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- Jonwils, on 06/16/2009, -1/+37What a horribly designed website
- jperdomo, on 06/16/2009, -1/+31No matter how they spin this it's all about cutting cost.
- Wootstapler, on 06/16/2009, -0/+25The battery lasts for five years, but your MBP won't last that long because you'll be buying the new one next year.
- Balanced, on 06/16/2009, -2/+20Well, yes, if you win one in a contest that also includes 1 $1,300 dollar prize.
- bloodhound01, on 06/16/2009, -3/+20LOL $1000 DOLLARS TO ADD 4GB of RAM! LOL
- thundercloud39, on 06/16/2009, -0/+16"The slot works exactly as you'd expect ... Apple recommends inserting it with a smooth sliding motion."
That's what she said. - fahrvergnuugen, on 06/16/2009, -4/+19I thought the most obvious change was the awesome 7hr battery...
- digiguy, on 06/16/2009, -14/+27Mac haters. Don't ***** buy one
- mattsx, on 06/16/2009, -8/+19I don't see the point of the SD card slot. There are plenty of multi-card readers that fit the ExpressCard slot... why change it?
- belorion, on 06/16/2009, -0/+11What I am most curious about is how loud the MBP is with the discrete graphics card compared to the model without.
- inactive, on 06/16/2009, -2/+11Gotta sell that AppleCare somehow!
- haroonie, on 06/16/2009, -3/+12aren't the new ones crippled with only 1.5 SATA enabled for hdd drives that aren't SSD? i read that the mbp w/ ssd drives have 3.0 SATA enabled. here it is: http://www.macrumors.com/2009/06/14/13-and-15-macb ...
- heyimfromreddit, on 06/16/2009, -4/+12You can get an equally powerful laptop for -1300? Do they pay you to take it?
Edit: Ah yeah, Microsoft laptop hunter ads. My bad! - cloviejr, on 06/16/2009, -0/+8http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/6512/picture11d.p ...
- dagamer34, on 06/16/2009, -0/+8ExpressCards will die out when USB 3.0 comes around. 4.8Gbps in a well-known form factor will kill off the need for any other connectors in the near future. It's the main reason why, as tempting as the current Mac lineup is now, I refuse to buy any computer until it supports USB 3.0.
- Wayfarer12, on 06/16/2009, -0/+7Get off the stage. You look silly.
- deadbaby, on 06/16/2009, -1/+8It doesn't really cut costs much. ExpressCard is simply PCI-E + USB so there's no extra hardware involved besides the physical slot which probably costs more or less the same as the SD slot. I think it was purely based on the fact there really isn't much ExpressCard hardware -- especially on the Mac paltform. More USB ports would have been a better choice IMO.
- waxdart, on 06/16/2009, -1/+8Golly you're right! I could take the engine out of an Audi, put it in a Hyundai and it would be exactly the same car! /facepalm
- studiopenguin, on 06/16/2009, -4/+10Press down with two fingers anywhere on the surface. Done.
- MacParrot, on 06/16/2009, -0/+5Kinda besides the point (maybe Snow Leopard deals with it in some way better). Top poster claimed he could get a better one for $3000 less and I was trying to give him a head start.
- krisrm, on 06/16/2009, -1/+6yeah, that was only a *slight* exaggeration on the part of the top poster :p . /s
Regardless, here's a comparison of a Dell Studio 15" and the 2.66 15" MBP (didn't look for the 3GHz model)
MBP:
$1999 buys you:
2.66GHz C2D (T9550, I think... they don't actually post the model)
4GB DDR3
15.4 LED display @ 1440x900
256MB 9600M GT
320 GB HDD @ 5400 RPM
Superdrive (DVDRW)
Dell:
$1224 buys you:
2.66GHz C2D T9550
4GB DDR2 (I know, not DDR3 :/ )
15.6 LED display @1440x900
512 MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD4570 (not quite as good as the 9600, according to Notebook Check, but with more onboard memory)
320GB HD @ 5400 RPM
DVD RW Optical drive
That's $775 saved, or to put it into perspective, the Dell costs 61% of what the Macbook does, yet still offers nearly equivalent features. There are probably better deals out there, too, this was just a quick look around. I'm curious, though: how does one justify such a purchase? - BossKey, on 06/16/2009, -3/+8Here is the logic.
Conventional removable batteries: 3 hrs charge new, then after 2-3 years the capacity is down to 1hr or less so you spend $120 (depending on where you buy it) on a new battery.
