Apple's pro-oriented desktop Mac will not only sport a new name and a new Intel processor when it launches at the company's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) next month but also a new case design.

So claims website Think Secret, which reckons the Mac Pro enclosure will be broadly similar to the current machine - expect an aluminium casing with a vent mesh - it will nonetheless stand out from the PowerPC-based Power Mac G5.

The report's sources suggest the new line-up will match the current one: a pair of dual-core machines and a twin-chip model with four processing cores.

Which Intel CPU the Mac Pros remains open to question: Xeon 5100 series or Core 2 Duo? Core 2 Duo seems the more likely choice, but Apple may need the 5100's ability to work with a second processor for the quad-core Mac Pro.

The Core 2 Duo deskop chips - codenamed 'Conroe' - are due to ship late July, in time for Apple's WWDC, which kicks off in San Francisco on 7 August.

Conroe's mobile equivalent, 'Merom' is due to ship in August, but Think Secret's sources suggests MacBook Pro updates will come later than WWDC - but again with a new enclosure. The better to avoid the heat problems - including battery swelling - that's affecting the current crop of pro-oriented Mac notebooks. ®

Read Reg Hardware's Intel Core 2 Duo Performance Preview here