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Hands-On With the New MacBooks
Paige Philuer writes "Macworld has a hands-on article examining the new MacBook and MacBook Pro — not a quickie look from Tuesday's event, but a lengthy, in-depth look with laptops they actually have in their offices. Some interesting observations: No FireWire on the MacBook; the TrackPad doesn't feel like you're running your finger across a pane of glass, though that's what it is; and switching between graphics cards in the MacBook Pro requires you to log out."
Reader Bourbon contributes three links at CNET related to the new models, too: a positive written review (giving a score of 8/10 to the new MacBook), a video review, and a behind-the-scenes look at how the new models are machined.
Keep your hands off! They'll get all smudgy. MacBooks are for looking at, not using.
I'm a huge Mac fan (I'm typing this on an older MacBook Pro), but man, I really think these new laptops are ugly as sin. I really prefer the look of previous model MacBooks and MacBook Pros, though when the Air came out it was probably inevitable that the other laptops would follow its lead.
"There is no time, sir, at which ties do not matter," Jeeves, (Jeeves and the Impending Doom)
Great! The displays are bright.
How about dim? Can they be dim too? My 24" iMac is painfully bright to use in a dark room at its lowest backlight setting. Some people resort to software that puts a neutral gray, transparent window over the whole screen just to keep the pain down at the expense of color resolution. I keep sunglasses by the computer so I can see to work on late night emergency calls while my eyes adapt to the light.
I guess that's so when the first one de-laminates you have a backup. *Bah-dum-bump*
Actually it's pretty cool to have both high- and low-power options. Too bad they can't switch on the fly. But since the GeForce 9600M GT can do CUDA, maybe you could use it as a compute accelerator while you use the 9400 for display.
Although I really like Apple and the proprietary software, I think that we have to accept the crushing truth.
In these times it really doesn't matter if is launched the iPod nanomillimeter or Mac OS Iguana, because while both products (and others with less weight like Mac G4 Cube) were trying to impress with "cool" stuff, Apple was consolidating its position as the leader in the field of systems with DRM and privation of liberty, first with the iTunes (that have approximately 90% of the market on the US) and later with its advanced successor, the recently iPhone, that doesn't let the client to install applications written in Java, using Cingular network problems as a excuse.
The reality is that Apple has little to offer to the intelligent user. The same intelligent that is seen disconcerted by the impossibility to do a simple mp3 transfer from the iTunes to music player different to the iPhone. If you don't believe me, go out and ask to the people how they transfer a mp3 file to a player no supported by Apple: burning the file on to a CD, and then ripping this file to a free format, like OGG. THAT IS A SMART THING TO DO!
Then what we suggest to this user is that he needs to buy the last iPod version (spending a fortune) , which he will change every year to be cool (because of Steve Jobs recommendation), which he can't use with a free firmware, like RockBox, because of DRM.
How many people get to do it? Only Derek Zoolander is so faithful to the brand. We persist in THAT is the normal thing... nothing more far from reality.
Explain him why his black color MacBook is 200 bucks more expensive than the same white laptop, why he gets Windows support (thanks to Bootcamp) but he can't use Linux, why Mac OS X is still stealing from 6 years ago using Exposé like a killer feature, why he needs to pay 130 bucks for each segurity patch (although they call it "new version", it is just a patch), etc.
And the developers? Obviously they'll return to Linus, because no one will tolerate the pain of develop in a platform that threat us with stupid patents like the "spring folders", that were deleted from GNOME. By each Mac OS X application we have 5000 that run on Linux, becuase they are free as a in speech.
The proof of the Apple failure is seen also in the Windows world, either in areas like P2P and cracking (because there is not applications), computer sells (1500 bucks for a computer that doesn't run games? fuck you Apple), etc.
if Mac OS X is so cool, why it doesn't work on computers different from a shitty Mac? It cannot be that if I want to run Mac OS X in a PC I have to download from the eMule a patched version made by a juacker with a nick like moo, cow, or whatever. Who will install that with entirely confidence? And, furthermore, once it get installed, the 50% of the hardware doesn't work (unless the hardware are things with "cool" neon lights approved by Apple).
