New MacBooks Carry Outdated SATA

 

The economic downturn is hitting everyone and Apple seems to be no exception. The Mac manufacturer is reportedly cutting costs by turning to outdated parts on its new MacBook Pro models.

 

According to rumoured reports from users posted on MacRumours, the new 13” and 15” MacBook Pro versions released by Apple last week carry an older version of the SATA interface on the hard drive. Instead of the standard 3.0Gbps SATA controllers that are standard on the 17” MacBook Pro, the 13” MacBook, and the 13” MacBook Air, these new models reportedly have a 1.5Gbps SATA controller.

 

This is a major downgrade that will go unnoticed by most regular users; but if someone switches over to high-performance SSDs from the standard HDD, they might experience a significant drop in performance.

 

The move is a surprising one due to multiple reasons. On the one hand, SSDs are growing in popularity quickly among laptop users due to their high-end performance and affordability; on the other hand Apple is known for the high standards it sets for its flagship MacBook line of notebooks.

 

While the rumour has started picking up speed, there has been no move from Apple to either deny or confirm it. The possibility has been expressed that the lower performance felt by some users might just be a minor issue with the driver, which could be fixed by a simple firmware upgrade. However, unless Apple comes clean on it, chances of the rumour dying seem to be low.

 

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