New MacBook Pros with Intel Core processors available now

Apple got everyone’s hopes up yesterday by taking the Apple Store offline, but it turned out that the updates were for some new MacBook Pros rather than UK iPad pricing. Boo.

All three sizes of MacBook Pro have been refreshed, although the 13-inch model sees the fewest specification changes, with slightly faster Core 2 Duo processors. The graphics chipset sees a bigger improvement though, with both 2.4GHz and 2.66GHz models using the NVIDIA GeForce 320M. Apple also claims that battery life is up to 10 hours — impressive, if true, and Steve Jobs certainly thinks it is.

Prices for the 13-inch MacBook Pro start at £999.

The 15-inch and 17-inch MacBook Pros see bigger changes, not least with the processor. Both sizes now have either an Intel Core i5 or Core i7 quad-core dual-core chip, with speeds ranging from 2.4GHz to 2.66GHz. Performance is reckoned to be around 50% greater than the old Core 2 Duo MacBook Pros and this seems to be backed up by early benchmarks.

All models also sport NVIDIA GT 330M graphics along with an integrated Intel chipset, and Apple has also added an on-the-fly switching system that detects the most appropriate chip for the application in hand and uses it accordingly. The reportedly uses Apple’s own switching technology rather than NVIDIA Optimus though, which adds a number of other advantages.

Perhaps most important is that the Intel graphics chip is powered down when not in use, which no doubt helps explain the claimed eight to nine hour battery life across the board.

15-inch MacBook Pro prices start at £1,499, while the 17-inch MacBook Pro for 2.53GHz Core i5 processor costs £1,899.

[ Apple]