The battle for the most stupid user is lost for Linux, because Apple users are to far away in that race, even it seems like they train for that matter.
They make fun of Linux users because we go to listen to Stallman, but they go to a Keynote to listen to Steve Jobs, who sell them products, and they fight between each other just for a three button mouse (a funny thing, due to the fact that they got a shitty experience because of the one button mouse that they bought from Apple itself).
You keep defending the apple. You keep defending Safari as something unique while you read the impressed newspaper because you can't even read the BBC. You keep thinking that the people look at you with envy because of the iPods but the reality is that they think that you are just stupids. You keep insulting Windows and then you go as fast as you can to buy Bootcamp plus a Windows license. You keep insulting Intel and praising IBM to find out later that there is a new "cool" Mac. You keep attacking the free software while Apple search on Google where to get free software under permissive licenses. Keep just like that.
And You? What have you bought on Itunes today?
Thanks for you attention.
The Lenovo laptops running Vista with two graphics cards can switch completely on the fly. It's a bit disappointing that Apple, with full control over everything, couldn't manage the same. See http://lenovoblogs.com/insidethebox/?p=154.
The black border isn't that great imho, but it's ok. Same for keys I guess.
But new macbook vs old one? Definitly. Way better than plastic.
Watching the video, the Mac guys talk about all of the innovations that have gone into making the computer friendly to the environment. But the aluminum machining looks like a pretty energy intensive and wasteful process. Does anyone know if this is a true observation, relative to the process used to make other laptops?
The Canadian price for the low-end used to be $1250, now it's $1400. Whatever happened to the maxim that computers get faster & cheaper over time?
Then there's connectivity. One of the mixed blessings of apple is their place on the avant-guard of computer ports; sometimes they're annoying (proprietary video), sometimes not (usb on iMac). All I know is that there's no hope of using an external monitor without shelling out an Elizabeth for an adapter. That, and the newfound lack of firewire (and thus target disk mode) on the most popular apple notebook will result in tears.
I'm half-considering buying an old macbook - the CPU is just as fast, and it's got firewire. My only real concern is whether I'd be able to run Civ4 on the integrated graphics card. Anyone know?
The English word fart is one of the oldest words in the English vocabulary.
This is stupid. I think the most insane thing about any laptop is easy harddrive removal. It screams of a manufacturer that is going to save money using defective harddrives since they will be so easy to replace. Even if they go up in smoke after a year, the user will be able to replaced it.
Here is why I think this is a bad philosophy. First, the hard drive is where my data is stored. Even with a backup, I want to know that when I turn it on, it will work. Especially with a laptop. It is not like I am going to carry my backup with me? The naysayer will remind me that drive do not fail often. I reply that I buy macs because I do not want this critical component to fail at all. In all my years, I have only had three mac drives fail on me, and only after a few years of use. Ports, DVD drives, power adapters, fine. I can still get what I need to get done, then get it to the shop. Skimping on hard drives is unacceptable.
Second is security. I love the way that Apple has always built physical security into the products. Lockable lathes on the back of desktops, kensington lock on laptops. expensive components not trivial to reach. The only thing easy to steal on a pro laptop is the battery and sometimes the memory, which is a reasonable compromise as these are things that maybe switched out somewhat often. Ram at least requires a few screws being removed, which I think is good.
(note: it is possible that the latch is locked when the kensington cable it in. I can't tell, in which case this paragraph is not valid)
But why in the world would anyone want a hard drive that could be stolen in 30 seconds. This is data. This is some people life. I know it is not a huge security issue, but really. I see some HP laptops that could be stripped in a minute. The Ti Powerbook was the perfect compromise. Several screws, mostly of the same size, to remove the bottom cover, then a few more screws to remove the hard drive. I know from experience that the 12" powerbook is insane, and the Apple designer that did that should be flogged. Hard drives do fail, so one should not have to disassemble the whole machine to fix a part that is not likely to last the lifetime of the machine. I don't know how it is in the Mac Pro machines. Exposing the hard disk every time the battery is changed is just plan silly.
