I bought the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro with 512GB SSD, 2.5GHz i7 quad-core processor and 16GB RAM on August 15th, the day it was launched in India. This is my second Mac the first was a 27-inch mid 2010 iMac. I recently published the story behind me switching from an iMac to MacBook Pro, if you’re interested you can find it here.

It’s been almost 10 days since I’ve been using the new Retina MacBook Pro and this review will be focusing on real-world use, general observations and experiences. If you’re looking for a more technical review focusing on speed tests and tech specs, you may want to visit AnandTech for the most comprehensive hardware reviews.

Over the last 10 days my workflow has drastically changed. I was using a windows laptop before I purchased the iMac, and over the last 4 years working on a large 27-inch screen made me feel that going back to a laptop would be a challenge. However, I was prepared for the tradeoff between modern computing speed and screen space.

As I started working on the new Retina MacBook Pro I was pleasantly surprised with the fact that I was being more efficient in my workflow and obviously could get the work done much faster than ever before. Before I get into the details about how the MacBook Pro changed my workflow I should talk about how I work.

A typical day would see me browsing through hundreds of webpages, lots of email, working on Pages, creating presentations on Keynote,  producing wireframes for apps, web design etc. With the luxury of 27 inch screen I mostly had everything open on a single desktop area. This allowed me to always have a bird’s eye view of everything that was open and gave me a feeling of being in control over everything. I rarely ever used ‘Spaces’ (creating multiple desktop spaces in OS X) as I just liked everything at one space. Even though this allowed me to view more at once, it could easily be too distracting at times.

With the MacBook Pro going from 27-inch to 15.4 inch screen required me to adjust the way I worked. From having lots of windows open at once I instantly switched to a more organised workflow by creating multiple spaces. Also, using full screen apps now made more sense, having mail open full screen on a 27 inch screen is not the same as it being open full screen on 15.4 inch screen. Full screen apps such as Mail, Pages or Safari make more sense on laptop when compared to a desktop. So, even though now I would see less at once but this increased my focus on the task at hand. Over the last 10 days I’ve noticed that having less to view at once actually made more sense and one could be more productive this way. It’s worth mentioning that I do miss the large screen space when it comes to wire framing apps, websites or editing a movie, but retina display surely makes up for that.

The first thing I ever noticed about the new MacBook Pro was its flawless high-resolution screen. The text is crisp, photos look stunning and it’s a complete visual treat. It suddenly makes you wonder why on Earth would you ever work on anything that does not have a retina screen. So, it was love at first sight with the new screen.

Once you come to terms with how excellent the screen is you start noticing that everything is just swift. Thanks to the SSD launching applications, booting-up, waking from sleep, reading & writing data is very fast. I can’t stress enough on how ‘fast’ especially if you’re moving from HDD to SSD for the first time on a computing machine. I would never turn off the iMac as it would take about 3-4 minutes to boot-up and that often felt like a lot. Apple’s iOS devices ‘always on’ usage behaviour has certainly changed the way we expect the way modern computers should work. MacBook Pro takes only a few seconds (less than 15) to boot-up so turning it off when not using it can help you save some energy. Although, there are no major benefits of turning off your computer when not using it, however occasionally it will make it more responsive as it will clear the RAM being hogged by kernel tasks.

The next aspect about the Retina MacBook Pro that I want to highlight is 16GB RAM. For the last four years I had been working with 4GB RAM on my iMac. For the modern-day browsing and general computing activities 4GB just isn’t enough although it does depend on how you use your computer. Since, I love having 15-25 tabs open in Safari when I’m researching on some topic having access to lots of RAM is a huge advantage.

I’ve put the new MacBook Pro under extreme work load by having lots of safari tabs open, playing SimCity, working on a Pages document, importing photos to iPhoto and even working on Final Cut Pro and Aperture, but the MacBook Pro just keeps taking it all and doesn’t lag one bit. I would refer to myself as a “power” user, so working on a portable machine that can take all that load is extremely satisfying.

