New 13" Apple MacBooks are out!

[remagavon]

Originally posted by: jdogg707

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
I can deal with the integrated graphics, but 5.2lbs! No thanks.

I am praying this is sarcasm.

5.2 lbs is pretty heavy for a notebook of this isze.

 

[Eug]

Apparently, the MacBook hard drive is user upgradable.

Originally posted by: Corporate Thug

Originally posted by: Eug
Heh. The BlacBook is cheaper in Canada than in the US (by a couple of bux).

i wonder why that is?

It's CAD$1649, which at an exchange rate of C$1 = 90¢ US, that works out to being 1% cheaper than the US price. Actually, the price difference is a bit more than a "a couple of bux". It's closer to US$15 difference. In the past Apple would have just jacked up the C$ price to $1699 or something, but this time they chose not to. I guess they figured they could give up a bit on that BlacBook, since you're just paying for the paint anyways.

 

[Corporate Thug]

wow, i just saw this:

Another potential concern is the notebook's keyboard. Apple redesigned the MacBook's keyboard to sit flush against the bed of the computer for a sleeker, lower profile. Though the new keyboard offers a firmer touch, it's built-in as part of the computer's enclosure. Users who damage a key or two could find themselves having to replace the notebook's entire bottom casing and trackpad -- a potentially hefty expense.

D'OH

 

[Darien]

I was holding out on a notebook purchase for the arrival of a 13" widescreen MacBook. But this integrated graphics deal just blows. Time to look in on wintel notebooks now :\

 

[Eug]

Hmmm... Despite the crappy GPU, this new MacBook can run Aperture, sorta.

Yes, Aperture does run on the new MacBooks, but it is NOT officially supported, due to limitations with the graphics card. You're not disallowed from using it (no hacks needed) but you'll essentially be using it at your own risk. Your mileage will vary with the MacBook, depending on your workflow.

Aperture is, of course, fully supported on all MacBook PRO models.

Joe Schorr
Sr. Product Manager, Aperture
Apple

 

[BG4533]

I have been interested in what Apple would release, but I can't say I am impressed. This machine is inline with the old iBooks. It is a bit heavy and I don't like the plastic. Will Apple release a 13.3" MacBook Pro?

I personally think the market needs more high end 13.3" notebooks. I think it is the perfect size. It would be nice if they would up the resolution a bit more though.

I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for so I ended up with a 14.1" Thinkpad T60. So far it is treating me great.

 

[Eug]

Originally posted by: BG4533
I have been interested in what Apple would release, but I can't say I am impressed. This machine is inline with the old iBooks. It is a bit heavy and I don't like the plastic. Will Apple release a 13.3" MacBook Pro?

I highly doubt it. They hinted yesterday that this is it, saying something to the effect that they've made the MacBooks much closer to the Pros than the iBooks were compared to the PowerBooks. Furthermore the Apple says the MacBook family is now complete.

Actually, in a way they're right about the machine being closer to the Pro machines. While the integrated Intel GPU is suck, I was completely shocked that the LOW end model has a Core Duo 1.83. I was totally expecting a Core Solo 1.66, in a $999 model.

BTW, for the Windows Boot Camp users... This MacBook supports "right" clicking. If you put two fingers on the scroll pad and click the button, it's the same as a right-click.

Mine's shipping next week supposedly. I got an 80 GB model. I think I'll use 15 GB for Windows, and leave the other 60 GB for Mac OS X. (80 x 10E9 bytes ~ 75 GB)

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: jdogg707

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
I can deal with the integrated graphics, but 5.2lbs! No thanks.

I am praying this is sarcasm.

No, it's too heavy for my tastes. 4lbs would have been acceptable.

 

[Rubycon]

What is all the fuss about these dual core lappies? You still have the same slow hard drives. What we need is 10k SAS drives in notebooks. NOW!

 

[Eug]

A lot of my apps (video encoding) are not disk speed limited.

Yeah, I want faster hard drives, but I don't want increased noise and power usage. Fortunately, the hard drive is on the new MacBooks are user accessible. It's underneath the battery.

 

[batmanuel]

Originally posted by: MS Dawn
What is all the fuss about these dual core lappies? You still have the same slow hard drives. What we need is 10k SAS drives in notebooks. NOW!

Well, we do want more than ten minutes of power on battery. The 10k drives would probably put out enough heat to set your typical laptop case on fire, too.

What I want to see next year is a MacBook (Pro) with the new Intel "Robson" hybrid hard drive tech. I'm sure Intel is pushing hard for it, and since they seem to have gotten Apple to go whole hog for all their other bleeding edge tech (EFI, ExpressCard, TCM) thus far, I'm prety sure I'll get my wish. Combined with the new Merom core that can shut down one core on the fly to save power, the next gen Macbooks should be better in terms of battery life.

 

[Eug]

Uh oh...

The black MacBooks are flakey:

But, as I stood in admiration, wondering how much I could sell my Pro for, a customer decided to try scratching the lid with his fingernail. Much to my dismay and horror, as well as to the Apple Reps., pieces of a plastic coating on the lid began to flake off? What?s going on here? (EDIT: not a crazy ninja-claw scratch. More like ?I?m trying to remove this fingerprint from my computer and accidentally made contact with my fingernail? kind of scratch). The coating reminded me of the kind of protective plastic cover that watches come with as protection from scratching, except? I don?t think this one is supposed to come off. The sales representatives just smoothed off and pretended like nothing happened.

 

[mshan]

Amazon.com is offering a $100 rebate:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EP...UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance&n=541966

 

[remagavon]

Originally posted by: Eug
Uh oh...

