Hints are
starting to appear about Apple’s brand new MacBook Pro. The most
striking difference with the existing model could be a second OLED mini
display that would replace the function row on the keyboard — and it
could be called the Magic Toolbar.
In
exactly one week, Apple will most likely unveil the successor to the current retina MacBook Pro. That’s probably why The Trademark Ninja
started to dig up information about new features. Many signs indicate
that Apple now owns the ‘Magic Toolbar’ trademark. It’s safe to say that
it would be a very logical name for the rumored keyboard display.
This
isn’t the first rumor about the upcoming MacBook Pro. Many reports
have indicated that Apple wants to try something new with the MacBook
Pro by adding a second mini screen above the keyboard. While Apple has
never made laptops with touch screens, this narrow touch screen would
feature shortcuts and could change depending on the app you’re using.
Nobody knows for sure how Apple plans to take advantage of this touch
screen. Buttons could change depending on the app you’re using.
Developers could take advantage of this screen to add their own
shortcuts. But what about system functions like media keys and
brightness? What about displaying notifications on this bar?
According to The Trademark Ninja, this touch screen could be called
the Magic Toolbar. Once again, a newly incorporated company filed for
the trademark around the world — so it’s hard to know for sure that it’s
Apple behind it. But this company has worked with the same lawyers that
worked on the AirPods trademark. It’s a nice coincidence.
The name Magic Toolbar itself suggests that it’s going to be used as a
toolbar, with all the on-screen buttons and icons you’d expect from your favorite apps.
Well-informed analyst Ming-Chi Kuo from KGI Securities already
spilled the beans
back in May by unveiling new hardware features. In particular, the new
13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro should be thinner and lighter. It should
also come with the latest Intel Skylake processors for better
performance and battery life.
But the three most interesting aspects of this new design are the
Magic Toolbar, the addition of a Touch ID sensor and the potential
switch to USB Type-C ports. According to
The Trademark Ninja,
Apple also plans to use the name “Smart Button” in the upcoming MacBook
Pro. That could be a new name for the Touch ID sensor and a way to
differentiate the button from the “home button” on iOS devices.
And yes, Apple wants to make the MacBook Pro thinner again. If you
look at the current MacBook Pro, the USB and the MagSafe ports are a
bottleneck when it comes to thickness. Switching all these ports to USB
Type-C ports would make it much easier to make the laptop thinner. Let’s
just hope Apple will put a bunch of USB Type-C ports and not just one.