I was a bit concerned about the battery life of my new Retina MacBook Pro. I had considered holding off my purchase for another year in anticipation of Intel’s Broadwell chips that are expected to be much more power efficient. However, so far the battery life on the MacBook Pro has been very reasonable. Keeping the screen brightness low and keyboard backlight off while not activating the dedicated graphics chip the MacBook Pro has exceeded Apple’s battery guidelines. Switching from iMac to a MacBook Pro also gave me the freedom from being tied to my desk. This freedom to work from anywhere without sacrificing on power or battery is a huge benefit.

The last aspect I want to cover is the overall build quality. Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro is undoubtedly the best looking machine you can buy in the market. The unibody construction feels extremely solid and it doesn’t feel that heavy when compared with the older generation models.

When working for long durations the system does heat up and sometimes it can get a bit uncomfortable. The fans have rarely kicked in at full speed during normal use. In my daily use the fans kicked in at full speed only while playing SimCity as the game requires the use of dedicated graphics card.

The Retina MacBook Pro might be costly but it scores highly in all aspects you can think of. However, it may still not meet everyone’s requirement. If you’re into high-end gaming and love running games at highest graphics settings then this may not be for you. If you prefer having more than 1TB storage then you’d have to look elsewhere. Upgrading the machine after purchasing is not possible; 16GB RAM will always remain 16GB. The device has been rated low in repairability. If you want to play DVD’s you would need to buy a SuperDrive.

Other benefits of a MacBook Pro include iCloud, access to some of the best softwares from the Mac App Store, less susceptible to malware, extremely responsive multi-touch trackpad and the best customer support service.

Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro is the gold standard in laptops and OS X Yosemite will only put it further in the lead. If you’ve waited all this while to switch to the MacBook Pro lineup there was never a better time than today.

Over the past several months, numerous photos have surfaced online, with websites suggesting that they are genuine parts to Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5. Rumors have also pointed to a media event for the release date announcement of iPhone 5 on September 12th.

The most recent leak comes from Apple.pro, which has posted a set of images of what appears to be a fully assembled iPhone 5 front panel with the home button and the front camera installed. The images were originally posted to a photobucket account, which has a track record of Apple leaks, including the thickness of the new iPad and one of the first to release images of a white panel for the next generation iPhone.

These latest images all but confirm that an iPhone 5 is set to be released in the coming weeks and show the home button and front camera attached to the LCD with metal brackets. The front facing camera is now located on the center of the device, similar to the iPad and iPod touch. The iPhone 5 front panel is expected to be attached to the two toned unibody shell, leaked several weeks ago. The shell would also be 4 inches, to match with the LCD screen.

Japanese site Macotakara has also released details suggesting that the square shaped metal piece at the bottom of the leaked panel may in fact be an NFC chip, which can be used to set up credit cards and other wireless features.

Apple’s next generation iPhone 5 is expected to be announced at a media event on September 12th, followed by a release in retail stores on September 21st. The iPhone 5 is also said to be accompanied by a new iPad Mini and the public release of iOS 6.

{Via MacRumors}

The release date of iPhone 5 and iPad Mini has been the cause of speculation for several months now. Multiple news sources and rumor sites have found images, mockups, and even parts of iPhone 5 and iPad mini. According to a report from iMore, Apple’s next generation iPhone 5, new iPod nano, and all new 7.85 inch iPad mini are all going to be announced during special media event on September 12th.

The iPad mini will be announced at the same September 12 event, as will the new iPod nano. We haven’t heard a release date for the iPad mini yet, but it could be the same as the iPhone 5. It seems likely the new iPod touch will make an appearance on September 12 as well, though we haven’t heard any specific information about that yet either.

The report also mentions that following the announcement on the 12th, Apple will likely release the iPhone 5 for sale on September 21st. Apple announced the iPhone 4S on October 4th last year, and released it on October 14th leading to speculation that the company may do the same again and release the iPhone a couple of weeks after announcement.

Although in reports, the next generation iPhone is referred to as “iPhone 5”, it is also very likely that Apple will simply call it “the new iPhone”, much like “the new iPad”, released several months ago. The report also notes that the 7.85” iPad and even iPod touch 5th gen is slated for announcement that day, although details on the 5th gen iPod touch are not confirmed. The iPad mini was entirely rumor based initially, a number of credible reports from NYTimes and WSJ have essentially suggested that there is indeed such a device in existence.

