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Apple Unveils MacBook Pro with Core 2 Duo
daveschroeder writes "Apple has just announced the upgraded MacBook Pro (15.4- and 17-inch models) with the Intel Core 2 Duo ("Merom") 64-bit dual core processor. The standard hard drive sizes have been increased, a FireWire 800 port has been added to all models (again, reaffirming that FireWire, and specifically FireWire 800, is not dead, and that Apple responded to customer requests to add it to the 15.4-inch model), and the optical drive is now dual-layer-write-capable on all models."
Also not mentioned is that 2gigs has been made the standard memory size with 1gig only available in the lowest model, with a 3gig option on the 17in version.
I hope they continue to support Target Disk Mode via Firewire 800, and even if they had a similar way of doing the same thing with USB would be nice - that feature has saved my ass an innumerable amount of times. It makes for a nice troubleshooting option and makes things like Carbon Copy Cloner possible... glad to hear that Apple is not sending FireWire the way of the floppy disk just yet.
JUMP JUMP JUMP JUMP JUMP JUMP JUMP JUMP IRRIGATE
Apple has just announced the upgraded MacBook Pro (15.4- and 17-inch models) with the Intel Core 2 Duo ("Conroe") 64-bit dual core processor.
Screw that. I'm waiting for the MacBook Pro with Intel Core 2 Duo Twin Binary Pair featuring Extreme II Bifurcation technology.
Actually, the Core 2 Duo for laptops is code named "Merom" not "Conroe". "Conroe" is only for desktops. They are virtually identical except for power requirements.
Mac guy yesterday: why do you need a Core 2 Duo? Mac hardware is better that Dell and more expensive because it's better better better
Mac guy today: I've been waiting for months for Apple to release the Core 2 Duo, finally now I can buy the MacBook of my dreams -- the Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro is the BEST COMPUTER EVER, EVER!
Windows guy: huh?
I have the 2.0GHz core 2 duo imac with 4MB L2 cache. According to Intel, only the merom at 2.0ghz comes with 4MB L2 cache, the conroe is 2.66GHz for the first one with 4MB. Therefore, I'd say that the imac use merom.
save the GNUs!
Wow. Finally a laptop with enough storage space.
That comment is going to seem so funny to you in a year...
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
All of the previous MB/MBPs use Matsushita drives with extremely strict region control, and since I have a large collection of both R1 and R2 DVDs, this rules out a Mac for me. The Matsushita firmware will flat-out refuse to read a disc (even raw sectors) if the region doesn't match, so software tools like AnyDVD and DeCSS-based players like mplayer/VLC don't work. Also the drives' firmware code is encrypted and signed with high strength public-key crypto, which makes a RPC1 firmware hack virtually impossible (some hackers tried but gave up after multiple expensive mistakes because the drives brick themselves if any attempt to read or modify the firmware is made).
I'm most interested in finding out who makes the new 6x DL burner used in the 15" MBPs. If the new drives are NOT Matsushita then it looks like I'm getting a MBP... otherwise no way.
Hey troll, those batteries were made by Sony, and they were used by Apple, and Toshiba, and Compaq, and... well, by most laptop manufacturers. Put the blame on the real manufacturer, Sony.
I've always been a critic of the premium that one has to pay to get an Apple. So when I saw this article, I was quick to go configure a Dell and point out just how much one can save over the Apple tax.
But it was 25 percent *more* (at least compared the $1999 MacBook). And you *still* have to waste your time reinstalling Windows to get rid of all the circus-ware that comes on the Dell.
It really is no wonder that someone is paying Gartner to try and coax Apple out of the PC business. They'd be idiots not to continue selling hardware.
More
Lithium fires aren't that dangerous. Just decompress the cargo bay and hang on to the laptop for dear life.
Conveniently enough, this was just covered on /. a few days ago:
Cool your MacBook Pro
Basically, it boils down to: "Apple, in its quest for ultra, super-duper quietness, sets the fans to run much slower than the speed needed to make laptops usable on laps."
Unfortunately, they eliminated the option for a 7200 rpm drive. It's a significant performance hit, if you're doing something that's I/O bound on the hard drive.
You can get a 7200 rpm drive, its not a standard but its an option. But you have to drop down to 100GB. I think this reflects the manufacturers.
Bear in mind that the 160 GB drives use perpendicular recording, so they increase the size by increasing the areal density of the data.
This also means that for a given speed of rotation, it will increase the data rates quite alot.
Seek times won't be helped by this increase in density however.