For that matter, making a battery change a two step process is silly. I know I just ranted on security, and how things might get stolen, but there has been times when I changed the battery every day. I am willing to risk a hundred dollars for an easier change out. I am not willing to trust Filevault to protect my data when someone steals the hard disk from my tethered and locked machine.
And what is it about hiding the memory. Apple must be really hard up for money if they are going to hid memory in hopes that users will buy Apple memory. There is only one thing that is still over priced at Apple. The memory. I will do without rather than pay apple prices. Non replaceable battery and memory in the macbook air, fine. No SD slot in the iPhone, fine. But making the HD a user replaceable part and the memory not, that is just silly.
In any case, the new mac books are something different, and will take some time to digest. I kind of like the mac book air if these are the compromises that are going to have to be made on the pro line. I guess we will wait and see what happens with the 17", if it ever appears. Maybe they will follow the rest of the industry and make it 18". That might be worth some shenanigans with memory.
"She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
Wish the low end still had Firewire, though.
Even if you get the new display that can fit along with the new MacBooks... it has three USB ports in the back yet no Firewire!
I wonder if it's a power issue...
You're not the only one. I personally think these look pretty tacky, especially compared the sleek/slick, classy look of the previous model MBP.
In two years these will look like even uglier, like that K-car your stuffy old man used to drive. Of course by then all the others notebook manufacturers will have copied the design and nobody will notice that they all look cheesy.
The pursuit of absolute tolerance leads to the most rigorous and ludicrous intolerance. - REX MURPHY
What, no Firewire on the MacBook?!?! That's completely unacceptable...afterall Apple pretty much invented Firewire (in conjunction with TI, if memory serves me correct).
I think rush out and buy and "old" MacBook while its still available.
And am I the only one who is wondering just who would be buying one of these shiny MacBooks in such a harsh economic climate?
I've been checking out the MacBooks to console my sister who I advised to buy a white MacBook two weeks ago (d'oh!). I can't speak for the Canadian dollar, but in USD there's been a branching among MacBook models.
Before there were two: a $1049 model with 1 GB memory, etc and a $1299 model with 2 GB memory, etc. Both were white plastic. If you go to the store now there are two aluminum versions: a $1299 model with 2 GB memory, etc and a $1599 model also with 2 GB memory plus a 90 GB larger drive and a 2.4 GHz CPU versus 2.0 GHz for the cheaper model. If you look closely, there is also a $999 white plastic version with 1 GB memory, etc like before.
So the low end model did get cheaper. But it's still plastic, not the unibody aluminum. (So much for that being a cheaper process.) The old high-end model is the same price but with faster graphics. Then there is a new top-end model that is bigger, faster, and more expensive.
you are obviously not in the design or creation field.
hybrid sli non gefore boost.
Power issue or not, the lack of FireWire now officially makes the portable consumer-level Mac incompatible with the standard DV camera interface. I guess Steve really is pushing those memory-card HD cameras.
What will apple do with the mini? If they mess up then EFiX and Psystar will have a field day.
The $800 mini better have a real video card with 256 of vram that is not from system ram.
Also if they put mini display port on it. It better have ship with the mini Display Port to DVI Cable Adapter and a mini DisplayPort to DisplayPort.
makeing you pay $30 for a Adapter to be able use your display on a DESKTOP is a slap in the face.
The mini should drop down to $500 with 2gb of ram and super drive.
The MacBooks, with their int-degraded graphics, were always lame, but axing Firewire 400 and not adding Firewire 800 is hella-lame. And this is coming from an "Apple Acolyte." Perhaps I need a different /. name.
Part of the hardcore faithful who believed in Apple long before it was cool again to do so
> I guess Steve really is pushing those memory-card HD cameras.