The sixth generation iPhone is expected to have a taller 4-inch screen, high speed LTE networking, a smaller dock connector and unibody construction. iMore has a proven track record with release dates, correctly reporting the launch date for the iPad 3 and the pre-order date for the iPhone 4S.

{via MacRumors}

Apple’s next generation iPhone 5 has been the target of intense speculation over the past several months, however no solid evidence that an iPhone 5 even existed was available. But, over the past several weeks, parts of what appears to be a next gen iPhone 5 have appeared in images and videos across the web. The parts and rumors suggest that Apple’s new iPhone will have a taller screen, a smaller dock connector, and several other design changes.

On Sunday, Japanese site iLab posted images, released by CydiaBlog, of a fully assembled iPhone 5 hardware, in line with rumors of the new design. The site alleges that these photos are of the next generation iPhone, expected for release during September. Cydiablog offered their thoughts on the images with the following:

The leaked parts shows the bigger screen, different internals (such as a new flex cable holding the Home button in place), and the camera modules (front and rear). The camera module cutout looks to be larger, there is an enhanced version of speaker and microphone configuration at the bottom, new smaller dock connector (instead of 30-pin Dock Connector, 16-pin connector could be introduced). Another notable design change in the new iPhone front panel shows the FaceTime camera has been moved to a centered position above the earpiece speaker (it is currently to left of the earpiece in iPhone 4S and iPhone 4).

The images appear to confirm that the next generation iPhone would have a unibody back plate, unlike the current iPhone 4S which houses the internals in between two pieces of tempered glass as well as a screen with a higher length and same width. The next generation iPhone is expected to be released later this fall, alongside the public release of iOS 6.

Do you think this could be the next gen iPhone? Do you like the overall design? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

{via MacRumors}

Apple Inc. (AAPL) acquired rights to LiquidMetal Technologies to use in their products back in 2010, but did not utilize the company, except to make a small SIM removal tool for the iPhone 3G. A number of reports have people speculating that AAPL would be redesigning the next generation iPhone 5 with LiquidMetal technology.

However, in a report published by Business Insider, one of the inventors of LiquidMetal alloy, Atakan Peker revealed that Apple will not be using the futuristic metal for at least another two to four years. Peker also mentioned that Apple may use the metal in some smaller aspects of its products, as they did with the SIM removal tool.

Q: I’ve heard rumors that future MacBooks from Apple could use Liquidmetal casing, what would that be like? Is it likely to happen?

A: Given the size of MacBook and scale of Apple products, I think it’s unlikely that Liquidmetal casing will be used in MacBooks in the near term. It’s more likely in the form of small component such as a hinge or bracket. A MacBook casing, such as a unibody, will take two to four more years to implement.

If Apple is to utilize this new technology and decides to use it in one of their major products, they might first use it in smaller consumer products such as the iPod Shuffle, or perhaps the Nano, then move onto larger and more high demand products such as the iPhone and iPad. It’s important to note that Peker does not have actually have any solid references when suggesting this delay in LiquidMetal usage.

However, Peker does believe that Apple will revolutionize some of its products with the metal, utilizing its strength and durability to match the solid feel of some of its unibody products, such as the MacBook Pro.

{via MacRumors}

The ‘lost’ iPhone 4G saga and prototype pictures leak just doesn’t seem to stop. For many this might not be a surprise anymore but this year the anticipation for the new iPhone 4G / HD annoucement has undoubtedly reached a new high and the credit certainly goes to the sensational ‘lost iPhone’ story spurred by Gizmodo.

9to5Mac is reporting that the Italian website (white iPhone 4G fame) iSpazio has published yet another set of new iPhone 4G pictures. These pics show closeups of the ‘unibody’ piece which holds the next iPhone.

The only detail the rumor mill hasn’t been able to confirm is the name of the new iPhone. Will it be iPhone 4G or iPhone HD? Let us know what you think in the comments section.

iPhone 4G Unibody Pictures