lawman67's Full Review: Apple MacBook Pro (MB133LL/A) Notebook
*** Important Update Follows *** As I write this on the 10th of October, 2008, Apple is poised to release a new line of laptops in just four days. Speculation is wild about the design of the upcoming portables, and even about whether Apple will offer quad core models. For me, however, a laptop is a business tool, and as such I value reliability over all else. That is why I bought one of the last of the outgoing 15" MacBook Pros earlier this week.
Two and a half years ago I went through this same process, and bought the then-new MacBook not even a week after Apple released it, and ended up with an ordeal of tech support resulting in THREE replacement machines and an eventual move to Windows. The MacBook was an entirely new product, rather than an evolutionary "speed bump", and was therefore what Apple enthusiasts refer to as "Rev A".
Now I currently use a "Rev C" MacBook and it has been one of the most reliable computers I've ever owned. Prior to the MacBook, I used a "Rev D" 12" PowerBook, again one of the most reliable computers ever, and still in use as a backup and travel machine. Like the MacBook, the "Rev A" 12" PowerBooks were als problematic.
The moral here is that Rev A products from Apple, like first year car models or anything new, may have teething problems. Some 1st year products go on to be perfect, while others can be nothing but trouble. I've learned my lesson, and will not take a chance on a Rev A product again, at least not something as vital as my primary laptop computer.
Buying the outgoing model, as opposed to the latest and greatest, has other advantages. First, there is a huge assortment of cases and accessories on the market, right now, while it will take a while for the industry to catch up with the new models. Of course that advantage reverses itself after a few months, when accessories for the old models become scarce.
The existing MacBook Pro also has stable, mature drivers. It could be that the new models are released and everything works perfectly, or just easily it could be like the MacBook Air which had fan control issues when first released and didn't stabilize until a software update, months later, improved the OS' support of the Air's hardware (device drivers).
Finally, I've seen the leaked pictures of the new model, and while many aspects of it are an improvement, especially the easily swappable hard drive, there is one area where I definitely prefer the outgoing model, and that is the keyboard. As anyone who reads my laptop reviews knows, I am a keyboard snob. The MacBook Pro is, according to the case photos floating around the web, moving to the MacBook's keyboard design,with each key separated by a grating in the chassis.
I own a MacBook and find the keyboard very responsive and accurate. My typing speed is every bit as high on the MacBook as on any other laptop I've ever owned, including PowerBooks and ThinkPads. That said, while it is accurate and fast, it does feel a bit cheap. The keyboard on the newer MacBook Air is the same basic design, but does feel a bit nicer, though neither compare to the luxurious feel of the old Aluminum PowerBooks. The MacBook keyboards are actually a bit faster for me, but I just like the longer travel of the MacBook Pro board, which is the exact same unit used on the old PowerBooks.
Okay, so you know why I chose the older model, how does it perform and what is my opinion of it? Read on.
My MacBook Pro is the base configuration 15" model with a matte (non-glare) screen and upgraded RAM at 4 GB (from crucial, Apple charges a fortune). I've used a glossy screen on the MacBook and while terrific for watching movies and better than glossy screens used on most PC laptops, I still had some trouble with glare in my office. The matte screen on the MacBook Pro is a revelation, easily the best laptop screen I've ever owned. It is extremely bright thanks to its LED backlight (which also saves battery power) and has a better viewing angle than the MacBook screen as well. The screen is very evenly lit, there is no glare and color reproduction and accuracy are superb. In short, I actually prefer this to my 19" desktop LCD.
The keyboard and screen really set the standard for the rest of the user experience, and the MacBook Pro does not disappoint. The 2.4 GHz "Penryn" processor has only 3 MB of cache, compared to 4 MB on the previous "Merom" processor, and I don't have access to the older model for comparison, but I do have a 2.2GHz "Merom"-equipped MacBook with the 4 MB cache and can honestly say that performance is indistinguishable between the two, at least for applications that don't rely on the graphics processor, which strongly favor the MacBook Pro with its dedicated graphics card.
