Apple to launch a redesigned MacBook pro this summer: RPT

Yahoo Finance's Dan Howley joined Yahoo Finance Live to discuss Apple's new macbook for summer 2021.

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SEANA SMITH: Apple may be adding to its product lineup. A new report out today saying that Apple is reportedly thinking about adding a new MacBook Pro to its lineup this summer. We want to bring in Dan Howley for a little bit more on this. And Dan, when we take a look at the popularity of MacBooks over the last several months in the midst of COVID, yes, it has risen. And it sounds like Apple might be trying to capitalize off of this trend.

DAN HOWLEY: Yeah, this is also a part of Apple's kind of move to revamp its Mac line of products. We have already the MacBook Air, the MacBook Pro with Apple's new M1 processor. That's the ARM-based chip that they use to replace Intel's own processors in their devices. And now we could see in the future some changes to those systems, mostly in the design, as well as, as you said, a new MacBook Pro that could be an entry level device for those. Those are usually more expensive than the MacBook Air, which is the volume seller laptop for Apple. But we may see a lower priced Pro, which could get more people into that kind of developer class or creative class product that they already have.

But it'll be interesting to see what exactly the changes are, how the designs change. We haven't seen much of that in the past couple of years. Really, the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro have, more or less, stayed the same. I think the most recent change for the laptops was the Pro, making them smaller and more in line with what the Air has to offer in terms of design. But one of the things that is being reported is that they could bring back HDMI ports and SD card slots to the Pros. And that's very important for creative types, who want to just be able to plug their cameras and plug their SD cards in right away and start editing on their machines.

But it will be important to see how much power Apple is able to kind of crank out of those M1 chips they have. Obviously, as I said, they have them in the Air already, as well as the Pro and the Mac Mini. And they just introduced them in the iMac, as well as the iPad, which is coming soon. So there's going to be a lot of talk about how powerful these processors are and how much they're able to really stand up against Intel. But from what I've seen and of the MacBook Air, they really do compete on a level as far as performance and beat out Intel as far as battery life.

ADAM SHAPIRO: Hey, if I can throw these things out with the next iteration and not have to pay more money for them, great. And the team here knows I am a big fan of my MacBook Pro. But I'm curious, what's your review of what's coming down the pike of the iMac?

DAN HOWLEY: So, yeah, we have the 24-inch iMac. That's going to be out soon in the next week, I believe. It starts at $1,299. It does have that new M1 chip. I've been using it for about the past week as my primary machine. And really, I mean, all I can say about it is, it's gorgeous. The design is completely different. It loses that kind of hunchbacked design that it used to have. Apple managed to slim it down completely by cutting down on the fans. It's really, you know, the fact that they're able to crank out so much power from a chip that has been inside of things similar to the iPad and iPhone for a long time, that ARM-based processor.

And I think really, if you're looking for a desktop, an all-in-one that can really do most of what you need, outside of the heavy duty kind of video editing that some folks may need, you know, editing 8K video in multiple streams, I think this is going to be a device that most people should jump into. I love the designs. There's seven different colors available. I'm going to buy one myself now.

SEANA SMITH: What's the price point on that, Howley?

DAN HOWLEY: The starting price is $1,299. The one that I want is going to be $1,499 because you get touch ID on the keyboard. So, you know, I'm bougie like that.

SEANA SMITH: It certainly looks nice. I don't know if I'm willing to pay that much for it. But I love the review and the pictures. The video looks very nice. All right, Dan Howley, thanks so much for breaking that down for us. We are going to be right back.