Michael
There is no cryptographic solution to the problem where the intended receiver and the attacker are the same entity.
10.4 will still be primarily 32bit, with 64bit sections where it really matters (the processing libraries for large-data-set apps). It looks like 10.5 is going to be much more 64bit from stem-to-stern with paralell libraries (some changes in the 64bit versions that will mark a change.. because it was an easy place to put the transition) for 32bit and 64bit.
But do note that moving most of the code to running in 64bit mode does not make it faster. In theory you can make 32bit code that uses the new features in the cips without taking the extra overhead of everything going 64bit.
...and that Conroe has 75% faster FSB, 10% faster clock and 10% lower cost than Merom. That's the advantage of not having to pinch every watt.
I guess you have never taken a look at the Apple refurb store then. I saved $500 on my MacBook Pro and that put it under $1,500. Yes, it is a 15.4" and not a 17". But that is okay because I travel around a lot with mine and the 17" MacBook Pro was just too big.
I also physically compared the Apple 17" to the various Dell 17" offerings (easy to do since I live in Austin, TX). You mention the screen resolution as a distinguishing characteristic between the Dell your wife bought and the Apple 17". Let me mention another difference. I can fit two MacBook Pros in the same physical space of the Dell offerings (yes, there is a bit of exaggeration, but not much!). So, what is the value of a much smaller footprint for what is supposed to be a mobile computer? It's really anyones guess.
Everyone: Gah! Still only one mouse button!
Ha.. that gripe is now becoming obsolete. On a MB or MBP, put two fingers on the track-pad and press the 'single' mouse button. You will find this has the same effect as pressing the secondary button button on a WinDell or any other PC laptop. I don't know if this works on the PPC Macs. For the desktop Macs there is plenty of alternatives (Logitech, Macally) if you don't like the old one button Mac mouse or the Mighty Mouse. The latter incidentally includes a second and third and fourth mouse 'button' functionality but the ergonomics are not to everyones taste. I'll admit it took Apple much longer than it should have to remedy the 'missing second button' issue in it's product line, the two-fingers-on-the-trackpad feature on the Laptop line was especially long overdue since the old [Ctrl]+MouseClick was pretty awkward.
Only to idiots, are orders laws.
-- Henning von Tresckow
"You can get a 7200 rpm drive, its not a standard but its an option. But you have to drop down to 100GB. I think this reflects the manufacturers.
Apple no longer offers any 7200 rpm drive in the 15" MacBook Pros, at any capacity. It's not standard, and it's not offered as an option. The only place it's still available is in the 17" model.
Anyone who doesn't believe me is invited to check the Apple store.
I rarely criticize things I don't care about.
Hey Apple, where's the ultraportable laptop with max. 3lb weight?
You've shown with iPod nano that you can do wonders in small scale, but your laptops are not reflecting your capabilities in this regard. They are currently just waaayyy too big and heavy for everyday and everywhere portability. So no Mac switch for me.
1) All of the standard UNIX utils plus a lot of extra shiop on the Mac - the default shell is bash and even perl and apache come on it. You'll not need putty because you get a real ssh client and server.
2) Java is not too bad, I've not done anything with that recently but I used to do a lot of Java development on a slower older Mac. The Mac is usually a few months (or more) behind on new Java releases (like 1.6). XCode (the mac development environment, comes with every Mac) understands Java.
3) Way more stable than the old OS 9. I've not had a problem yet with the OS crashing that was not caused by bad hardware (got a bad RAM stick from crucial).
4) You can compile most anything, there are X11 libraries as well that let you compile binaries on the Mac and run with an X11 server.
5) Well it's hard to say what is in that difference. Expresscard is nice because you can use external SATA devices. The screens are good quality, the backlit keyboard is actually really useful. Generally the build quality is excellent overall, however if you didn't appreciate the Thinkpad quality you may still be nonplussed by the Mac features.
6) I cannot really quantify it, because I don't know what fast means to you. Is it as fast as a Mac Pro? No. Is it much faster than my old G4 laptop? Yes. Can I use Aperture and Photoshop on it? Yes.
7) The two-finger trackpad is great for scrolling. Personally I don't use it for right clicking because it is WAY easier to just press "Control" while using the laptop mouse button to get a context menu or do other things that require a right click. AFter all your hand is right there to the side, what else would you be doing with it! I personally think this system works better than any second button arrangement I have ever used or seen on a Windows laptop.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Not just that, but if you're a student developer, you can get an even larger discount by getting an ADC membership and using that to take a huge amount off. Student ADC memberships are $99 a year, but the discount is around $500.
