13-inch

Production is under way for a Retina display targeted at a more mainstream MacBook Pro, CNET has learned.

Production has begun of a 2,560-by-1,600 pixel density display that will land on a 13.3-inch MacBook Pro, NPD DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim told CNET.

"The supply chain indications are that it's for a MacBook Pro 13.3 -- not a MacBook Air," said Shim.

Displays are being made by Samsung, LGD, and Sharp, he said.

Shim said that production volume is expected to be substantially higher out of the gate compared to the current 15.4-inch … Read more

When a hot Apple product hits the market, it has a tendency to spur a cottage industry of accessories. The MacBook Air is no exception, with several companies making MacBook Air cases and covers.

Since the Air's design hasn't really changed in the last couple of years, most of the cases, covers, and sleeves that worked for the older 11- and 13-inch 2010 and 2011 models should work with the updated 2012 MacBook Air versions.

As always, feel free to make your own suggestions for cases and covers you like and we'll consider adding them in the next update.

Click on any image to start slideshow. Cases are listed in alphabetical order.

Updated August 8, 2012 with four new cases.… Read more

Editors' note: This post was updated October 26, 2012, with all 2012 MacBook Air and Pro reviews, including the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display.

As 2012 draws to a close, we've seen the death of one MacBook, the 17-inch Pro, and the addition of two new models -- 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pros with thinner bodies and high-resolution Retina displays. All now have third-generation Intel Core i-series processors, Thunderbolt ports, and USB 3.0, while the two new Retina models even have HDMI outputs, a long-requested feature.

The Retina models are impressive reboots, walking the line between slim … Read more

MacBook Air. MacBook Pro. Once upon a time, these two products were significantly different from each other, two totally different products. That dividing line's been blurring, especially when it comes to the world of 13-inch MacBooks.

The MacBook Air used to be an underperforming, expensive laptop with stellar design, while the 13-inch Pro was a full-featured, far more robust machine. The truth is, these systems are closer in performance and price than ever before. … Read more

Tablet screens are evolving. So far in 2012, we've seen the iPad double its resolution to 2048x1536 and the AMOLED-based Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 reach black-level depths that were previously unheard of (but, thankfully becoming more common) on a tablet. So where do we go from here? If Toshiba has its say, we go big.

Today Toshiba introduced the first tablet to break the 10.1-inch barrier. Its new Excite 13 sports a 13.3-inch IPS screen, running at a 1,600x900-pixel resolution and comes installed with Android 4.0.

I got a chance to briefly play around with the tablet a few weeks ago. One might expect a tablet with a 3-inch larger screen to feel a bit light but somewhat heavier than conventional 10-inchers and that's exactly what I found here.… Read more

Dell's first ultrabook, the XPS 13, is now available. And it's attracting a lot of attention as one of Dell's best laptop designs to date.

The XPS 13 boasts solid specs for the base $999 configuration, is priced well below the MacBook Air, uses a smaller footprint than 13-inch competitors, and taps carbon fiber materials in the chassis to keep the weight below three pounds.

And Dell will announce Tuesday that it is seeing lots of demand already. "We're seeing strong consumer and business demand for the new XPS 13," said Michael Tatelman, Dell Vice President and General Manager of Americas Consumer, in a statement to be released Tuesday.

The XPS 13 wil also be sold at Best Buy from Tuesday.

Starting at $999.99, it comes -- at that price -- with a 13.3-inch/300-nit/1,366x768 display squeezed into a 12-inch chassis (roughly), an Intel Core i5-2467M processor, Intel HD Graphics 3000, a 128GB solid-state drive, 4GB of memory, backlit keyboard, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit. It is 0.71 inches at its thickest point.

Other standard features include a 47WHr 6-cell battery (built into the laptop and not replaceable by the customer) rated at a maximum of over eight hours, one USB 3.0 port, one USB 2.0, mini Display-Port, 1.3-megapixel Webcam, and dual-array digital microphones. … Read more

October 2008. I remember eagerly buying Apple's newly designed and sleekly beautiful unibody MacBook. My son, now 3 1/2, was just born. The last presidential election was just wrapping up. "Avatar" hadn't even come out yet. The iPhone was in its second iteration. The iPad was still a year and a half away.

A long time has passed since, yet the 13-inch MacBook Pro, in terms of just sheer design, has barely changed at all. Sure, under the hood it's a completely different computer: fast Intel processor, Thunderbolt, integrated long-life battery, better screen. Yet, I can line up that 2008 13-incher (then just known as the MacBook) next to the latest 13-inch Pro and most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference. … Read more

Most companies strive to create distinctions between their small-business and consumer laptop lines, sometimes to the point of creating whole new designs that aren't available otherwise. Usually, they're nothing to write home about, but every once in a while one emerges that merits attention from even "regular" consumers.

The Dell Vostro V series has been that way for us for well over a year now. The last model we reviewed, the slim Vostro V130, looked like it might be the perfect slim 13-inch laptop, hiding in the form of a small business computer...except that it … Read more

The term "thin and light" has a flexible meaning in the laptop world. Currently, to be truly thin, a PC must be in the same range as the MacBook Air. Still, plenty of thicker 13-inch laptops still exist that would have been considered thin a few years ago, but seem merely normal today. The Asus U31SD-A1 is just that sort of laptop. Its thickness is more akin to a 13-inch Apple MacBook Pro, but Asus' laptop lacks an optical drive. We reviewed a nearly identical Asus U31JG laptop a few months ago, noting that it was a solid … Read more