“We’ve developed new battery technology that is better for the user and better for the environment,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, in the press release. “Apple’s advanced chemistry and innovative technology deliver up to eight hours of use on a full charge cycle and up to 1,000 recharges.”
Apple uses advanced chemistry, intelligent monitoring of the system and battery, and Adaptive Charging technology to create a revolutionary new notebook battery that delivers up to eight hours of wireless productivity on a single charge and up to 1,000 recharges without adding thickness, weight or cost to the MacBook Pro’s incredible design.* The longer battery lifespan equals fewer depleted batteries and less waste, which is better for the environment.
The new 17-inch MacBook Pro includes an ultra-thin, widescreen glossy 1920 x 1200 display with 78 percent more pixels than the 15-inch MacBook Pro and a 60 percent greater color gamut that delivers desktop-quality color in a notebook. The LED-backlit display has brilliant instant-on performance, uses up to 30 percent less energy and eliminates the mercury found in industry standard fluorescent tube backlights.
Measuring just 0.98-inches thin and weighing 6.6 pounds, the 17-inch MacBook Pro is the world’s thinnest and lightest 17-inch notebook. The 17-inch MacBook Pro is the most powerful Mac notebook yet with the latest Intel Core 2 Duo processors available up to 2.93 GHz, up to 8GB DDR3 main memory and a graphics architecture that allows users to switch between the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics processor for better battery life and the powerful NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT discrete graphics processor for higher performance. The new 17-inch MacBook Pro includes a 320GB 5400 rpm hard drive standard with a 320GB 7200 rpm hard drive and 128GB and 256GB solid state drives as options. As with the rest of the new MacBook family, the 17-inch MacBook Pro includes a next generation, industry-standard Mini DisplayPort to connect with the new Apple LED Cinema Display featuring a 24-inch LED-backlit widescreen display with a built-in iSight® video camera, mic and speakers.
The new 17-inch MacBook Pro joins the aluminum unibody MacBook family in setting new standards for environmentally friendly notebooks with every model achieving EPEAT Gold status.** Each MacBook unibody enclosure is made of highly recyclable aluminum and comes standard with energy efficient LED-backlit displays that are mercury-free and made with arsenic-free glass. The new MacBook family meets stringent Energy Star 4.0 requirements, contains no brominated flame retardants and uses internal cables and components that are PVC-free. The battery in the new 17-inch MacBook Pro provides additional environmental benefit because its extended lifespan means fewer depleted batteries resulting in less waste. Depleted batteries can be replaced for $179 which includes installation and disposal of your old battery in an environmentally responsible manner.
The new 17-inch MacBook Pro will be shipping at the end of January and will be available through the Apple Store® (http://www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of US$2,799, and includes:
• 17-inch widescreen LED-backlit 1920 x 1200, glossy display;
• 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with 6MB shared L2 cache;
• 1066 MHz front-side bus;
• 4GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM;
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics;
• NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT discrete graphics with 512MB GDDR3 video memory;
• 320GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm, with Sudden Motion Sensor;
• a slot-load 8X SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW) optical drive;
• Mini DisplayPort for video output (adapters sold separately);
• built-in AirPort Extreme® 802.11n wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
• Gigabit Ethernet port;
• built-in iSight video camera;
• three USB 2.0 ports;
• one FireWire® 800 port (FireWire 400 compatible);
• ExpressCard/34 expansion card slot;
• one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog;
• glass Multi-Touch trackpad and illuminated keyboard;
• built-in, 95WHr lithium polymer battery; and
• 85 Watt MagSafe Power Adapter.
Build-to-order options for the 17-inch MacBook Pro include a 2.93 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 8GB 1066 MHz DDR 3 memory, 320GB 7200 rpm hard drive, a 128GB or 256GB solid state drive, anti-glare display for $50 (US), Mini DisplayPort to DVI Adapter, Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI Adapter (for 30-inch DVI display), Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter, Apple Remote, Apple MagSafe Airline Adapter and the AppleCare Protection Plan.
A properly maintained Apple 17-inch MacBook Pro battery is designed to retain 80 percent or more of its original capacity during a lifespan of up to 1,000 recharge cycles. Battery life and charge cycles vary by use and settings.
More info: 17-inch MacBook Pro
The best is indeed yet to come.
There’s unfinished business to discuss, like the iMac, Mini, Snow Leopard, iPhone, etc. I’m quite confident Apple knew exactly how this Macworld would go down with everyone. And it was all carefully planned, and very deliberate.
I think that now, more than ever, the suspense is truly where Apple wants it to be, and where the competition hopes it wouldn’t be. Already we have a killer 17-inch monster notebook and beautifully updated software. And this isn’t even the REAL keynote. Which will be done by Jobs, since he wasn’t well enough to do this one. Which also goes some way to explaining why they gave all the so-called “filler” to Schiller, and partly why the Macworld became a place-holder for something else. Something much bigger.
Just listen to good old Tony B. Now is the time to really fear Apple.