Tired of legitimate data sources? Try UNCYCLOPEDIA
OK, I'll bite.
1) I stopped using Linux (my primary OS) three years ago when I first purchased an OS X Mac. Absolutely no need for it. I can download and run most open source apps on OS X. It's full blown UNIX.
2) JAVA screams! I develop J2EE apps using Eclipse/RAD to run on IBM WAS / WPS. I currently have a 15" MBP 2.0 GHz, 7200RPM drive, 2GB RAM. On this machine, JAVA is a rocket.
3) I've never had a single kernel panic since I received my MBP in March. Not one. A couple of apps have gone south once or twice, but never the OS.
4) GNU/Open/Free progs run with no issues I've encountered yet.
5) Sounds like you are a value shopper. Go to an Apple store, check for yourself. Personally, I think the build quality, design, etc. is worth the price "premium". If you can't see the advantage a TP has over a Dell, I doubt you will see what a Mac has to offer over a Dell. That's cool though -- we all have different expectations and ideas of value for money.
6) Smoking. SMOKING. SMOKING FAST! Fastest laptop I've ever used.
7) I love the two-finger trackpad for scrolling, and the two-finger tap for right-click works great for me. I must confess, I hated having to hold down control for a right-click with my old PowerBook. It was a nuisance.
2) I find Java performance to be quite good. I played a Java-based flight simulator that ran great on my MacBook. But if there's a particular application that you want to try out, I'd say go to an Apple store if one is nearby and download it to the desktop and give it a whirl. They don't monitor that stuff too closely.
3) I work on a Windows machine most of the time, but my personal system is a MacBook, and I find the latter to be much more stable overall. I essentially never reboot it, unless there is a software update that requires it. I did have the RSS problem, but I'll detail that in the hardware question.
4) There's lots and lots of free (as in speech) software. Apple even has a download section dedicated to it: http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/unix_open_so urce/ . And since you've got Perl, etc., there are a lot of programs you can download and run without even having to recompile.
5) In general, I think workmanship is great. Easy access to parts, long-lasting and reliable systems. Problems do come up, but Apple's pretty good about fixing them. My old iBook is almost 6 years old, and it's my wife's main computer now, and works great. It did have to have the logic board replaced because of a video problem, but they took it and fixed it and returned it in three days without a hassle, even though it was officially out of warranty. My current MacBook has the RSS (random shutdown syndrome), and I just brought it in last night. My understanding is that they've resolved that, and if history is any indicator, I'll still be using this system in 4 years.
6) Speed is subjective, but basically, we're talking about the same hardware you might run windows on, so many--if not most--applications should run just the same. And if you want to run Windows, there's BootCamp, which lets you dual boot, or Parallels, which lets you run a virtual machine without the overhead of emulation. Lots of great reviews out there. Seach /. or google for more info.
7) The two finger trackpad is AWESOME. I mean, it's OK for the second button and all; much better for right-clicking than control-click, in my mind. But the key is two-finger scrolling. Once you're used to it, you'll feel like any laptop that doesn't support it is a toy. Two finger scrolling a pretty great jump forward in human-computer interface.
Hope this all helps!
The CB App. What's your 20?
OS X Tiger is 64-bit on the UNIX level. OS X Leopard will be fully 64-bit, and unlike Windows, will ship on one 32-bit/64-bit Intel/PPC universal binary disc, so you don't have to buy separate versions of 32-bit and 64-bit. Also unlike Windows, 64-bit Leopard will happily run all 32-bit applications and device drivers, and it's all run native and not using translation.
Apple's going to make Microsoft's 64-bit implementation look ridiculous and amateur. You people testing 64-bit Vista know what I'm talking about.
"Sufferin' succotash."
I'm sure you're wrong. Stop trying to shoot from the hip, and actually read up on the issue.
The problem is that they're plugging a Merom (Core 2 Duo) into motherboards using the chipset for the original Core Duo (they are forwards-compatible), which is how Mac Mini owners have been upgrading to Meroms for several months now). The Core Duo is 32-bit, while the Merom supports 64-bit. However, the old chipset on the motherboard only supports 32-bit, which means only 32-bit addressing for RAM, which means 4GB maximum. Now, the reason for the 3-4GB discrepancy is the way PCI-e interfaces directly with the memory bus. So video card VRAM etc. eats into that first 1GB.
Apple HQ knows that people sorely need more RAM, but can't do anything about it until Intel provides them with a supply of new 64-bit chipsets specifically for Merom (Core 2 Duo). This won't be until approximately March 2007.