Nope. Steve figures if you can afford a camera with a firewire port you will spring for the MBP. You might piss and moan but in the end you will pull out the credit card. It's all about the money.
Democrat delenda est
More information at ifixit.com with complete tear-aparts as usual:
MacBook: http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/First-Look/Mac/MacBook-Unibody
Pro: http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/First-Look/Mac/MacBook-Pro-Unibody
In theory, theory always works in practice. In practice, theory rarely works. <><
Apple turns a royalty-free standard connector into an Apple adapter-taxed unnecessarily necessary accessory.
The glossy screen is a deal-breaker for me. I have looked at MacBooks with glossy screens several times and always came to the conclusion that I cannot work with such computers. All MacBooks with glossy screens means for me that I won't buy a MacBook - never ever. Will order a Dell Latitude tomorrow...
My good man, you don't need an adapter to connect a system with mini-displayport to a monitor!*
*if and only if your idea of "monitor" is "New Apple Cinema display" which, incidentally, comes only with a mini-displayport connector.
IF you have a 24 $900 display then you don't need one.
My quick comments while I'm erasing the hard disk and reinstalling it: (I always erase the HDD on all new machines to check for any SMART errors, and to know that the install is clean)
First, the package it comes in is 20% smaller than the black MacBook's tote box. Styrofoam is a thing of the past, replacing it is plastic. Its easy to pull out the MacBook and peel off the plastic on it, easy to yank out the power adapter, but you have to use a thin piece of cardboard to pull the OS media box out as it is set flush, with no fingertip grips to make it easier. This is a very minor thing, though.
Second, the MacOS CDs are not 10.5.0 as with the black MacBook. You get 10.5.5, and a DVD with the applications.
Third, like every article says, if you need FireWire for mLAN or other music tasks, go for a Pro, or hit Apple Refurb for a previous model. FireWire is a thing of the past with this model. For what I'm using it for, the two USB ports are good.
Fourth, its noticably thinner than the MacBook it replaced. Its not thin enough to slide into an envelope, but its definitely able to be slipped in a briefcase. Its definitely a nice student notebook for sling through classes.
Fifth, I personally have not noticed any significant changes to the screen between the previous generation, but I'm glad Apple went this route, because LEDs supposedly have a much longer life than the CCFL backlights.
Those are my first impressions for now, while I blank the disk on it. Overall, for what I need it for (slinging it around campus) it should do the job well.
I'm a huge Mac fan (I'm typing this on an older MacBook Pro), but man, I really think these new laptops are ugly as sin. I really prefer the look of previous model MacBooks and MacBook Pros, though when the Air came out it was probably inevitable that the other laptops would follow its lead.
I never figured Jobs for a closet Raiders fan.
That is so wrong but yet so damn funny.
Not really.. firewire/DV has been fading over the last few years for consumer products. Flash/tapeless/USB transfer is pretty standard now in the consumer world. Old stuff won't really be useful, but Apple has never been about holding on to the old longer than necessary.
(fwiw i own mbp and am pro cam operator)
lame
But new macbook vs old one? Definitly. Way better than plastic.
Way better than the white plastic MacBook, which looks like a tacky toy IMO. OTOH, I think the black plastic looks pretty good.
I must be the only one who thinks Apple's white plastic products (iBook, iPod, iMac, MacBook) look lame. I like Apple's current move away from white plastic and toward uncolored (MacBook, iMac) and colored (iPod nano) aluminum.
TO START
PRESS ANY KEY
Where's the 'ANY' key? I see Esk, Kitarl, and Pig-Up...
Nope. Steve figures if you can afford a camera with a firewire port you will spring for the MBP. You might piss and moan but in the end you will pull out the credit card. It's all about the money.
I think it's a general sign of Firewire disappearing from general consumer products. The first major sign that I noticed was the lack of easy backwards compatibility between Firewire 800 and Firewire 400. Now the port is disappearing from Apple computers too.
