New MacBooks, MacBook Pros, MacBook Air, Apple Cinema Display!

Today at Apple's notebook-focused media event on it's campus in Cupertino, California, Steve Jobs took the stage to announce updates of all Apple's portable computers, as well as a new Cinema Display.

MacBook Air
The MacBook Air recieved a RAM upgrade, a hard drive upgrade, improved graphics, and a Mini Display Port. The Air now comes standard with 2GB of DDR3 RAM, a 120GB hard drive with an option to upgrade to a 128GB SSD, an NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor, and it now includes a Mini Display Port to work with the new Apple Cinema Display.

MacBook Pro
The MacBook Air got a complete redesign. Apple's Senior Vice President of Product Design, Jonathan Ive, introduced a whole new way of manufacturing notebooks. Until now, the aluminum casing of the MacBook Pro has played little part in being the structure of the actual product. There were reinforcments made of Magnesium throughout the inside of the product, which not only took up space, but made the notebook heavier. Apple has a new manufacturing process, that uses thicker aluminum for the casing, however aluminum makes up the entire structure of the case. The new "unibody" design is lighter and thinner. The MacBook Pro now has an LED-backlit display, 2GB of DDR3 RAM, the new NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT graphics processor. On the side, there is now a Mini DisplayPort for compatibility with the new Cinema Display.

MacBook
Not only did Apple introduce a new aluminum MacBook, but they kept the old plastic one in the lineup, but with a lower price point of $999. Analysts are calling the $999 MacBook the most important part of the KeyNote because it greatly widens Apple's addressable range of customers. This is Apple's first ever sub-$1000 notebook. The new aluminum MacBooks are very similar to the new MacBook Pros. They have an aluminum unibody design, a LED backlit display, and the addition of a Mini DisplayPort. The new trackpad includes no physical button because it is the button. The new trackpads are made of glass and include support for multi-touch gestures. Apple introduced 2 new 4-finger gestures today. One to enter Expose, and the other for quick app switching.

The MacBook recieved a few specification updates, most notably: 2GB of DDR3 RAM, the new NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor.

24" Cinema Display
Other than the new notebooks, Apple announced a new LED-backlit Cinema Display today. The display is 24", and has 2 cables. One power cable, and one connector which brances off into 3 separate cables specifically designed for notebooks. There is a MagSafe connector for notebooks, so you can hook up a MacBook to charge off of the display's power cable, a USB cable for the display's built in iSight, and a Mini DisplayPort for connecting to computers with that port. An adapter is available so you can use a DVI or VGA port. This is Apple's first display to include a built in iSight camera as well as a microphone and speaker system. As usual, the Cinema Display includes 3 self powered USB ports, so you can use the display as a USB hub as well.