Will Apple Discontinue the 17" MacBook Pro?
While we're anxiously awaiting a supposed update to the Apple MacBook Pro series of notebooks, there are rumors that the hefty 17" model will eventually (whether now, or later) be phased out due to faltering sales.
According to MacRumors, Apple sold 3.1 million notebooks in the first quarter of 2012, "with nearly half of them being the 13" MacBook Pro." But the 17" MacBook Pro has sold significantly less. In fact, an analyst quoted by MacRumors estimates that for every 30 13" MacBook Pros sold in that quarter, just one 17" model was sold. That would seemingly indicate that consumers are favoring lighter, more mobile machines.
Often times when a product isn't selling well it will see comparatively steeper price cuts, so we looked back on our deal archives to see which size models in the current MacBook Pro lineup are seeing the better discounts. But the 17" MacBook Pro base model (currently $2,259 with free shipping, a low by $21) has seen deals that take 10% off the retail price while the base 13" MacBook Pro's price has been cut by as much as 12% (currently $1,119 with free shipping, a low by $1), edging out the larger laptop for a slightly better discount.
Despite this, Apple has been trending toward lighter, portable products, exemplified best by the MacBook Air. And, there are many rumors that suggest the manufacturer will slim down the Pro line significantly as well. Whether there's room for a 17" laptop in that new design direction remains to be seen.
Readers, how many of you use a 17" MacBook Pro? Are the smaller 13" and 15" sizes sufficient for your needs? Would you consider sizing down and hooking up to a monitor when you want to expand your workspace? Sound off in the comments below.
I've considered hooking my MBP to a monitor, but I need to purchase a lot to do that and still maintain the same feel as I would have without one (such as a mini-displayport to DVI converter), a bluetooth keyboard and a magic trackpad. Â
The one thing I do like about the larger size MBPs is the higher resolution of the video card. Â It's higher than the smaller MBP, which just isn't right for those of us that want to output to an external monitor.
There are some things I'm willing to pay more money for and some things I am not. Â So, it would be nice if Apple was more flexible and allowed you to "build your own" Mac, like Dell does with Windows computers.
But I am concerned about the idea that the 17" Mac Pro might be disappearing. Â Apple has long been a mainstay for the graphic creation crowd - whether print, video, online, or other mediums. Â These users are drawn to high horsepower, large visual real estate machines.
Likewise, I've been wondering what I'm going to replace my current desktop with as the Mac Pro line hasn't been updated in nearly two years. Â An iMac just doesn't cut it as far as expandability and upgradability. Â Being able to choose a graphics card, add a few hard drives, and plug in a dozen peripherals still puts me in the Mac Pro realm.
Mac fans have always wished for more respect for their choice of computer. Â Unfortunately, now that we're getting it, it may mean the end of being able to use them ourselves for our tasks if Apple abandons the Pro user for the "hip mobile user" who has now adopted Apple...