Nonremovable battery: 6-8 hrs charge new, then after 2-3 years the capacity is down to 2-3 hours...hey, that's like a new conventional battery, so no need to replace it. You saved money because you won't need to buy a new battery before you chuck the machine after 4-5 years.
I'm not saying this makes it right, because clearly it doesn't allow easy replacement or runtime extension through additional batteries. HOWEVER, for the 95% of users who never buy a second battery, this could potentially save them the cost of having to replace the battery after a couple of years. And for the environmental concerned, it cuts the number of batteries produced significantly. - MacParrot, on 06/16/2009, -2/+6OK, I bumped the MBP to a 3.06GHz C2D AND put in the lame expensive 8GB DDR3 RAM upgrade. That put it $3599. Oh heck, let's throw in $350 for Apple Care. Show me a laptop at these specs for $950
- solid12345, on 06/16/2009, -0/+4There is a reason I see more mac laptops everyday on craigs list then others.
- AdmiralAcbar, on 06/16/2009, -0/+4What about how hot it is? Believe me, those ***** will make your lap feel as though it's on fire.
- krisrm, on 06/16/2009, -0/+4Those are true things; the 9 cell battery upgrade on the Dell is $50 and it's likely massive. To be honest, battery life of only a few hours doesn't bug me a lot; I rarely travel with my laptop (when I do, I'm usually driving, or I bring my adapter and use it in the car, if it's a long trip). But, yeah, it's a user preference; probably as many people will enjoy the longer life as will be turned off by the non-user-replacable part. I don't quite understand Apple's inclusion of the 9400M; is there no power setting for the 9600 to make it a little less demanding? It just seems like extra weight to me, and the reboot is not exactly convenient :/ .
It's the OSX thing that bugs me most - I'll have people tell me that Vista sucks because it's more expensive. Since they've already pretended that personal preference doesn't matter for me (I'm apparently not allowed to prefer the taskbar or an actual 64 bit operating system or the ability to play recent games on my computer), I assume that it doesn't really matter for them: by strictly specs, Macs cost anywhere from $500 to several thousand dollars (if you start looking at desktops, iMacs, the Mac Pro, and the like) more than the same parts in a PC. Since you have to buy a Mac to get Mac OSX, your operating system is effectively $500 to several thousand dollars more expensive. If people prefer OSX, whatever, but people should know that if they're on a bit of budget and looking for a computer that "just works," Apple's product line doesn't really have much to offer. - wwwluckyro, on 06/16/2009, -0/+4True. A reason might be to recover wasted space for the bigger battery. For me, I prefer the SD Card slot over the ExpressCard since it would be great to download the HD content from my camcorder using higher speeds.
The SD Card has a way higher chance of being used by the casual user. Th ExpressCard is way better for one willing to invest in it. A multi-card reader, more USB ports, 3G internet. Way more possibilities. - krisrm, on 06/16/2009, -0/+4@Spuy767: Read my post in the above thread. They are cheaper. Also, why are you talking about netbooks? Apple doesn't even make a netbook... oh, and as for "build quality," the unibody design means that if something like the trackpad were to fail (it happens), they've got to replace the entire body.
- AraleNorimaki, on 06/16/2009, -2/+6Okay, sir, now how do you intend to pay? Cash, check, or deed to your house?
- AdmiralAcbar, on 06/16/2009, -2/+6Um, why would you use DDR3 with a C2D? You can't even take advantage of triple-channel...
- BedPost, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3Okay.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Sub ...
Wow, look at that, Apple's only charging double the price of the "Memory for Apple" ram. Better yet, there's some Apple compatible OCZ ram, right below it, for $100.
Yeah, you're right, $1000 is totally fair. - MacParrot, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3Also remember that Apple claims 1000 recharges before any serious degredation. Time will tell how accurate that spec is, but all in all I think I'd rather have a removable battery
- heyimfromreddit, on 06/16/2009, -1/+4The battery in the new MBPs lasts much longer. You can also replace it yourself pretty easily AFAIK. (Just not as easily as a normal battery)
- Spuy767, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3It's not to cut prices, it's to extend battery life. The HDD equipped books come with SATA 1.5 which uses less power. The SSD equipped books come with SATA 3.0 which uses more power, but this is offset by the decreased power usage of the drive. They physical controller is exactly the same. Eventually, Apple will release a firmware fix for all the whiners out there who will proceed to install it, see no appreciable difference in performance, and lose a bit of battery life.
