Macbook Pro - Signals the Transitions of Computing Devices

Just read a post on the new Retina MPB to buy or not to buy,

...we just happen to be at the beginning of a transition of the Mac into its next phase. In some ways, this is a mid-life crisis.

and Robert Scoble's Facebook post on touch screen devices.

Looking at my life and that of my coworkers I'm seeing less and less of a reason to stick with a traditional laptop. 

I'm also very certain that this is the transition period for computing devices. Transitions from traditional laptops to ultra-portable high performance touchscreen devices.

High Performance Computing Notebook

Looking at the new MBP :

• Ultra-portable - 0.71", 2kg
• 512GB flash storage

You can almost anything on-the-go with this new notebook - compile source codes, render HD videos, or even play games. It would be hard to imagine any would still get an iMac, unless you are going for serious 3D/HD graphics rendering with 16GB RAM and SSDs. 

Looking at the trend, I couldn't agree more with MG Siegler that its just a matter of time before Macbook Air will be merged back in the Macbook Pro branch.

I also imagined Apple dropping the “Air” appendage and resurrecting the “MacBook” brand once again in the name of simplicity. But that clearly isn't happening either. At least not yet.
- MG Siegler

Touch Screen Computing Notebook

On the other side of the spectrum, we can clearly see that Microsoft is pushing hard for touchscreen based devices. Windows 8 engineered for this purpose. Got a couple of chances to hand-on with the non-office tablets with Windows 8 on it. Its very responsive and the flow of content display is just natural.

Imagine you can dock your tablet and it instantly turns into a workstation, and when you undock it changes back to the presentation mode. You can carry it around, scribble notes on it on the go, or just show slides to your friends/client instantly. That is how things work in the near future.

The Future

Everyone wants ONE device that you can do ALL task on it. And its undoubtedly clear that the shift has already started. I'm sure all these changes will converge at some point in the near future.