Out of all of the rumored specs seen so far though, which one grabs your attention the most and is the underlying factor in your decision to upgrade? An interesting poll has been conducted over at MacWorld and it reveals that the most anticipated feature of the upcoming MacBook Pro 2012 refresh is the inevitable use of new Intel Ivy Bridge processors that will replace current Sandy Bridge chips.

This is fairly surprising to us as we would have thought that the possibility of a Retina Display would be even more desired than a CPU upgrade – especially given that a Retina Display would be an Apple specific upgrade, while Ivy Bridge processors will be dished out on Windows-based computers as well.

While a quad-core upgrade for a new MacBook Pro is obviously a big incentive, what about the new design rumors as well that consumers who participated in the poll seem to have overlooked. If previous speculation is true, the MacBook Pro refresh will feature a major design overhaul, which will see the design akin to that of Apple’s hugely popular MacBook Air line.

We’re also hearing that an optical drive may be slashed in favor of an SSD drive, giving the new model a drastic new look and perhaps even more beneficial to consumers if the device has more portability. If you are looking forward to picking up a new MacBook Pro this year, what ‘rumored’ feature sticks out for you the most? The choices include a Retina Display, 8GB RAM, Ivy Bridge processor, MacBook Air-style design, Voice Dictation and NVIDIA Kepler graphics. It has the makings of a rather nice refresh doesn’t it?

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Everyone wants to be slim this year – the first MacBook Air was not the only laptop touting slimness a few years ago, although there was not a lot of choice in this area, but that has all changed this year with a number of Windows alternatives sporting some really thin form factors. You might have seen this in our recent article about the new ZenBook Prime and 2012 MacBook Pro, which are both awaiting a release date and aiming for similar users (unless you are all about Apple that is).

If you are all about Apple, do you go with the new MacBook Pro or MacBook Air in 2012? This is a very real problem for some people and while we have a lot more to learn about any new MacBook Air or Pro, you can count on the Pro coming within a matter of days now, so if you want to upgrade your MacBook soon then your choice has already been made. If you’re one of our readers looking for a refresh at some point this year and can wait for a release date that falls much later on, then you could have to choose from a few thin MacBook’s.

Apple will already have a plan and some seasoned MacBook owners know where they will go – it’s fair to say that the MacBook Air might have been thin in the past but its fan really speeds up under the slightest strain, which did improve on the later generations we tested. The bottom-line is that the Pro is likely to always feature more power, memory, graphics, and other goodies targeted at the professional. This means if you are a casual user and want a MacBook then the Air is almost certainly the right direction for you.

Considering the option of more than one “thin” MacBook model this year, are you thinking Pro or Air? It will make choosing even harder if both models have Retina and SSD as standard, although some analysts predict the MacBook Air could be cut at some point. With that in-mind do you like the idea of a new range named “The MacBook“?

Feel free to read our recent articles on the Voice Dictation in the new MacBook Pro and converting an iPad to a small MacBook Pro.

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We know there are some nice slick metal laptops running Microsoft Windows, but again they have always seemed one step behind Apple in terms of style and a solid build, which is found in MacBook Pro’s and Air’s.

The new ZenBook Prime is a great option for those that love Windows – while most Apple users are thinking new MacBook Air vs. MacBook Pro in 2012, and are waiting for a release date, it seems that the real announcement some Windows users wanted included the name “Asus Zenbook Prime UX32VD“. The specs on this laptop are extremely impressive, which include GeForce GT 620M graphics, a full 1080p IPS display, and a solid build thanks to the brushed aluminum frame as seen in the photo below. You can also see a quick hands-on review in the video below this article. Interestingly some people might consider it looks like a MacBook Air with a quick glance, and while these same people feel most brands are copying Apple in different industries, but we’ll let you debate that one in the comments.

The bottom-line: If you love the way Microsoft Windows 8 is heading then the new ZenBook Prime is a no-brainer for you, although one thing that’s hard for most MacBook users to do is return to Windows, especially considering the love affair some people have with all Apple products. This then leaves Apple users to decide what MacBook is best for them, whether that be the Air or even the new 2012 MacBook Pro, which is rumored to be everything the Air is and a lot more. Think Thin, SSD, more power, memory, a new Retina display, and a slim profile as seen with the air – this could be the best of both worlds.