- noahpurdy, on 06/16/2009, -1/+4This is true. So if you are buying with the intent of using a SSD you'll regrettably want to pick up one already with a slow Samsung SSD from Apple and upgrade it yourself.
It's definitely a way to cut prices, but I wouldn't call them crippled: Those with hard drives that came from Apple won't notice any kind of performance dip compared to the previous revision of Unibodies but the second they upgrade to a high-speed SSD they'll notice. I think anyone planning on going SSD is already well aware of the issue anyways. - Legoman513, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3The battery life is certainly impressive. Hopefully similar technology to show up in other manufacturers before too long. Problem will always be the same, I'd buy a mac if it wasn't so damn expensive. I'll enjoy getting an Asus with equivalent hardware for 700+$ cheaper.
- pathouston22, on 06/16/2009, -11/+14Holy crap. $1,999....errr $1,699 for a 15" laptop?
- inkubusfan, on 06/16/2009, -2/+5simple option to click on the mouse preferences. the mouse knows when you're trying to right click. old news. buried.
- fahrvergnuugen, on 06/17/2009, -0/+3Its 10 screws. Its not "non removeable" unless you don't own a screw driver.
- JoshPerson, on 06/16/2009, -3/+6I really want to get a new one of these as my Dell laptop is out of it's goddamn mind. Now I just need the money for my first Mac purchase ever.
- Braxo, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3Doesn't apple just charge 120 to put a new battery in? That is like buying a second battery.
- Acqua206, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3OOOH! YOU GOT SERVED!!! *Z shaped finger snap while moving my head side to side
- SuperJimmyJimbo, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3My current MBP is gonna have to last me a LOOOONG time. I edit on SATA drives via express card adaptor.
- MacParrot, on 06/16/2009, -1/+4Sounds like a nice laptop. There are a few features that the MBP has that the Dell doesn't. Whether those are things that matter to you are purely subjective.
Longer battery life (somewhat spoiled by it being non-removable)
Your choice of running with the 9600M GT or the 9400M for bettery battery life (again somewhat spoiled by having to reboot to use one or the other)
And of course OS X.
Not saying one is better than the other. It really still depends on which OS you like and what you use a laptop for. - BossKey, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3I read an article that said it's set that way to help extend battery life. If and when you load an SSD that can go faster, just change the setting and accept the drop in battery life. Personally, I might leave it as it is; I don't think I'm going to do a whole lot with my laptop that requires 3.0 SATA.
- MacParrot, on 06/16/2009, -0/+3As far as the 9400/9600 goes, they probably COULD tone it down for the same battery life, but then you would have people (especially on digg) claim that Apple "crippled" it for some spec. Sometimes you can't win for losing.
Vista being more expensive isn't really true since it was 5+ years between the release of XP and Vista. Apple released a number of OS X cats in that same time frame. Other than Snow Leopard (which is more about performance tweaks like full 64-bit and stripping out all the PPC code from Leopard), Apple certainly added some flash (of dubious use), but it was a $129 hit each time.
The part about personal preference is more important than Win/Mac fanboys would EVER care to admit. I happen to prefer the Taskbar over the Dock (though Apple is adding some tricks to it in this go round so that might change) and I think having the widgets in a sidebar is more efficient than having to go to another environment (Dashboard), but it still comes down to what the user prefers. As far as software goes, I could drone on about VMWare or BootCamp, but you've heard all this before and it still doesn't mean anything if most of what you want to do is on another platform.
Apple Computers ARE more expensive than similar Windows machines. I have no problem admitting that but remember that none of the major computer makers are supporting an OS. That doesn't come cheap.
Thanks for the great discourse. You're a step above the usual people I have these discussions with and I appreciate your candor and being able to talk about it without nonsense that Digg typically provides. - joaob, on 06/16/2009, -2/+5Or just click down on the right side of the trackpad on the current gen MBP's. Done.
- usernameblank, on 06/16/2009, -1/+3This article states that they dropped the price on the entry level MBP but you have to consider the lack of the 9600M GT graphics. Thats worth 300 bucks to me.
- BedPost, on 06/16/2009, -1/+3What the *****, "your" marketshare? You mean apple's? Damn dude, its not a popularity contest, we're talking about tools here. Do you really care if your neighbor buys Craftsmen while you buy Black & Decker?
- MacParrot, on 06/16/2009, -0/+2@SurrealDream,
Probably not yet. A good source for them to eventually show up would be Other World Computing
http://www.macsales.com -
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