@ James again:
WHY is this a ‘throw-away’ culture?
Laptops have batteries. All batteries are consumable items.
The best we can do is make them long-lasting and re-cycleable.
Apple have done this. Big time.
@ Steven P:
This was surely explained today?
By not having to conform to a particular shape, Apple can make the battery fit in the inevitable nooks and crannies inside a Macbook.
If there is no need for latches and plastic or aluminum surrounds and a bay for the battery to go in, savings of space must be in the order of 10-20%, at a guess.
A battery that lasts 5 years and is then replaced is BETTER than your two year battery life, isnt it?
HEY everyone – ever considering THINKING?
Its the great new way to get the answers to life’s little problems.
Try it today – you wont be disappointed.
“you, sunny jim, need to get some perspective.”
Fair enough, but I’ve had it up to my eyeballs in people crying after a keynote after a dozen years of it. At least it’s over now thankfully.
I’m not saying having those new batteries across the line of laptops wouldn’t be nice, but that sort of thing takes time, have some patience (especially since you’re asking me to have some perspective!)
@Steven P:
Heres a video that will help explain:
http://i.gizmodo.com/5124705/the-story-behind-the-17-macbook-pros-amazing-long+lasting-battery
@R2
new built-in battery that delivers “UP TO” eight hours of use
To me it seems essential that the recent 13″ Macbooks also
come with a non glass $50 option going foward into 09′!
(not just the 17″ overly large Pro announed today)
if u compare it to a the higher end 13″ sony (sure it is a pc look at the the display quality) this unit has a unique matt anti glare coating (not GLASS) what was/IS Mac thinking.
It simply gets in the way if your viewing experience !
Images/text seems RECESSED within the glass screen and unlike the IMac glass it is real full og GLARE !
“The very reason they wont be participating in Macworld anymore is because the expectations have become so high, it’s unrealistic.. ” etc etc
1. Apple is not afraid of expectations. Do you really think Apple was like, “OMG! Too many expectations! Let’s not do the keynote!!”?
2. Fans saying they hoped to see something is not whining or bellyaching, it is simply enthusiastic demand for a product. The enthusiasm of Apple users is a result of Apple’s excellence and an important component of Apple’s success.
The mentality of protecting the mother ship is something best left for Microsoft fanboys. Trying to stifle the voice of Apple fans, whether they be positive or negative, is silly. Plenty of people were able to point out why, for example, we should not have expected three new pieces of hardware today. Great, keep it at that.
The best keynote news related to the integrated battery in the 17 inch MacBook Pro is that Apple has had people working on lithium polymer battery construction issues. This means that they can teach their subcontractors how to make decent batteries instead of relying on the crappy Sony-contract batteries that have given so many MacBook & MacBook Pro owners headaches for the last four years. Let’s hope in particular that the integrated batteries will solve the overheating and in-computer charging problems!
Go back to full ‘Matt ‘ Mac laptops or sony will be the superior company again. No reason for this with such a massively superior design from Mac !
Also not offering BluRay on these laptops 08-09 Macs seems a mistake. While it is known that full res on high def needs larger screens, people are now going to own these discs and not be able to play them.
If i am somewhere and want to watch david gilmores on an island
bluray I might as well not even own one of these Macs!
MATT option beyond the 17″ Pro & a BluRay option regardless of price.
OK, someone clarify. Maybe my headcold is making me a bit dense today but, how IS the battery replaced in this new 17″ MBP? You have to take it to an Apple Store? They can’t mean it isn’t replaceable at all. Did I miss something?
Anti-glare is NOT the same thing as a matte display as it does not employ the Fresnel lens technology that allows true wide-angle reflection-less viewing. Apple just killed off their last truly Pro product. For this reason alone Apple laptops and displays will be off my shopping list.
@James
You seem to think that the whole MacBook needs to be thrown out when the battery gets old. The battery can be replaced. It’s just no longer a simple process.
@ R2
You are talking nonsense. The Air battery is rated for five hours and everyone I read about who tested it got roughly four hours. The only guy who habitually gets way less on his tests than anyone else is Walt Mosberg who says up front that he turns the brightness up *higher* than recommended for his tests.
If Apple says it will get 8 hours, then it will probably get 7 but seven is huge. Also I have to point out that criticisms like this make no sense whatsoever anyway. If the tech is the same, or if everyone is “fudging” the numbers the same, then the percentages of extra time and power are just as valid because the same claims were made about the old batteries, right?
Finally, regular PC manufacturers regularly lie through their teeth about battery life. Much worse than Apple. Generally speaking if Samsung says 4 hours, the battery will last two and if Apple say s4 hours the battery will last 3 in my experience.
“Anti-glare is NOT the same thing as a matte display as it does not employ the Fresnel lens technology that allows true wide-angle reflection-less viewing. Apple just killed off their last truly Pro product. For this reason alone Apple laptops and displays will be off my shopping list.”
Umm… I’m not sure I followed exactly how this matters, but congratulations on winning the KING OF WHINERS™ award!