I wonder if Target Disk mode and such will be implemented for USB in Mac OS X? External hard drives were nice with Firewire because of how it in didn't burden the cpu like USB. But as with SCSI/ATA, chips are invented that offload the work from the CPU (sometimes diverging from the technology's spec to do so).
Meh.
Once you start despising the jerks, you become one.
Wow, Apple is making a huge deal about finally discovering that one can use a CNC milling machine to cut a part out of an aluminum billet. I hate to break it to them, but this has been done for decades in the aircraft industry. How about a real improvement like a rounded edge on the front of the lower shell so it doesn't cut into the user's wrists.
You are NOT alone. I have hated these white plastic toy things they produced forever. Nobody ever agreed with me before though.
Personally I think the new look is an improvement, at the very least over the white ones, as you said.
I'm seriously unhappy about the glossy screans it makes using the computer in many brightly lit areas difficult.
I really dont care if it looks nice. Its impractical and uses up more power because you have to increase the display brightness just to see properly
I just watched the videos attached to this article....
I need to go home and change. I just came so hard.
My spew was so huge that my entire office is coated. I need to run home for new clothes and towels.
brb
Yeah...might be something to do that they look much more like any generic, shiny laptop on the market.
One that hath name thou can not otter
I'm keeping my $699 because that is how much your hardware costs. Someone messed up the sticker price and pasted $2499 on it.
I think you can already target disk mode with a USB port... (would have to get back to you on that though). I know you can definitely boot off a USB drive, even though officially they claim you can only boot from a FireWire - just hold down Option at boot and select the USB drive (I know, it's not automated like Firewire, but it still works), so there's a good chance they'll have allowed USB to target-disk too.
Apple need to update the Mini. They will use the NVIDIA 9400M chipset I imagine, but no discrete graphics.
I agree about Mini DisplayPort - either ship with an adaptor, or include a HDMI in addition (as HDMI -> DVI cables are cheap still).
I expect that they will drop Firewire.
I wouldn't be surprised if they got rid of the SODIMM slot and put the 2GB on the motherboard directly.
No, actually I won't. The wife's video camera is several years old and works just fine. I really want one of the new MacBook's (not the Pro), but the lack of a firewire port kind of sucks. I'm not going to toss out another $6-700 for a port (the rest of the upgrades really don't matter to me).
Now I don't know what I want...
Yup, one of the other manufacturers (Asus?) makes laptops with a shiny black border around the screen - I've seen a few around campus - and so they manage to look both ugly and derivative at the same time. Not a good combination. I'm also totally unimpressed by the Mini DisplayPort. My old PowerBook had a DVI port and an S-Video port, with an S-Video to composite adaptor in the box. My newer MBP has a DVI port and they charge for a DVI to S-Video / Composite adaptor. Now they are charging for both DVI and VGA adaptors - apparently plugging the machine into anything other than a new Apple display is a luxury. Sure, the Mini DisplayPort is smaller than the DVI port, but it's not like they're actually short of space on the side. I'm also not a fan of the removal of FW400 - I have a couple of FW800 disks, but I come across a lot more FW400 devices than FW800, and so this is yet another adaptor to carry around (also not included in the box, so it's another one you need to buy).
I quite liked the old Apple Display Port. It was a proprietary connector, but carrying DVI, USB and power in the same cable at least meant it was a proprietary connector that had advantages over standard ones. Mini DisplayPort doesn't seem to have any compelling advantage over HDMI, other than the ability for Apple to sell adaptors at stupidly high prices (£16.45 for DVI or VGA and a massive £61.10 for dual-link DVI). If I want to plug my current MBP or my PowerBook into a 30" display, I just plug in the cable. If I want to do the same with a new MBP I need a £61.10 adaptor.
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
They have the room for firewire and a $800 desktop with nvidia video but useing system ram and no firewire?
And am I the only one who is wondering just who would be buying one of these shiny MacBooks in such a harsh economic climate?