The black MacBooks are flakey:

But, as I stood in admiration, wondering how much I could sell my Pro for, a customer decided to try scratching the lid with his fingernail. Much to my dismay and horror, as well as to the Apple Reps., pieces of a plastic coating on the lid began to flake off? What?s going on here? (EDIT: not a crazy ninja-claw scratch. More like ?I?m trying to remove this fingerprint from my computer and accidentally made contact with my fingernail? kind of scratch). The coating reminded me of the kind of protective plastic cover that watches come with as protection from scratching, except? I don?t think this one is supposed to come off. The sales representatives just smoothed off and pretended like nothing happened.

You'd think they would test things like this... man.

That $1099 model looks mighty tempting... I just wish it had more hdd space for a dual boot (I need to run Dreamweaver/Photoshop in XP).

 

[Eug]

Originally posted by: remagavon
That $1099 model looks mighty tempting... I just wish it had more hdd space for a dual boot (I need to run Dreamweaver/Photoshop in XP).

Another $50 gets you 80 GB.

Or you could swap your own drive in. Apparently, the hard drive is user accessible.

 

[remagavon]

Originally posted by: Eug

Originally posted by: remagavon
That $1099 model looks mighty tempting... I just wish it had more hdd space for a dual boot (I need to run Dreamweaver/Photoshop in XP).

Another $50 gets you 80 GB.

Or you could swap your own drive in. Apparently, the hard drive is user accessible.

Yeah I saw that... it comes to $95 more if I buy it from apple without an upgrade, due to tax. So it's about $150 with the upgrade (which I would purchase if buying from Apple), not counting any rebates that I could receive purchasing elsewhere. Since it is easily user upgradable I wouldn't mind pulling out the old hard drive and installing my own...

I'm wary about the keyboard (being an English major that's a big deal), but I'll probably head to an Apple store to check one out in person. It does look interesting. Post impressions when you get yours!

 

[bjc112]

I think I am going to get one.. Looks awesome.

 

[Eug]

Originally posted by: remagavon

Originally posted by: Eug

Originally posted by: remagavon
That $1099 model looks mighty tempting... I just wish it had more hdd space for a dual boot (I need to run Dreamweaver/Photoshop in XP).

Another $50 gets you 80 GB.

Or you could swap your own drive in. Apparently, the hard drive is user accessible.

Yeah I saw that... it comes to $95 more if I buy it from apple without an upgrade, due to tax. So it's about $150 with the upgrade (which I would purchase if buying from Apple), not counting any rebates that I could receive purchasing elsewhere. Since it is easily user upgradable I wouldn't mind pulling out the old hard drive and installing my own...

I'm wary about the keyboard (being an English major that's a big deal), but I'll probably head to an Apple store to check one out in person. It does look interesting. Post impressions when you get yours!

Video of how to remove memory and hard drive.

 

[halfadder]

If you're Johnny Student or Joe Sixpack and spend 50% of your computer time surfing the web, writing email, and doing word processing tasks... and 50% of your time doing iLife-type apps (video editing with iMovie or Avid Xpress, photos with iPhoto, music with GarageBand and iTunes, burning DVD videos with iDVD, etc) then the MacBook will be more than enough computer for you.

But as soon as you want to run the latest wiz-bang 3D game, or as soon as you want to try out that warezed copy of Final Cut Pro or Maya, you're screwed by the Intel Integrated Graphics.

Integrated graphics work fine in the corporate office world and the grandpa's home computer world, and maybe even in the elementary school world, but they're very limiting for home use where you would expect to be able to play the latest games and experiment with professional software.

I love my MacBookPro and it's X1600 graphics. I would never buy or recommend a MacBook, the integrated graphics are simply too limiting. If you're interested in an Apple notebook, do yourself a favor and go for the "Pro" models with real GPUs and real graphics memory.

 

[Eug]

Originally posted by: halfadder
If you're Johnny Student or Joe Sixpack and spend 50% of your computer time surfing the web, writing email, and doing word processing tasks... and 50% of your time doing iLife-type apps (video editing with iMovie or Avid Xpress, photos with iPhoto, music with GarageBand and iTunes, burning DVD videos with iDVD, etc) then the MacBook will be more than enough computer for you.

----

I would never buy or recommend a MacBook, the integrated graphics are simply too limiting. If you're interested in an Apple notebook, do yourself a favor and go for the "Pro" models with real GPUs and real graphics memory.

Does. Not. Compute.

 

[erikistired]

Originally posted by: halfadder
If you're Johnny Student or Joe Sixpack and spend 50% of your computer time surfing the web, writing email, and doing word processing tasks... and 50% of your time doing iLife-type apps (video editing with iMovie or Avid Xpress, photos with iPhoto, music with GarageBand and iTunes, burning DVD videos with iDVD, etc) then the MacBook will be more than enough computer for you.

But as soon as you want to run the latest wiz-bang 3D game, or as soon as you want to try out that warezed copy of Final Cut Pro or Maya, you're screwed by the Intel Integrated Graphics.

Integrated graphics work fine in the corporate office world and the grandpa's home computer world, and maybe even in the elementary school world, but they're very limiting for home use where you would expect to be able to play the latest games and experiment with professional software.

I love my MacBookPro and it's X1600 graphics. I would never buy or recommend a MacBook, the integrated graphics are simply too limiting. If you're interested in an Apple notebook, do yourself a favor and go for the "Pro" models with real GPUs and real graphics memory.

yeah i didn't notice the integrated graphics at first. i guess there won't be a 12" powerbook replacement since this is being touted as the ibook replacement now.

 

[Eug]

Mine (CTO white ordered on the 17th) shipped today from China.

 

[Chadder007]

Meh....Intel graphics turn me off from it.

 

[manly]

Although it's functional enough, I don't dig the new keyboard.

 

[MDE]

If it had something like a 128MB Radeon X600 or similar I'd be interested, but with Intel graphics? No thanks.