I’ve had my own unibody Macbook Pro for about two months now, and it’s time to sit down and look at it objectively, now that the hormones have subsided a bit. Here are some thoughts…

I found that in terms of actual hardware capability, this new Macbook Pro isn’t much different from the old one, with the exception of the 9600M GT for gaming. Since I have three consoles to play, the only game I tried was Microsoft’s Flight Simulator X. Being an avid fan of flight sims, I knew that FSX is extremely CPU bound and prefers Nvidia cards to ATi, sorry AMD one is. From Tom’s Hardware benchmarks, I also knew that the 9600 GT (desktop version) was one of the better performing graphics cards (for FSX), so you could say it piqued my curiosity. As it turned out, FSX ran like a fat kid on physics. class edition due to the relatively slow CPU, so I guess no gaming will happen to me on this laptop. That doesn’t mean the CPU is slow, that’s just the case for FSX (you may have trouble displaying 30fps on an overclocked Core i7). A 2.4GHz Penryn is pretty decent for a laptop.

I also weighed the value of this Macbook Pro. I’ve defended my Apple computers from naysayers by pointing out the build quality, tactile feel, and virtues of the OS X operating system, but after the heartbreak that was FSX, I was questioning my decision to drop two grand on this laptop. After all, you could have gotten an awesome Windows laptop that had a faster CPU, more RAM, a Blu-Ray drive, more hard drive space, better graphics, and a better display for the same money or less. After some thought, I realized that as a writer, I needed a reliable computer, one that was not affected by viruses and other problems. Having struggled in college with a constantly vulnerable PC, I’ve become quite complacent now that I’m using Mac. I can freely download from Limewire, for example, knowing full well that most of the files are viruses. All they do is not open so I can delete them and move on. I never need to format and reinstall, so my files are always safe; no more lost family photos. This convenience comes at a cost, which is the premium associated with Apple computers.

I’ve dabbled quite a bit with running OS X on PC, and while that was a good workaround and introduction to OS X, it’s not the way I’d choose to run my computer, wondering if the next update will break my install. All things considered, I’ve come to terms with paying the premium for the OS X operating system… it’s worth it. You just can’t believe how much of a relief it is to be able to use your computer without having to worry about malware, viruses, broken installations, and other issues.

The complaints I have are not that great in number, but they are annoyances nonetheless. Battery capacity was reduced… as an Indian associate of mine says, “senses don’t work”. With the LED screen, low-power graphics card, and 45nm CPU, instead of getting the same battery life as the previous model, this one could have had 20% more battery life. There are laptops that last over 6 hours on a single charge, but none of Apple’s laptops come close. The hinge, while delightfully smooth in operation, is not strong enough. I’ve seen complaints on Apple forums where they think this is blasphemous and that Apple should compensate their losses. While the issue isn’t that big of a deal (they think you should be able to tilt the laptop 90 degrees so the keyboard is like a wall and not have the screen tilt), it certainly deserves attention. Heat, that perennial problem plaguing Apple laptops, hasn’t loosened its grip one bit, and the MBP gets pretty hot, pretty quick. If only the underdeveloped world could afford Macbooks, birth rates could be controlled (it’s a conspiracy, subject of The X-Files). The DVD drive eject button is software based, not hardware. It wouldn’t have killed anyone at Apple (I think) to have it wired as well. It would make using Windows less of a hassle (since having software that does something as simple as ejecting a DVD can have unpredictable results in Bill’s world), and while we’re on the subject, using the trackpad in Windows needs help. It doesn’t register all the fancy new moves all the time, which, to say the least, frustrates it very, very much. Even on OS X, touchpad detection needs a little help. An update was released a couple of days ago, but I don’t notice anything different. I was also expecting a bit of a boost with DDR3, but in actual use and benchmarks, there’s no difference. While we’re on the subject, a $2000 laptop should definitely have 4GB of RAM, especially with an Apple laptop where people are sure to be running Parallels, VMware, or any of the other pro apps Macbook Pro users love. I’ll be upgrading to 4GB very soon, Parallels slow speeds have me down.

I haven’t gotten over the looks of this gorgeous laptop, even if I’m past the gaga stage at first. I’m a sucker for anything well-built, and I notice little differences in things, like the solidity of the Japanese-made PSP versus the relatively cheap feel of the Chinese-made one. One of the best things about the new MBP is how solid it is. This unibody thing that Apple touts is more than a gimmick or just a selling point, it actually makes a world of difference in a product that is portable. Unlike a desktop where your interaction is limited to mouse and keyboard, you’ll immediately notice the build quality of a laptop that opens, closes, and adjusts frequently. And since the keyboard and trackpad are built into the computer, you’ll notice if it creaks or feels cheap, but luckily this laptop doesn’t do any of that. Older Macbook Pros had a small design flaw in that over time the area to the right of the trackpad, where you would normally place your right palm, would deform under the weight of your hand and shift the form of the DVD. unit opening. In some cases, it would not be possible to insert and extract DVDs after this happened. It seems that Apple has learned from this and I can’t find any such issues. In fact, I was very impressed with the quality of the machining… all the cuts and openings look like jewels and the overall finish looks speckled for lack of a better term. Aluminum is a wonderful material to work with, it’s light, attractive, strong (when anodized), and doesn’t wear like plastic. The touchpad is now glass, but you wouldn’t know that if someone didn’t tell you, and even then, you might not believe them. I was skeptical at first, but I appreciate the fact that it’s not plastic anymore and I’ll tell you why. The trackpad on any Macbook, whether it’s black, white, or aluminum, will wear out in a few months. What happens is that the oil of your skin together with the grooves that your fingerprints form sand the area that you normally use. At first you can only see it from one angle, but as time goes on it becomes more and more noticeable. I haven’t noticed anything of the sort with this new glass touchpad, so that alone will add to the longevity, at least cosmetically. Finally, the writer’s instrument, the keyboard. It’s the best keyboard I’ve seen on a laptop, along with the Macbook Air. I didn’t believe in laptop keyboards until I tried these! They have a short positive travel and allow me to deliver my fastest write speeds. Months of typing hard and fast haven’t changed them at all (not on the Macbook Pro, not on my aluminum keyboard for the iMac). These are a huge improvement over the previous Cadbury Dairy Milk looking soft keys on the latest Macbook Pro. Did I mention I love the backlight? I like it so much that I can’t imagine buying a laptop without this feature.

I’m glad to see that the laptop is working fine and, true to my experience with OS X, it hasn’t given me any problems so far. I can use the laptop for whatever I want with no worries, that’s why I bought it in the first place. I think Macbooks and Macbook Pros are great for anyone who values ​​reliability over gaming, the one area where Windows laptops have an advantage. Only thing is, you’d have to spend a little extra money to get them, but at least you know they’ll work fine with OS X for a few years, since even older Intel Macs can run the latest version. from OS X fine. And if you’re looking for an Apple laptop, you can save yourself about $100 and wait until a week after Snow Leopard releases. That way you will get a coupon to get it for free or you will get it at the checkout. I welcome your thoughts!