New MacBook Pro downgraded SATA Interface has customers up in arms

A lot of you have been following the news that Apple has downgraded the SATA interface on the new MacBook Pros over at Macrumors, Notebook Review or on Apple’s forums.  While this is certainly alarming for prospective and new MacBook Pro purchasers, let’s keep some things in mind before we get official word from Apple.  (that Computerworld guy has a call into Apple for clarification)

• The new White MacBook still uses 3.0Gbs SATA 2.  If the move were for cost cutting concerns, the White MacBook would have been the first to have been dropped tp 1.5Gbs
• The NVIDIA 9400M mobile chipset that is included in both old and new MacBook Pros has a built-in SATA 2  interface.  Apple would have had to downgrade the interface artificially with firmware or added a separate interface to bring these down to 1.5Gbs.
• The DVD drive is SATA and operates at 1.5Gbs.  There might be some wiring anomalies that are also giving the Hard drive bay that same SATA 1 interface speed.
• These are Pro machines and no matter how much battery life they saved (if any), Apple wouldn’t make the decision to cut SSD speed to save a little juice.  If they did for some reason, public outcry, like what is about to happen, would make them issue a firmware update to correct it.

So what gives?  It seems that drives, no matter what speed they are, are registering as SATA 1 drives.  Even quicker, more expensive SSDs are only able to connect at 1.5Gbs where in the previous generation, they were able to connect at 3.0Gbs.  Obviously there is something rotten in the state of Denmark. 

We’ll let you know what develops. More below…

Here’s a look at the speed of the previous 13 inch MacBook Pro (faster)

vs. the new 13 inch MacBook Pro  (significantly slower)