Apple upgrades specs, drops Retina MacBook Pro price point

Apple has dropped the price of its Retina-enabled 13-inch MacBook Pro to a cool $1,499 (from $1,699) for 128GB of flash, and $1,699 for a new 2.6 GHz processor and 256GB of flash.

Meanwhile, the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display features a faster 2.4 GHz quad-core processor, with the top-of-the-line 15-inch notebook now boasting a new 2.7 GHz quad-core processor and 16GB of memory.

And last, but certainly not least, Cupertino also confirmed that its 13-inch MacBook Air with 256GB of flash now carries a lower price of $1,399.

As previously discussed on TG Daily, the display on the 15-inch Retina model weighs in at 2,880-by-1,800 and 220ppi, while the 13-inch version sports a 2,560-by-1,600-pixel display.

A number of reports speculate that Apple’s lower price points for its MacBook lineup can likely be attributed to the price of high-capacity storage, which Cupertino typically buys in bulk to protect itself from wild price swings and market vagaries.

Of course, Apple probably doesn’t mind a little cannibalization at the expense of its MacBook lineup, as long as it bolsters iPad sales.

Nevertheless, keeping its MacBook Pro sales steady remains an important priority for Cupertino, both in terms of satisfying investors and keeping the traditional OS X masses happy.