Are you looking forward to the 2012 MacBook Pro refresh with Ivy Bridge processors? What price would you like to see the new MacBook Pro start from, and is there a minimum battery life you’re looking for?

Watch the video below of the Asus Zenbook Prime UX32VD at a recent press event, and then let us know if you’re thinking more along the lines of MacBook Pro or Zenbook Prime? You might also want to read our recent article on possible Voice Dictation with the next MacBook.

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A few months ago it had been rumored that Google may be asking ASUS to build their tablet for them and now we have some more details on this likely partnership. Digitimes have claimed that Google’s tablet is well near completion and that shipments will be starting in June in preparation for a release sometime in July.

Just to remind you, this isn’t a rumored product as Google chairman Eric Schmidt already revealed last year that the company would be releasing a tablet within the next six months. While they may have fallen a little bit short of that estimation, a July release would still ensure that Google has maintained their word and the tablet could force Apple to step up their plans on a renewed iPad effort with upgrades made to the existing ‘new iPad’ that launched just a few months ago.

If a July release wasn’t exciting enough for you, we’ve also heard that Google will be unveiling their new tablet at Google I/O which starts in June. Potential specs of the device that have been speculated include a Tegra 3 quad-core processor and Google’s brand new unseen Android 5.0 Jelly Bean OS. What do you make of the decision to allow ASUS to build the device though? The Transformer Prime is obviously a lovely piece of kit, so are you happy that Google has given the Taiwanese manufacturer a chance to become a global brand in the US?

Samsung would have been another obvious choice since they built the Galaxy Nexus, but we’re pleased to see that Google is trying out different things. How does a quad-core, Jelly Bean effort from ASUS sound to you this Summer? Instant buy for you, or will you hold out to see if Apple has something in the pipeline?

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For those that are not aware, the new iPad doesn’t feature full Siri functionality yet, but it does bring a portion of the assistant’s capabilities with a fairly decent voice dictation mode. This was Apple’s first crack at shifting this over to the tablet community and now it could be extended to Mac OS X users as well.

A report over at 9to5Mac shows that Apple could make this possible, exclusively on Mac OS X Mountain Lion. At the moment, the MacBook Pro and Air models do not come with a separate voice speech button as seen on the new iPad’s virtual keyboard. However, an easy workaround appears to be in place as voice dictation on future MacBook Pro models could be accessible by simply pressing both command buttons simultaneously which are located either side of the space key.

If Apple are indeed planning to do this, we would like to see some improvements to voice dictation accuracy first. If you have used Siri on the iPhone 4 or dictation on the new iPad, you’ll know that it could obviously do with some enhancements in detecting speech more accurately.

Having voice dictation on New MacBook Pro models would obviously imply that Apple plans to make this a viable way of inputting text away from the physical keyboard. It would be fantastic if blog entries or long passages of text could be made via voice dictation on Mac OS X, but the software would obviously need some work first before this becomes a reality. At the moment, trying to input several sentences on the new iPad dictation doesn’t really work and you’ll probably agree if you have tried this out before.

Would you like to see voice dictation extended to Apple’s upcoming MacBook Pro refresh? Hopefully we will see some clarity on this at WWDC 2012 which starts next month.

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For those of you who missed it in February, the device was first unveiled at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. At the time Samsung unveiled the device with a dual-core processor, but we can tell you that Samsung are now planning to include a quad-core Exynos processor instead.

The specific details on the processor hasn’t been disclosed, but we would imagine that it will be the same quad-core Exynos chip that is equipped inside the international Galaxy S III. Another major change that Samsung unveiled is a separate slot to house the device’s supplied stylus. The picture above shows you how that will look and it means that you now have a great little space to store the S Pen when not in use.

Despite the ‘Note’ name, this larger 10.1-inch device won’t be able to make phone calls. The stylus support warrants the ‘Note’ name in a way, but otherwise it is just a variant of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 if you like. Thanks to the quad-core processor though, this will probably be in higher demand than the Galaxy Tab 2. There’s still no word on pricing or when this will be available, but hopefully Samsung will release details of this soon.

Is this now a tablet that you simply need to own, or are you waiting on Google to release details of the upcoming ‘Nexus’ tablet? That could turn out to be the best Android tablet so far, but Google are remaining silent for now.

