As we get closer to 2012, Apple product rumors are starting to come in. iLounge is first out of the rumor-mill gate with comments from their “most reliable source” about Apple’s 2012 product line. If true, the iPad, iPhone and MacBook Pro are going to get significant redesigns from current models. But there are plenty of reasons why I feel we should take the report from iLounge with a grain of salt.

Rumors about an ultra–thin 17 inch prototype also in existence would point us to the latter, which would mean the current MacBook Pro form factor, less than 3 years old, is likely on the bubble. And if that’s the case, we’re presented with the issue of how much of the current MacBook Pro’s formidable feature set and I/O versatility will survive compression into an upsized MacBook Air form factor.

Today, Apple shipped sealed pallets of products to some dealers. The pallets have strict warnings against breaching the integrity of the sealed pallets, which can mean only one thing: a product refresh. And the products most likely to be refreshed this week based on rumors and the current shipping time frames on the Apple Store online are the MacBook Pros.

With the online Apple Store down, it’s becoming quite likely that a refresh to the MacBook Pro range is only hours away. And it seems as though AppleInsider sources have managed to get the basic specifications of the upcoming laptops before their official announcement. Of course, without signed confirmation from Mr Jobs, these are only rumors, but quite solid rumors at that. If their sources are correct, here’s what we could be seeing later today…

It’s a Tuesday morning and the online Apple Store is once again down. Last time this happened, it was nothing more than maintenance, but this time it looks to be updates to the MacBook Pro range. Nothing huge, I’d imagine, just small bumps in all the right places. We’ve been wanting updates on the premium laptop range for quite some time now, and today seems like as good a day as any.

Apple Store Down, Apple Store Down, looking like a fool with your Apple Store Down… Yes, the Apple Store is down, just in time to say thanks to Macworld again. So, what’s it going to be this time? I’m thinking new MacBook Pros with Core i7 processors in them, but hey, anything could happen right? Maybe they’ll put up an iPad preorder page.

Yesterday, Nvidia paid Gizmodo a visit to spill some more details about the recently released GeForce GPUs that are inside of Apple’s newest MacBooks. They specifically cleared up some of the information floating around about hardware limitations. It seems Apple is being a little conservative about what and how much the new MacBooks can actually handle.

When you first read of the MacBook Pro’s dual GPUs, you likely assumed they could be used simultaneously. This, currently, is not the case. You have to choose between the 9400M and the 9600M GT, which are separated by a user log out. According to Nvidia, this is not a limitation of their chips. The hardware is fully capable of running both GPUs at the same time and spitting out graphics like water from a fire hydrant.

And that’s not all…

Want more than 4GB or RAM in your new Apple notebook? There might be hope for you after all. 9to5Mac seems to think that Apple is lying to you when they say the machines top out at 4GB. The article cites that Mac Mini owners are able to use 4GB or RAM when the stated more »

Apple has announced the refreshed MacBook Pro, and almost all of the rumors were spot on.

Here’s a breakdown of the features on the new MacBook Pro.

• Precision aluminum unibody enclosure
• Glass covered, LED backlit screen.
• Dual GPUs. Both new NVIDIAs, one 9400M, and a 9600M GT.
• Glass multitouch trackpad
• Black keyboard
• Mini Display Port connector capable of driving a 30 inch display
• Firewire 800 port
• .95 inches thin
• 37% smaller packaging

Details and images after the break.

DaringFireball has yet more last minute details about the forthcoming MacBook Pros. According to them, it seems many of the details we’ve been hearing about are the real deal.

Check their list and talk of the “buttonless” track pad after the break.