I will be buying at least two. First, I find them a whole lot more powerful and better looking than the white MacBooks. I was facing the fact that, if Apple had decided to drop the MacBook price to 800 or come up with a cheap "netBook" I was looking at having to spend the money to move up to a MacBook Pro to get the graphics performance I needed. Now, it looks like the MacBook will have enough Oomph with its new GPU. That saves me at least $1000.00 right there.
As far as "harsh economic climate" goes. My job is secure. My paycheck has not gone down. I'm not buried in debt. I've been budgeting and saving for this purchase since I bought the last MacBooks -- After all I knew it was coming. You always need to upgrade computers; so save for it -- with the fact that it looks like the purchase will now *save* me a grand, I'm looking good for this Christmas. Sure the price of fuel went up and the cost of food and other supplies went up - who didn't see that coming though.
I saw it more than a year ago and started reorganizing my finances. I live *below* my means, not above it. Sure, I can't sell my house for the outrageous price I could have gotten for it two years ago - so what? I can afford my mortgage. I'm not upside down on it. I actually bought my current house as a "fixer-upper" and invested my own time in it. I can wait until the housing market recovers. Even then, I'm not looking to move - I love my job and my community.
Unless you are a Wall Street broker or have all your money tied up in the stock market, what, exactly is this "harsh economic climate" doing to you? Are you being foreclosed on? Why? Were you one of the fools who got greedy and bought a house you new you couldn't afford the payments for? If so, why should that affect me?
Now, I understand that if you were innocently employed by one of the banks that went under or an SUV maker that is downsizing, then you might have been laid off and are in a financial bind because of it. I'm sorry about that. That really sucks. Finding a new job - especially one that pays the inflated union rates of your old one - might be difficult. And for *you* this is a legitimately sucky economic time. But how many of *you* are there in America? There are billions who weren't laid off and haven't taken a pay cut and can make their mortgages. I wonder how many of them are panicking, wondering what they should panic about?
All this hysteria seems a bit over-blown. Is it harder to get a loan now? Yup! So what? You don't get that shiny new car you wanted and have to keep your old one running for a bit more while you SAVE UP for your new one. I drove a 22-year-old Volvo while I *saved up* for my (currently) 10-year-old Mercedes while I'm *saving up* for my next car. I buy quality. I can drive the same car for 20 years without a problem. That might seem like a bad thing - and probably is if you were sentenced to 20-years driving a Ford. I've spent the last ten years driving a Mercedes that I payed (almost) all cash for. By the time you make your last payment on your shiny-new *financed* F150, you'll have paid more for it than I did for mine. And yours won't last 20 years - not that you'd want to drive it that long even if it did.
This economy is just emphasizing the weakness in the American philosophy of consumerism. If you can't afford it - borrow for it! Those who live by that code are going to suffer in all but the best times. They've mortgaged their future. Remember when you were told that you should have 6 months worth of income in your savings account? Uh huh. Did you ever get around to actually doing that? Remember being told that if you really want something you should save your money up for it and decide what you are willing to give up in the mean time so you can save more for it? Uh huh. Wait, you mean that applies to all my gadgets too? Yup.
I'm betting that tho
"terrorism" and "pedophilia" are the root passwords to the Constitution
Thanks for the reply. It doesn't look like USB has a target disk mode from a quick google search. But it does looks like eSata will if it doesn't already. Apple may eventually plan to phase out Firewire for eSata for hard drives. Though if they were going to start doing that it would have been nice if it had appeared on this refresh of the laptops...
Once you start despising the jerks, you become one.
No, you're sane. Glad to see there's another REAL Conservative still hiding out there, getting more and more frustrated at the ass-hats who are spending billions on credit cards to buy shit they can't afford... ruining the country.
Enjoy the fruits of your labor -- with your new MacBooks. I'm working on saving up for something else myself, but have the budget to buy if the wife's old iBook or my Black MacBook (original model) croak... they're not showing any signs of doing so, but it's almost "time" for a new MacBook for one of us...
Keep up the good fight telling people that no... they DO NOT *DESERVE* loans. They *DESERVE* to learn to save for things and buy them WHEN THEY CAN AFFORD THEM. Great job, sir.
