Join the community and start enjoying the benefits:
* Total cost includes estimated tax and shipping in the continental US. Prices and availability are subject to change by merchant without notice. Sales taxes and shipping costs are only estimates. Please check with merchant for details.
07-22-08
Duration of ownership: 6 Months
Strengths: Great Apple Design, Fast, Loaded Hardware / Software, Great out-of-the-box functionality
Weaknesses:Base Warranty
Overall Evaluation: This is our 3rd Mac Notebook, and by far the most refined. This machine in conjunction with Leopard runs and functions amazing. There were some graphic card glitches that were recently cured with software / firmware updates. Like my other 2 PowerBooks, we must use a Shaggymac screen protector to prevent keyboard marks. http://www.shaggymac.com Also, Magsafe has proved to the next step in power plugs and is a welcome improvement. This unit was purchased direct from Apple as a refurbished model. $1649 - same 1 year Applecare, and ZERO dead pixels. Saved $850 over a "NEW" unit.
05-05-08
Duration of ownership: 2 Days
Strengths: Stylish looks, lightweight, backlit keyboard, battery life
Weaknesses:Price?
Overall Evaluation: What's there to say about the Macbook Pro that hasn't been said already? It's stylish, lightweight, runs the Mac programs incredibly fast. I haven't had occasion to use the Pro "features" (ie. the ability to run Windows programs), but I bought the Pro just in case. That and the price had dropped enough to make it almost equivalent to a comparable IBM.Things that stand out:1. In an odd touch, the screen of the 200 GB Pro is 15", not 15.4" like the 160 GB Pro. Not that you'd be able to tell any difference. What's weirder, the 15" screen looks bigger than a 17" screen on a Dell or IBM laptop. I know it's not, but it just looks larger. Perhaps it's the thin frame that accentuates the screen, which is pretty eye-popping in its own right. Clear graphics. No wonder it's the choice for graphic designers and publishers.2. The backlit keyboard is awesome. It will brighten or darken as the light in the room adjusts, and it adjusts quickly. The blue/white color is wild too.3. Battery life is magnificent. I've gotten 5 hours easily on every charge.4. Others have commented the Macbook Pro gets hot. I haven't experienced this at all. My Pro has run for hours straight and is hardly warm at all. (My wife's IBM laptop runs very hot, and she needs a fan-cooled tray wherever she brings her laptop to prevent getting "serious" burns.)5. It's a minor complaint, but as another reviewer mentioned it would've been nice to have more than two USB ports. It's moot really as a USB hub is inexpensive, but one or two more (which, yes, would have come at the expense of the design, so probably not an option) ports would be appreciated.6. Apple, where's the remote? My dad's less expensive Macbook came with a remote. Small quibble, to be sure, but a nice touch for watching movies.I cannot recommend the Macbook Pro more heartily. It's a purchase you will not regret.
05-01-08
Duration of ownership: 2 Months
Strengths: It's a Mac! It's a Mac that can run Windows faster than most Windows laptops (if you really need to, but why?). Great looks. Backlit keyboard. The best trackpad bar none.
Weaknesses:Can get a little warm on your lap, but not as much as Powerbooks. Can not run older OS9 software like older Powerbooks, but that is a very acceptable tradeoff.
Overall Evaluation: This is my second Apple laptop, an upgrade from my 3-year old Powerbook. I am forced to use a Dell at the office, but that's pretty much only an email machine. To do real work, I turn to the Mac, as I have done for 15 years. Lightweight, good screen size, can run Windows natively using Boot Camp, but I prefer to use it with VMWare Fusion, which is faster than Parallels. Excellent utility to transfer everything from old Macs (only a few apps needed to be reinstalled). The magnetic power connector is a great step-up from the problematic older plug-in unit on Powerbooks. Full size Firewire 400 and 800 ports are a plus (not those silly mini-plugs found on many Windows machines, if you're lucky to get Firewire at all), but a way to plug in an external SATA drive would be nice. It already survived one fall onto the floor from 3 feet up, so obviously the hard drive protection system works well. Very nice non-glossy screen, so annoying reflections are not a concern. Arguably a better buy than cheaper Windows laptops, as you can start using it out of the box for business and multimedia (and there's never any bloatware on a new Mac).
04-16-08
Duration of ownership:
Strengths: Design, LED backlight, multi-touch pad, penryn processor, built-in isight camera, magsafe power adapter, backlit keyboard, ambient light sensor, etc.
Weaknesses:less cache than earlier version, easy ram access
Overall Evaluation: This is my second Apple purchase. I've upgraded to the new Penryn MacBook Pro from a TiBook, so I may be more than a little star struck. The biggest surprise for me was the LED backlight; its brightness makes me question if my TiBook or my first laptop (a Dell) even had a backlight. The Intel Penryn processor is powerful and runs cooler than the G4 I had (lap computing could become uncomfortable very quickly). The processor also makes possible booting into a windows OS which makes it a computer with greater versatility than its wintel rivals. I'm still learning the gestures, but the multi-touch pad makes for a great addition. The utility and safety of the magsafe adapter gives me solace whenever I need to visit relatives or friends who have active children that run through the house. As far as the weaknesses (which are only my opinions), I understand the concept of "trying to do more with less" but I feel that lowering the cache to 3MB wouldn't have been a choice that I would have made. That being said, if the cache wasn't listed in the specs, I wouldn't have noticed. The ram access, I feel, is too accessible. I recently changed out the default 2GB (2x1GB) memory for 4GB (2x2GB) and I won't be accessing the ram housing again, so I question the need for the easy access. It's a silly concern, I know; but I'd feel the same if someone could just knock on the hood of my car to have access to the engine. One of the earlier reviewers listed "plastic case" as a weakness for this item; as far as I can tell, the casing is mostly aluminum. Price was also listed as a weakness by some reviewers; I have to disagree. I consider myself to be a value concerned consumer who doesn't have a lot of money to throw around. Considering the price of wintel laptops with comparable hardware, the software that comes with the MacBook Pro, and the lack of headaches when I had my TiBook (compared to my colleagues who had wintel laptops during that time); I have to say the price I've paid was well worth it.
04-12-08
Duration of ownership: 2 Months
Strengths: Stylish.Fast.Easy On The Go.
Weaknesses:Only 2 USB Ports
Overall Evaluation: This is without doubt the best laptop I have ever used. It has great specs. At 5.4 pounds its easy to carry with you. The back lit keyboard and track pad gestures are a nice touch. It has a great 15.4 inch wide screen display which is easy on the eyes, and the battery life is excellent at almost 6 hours. You'll never have to upgrade this puppy for a good while.
Today's Most Popular Computer Hardware
