Apple typically updates its MacBook Pro lineup at least once a year.  After an update in July, Apple is looking to kick things off a bit early, with a refresh coming later this week according to numerous reports.

Engadget claims to have a leaked spec sheet of the 13-inch model, along with photos of the shiny new Apple notebook.

What is presumably the entry-level model at 13 inches is powered by an Intel 2.3GHz Sandy Bridge i5 processor with 3 MB of L3 cache.  That's down ever so slightly speed-wise from the current generation, but given Sandy Bridge's improvement it should be a bit faster while offering more battery life.

Apple looks to be bumping its DDR3 memory interface from 1066 MHz in the current model to 1333 MHz in the new model.  The hard drive gets a slight capacity bump, as we anticipated, jumping from 250 GB to 320 GB.

The screen resolution (1280x800) remains unchanged, as does the FaceTime camera, wireless adapters, and optical drive.

A minor addition is the inclusion of an SDXC reader, which supports both normal SD cards and the extended capacity (XC) models.

But two things really stand out about the spec sheet.  The first is the fact that Apple has ditched a discrete graphics chip, opting to go with only Sandy Bridge's built in Intel 3000 HD GPU. Hopefully its larger and higher-end models (15", 17") will have new discrete GPUs.

Graphics aside, the other intriguing note is a new port dubbed "Thunderbolt" that apparent co-inhabits the DisplayPort adaptor.  This is supposedly the implementation of Light Peak.

Light Peak is Intel's answer to USB 3.0.  Despite claims of spectacular performance, based on the fiber optics implementation, the communications format in its current form should offer little if any speed gain from USB 3.0 given that it's being reportedly implemented on copper wires.  And where USB 3.0 is an open standard that anyone can use or contribute to, LightPeak is a proprietary standard, which OEMs will have to license from Intel.

If Apple supports Light Peak, it would be the first major OEM to embrace the format.

If the specs sheet holds true, it creates an interesting dilemma for Apple buyers.  The new-ish 13-inch MacBook Air offers a superior discrete GPU, a higher resolutions screen, and is thinner/lighter.  But it comes with a much slower Intel Core 2 Duo processor and lacks built-in optical media capabilities.