The rumors were true as Apple has just announced a 13-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro.

Featuring a thinner chassis, the new 13-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro is 20 percent slimmer than the previous 13-inch MacBook Pro.

It now also proudly features a 13.3-inch Retina Display screen that has 2,560 x 1,600 pixels screen resolution and a pixel density of 227 pixels per inch.

Apple says that’s nearly twice the number of pixels on an HD television and four time the pixels on the 13-inch MacBook Pro it replaces.

This new screen also has a 178-degreee viewing angle and uses the same technique Apple used with the new iMac computers to reduce reflection up to 75 percent.

What’s missing in the 13-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro, however, is a dedicated graphics processing unit.

What comes with it is the integrated Intel HD4000 processor with the Intel Core i5 or Core i7 Ivy Bridge processors that power the machine.

Memory is at 8GB and Apple included a 768GB solid-state drive with the new 13-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro.

Ports include two Thunderbolt ports and two USB 3.0 ports.

Other features include FaceTime HD camera, dual microphones, improved speakers, three-stream 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and a MagSafe 2 power port.

The 13-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro base model starts at $1,699 and is now available.

Read the full 13-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro announcement after the break.

“Apple Introduces 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display

SAN JOSE, California—October 23, 2012—Apple today introduced an all-new version of its popular 13-inch MacBook® Pro featuring a stunning Retina™ display and all flash storage in a new compact design. At a mere 0.75 inches and 3.57 pounds, the remarkably portable 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display is 20 percent thinner and almost a pound lighter than the current 13-inch MacBook Pro.

‘The 13-inch MacBook Pro is our most popular Mac, and today it gets completely reinvented with a new thin and light design, fast flash storage and a gorgeous Retina display,’ said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. ‘With vivid colors, razor sharp text and more pixels than anyone else’s 15 or 17-inch notebooks, the Retina display completely changes what you expect from a notebook.’

The new MacBook Pro packs more than 4 million pixels into its 13-inch Retina display, nearly twice the number of pixels in an HD television. At 227 pixels per inch, the Retina display’s pixel density is so high the human eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels at a normal viewing distance, so images look sharp and text looks like it does on the printed page. With four times the pixels of the current 13-inch MacBook Pro, you can view and edit video in pixel-accurate 1080p and see a new level of detail in high resolution images. The 13-inch Retina display uses IPS technology for a 178-degree wide viewing angle, and has 75 percent less reflection and 28 percent higher contrast than the current generation.

Featuring flash storage that is up to four times faster than traditional notebook hard drives, the all-new MacBook Pro is extremely responsive, whether it’s waking from sleep or launching your favorite apps.* Fast flash storage combined with the latest Intel dual-core processors gives the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display plenty of power to run your most demanding apps with ease.

The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display features 2.5 GHz Intel Core i5 processors with the option to choose faster 2.9 GHz Intel Core i7 processors, Intel HD Graphics 4000, 8GB of 1600 MHz memory, and up to 768GB of flash storage. Two Thunderbolt and two USB 3.0 ports allow users to connect to multiple displays and high-performance devices, and a new HDMI port offers quick connectivity to an HDTV. The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display also features a FaceTime HD camera, dual microphones, improved speakers, three-stream 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and a MagSafe 2 power port.

The 13-inch MacBook Pro battery delivers up to 7 hours of wireless productivity and can remain in standby for up to 30 days.** With the all new Power Nap feature in OS X Mountain Lion, your MacBook Pro with Retina display stays up to date while it sleeps. Power Nap automatically refreshes Mail, Contacts, Calendar, Reminders, and Photo Stream, and when the notebook is plugged in, downloads software updates and backs up your Mac using Time Machine.

Continuing Apple’s commitment to energy efficiency and the environment, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display meets stringent Energy Star 5.2 requirements and achieves an EPEAT Gold rating.*** Each unibody enclosure is made of highly recyclable aluminum and comes standard with energy efficient LED-backlit displays that are mercury-free and made with arsenic-free glass. Apple notebooks contain no brominated flame retardants, are PVC-free and are constructed of highly recyclable materials.

The new 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display ships with OS X Mountain Lion, bringing Messages, Notification Center, system-wide Sharing, AirPlay Mirroring, Dictation, Game Center and the enhanced security of Gatekeeper to your Mac. With iCloud built into the foundation of OS X, Mountain Lion makes it easier than ever to keep your content up to date across your Mac, iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Pricing & Availability
The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display is available with a 2.5 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.1 GHz, 8GB of memory and 128GB of flash storage starting at $1,699 (US); and with 256GB of flash storage starting at $1,999 (US). Configure-to-order options include faster dual-core Intel Core i7 processors and flash storage up to 768GB. Additional technical specifications, configure-to-order options and accessories are available online at apple.com/macbook-pro. The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display is available today through the Apple Online Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers.”

About Solon Harmony Dolor

A passion for technology and journalism makes this upcoming writer very interested in social media and technology news. Fresh from finishing an English and Journalism degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman, he aims to bring interesting news to our readers .