Apple has received approval from the U.S. Patent Office this week for a patent for a MacBook with a cellular antenna and a rotating display. Such a MacBook could have the super thin qualities of the MacBook Air and the cellular connectivity and touchscreen versatility of the iPad.

It could also strengthen Apple against the onslaught of Ultrabooks that PC makers are gearing up to unleash. “This officially announces to the Wintel camp that Apple now has the ability to match or beat the Ultrabook design that is to come to market in 2013 with the [Intel] Haswell processor,” declared Jack Purcher, of Patently Apple.

Intel announced the Ultrabook category of PC laptops in May. The line is squarely aimed at the MacBook Air. The first wave of Ultrabooks, based on existing Intel processors, has already begun to hit the market. The units are supposed to be priced under $1000 and be super thin–0.78 inches–or in the case of the HP Folio announced today, even less–0.70 inches.

Next year, the platform is expected to be advanced further with the introduction of units based on Intel’s Ivy Bridge processor. A third wave of Ultrabooks is planned for 2013. They would be based on the Haswell processor and consume half the power of today’s laptops. Some of them also will sport Windows 8 with its touchscreen-enabled Metro interface.

According to Purcher, the new Apple patent calls for a hinge structure that would allow a MacBook to “rotate relative to the base of the laptop computer.” He explained that structure is very much like the second or third generation Ultrabook design spec that allows it to transform into a tablet for simple reading, surfing and/or scribbling with a smart pen.

As for the antenna patent, Purcher said that Apple has been filing patents in that area for almost two years. “It’s a forming trend that is certainly illustrating that Apple’s industrial design team, lead by Jony Ive, is trying different approaches in creating the perfect Telephonic MacBook,” he wrote.