pro debut.
This would be a same-year follow-up to the processor updates that the 13-inch (and 15-inch) MacBook Pros received just before WWDC. News on languishing Apple’s 12-inch MacBook remains scarce.
The fall hardware launch would coincide with Apple’s official release of the macOS Catalina operating system.
IHS Markit analyst Jeff Lin believes that Apple’s rumored “all-new” 16-inch MacBook Pro will be unveiled in September, as noted by Forbes. The redesigned laptop is said to use an LCD panel from LG Display with a resolution of 3072 x 1920; that’d be an increase on the current high-end model’s 15.4-inch 2880-by-1800 display. The 16-inch model will also reportedly have a new CPU, unsurprisingly.
Apple only just updated the MacBook Pro line last month, adding more powerful processors and yet another tweak to the controversial butterfly keyboard design. Lin also expects the MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro to see processor upgrades in September. There’s no word on the 12-inch MacBook, however which hasn’t seen an update in more than two years (unless you count a new gold option).
At Engadget, we spend every day looking at how technology will shape the future. But it's also important to look back at how far we've come. That's what This Week in Tech History does. Join us every weekend for a recap of historical tech news, anniversaries and advances from the recent and not-so-recent past. This week, we're looking at the N64, which arrived in Japan 23 years ago.
The Nintendo Entertainment System essentially created defined the home video game market when it launched in the mid-1980s. It was a device without peers that paved the way for the Super NES in the '90s. By then, Sega had chipped away at Nintendo's dominance with the Genesis, but Nintendo was still in an enviable position heading into the next generation of game consoles. Then came the N64, which launched in Japan on June 23rd, 1996. It arrived in the US three months later.
While the N64 is fondly remembered for ushering in a string of groundbreaking, enduring games, it's also the first time Nintendo was truly dethroned. But not by Sega, which was struggling with the Saturn. No, Sony's first PlayStation ultimately dominated this generation: More than 100 million PlayStation consoles were sold during its lifespan. Nintendo, meanwhile, sold almost 33 million N64s, down significantly from the 49 million SNES consoles the company moved over its lifespan.
There were a number of factors for Nintendo's struggles this time out. For starters, the N64 development process was a bit of a struggle, marked by several delays. By the time the console launched in June 1996, the PlayStation had already been on the market for more than a year and a half in Japan; the PlayStation also had more than a year's lead in the US. This was simply too much for Nintendo to overcome, and it was exacerbated by troubles the company had courting third-party developers.
Those troubles stemmed in large part from Nintendo's decision to use cartridges instead of CD-ROM discs for the N64. While carts loaded data much faster than CD-ROM, they were more expensive to produce, something that led to Nintendo charging higher licensing fees. The flip side of this was that consoles with CD-ROM, like the PlayStation, were more expensive to manufacturer, a charge that was passed on to customers. The PlayStation launched at $300 in the US, while the N64 undercut it and launched at $200. But that wasn't enough to help Nintendo's fortunes in the console war; the PlayStation's head start and better third-party support effectively sealed the deal for Sony.
Rodin Eckenroth via Getty Images
Still, there's plenty to talk about with the N64 beyond its struggles. It was the first Nintendo system to have a controller with an analog stick, a feature that was a necessity for the many new 3D games that were being made for the console. Chief among those was launch title Super Mario 3D, a game that totally upended the Mario playbook. Gone were the relatively linear side-scrolling levels, replaced with open 3D worlds rife for exploration, a formula Nintendo has used on many successful Mario games since.
Nintendo used a similar formula for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, but on a more massive scale. Taking the Zelda series into 3D was perhaps an even bigger deal than the move was for Mario games. Between the new perspective and the new gameplay options it opened up, Nintendo built such an epic quest for Link that some would say the company didn't top it until 2017's Breath of the Wild. Simply stated, Ocarina of Time was regarded as one of the best video games of all time when it arrived, and it has lost little of that acclaim over the years, even if the early 3D graphics look a bit primitive now.
And it's impossible to talk about the N64 without mentioning Goldeneye 007, a game that brought multiplayer FPS shooters to the living room. If you're of the right age, you certainly have vivid memories of blowing multiple hours with friends trying to rack up the most kills. At this point, the influence of the game is almost certainly greater than the movie it's based on. It's the kind of game that paved the way for franchises like Halo, perhaps the biggest console-based FPS series out there. If you didn't play it when it was first released, you might not get what a big deal it was in 1997, but with the possible exception of the Mario Kart series, it might be the most important multiplayer game to ever hit a Nintendo console.
