Computerworld’s Yuval Kossovsky had some real “pick it up and use it” hands-on time with Apple’s new MacBook Pro at a special Apple event he attended last week.
“The good news is that the MacBook Pro, which comes in two models and starts at $1,999, feels and looks just as solid and well built as its aluminum-clad predecessor. The better news is that it outperforms and is better engineered than any G3- or G4-based laptop models Apple has sold,” Kossovsky reports. “First, I should say up front that I don’t know whether the model I had in my hands was a prototype or an example of the final product, which is due to ship officially next month. Having said that, I can tell you this laptop is fast. Really fast. I am hesitant to say it’s exponentially faster than the G4 version, but subjectively, this baby cooks. Universal binary programs like Safari and Apple’s iLife suite — which have been rewritten by Apple to take advantage of the new dual-core 1.83-GHz Intel processor inside — launched in one or two icon bounces. And using the Microsoft Office suite, which hasn’t yet been rewritten, was seamless using Rosetta… Apple wants to make this transition as seamless and transparent as possible, and if my short time using Rosetta is any benchmark, I’d say they’re off to a good start.”
“The built-in Web cam — think of it as a smaller iSight camera — is clearer and offers higher resolution video than was previously available using Apple’s iSight Web cam with the G4 PowerBook. And when using iChat A/V, you can now act as the host for a four-way video session — largely because of the Core Duo chip speed,” Kossovsky reports. “The LCD screen, which offers a 1,440-by-900-pixel resolution, is much brighter than those on earlier Apple laptops. In fact, there was no discernible difference between the screen brightness on the MacBook Pro and a 20-in. iMac Core Duo sitting next to it. Anyone who’s seen how bright those iMac screens are will appreciate how good looking this laptop screen is.”
“FireWire 800 was left off the motherboard of the new laptop largely because it has not achieved much a following among users. But for those who need the faster data transfer speeds available with FireWire 800, other offerings are on the way: I saw a prototype Belkin FireWire 800 ExpressCard 34 model that should ship by the time the MacBook Pro does. I’ve also been in contact with the ExpressCard standards group and am waiting for a list of manufacturers that will have cards in the 34mm flavor for the MacBookPro. I’ve heard from sources that several manufacturers are readying GPRS/EDGE and CDMA/EVDO cards for road warriors,” Kossovsky reports. “I can say the MacBook Pro looks like a real winner.”
Full article here.
Advertisements:
• MacBook Pro. The first Mac notebook built upon Intel Core Duo with iLife ’06, Front Row and built-in iSight. Starting at $1999. Free shipping.
• iMac. Twice as amazing — Intel Core Duo, iLife ’06, Front Row media experience, Apple Remote, built-in iSight. Starting at $1299. Free shipping.
• iMac and MacBook Pro owners: Apple USB Modem. Easily connect to the Internet using dial-up service. $49.00.
• iPod Radio Remote. Listen to FM radio on your iPod and control everything with a convenient wired remote. Just $49.
• iPod. 15,000 songs. 25,000 photos. 150 hours of video. The new iPod. 30GB and 60GB models start at just $299. Free shipping.
• Connect iPod to your television set with the iPod AV Cable. Just $19.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Analyst: Apple seeing strong sales of iMac Core Duo, MacBook Pro, 5th generation iPod – January 25, 2006
Apple: expect MacBook Pro shortages – January 19, 2006
Use the ExpressCard slot to add FireWire 800 to Apple’s new MacBook Pro – January 15, 2006
Apple MacBook Pro, ExpressCard and EVDO – January 14, 2006
Apple introduces MacBook Pro; up to four times faster than PowerBook G4 – January 10, 2006
As much as I would love to have one, is it me, or are the MacBook Pro’s terribly expensive?
I think I would spend a little extra and get the Quad G5….
Lines are open, feel free to call in…
It’s just you. If you don’t believe me, go and price a comparable system spec wise on Dell’s site and you’ll see that they’re not exactly cheap either.
How to send a recommended site to MDN?
thanks
Expensive, sure, but that’s the price of top-of-the-line. Besides being top, it’s probably cheaper than anything at that speed.
Now to comtempate getting a laptop or a workstation based solely on speed is ridiculous. Your form factor is determined by your usage habits far more than the speed. Heck, I’m on a 12″ PowerBook G4 running at 867Mhz, but I’m not ready to switch to the new 15″ MacBook Pro. I’m waiting for the 12 or 13 inch version. I’m buying the form factor, but the speed difference between the MacBook and mine are staggering.
If you need pure processing power, go for the G5x4, but for people on the go, a MacBook Pro fits the bill. Just make sure you get it in your size.
Keep in mind this is a dual processor machine. The processor chips are the latest newest technology Intel has. These are not warmed over Dell Celeron machines. All the latest wireless technolgies are included. optical digital and analog i/o (very sweet for musicians), the latest card slot technology, it’s all there. Plus, it’s an Apple. I predict MacBook Pro will be a very good laptop and a pivotal piece in the evolution of Mac to Intel transition.