With 4 GB of RAM, a fast dual core processor and a 256 MB nVidia graphics processor, the MacBook Pro is, quite simply, the fastest laptop computer I've ever used. For comparison, I installed a number of games using Windows XP and Apple's Boot Camp utility and found that I could play everything I threw at it, at maximum resolution and detail, without any stuttering or hesitation whatsoever. Games like Doom 3,Neverwinter Nights 2, Rome:Total War and Silent Hunter all require some hefty hardware for fluid game play, and the MacBook Pro simply returned cinema-quality framerates and exquisite graphics on each of them.
I've looked at machines like this before, and one thing that always pushed me away from buying one was the size and weight. I travel frequently and find that a smaller laptop works better in the tight confines of a coach-class airplane seat, as well as just being easier to carry around town. Nothing has changed and the MacBook Pro definitely pushes the outer limit of acceptability in terms of size and weight. I have my old 12" PowerBook sitting on the table next to it and the difference in size is dramatic. Weight is actually closer than it used to be, as the current MacBook Pro weighs about 1/5 of a pound less than previous 15" MacBook Pro models and PowerBook G4 models. The 12" PowerBook G4 weighs 4.6 lbs while the 15.4" MacBook Pro weighs 5.4 lbs. A significant difference, but manageable.In that all-important coach-class airline seat, the MacBook Pro's widescreen display cover sits about 3/4 of an inch higher than that of the non-wide 12" Powerbook. This means that while the front of the laptop (the palmrest area) protrudes closer to my stomach and gives me less room to move, the screen itself isn't that much higher and likewise presents very little added risk of damage from another passenger reclining.
The end result is that I will probably still use my 12" PowerBook for short-hop flights and shorter trips. For longer trips, the MacBook Pro isn't that much of an inconvenience to carry, but adds a wealth of added capabilities, power and that oh-so-nice screen.
This laptop has too many features to describe them all here, which would be pointless anyway as Apple's website has wonderful illustrations of all of them. Briefly, my favorites are the backlit keyboard, the two finger scrolling touchpad (I prefer eraserheads, but Apple's touchpads are at least acceptable) and the ability to boot into either OS X or Windows at will. This is in every way a premium machine that even has a luxury feel to it. Everything about it looks and feels expensive, which it should, since it IS expensive.
So is everything perfect roses? Hardly. Apple put a lot of emphasis on beautiful design and luxury feel, often at the expense of versatility and function. I'll compare it to its closer competitor, the Lenovo ThinkPad T61. Note that just as the MacBook Pro is set to be replaced next week, the T61 was just replaced last month by the new T400 and T500.
In 15.4" widescreen form, the T61 is a few millimeters larger than the MacBook Pro in every dimension, and weighs a few tenths of a pound more. In exchange for the slight extra girth, however, Lenovo gives you a swappable bay for the optical drive that can be replaced with a second hard drive or even an auxiliary battery. More important, the ThinkPad has a docking connector on the bottom that allows for a one-touch connection to full desktop peripherals. Finally, I believe that the ThinkPad's plastic and magnesium shell with its "rollcage" design is stronger than the aluminum case of the MacBook Pro. I once dropped my 12" PowerBook 3" and put a dent in the corner of the case that cost $300 to replace. On a ThinkPad, perhaps a scuff or scratch would show, but more likely there would simply be no damage at all.
Lenovo also has a 14" widescreen T61 that is a few millimeters smaller in each dimension (except thickness) than the MacBook Pro, and similarly a few tenths of a pound lighter, while offering all of the features of its bigger brother. Lenovo has what is arguably a slightly better keyboard and the eraserhead mouse than I love, while Apple's backlit keyboard is a better solution than Lenovo's LED ThinkLight that shines down from the lid to illuminate the keys.
Both Apple and Lenovo offer both glossy and matte screen options for their premium computers, though Lenovo goes on with more options, such as 3G wireless broadband cards, card readers and options for graphics card and battery size. Apple offers only high-end graphics in the MacBook Pro (two levels of built-in memory), while Lenovo offers everything from entry-level integrated graphics (low performance, longer battery life) to professional workstation graphics (high performance, shorter battery life). Finally, the ThinkPad is every bit as well made a machine as the MacBook Pro, generally competes on specifications. As the T61 is discontinued, it is far cheaper than the MacBook Pro, averaging about $500 less for a comparable configuration, though with only half the graphics memory. The new model, the T500, is approximately $200 less than the MacBook Pro, with a slightly higher specification (same processor on a faster bus, larger HD and equal graphics). Simply put, the ThinkPads are cheaper, significantly so for the older model.