Those are just a few of many iconic games for the N64, but it wasn't quite as iconic as the two consoles that preceded it. It was overshadowed by the PlayStation, and marked the beginning of a period in Nintendo's history where it was more of a niche player in the console market, in the shadow of Sony and, later, Microsoft. Of course, Nintendo rebounded in a big way with the Wii in 2006, but it did so in a way that carved out an identity totally different from Sony and Microsoft. A decade earlier, Nintendo was still the leader, but with the N64 it was just beginning a move toward a more offbeat future.
At Engadget, we spend every day looking at how technology will shape the future. But it's also important to look back at how far we've come. That's what This Week in Tech History does. Join us every weekend for a recap of historical tech news, anniversaries and advances from the recent and not-so-recent past. This week, we're looking at the N64, which arrived in Japan 23 years ago.
The Nintendo Entertainment System essentially created defined the home video game market when it launched in the mid-1980s. It was a device without peers that paved the way for the Super NES in the '90s. By then, Sega had chipped away at Nintendo's dominance with the Genesis, but Nintendo was still in an enviable position heading into the next generation of game consoles. Then came the N64, which launched in Japan on June 23rd, 1996. It arrived in the US three months later.
While the N64 is fondly remembered for ushering in a string of groundbreaking, enduring games, it's also the first time Nintendo was truly dethroned. But not by Sega, which was struggling with the Saturn. No, Sony's first PlayStation ultimately dominated this generation: More than 100 million PlayStation consoles were sold during its lifespan. Nintendo, meanwhile, sold almost 33 million N64s, down significantly from the 49 million SNES consoles the company moved over its lifespan.
There were a number of factors for Nintendo's struggles this time out. For starters, the N64 development process was a bit of a struggle, marked by several delays. By the time the console launched in June 1996, the PlayStation had already been on the market for more than a year and a half in Japan; the PlayStation also had more than a year's lead in the US. This was simply too much for Nintendo to overcome, and it was exacerbated by troubles the company had courting third-party developers.
Those troubles stemmed in large part from Nintendo's decision to use cartridges instead of CD-ROM discs for the N64. While carts loaded data much faster than CD-ROM, they were more expensive to produce, something that led to Nintendo charging higher licensing fees. The flip side of this was that consoles with CD-ROM, like the PlayStation, were more expensive to manufacturer, a charge that was passed on to customers. The PlayStation launched at $300 in the US, while the N64 undercut it and launched at $200. But that wasn't enough to help Nintendo's fortunes in the console war; the PlayStation's head start and better third-party support effectively sealed the deal for Sony.
Rodin Eckenroth via Getty Images
Still, there's plenty to talk about with the N64 beyond its struggles. It was the first Nintendo system to have a controller with an analog stick, a feature that was a necessity for the many new 3D games that were being made for the console. Chief among those was launch title Super Mario 3D, a game that totally upended the Mario playbook. Gone were the relatively linear side-scrolling levels, replaced with open 3D worlds rife for exploration, a formula Nintendo has used on many successful Mario games since.
Nintendo used a similar formula for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, but on a more massive scale. Taking the Zelda series into 3D was perhaps an even bigger deal than the move was for Mario games. Between the new perspective and the new gameplay options it opened up, Nintendo built such an epic quest for Link that some would say the company didn't top it until 2017's Breath of the Wild. Simply stated, Ocarina of Time was regarded as one of the best video games of all time when it arrived, and it has lost little of that acclaim over the years, even if the early 3D graphics look a bit primitive now.
And it's impossible to talk about the N64 without mentioning Goldeneye 007, a game that brought multiplayer FPS shooters to the living room. If you're of the right age, you certainly have vivid memories of blowing multiple hours with friends trying to rack up the most kills. At this point, the influence of the game is almost certainly greater than the movie it's based on. It's the kind of game that paved the way for franchises like Halo, perhaps the biggest console-based FPS series out there. If you didn't play it when it was first released, you might not get what a big deal it was in 1997, but with the possible exception of the Mario Kart series, it might be the most important multiplayer game to ever hit a Nintendo console.
Those are just a few of many iconic games for the N64, but it wasn't quite as iconic as the two consoles that preceded it. It was overshadowed by the PlayStation, and marked the beginning of a period in Nintendo's history where it was more of a niche player in the console market, in the shadow of Sony and, later, Microsoft. Of course, Nintendo rebounded in a big way with the Wii in 2006, but it did so in a way that carved out an identity totally different from Sony and Microsoft. A decade earlier, Nintendo was still the leader, but with the N64 it was just beginning a move toward a more offbeat future.
