Apple ditches the mouse for iPod-inspired laptop range

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The new MacBook computers replace the traditional mouse with a large glass trackpad, similar to the screen of the iPhone. Users can sweep their fingers across the pad to switch between programs and zoom in and out of documents and web pages.

The company has also developed a new manufacturing process for the laptops, which are made from a single block of aluminium.

But Apple disappointed investors by failing to reveal an expected £800 "credit crunch" laptop, charging £949 for the cheapest MacBook. Shares in the 31-year-old company fell more than four per cent after the launch.

Jonathan Ive, Apple's senior vice president of industrial design, who was last week named one of London's most influential people by the Standard, said the new process meant lighter, thinner machines.

"Traditionally notebooks are made from multiple parts. We've replaced those with one: the unibody," he said.

Apple's iPod music players and iPhone have enjoyed huge success, but the computer side of the business is still crucial. In the first three quarters of this financial year, the firm sold 7.1 million Macs, equal to its total Mac sales for last year.