So there it is, my take on Apple's outgoing MacBook Pro. As Apple still sells them at full price, they are not a particularly good bargain, though Apple does price-match for 14 days, so I should get a nice $200 or $300 refund on Tuesday when the new models come out and the old ones move to clearance. Normally I would have waited until the new release to buy the older model and not take chances on refund hassles, but when I called the four local Apple stores in my neighborhood, I only found one with a matte-screen entry-model MacBook Pro in stock. Other stores had plenty of glossy screen models, but I had a very strong preference.
In conclusion, Apple's old MacBook is about the slickest, most luxurious and most capable laptop available today, tomorrow or even Monday, but come Tuesday, it will be old news. Old news, in a business context, means a known quantity, and if stability and reliability are your absolute highest priorities in a laptop, then I cannot recommend the old model MacBook Pro enough. If, however, you have another computer or otherwise are more risk-tolerant when it comes to your laptop, Apple's upcoming model promises to be as big a design breakthrough as the original 15" Titanium PowerBook was back in 2001.
That model took an industry of standard aspect ration laptops that averaged 2" thick and offered such new touches as widescreen display, metal case and a slim design under an inch thick. That Titanium PowerBook still looks modern today so much that my MacBook Pro is clearly an evolution of that design. The new ones promise to follow the MacBook Air's design trends to offer a whole new look to high-end portables. I can't wait to see what Apple brings to the world of portables next week, as I will get to enjoy all of it come 2010 or 2011, when I buy the "Rev C" model. *** Update 10/17/08 - New Model Introduced ***Well, Apple's new MacBook and MacBook Pro have been out for a few days and I've had a chance to play with each of them, a MacBook at the Apple Store and a MacBook Pro that a friend received last night. I've reviewed both of those machine already (late yesterday) and now am taking the time to return to my own, 2-week-old MacBook Pro to look at the pros and cons of the old design with the new one now on dealer shelves.
First off, I had predicted that Apple would go "all glossy" on the new models, and sure enough, there isn't a matte screen to be found on any of them. This alone reinforces my delight at buying the older MacBook Pro. In addition, where the older MacBook Pro has both FireWire 400 and FireWire 800 ports, the new one makes do with a single FireWire 800 port. Finally, where the old MacBook Pro used a full-sized dual-link DVI port for video-out, the new one uses a new mini Display Port, which is actually a much better connected that also carries audio and is easily adaptable to both dual-link DVi and VGA with a cheap cable.
Other performance and feature specifications remain about the same on the new models. The screen resolution is the same, you get the same USB and audio ports and the same Mag Safe adapter, As was easily predicted by just about everyone, the new MacBook Pro incorporates the MacBook Air style keyboard and magnetic display latch, and also predicted, has an expanse of black glass covering the entire display much like the aluminum iMac does. Where the new blows away the old is the case. It is a hair thinner, a tad heavier (surprisingly) and A WHOLE LOT sturdier. I would love to have this case, it is a work of art that makes everything else on the market look and feel like cheap junk, including the old MacBook Pro.
Another massive improvement with the new case design is that the screen hinge opens to a wider angle, which is sometimes a problem with the old MacBook Pro (and even aluminum PowerBooks) used in unconventional positions, such as lying down on a couch. Of course, there is always the Rev A factor, as I eluded to in the original review. That Apple already posted an update to the new models in software update isn't surprising, but I would expect other minor issues to crop up as these hit the field in larger numbers. That said, no doubt the next update to the Leopard OS will smooth things over, eliminating the need for a unique OS build that often leads to problems. 10.5.6 should put the new models on a level playing field. So looking back a week, I do not at all regret buying the older MacBook Pro. The Apple Store even honored the price reduction on the old models and gave me a $400 refund, dropping the price of my MacBook Pro to the same as the high-end 13" aluminum MacBook.
Of course, if you want a matte screen, time is running out. Best rush and get your clearance-price MacBook Pro while matte screen models are still in stock.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 1600 Operating System: Windows and Macintosh Processor: Other Processor speed: over 1000 Screen Size: Greater than 15 inches RAM: More than 256 Internal Storage: CD-RW and DVD Hard Drive (GB): Over 50
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