With Amazon Prime Day 2019 coming up, likely on July 15, now's the time to start planning your approach to the massive annual shopping event. This is your chance to score a new TV or Amazon Echo for a fraction of the usual price. Over a day and a half, Amazon puts tens and tens of thousands of products on sale for Prime Day -- some on sale for a brief period of time and others available in limited quantities.
CNET will closely monitor all the Amazon Prime Day deals as they pop up, so if you follow along with us, you'll be sure to not miss anything. But if you'd rather see the action for yourself, you can set alerts for Amazon to notify you when an item goes on sale so you can snap it up when the time comes.
You can grab a Prime Day deal if you have an Amazon Prime subscription, so make sure you are a member in good standing before the deals start. And if you're not a paying member, don't worry: You can sign up for a free Amazon Prime trial, which gets you all the benefits of a Prime subscription for 30 days -- including access to Prime Day deals -- and lets you cancel without paying at the end of the trial. An annual membership is $119 a year, or $12.99 a month.
Screenshot by Clifford Colby/CNET
How to get alerts on Prime Day deals
Deals can happen at any hour during Prime Day -- and even before and after the fact -- so it's not a bad idea to spend some time identifying items you're interested in and then watch the deal in the Amazon Shopping app (Android and iOS) to receive notifications when they go on sale. That way, you won't miss a deal. Even better, the deals come to you, which may help keep your shopping stress level in check.
View live deals on the Watching tab of the Amazon Shopping app.
Screenshot by Clifford Colby/CNET
1. Set up an Amazon Prime Day deal alert on your phone.
2. In the Amazon Shopping app, tap the hamburger menu in the top-left corner and then tap Today's Deals.
3. In the Today's Deals window, tap the Upcoming tab (to the right of Right Now) and scroll through what's coming up.
4. When you find an item you want to set an alert for, tap Watch this deal below the item. The app may ask you to allow notifications if this is your first time.
5. To check on the status of the items you're watching, tap the Watching tab.
6. When the deal goes live, you can add the item to your cart or buy with 1-Click from the Watching tab.
7. And if you change your mind, tap Watching below the item to take it off your watch list.
When the deal goes live, the app will display a system notification alert and show the deal live on its home screen.
Monitor Prime Day deals from your computer
Check on your live deals in the Amazon Assistant browser extension.
Screenshot by Clifford Colby/CNET
You can also monitor deals you are watching via the Amazon Assistant browser extension for Chrome and Firefox. Here's how to watch a deal with the Amazon Assistant browser extension.
1. Install the Amazon Assistant extension, which adds a button in your browser toolbar.
2. When a deal goes live, the button will display an alert showing the number of deals live. Click it to see your watched deal.
3. Through the browser extension, you can also view other deals you are watching and navigate to the Amazon website to manage your notifications.
To be honest, it's probably easier to manage deals via the Amazon Shopping app and just use the browser extension to be notified that a deal is live.
We know, we know; another day, another Beat Saber wannabe. But OnShape from Odders Lab does have a few interesting twists and turns that raised our eyebrows.
Specifically, the game looks like a cross between Beat Games’ smash hit and, oddly enough, Tetris. In the eye-catching teaser trailer below an animated player first dodges incoming walls just like they would in Beat Saber. Then they box their way through a solid wall. Finally, they throw shapes to fit through human-sized holes. All of this happens to, you guessed it, a backdrop of incredibly catching electronic dance music.
Over on Steam, Odders is promising a “steady flux of songs” to arrive postrelease on top of the existing soundtrack. Songs will have three difficulty levels and you’ll be able to challenge friends via leaderboards. It’s not clear how the trailer’s individual elements would mesh into one level, but it does look like this one could be a pretty good way of keeping fit in VR.
This isn’t the first take on human Tetris we’ve seen in VR. Last year we wrote about Fit It, a game that used the HTC Vive trackers to bring your full body into VR. It doesn’t look like OnShape will be able to track leg movements etc, but moving your head and arms should still give you a workout.
We can’t find too much more information about the game, but it is coming to PSVR, SteamVR (Index/Vive/Rift) and “Oculus” this summer. Based on the end of the trailer, we’d guess the latter covers both Rift and Quest.
This story originally appeared on Uploadvr.com. Copyright 2019
