The PC Weenies

When the new Macbook Pro models were announced in October, I was very eager to hear what users had to say. I poured over reviews from Macworld, CNET, Macintouch, TUAW and just about every reputable tech website out there.

My impressions, based on these reviews, came down to the following points:

1. RAM and hard drives could be easily updated
2. the unibody construction was solid
3. the display was nice and bright, but incredibly reflective under
   certain lighting conditions
4. discrete and onboard graphics NVidia chipsets
5. The units featured a Firewire 800 port, in favor of the popular Firewire 400 port
6. there is no button underneath the trackpad

Many people with these notebooks enjoy them. Some do not. I had a decision to make. I was in the market for a new Mac laptop – would I get the new one, or purchase the slightly older model for less?

As readers of this blog know, I opted to go with the slightly older model. For me, point 3 was the governing factor in my decision. I have seen and used glossy displays before. While the color fidelity on the new Macbook Pro displays are excellent (and I realize this is a subjective thing), the reflectivity factor was a major turnoff.

For me, the convenience of a portable machine means that I can use my machine anywhere, under a myriad of lighting conditions, without having to adjust or compromise my seating position in order to see the screen properly.

The other factor that swayed my decision (to a lesser extent) was the fact that the new MBPs are essentially Revision A models. The chances of bugs and other weirdness creeping in is generally found to be higher whenever the manufacturing process changes significantly.

To make a long story short, I settled on the early 2008 Macbook Pro (2.5GHz, 15″ display, 250GB hard drive) instead. These models are being blown out at firesale prices, and represent a good investment for someone who wants the power of a Macbook Pro at Macbook-type pricing.

The new machine shares a lot of common traits with the 2006 model Macbook Pro I also own. The keyboard is taut and stiff, and is very comfortable to type on. The OLED display is bright (almost too bright) and sharp. (I opted for the matte display.) The unit includes 1 Firewire 400 port, 2 USB ports, 1 Firewire 800 port, audio input, headphone output, and Express PC slot. The machines use Intel Penryn chips for the main processor and Nvidia GeForce 8600M GT for the graphics processor.

The machine runs very warm during normal operation, enough for me to warrant resting the machine on a surface rather than on my lap. I also noticed that the screen can’t be pushed past the 90 degree viewing angle, compared to the older MBP model I have. Perhaps this was done intentionally?

The speed difference between the 2006 MBP and 2008 MBP was rather significant. I don’t have any quantifiable measurements (those can be found on other sites), but application launch times on the new MBP are very fast, and overall Finder responsiveness (including Spaces, Dashboard) seems greatly enhanced.

Transferring my documents over to the new notebook was a breeze. I didn’t use Migration Assistant – I simply copied the data I needed from an external HD backup (done via SuperDuper).

The new touch-pad capabilities of the Macbook Pro have proven themselves to be very useful in my day to day computing. I really enjoy this feature. One other thing I noticed with the keyboard: the enter and return keys are now combined into one. This took me by surprise, as my older MBP had each designated as separate keys.

I’m running my Macbook Pro with the stock 2GB RAM. I plan on adding an extra 2GB in the future. I’m very happy with the machine – it’s behaved flawlessly out of the box. If you’re looking at a Macbook Pro and want to save some sizeable coin, seriously consider going with the early 2008 Macbook Pro model.

-Krishna