Apple rumored to launch new Macbook Pros

Apple is reportedly planning to introduce new MacBook Pro laptops this week, based on stories leaking from retailers. The company may also use a new high-speed connection technology.

The latest moves show that, try as it might, Apple can’t really move secretly when it is one of the most watched companies in the world. Every company wants to keep its secrets, but if it’s selling a cool new technology, it also has to work with suppliers, retailers, and other partners along the way. Any of those sources can leak information.

The latest evidence on the MacBook Pro rumor is that Apple has stopped selling MacBook Pro laptop models and has warned retailers not to break the seal on pallets that may begin arriving as early as today. Apple also began telling its European resellers that they could expect the sealed pallets at their stores as early as today.

The new connection technology is rumored to be Light Peak, a high-speed technology that Intel has been working on for some time. Apple is expected to adopt the technology, though under a different name. Intel has said Light Peak will ship in the first half of 2011.

Intel originally proposed Light Peak as a fiber-optic connection to replace all of the cables that connect something to a computer. But initially, the usage for Light Peak looks more limited, and it will initially use copper wires instead of fiber-optic connections. The speed is faster than universal serial bus (USB) 3.0, carrying data at 10 gigabits a second in both directions at the same time. Sony is also expected to use Light Peak.