Intel has a history of charging a lot for new processors, and then over time, reduciing the cost per chip. Right now the processors are costing Apple a premium price so the MacBook Pro is not cheap.
Another thought about the lack of Firewire 800…. Intel is the parent of USB a technology that competes with Firewire in some ways. Intel is supplying Apple with all the chips that support their new processors. Perhaps, just maybe, Intel could not handle Firewire 800 reliably on the custom motherboards they’re building for Apple. Time is of the essence. In the interest of reliability, FW-800 went away to get the new machines out sooner.
FW-400 is everywhere and for the most part compatible from brand to brand. FW-800 was kind of still-born with the move to an alternate connector scheme, that’s what really made FW-800 suck, another damned connector and cable to maintain. Most people just stuck with FW-400 boxes because they were good enough and fast enough.
Besides, SATA is where it’s all heading. Sata PC cards, appearing soon in a slot near you.
MacBook Pro is expensive but I bet it will serve its lucky owners very well for several years.
The BEST is never the cheapest, but it is the Best!
The MacBook Pro is priced competitively to Dual Cores from Gateway, Dell and Acer.
Here’s a side by side:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=2725
Want less expensive, wait for the iBooks (MacBooks).
Anyone who thinks the MacBook Pro is expensive isn’t thinking that through very well.
1) As has been mentioned, this is bleeding-edge hardware. Compare pricing to similar models from Acer and Dell.
2) Who says, “I was thinking of a portable, but instead I think I’ll buy a 50-pound tower”??? You don’t compare portables to workstations. The portables will always come out on the losing end of the pricing structure, similarly equipped. That’s self-evident.
3) These things are selling for **EXACTLY THE SAME PRICE** as the newest PowerBook G4’s. Where were these complaints three weeks ago about the PowerBooks? I would think that’s the real story, if anything… how much has Apple been raking in on the PowerBooks, versus how much are they not making on the MacBooks?
My photo dealer gives me CF card adapters that slip into the PC card slot of my Powerbook. I keep several in different places where I work and in travel bags. So easy to misplace one. The cheapest ExpressCard CF adapters I can find are 56 bucks. And why 34s? I would have thought a “Pro” model would have 54s. Maybe even two slots. You can put a micro hard drive in a 54.
If you want cheaper get the iMac Core Duo 17″. I have. It is just as excellent, essentially the same product in a different package. You always pay more for laptops than their equivalent desktops. If they have managed to produce a laptop that is the equal of the 17″ iMac then they have produced a real winner. These things fly.
why when a new computer is released do plebs always feel the need to say this is the fastest ever? Well duh! of course it is. Anyway favourible article, great product.
“I think I would spend a little extra and get the Quad G5….”
I had given that some thought for a while, but you’d have to add in the price of a monitor–and not just any monitor. It would have to be the 30″ model, otherwise what’s the point.
Save your money. Buy the MacBookPro. Make more money. Buy the Quad.
entanglement,
Click on “contact” link @ upper right hand corner. Should do the trick.
Faster than the G4,yes. Fast? Jury is OUT.http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-10442_7-6389077-9.html?tag=btn
Fifty pound tower? I wish. PowerMacs are sixty-two pounds without display.
Luke, you be wrong about the weight unless yours is loaded with a bunch of extra HDs or heavy-ram..
According to the tech specs on Apples web site, G5 towers weigh 44.5 to 48.8 pounds depending on configuration.
I am on my second 12″ PowerBook, and have good eyesight and find the screen perfectly adequate for what I do in a mobile setting. But for travel in particular, the form and weight factors are ideal, and I would be very hesitant to buy a 15″ screen. Given the choice, I would opt every time for the small screen version. Apple is one of the few companies that actually made a truly portable computer, and now the iBook is the only choice if you want a 12″ screen. I could probably accept a 13″ but not at the cost of more weight.
In the current situation, if I needed a new computer it would be the 17″ iMac, plugged in to a second monitor for extended desktop. It’s much more portable than the 20″ and if I have to lug something with two hands, it won’t be a 15″ laptop.
Faster than the G4,yes. Fast? Jury is OUT.http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-10442_7-6389077-9.html?tag=btn
Joe, comparing laptop performance to workstation class desktops will favor the desktop everytime. No exceptions. So what’s your point?
The Core Duo is a huge improvement over the fastest G4. That’s all Apple had to offer until Intel was adopted.
Now any Apple laptop will be using the same hardware as any Wintel laptop. NOBODY will have a hardware based speed advantage.
All speed advantages will come from the OS and the apps written for the OS.
Does anyone think Win(whatever) will function faster than OSX, using the same hardware platform?
Is it just me, or is there really NO NEW information in this article? All of the information that he presented can be found online (even on apple.com). I want to read a person’s experience with (prototype or shipping version) a MacBook PRO. If this were Digg, it wouldn’t get Dugg!
“is clearer and offers higher resolution video than was previously available using Apple’s iSight Web cam with the G4 PowerBook”
This sounds very wrong. How is the inbuilt isight higher res than the external isight?