Previously held by Cmdr Taco:
“No wireless. Less space than a nomad. Lame.”
Well, I’m just glad I bought my 17″ MBP a year ago instead of waiting another year. The non-replaceable battery would have been an absolute deal killer for me… as I’m certain it is today for a lot of others, particularly those of the power-user, road-warrior variety.
As for those parroting Apple’s claims of “up to 8 hours” and “1000 charges,” let’s just wait and see. Real world activity tends to poke holes in marketing claims.
MBP 17″ now more greener than before. What say you DELL?
If I use my new macbook 8 hours a day and recharge it, then the macbook is dead (via the battery) in 1,000 days. Less than 3 years.
Planned obsolescence.
@ James,
“Newsflash, manufacturing and recycling all use carbon, lots of it, ESPECIALLY ALUMINUM. ” Are you that stupid or that young???
The cost to “RECYCLE” aluminum is much lower than making it in the first place from tons of Boxite ore (sp). Aluminum can be used over and over and over again.
And we are not “Some of you people really are are lemmings or paid by apple.”, unlike you who is obviously paid for by Microsoft. 🙁 Its called industrial standards vs how long batteries last, etc. Google it.
Just a thoughts.
en
I’m sure the battery will fully charge 1000 times and at 1001 times, it’ll be completely dead
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Apple should stop mentioning how many charges a battery can be fully charged cause people are too stupid to understand what that actually means.
You’re not thinking about this right. I’m a “road warrior” and I see this as a positive. We no longer have to lug around a second battery and mess with recharging each one while on the road. Now, one longer-life battery is all you need. Even if the real duration is 7 or 6.5 hours instead of 8, that’s still pretty close to the “real” duration of two shorter-life batteries, without the weight!
Jake
High price, nothing exciting.
Re: I’m sure the battery will fully charge 1000 times and at 1001 times, it’ll be completely dead raspberry
I thought I read the battery would still have an 80% charge left after 1,000 charging cycles.
On another point, is it some time-honored tradition that every MacWorld keynote is followed by loud wails and angry screeching from Mac users as well as the regular Apple haters? Some of the comments on this blog reflect that trend, and the comments sections of Engadget, Gizmodo and others are full of it.
I suspect only a tiny fraction of notebook buyers actually swap out their batteries. No one I know does that. Lots of people are using laptops as desktops now, so they’re on AC power nearly all the time.
And since the MacBook Air’s battery is built in, too, perhaps this new battery tech will make its way into that model soon.
Not sure about this upgrade to the 17″. I’m surprised it made the keynote when they’d already had a laptop announcement late last year. Guess they were really trying to rub in the fact that they won’t be at Macworld anymore. No RDF for me, that’s for sure.
I already have the 17″ from two years ago (2.33Ghz model), so I wouldn’t upgrade yet, but I’m going to humor myself.
For the new models:
– there is 1 Firewire port less (and no additional USB ports to compensate.)
– still only 2.66Ghz.
– ability for lots of RAM.
– nicer looking I think, probably sturdier and the paint won’t peel I hope.
– better graphics (although it seems a pain to manage it.)
– HD resolution screen
– still only 5400 RPM drives as standard issue (vs 7200.)
Yes, it’ll be faster just how much will require benchmarks. You’d expect it to be a lot faster after 2 years (like either ~2x faster, or cost 1/2 as much, and since it doesn’t cost 1/2 as much…) I’d have liked a quad core CPU to compensate, but whatever.
I’d definitely spring for the 7200 RPM drive – the existing drive in my current lappy is really slow (then again, maybe that’s ‘coz I compare it to my Mac Pro running on raptors.) Plus it’s a bitch to swap out (which is why it’s still in there… for now.) But $50 seems steep.
I’d also consider the anti-glare (have to see it first), and a DVI adaptor.
This brings the price up another $129 if I got all of them. This is now a $3K laptop, plus tax. Nice going, especially considering some of the options shouldn’t really cost any more.
I am not wanting to get into the politics of “Yes, but it costs Apple more”, which is true, but honestly, at $2799, you should expect a certain level of refinement and inclusions, esp. wrt to the HDD. It’s especially contradictory when they make everything else faster/better. Plus, the anti-glare was a free option before anyway. And the DVI is a port? Well, ports change, so you’d probably have to suck that up, but I’d love (hate?) to know the real cost of that $29 DVI adapter (or $99 for the dual-link one. That sounds like gouging to me. Seems as though it’s a “If you can afford the 30″ screen, you can afford this nice adapter” type mentality.)
This sort of pricing makes people whining over $2 apps on the App Store seem like tightwads (oh, that’s right, they are.)
While I don’t see the value right now, my wife has had her eye on a macbook of some sort since the last lot was released…
Wonder what I can get for my early ’08 17″ MacBook Pro
to narrow the gap to $4,599.00 .
8 Gigs of RAM?!!!
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YEEESSSS!!!!!
MDN word “terms”, as in the terms of my contract with the devil in order to trade up my MBP after less than a year.