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This time it is Best Buy deciding to cut the price of the MacBook Pro with lines crossing out old prices on their store, something you rarely see Apple do with their online store, and the new price at the popular electronics retailer has dropped by up to $200. The same thing happened earlier this year shortly before the iPad 3 got a release date, and we saw Best Buy drop $50 off the price of an iPad 2.

Will the new MacBook Pro be worth an upgrade? While we cannot be sure on the final specs for the 2012 model, some details are as solid as they get without Apple confirmation. You can see in our earlier article that the 2012 MacBook Pro is likely to feature a Retina display with simplified modes, and upgrades to ports, hard drive (maybe SSD), memory and of course the processor.

Now that we’re moments from WWDC 2012 and an obvious release for the new MacBook Pro, are you ready to buy one?

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In the last few hours we’re hearing about some more features take shape in Mountain Lion, and in particular the Automatic Downloads feature promised earlier on this year. The latest developer build of OS X 10.8 has shown signs of automatic app installs, although these are not fully working in the current beta. You can see a message pop up asking you to turn on automatic app downloads for future purchases, which will not work in the current developer build but is likely to release for testing very soon.

We welcome this feature to Mac OS X and have loved being able to buy apps on our iPhone 4S, which are then automatically downloaded to our iPad 3, although this can be any iOS device you’ve selected to have automatic downloads after installing iOS 5. The majority of Mountain Lion owners will enjoy the same benefits soon, and the software is scheduled to go on sale later this summer. You can read more about Mountain Lion’s new automatic download feature in this article.

You might also want to read about Messages beta, which we posted some videos and details on back in February this year, and if you’re thinking about purchasing the new 2012 MacBook Pro you can read about description Retina modes here.

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If you have been keeping up to date with rumors regarding Google’s tablet, you’ll know that one of Google’s primary motives is thought to be releasing a tablet specifically to target Amazon’s Kindle Fire, which is very popular due to its $199 price point.

What better way for Amazon to counter this move by unleashing a brand new version of their Kindle Fire, one which offers a bigger screen and another value for money price tag. Information cited at Digitimes reveals that a 10-inch Kindle Fire tablet will release sometime during the third quarter and that it may even be equipped with a quad-core processor.

The 7-inch model with a dual-core processor is selling well as it is, so Apple and Google will have their work cut out if these reports are true. The new 10-inch is unlikely to come in at the same $199 price tag, but $299 would still be a great price for consumers.

Google are keeping quiet about their tablet project for now and Apple are unlikely to talk about an iPad successor at WWDC so soon after debuting the ‘New iPad’. How highly do you rate the Kindle Fire though as a viable competitor to tablet devices from Samsung, Apple and soon to be Google? Many consumers associate the Kindle Fire as just a fancy way to read books, but as we’ve seen with the device’s other features – it does a lot more than just handle e-books.

If you had to make an instant decision on the new 10-inch Kindle Fire, a new iPad with a quad-core CPU or a Google Nexus Tablet with Jelly Bean – what would you choose and why?

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In a recent article on 9To5Mac we noticed they mention not only that the new MacBook Pro will include a Retina display, something most of us have come to expect after the iPhone 4 and iPad 3, but also that these “Retina” modes should be by description and not in resolutions. If their sources are correct, we should see choices like “big“, “optimal“, or “small“. This judgment has been made after looking at the software strings in Mountain Lion beta and OS X Lion 10.7.4, and while we cannot wait for this display upgrade it’s also exciting to think about the improved specs like SSD and USB 3.0.

You can read more insight in this article, or see a video below showing USB 2.0 vs. USB 3.0 for an idea on the speed difference you should expect.

Most Apple MacBook Pro users have an idea of what they want from a redesigned model, and while the new enclosure is welcomed we look forward to a full surface trackpad, which would detect your finger touch vs. palm touch vs. an accidental touch.

We already know Apple have patents in place for cover detection and deeper multitouch is something we’ve wanted for a while, which is something Apple are aiming for not only with the new MacBook Pro but also in other innovative ways. You can see this with this rumor about iPhone 5 and multi-point camera focusing systems.

Do you like the idea of simplistic Retina modes on the 2012 MacBook Pro, or do you have other software and hardware upgrades you’re crying out for? You might also want to read about these benchmarks that tease a worthwhile MacBook Pro upgrade, and more details on possible specs here.

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