All the best (that you can afford...!)...
+++OK ATH
I was waiting for the new MacBooks as well, as was also annoyed by no FW. Check the refurb macs on the Apple Store. You can nab 15" MBPs for $1350. FW and a real video card, for the same price as the new regular MBs. Just no new trackpad and sexy case.
Except for the lack of FireWire, and the glossy screen, the MacBooks are ok. I know, the MacBooks already only came with a glossy screen, but that's fixable (and still is, as soon as somebody comes out with an anti-glare film for the new ones). And if I have to change one because it's cracked, I offer my customers an anti-glare replacement third party panel.
The FireWire issue is a killer for me, I've got a MacBook now (black) but when it's time to replace it, I have no choice, I have to get the MacBook Pro. I use too many FireWire devices to go without that port, and I put my MacBook in target disk mode at least once every few weeks - and when I need that, I really need that.
The black border is fine with me. When I do get a new one, maybe I'll go crazy and anodize the whole case black.
After having looked at the service manuals on the new ones, it's a slight downside on repairs. A bad keyboard or trackpad is now going to be a pain in my ass, but the easy to change hard drive is a good thing. I replace slightly more hard drives than bad keyboards, but even the old MacBook Pro hard drive wasn't really that hard to change, and the MacBook drive was already very easy.
(Yeah, I make Macintoshes work right for a living.)
I want an external firewire case for a 3.5" HDD simply because it's faster but I find them hard to come by compared to USB ones. I wonder if Apple have convinced themselves that USB 2 is just as good or almost as good or why they choose to remove it.
Maybe they just think it's simpler with less ports?
Yeah, I know the Macbooks had an opening for the HDD but not the Pros. Rather weird. I'll open mine up some day anyway.
hey,
I just got a 24" iMac and gound the display way too bright.
But after a bit of googling I found an app called shades that sorts it out.
Cheers!
Nope. Steve figures if you can afford a camera with a firewire port you will spring for the MBP. You might piss and moan but in the end you will pull out the credit card. It's all about the money.
That's probably true, and its very unApple of them (disappearing the allowing the non-pro to edit video like a pro). But its a deal breaker for me on the MacBook, I want firewire. And it hurts a little because I like the dimensions of the MacBook so much more than the MBP. If they've disappeared firewire target disk mode from OS X, I'm really going to be pissed.
I think it's a general sign of Firewire disappearing from general consumer products. The first major sign that I noticed was the lack of easy backwards compatibility between Firewire 800 and Firewire 400.
What? dude... it doesn't get any easier
I wonder if Target Disk mode and such will be implemented for USB in Mac OS X?
doubtful :-(
How would that even work? USB depends on the processor. FireWire has its own controller chip, which is awesome even if it does cost a little more. Did you even read your own "informative" post? (sorry for the grief... not you I'm mad at about this)
External hard drives were nice with Firewire because of how it in didn't burden the cpu like USB. But as with SCSI/ATA, chips are invented that offload the work from the CPU (sometimes diverging from the technology's spec to do so).
exactly.
Meh.
Wah!
The Admin and the Engineer
The last generation pros don't have a 'customer accessible' hard drive... that being said, it's not too technically difficult to change, although it is definitely not for the faint of heart. You need to remove lots of tiny screws, the keyboard, etc. I don't know about the new solid aluminum ones, but I won't be buying one of those for quite some time, if at all (I have just about convinced myself to buy non-Apple next time, due to a number of factors).
Cheers
Amen, brother!
Yeah, I've seen the guides, just haven't done it because I wanted to send this one in for warranty stuff before. But things made it so that year has passed so I'll see what happens.
There are lots of good reasons to not buy Apple, such as incredible overpriced, crippled configurations, vendor lockin. So I understand you :)
I'm curious who would have been responsible for the shift in this direction, industrial design-wise. I wonder what Jon Ive is thinking.
Actually you need to see it in person. It is totally pretty. The pics aren't a good gauge of how they look. (unlike most online profile pics)