Apple (AAPL) Mac Sales to Bolster Quarterly Results

While the rest of the PC sector was under pressure, Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) Mac sales, led by the new MacBook Pros, is up about 47 percent over last year's sales in the same quarter, according to Piper Jaffray's analyst Gene Munster, citing data from NPD Group.

In a note to clients Munster summarized data from the NPD Group for the last quarter:

In the month of March, U.S. Mac sales were up 47 percent year over year, driven by the new MacBook Pros that started shipping Feb. 24.

That 47% increase followed growth of 20 percent in January and 12 percent in February, for average of 27 percent over the first quarter of 2011.

That stands in stark contrast to the 3.2 percent drop in worldwide sales reported last week by IDC.

Munster writes that Apple’s (AAPL) fiscal second quarter ended last month, may beat analysts’ estimates for $23.3 billion in revenue, saying that Apple’s Mac sales are, “tracking at the high end of our expected range of 3.6 million to 3.7 million units,” for the March quarter.

Apple was trading at $325.86, dropping $1.60, or 0.49 percent, as of 2:32 PM EDT.

Apple (AAPL) Launches Faster MacBook Pros

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), which looks set to launch the iPad 2 next week, debuted its new line of MacBook Pros on Thursday, touting Intel's (NASDAQ:INTC) new high-speed connection technology and the same video calling found on the iPhone 4.

The consumer tech giant unveiled new 13-inch, 15-inch and 17-inch MacBook Pros before market open. The devices are the first to feature Thunderbolt, a technology jointly developed by Apple and Intel for boosting data transfer speeds from RAID arrays (a storage device), USB drives and displays.

Apple is also adding FaceTime video calling technology to the new MacBooks. Initially launched on the iPhone 4, FaceTime is also expected to feature on the iPad 2, underlining Apple's desire to expand the technology across multiple different products.




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Intel's (INTC) Thunderbird Tech Available on Apple's (AAPL) MacBook Pro

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) has unveiled Thunderbolt, a new high-speed connection technology that brings high-speed data transfer and high-definition display.

Santa Clara, Calif.-based Intel's Thunderbolt is available through a technology collaboration with Apple Inc. and is available on Apple's new line of MacBook Pro laptop computers.

"Thunderbolt technology is designed to meet the demands of serious HD media creators, the company said. "For example, videographers can unleash their creativity using high-bandwidth audio and video capture/mixing devices, and get both low latency and highly accurate time synchronization for real-time processing."

"At 10Gbps, larger media files are transferred faster so there’s less time spent waiting to watch and edit videos. Data can be backed up and restored quicker, so there’s less waiting for archived content. For mobile PC users, it means having a single connector on their ultra-thin laptop that extends their high-speed media and HD display capabilities at home or in the office."





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Apple (AAPL) Launching Intel (INTC) USB Slayer?

Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) next-generation MacBook Pros may thicken the plot to kill USB, using Intel's (NASDAQ:INTC) Light Peak optical technology and rebranding it as "Thunderbolt."

A trio of rumors suggest that Apple is preparing a high-speed port called Thunderbolt for its new MacBook Pros. These findings include a German spec sheet, an English spec sheet and images of marketing materials and the port itself, which looks like a Mini DisplayPort with a thunder bolt icon. The connection between Light Peak and Thunderbolt is based on previous reports that Apple pushed Intel to develop the technology.

What is Light Peak?

Light Peak is an interconnect technology that Intel announced in late 2009. By using fiber optics instead of the electrical cables found in USB, Light Peak cables can be thinner, more flexible and able to travel up to 100 meters, according to Intel. And of course, they'll be fast, supporting transfer speeds of 10 gigabits per second initially, and 100 gigabits per second within a decade. In January, however, Intel announced that the first generation of Light Peak cables would use copper, making them slower and less reliable over long distances.

Although the rumored MacBook Pro input looks like Mini DisplayPort, Intel has said that Light Peak could also make use of USB 3.0 ports with additional components.

USB Killer?





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NVIDIA (Nasdaq:NVDA) Processors May Not be Included in some MacBook (NASDAQ:AAPL) Models

Rumors are circulating that certain models of Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) MacBook may not include Nvidia's (Nasdaq:NVDA) graphics processors.

AppleInsider said, "It is rumored that Nvidia's graphics processors will not be included in at least some MacBook models 13 inches and under, as those low-end notebooks will rely only on Sandy Bridge integrated graphics from Intel. Apple's larger, high-end MacBook Pros, with screen sizes of 15 and 17 inches, will allegedly rely on graphics processors from AMD."

Shares of Nvidia fell on the speculation, dropping to $23.09, down $0.78, or 3.28 percent, as of 11:56 AM EST.

Ticonderoga on Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Before Earnings Report

Very few analysts are neutral on Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), and none are negative as they approach their 1st quarter earning report on Tuesday, including Ticonderoga.

Ticonderoga says, "We believe Apple would be well suited to announce the iPad 2 before the end of January in an effort to persuade consumers to wait for the new iPad that we believe will be launched in March/April. Additionally, we believe Apple is in the process of refreshing its MacBook Pro line and an announcement could be in the cards."

Of 49 analyst covering Apple, 44 have a Buy rating on them and 5 a Neutral rating

Ticonderoga Securities reiterates a "Buy" rating on Apple, which closed Friday at $348.48, gaining $2.80, or 0.81 percent. Ticonderoga has the highest price target on Apple at $450.