In case you missed it, Apple Computer has announced the new Intel based Macintosh computers. Their new offerings are composed of the MacBook Pro, a “replacement” for the PowerBook, and a new iMac. It’s been known for some time that Apple has been transitioning to Intel CPU products, but this is the first glimpse at the new architecture.
I think the transition to Intel based CPU’s will be a positive one for Apple, especially in light of the inability of IBM to produce a G5 chip that Apple could use in a laptop. Or more correctly the inability of IBM to product a chip at the price point Apple was willing to pay. This new architecture gives Macintosh computer some legs to run on, especially in the laptop and small form factor space.
So after a week to let things settle a bit I figured I’d comment on what I think about the two new units. Keep in mind that I don’t actually have one of these units, but am considering upgrading my 17″ PowerBook at some point in the near future. It was a Revision A unit that I’ve had for almost three years, and was my first Macintosh. It’s been a trooper and become my primary machine for most tasks. Sadly it’s become a little long in tooth and an upgrade to a newer, shiner unit is inevitable.I’m primarly interested in the laptop line, and not so much in the desktop iMac line. Here are the specifications of the new MacBook Pro. In summary:
- Intel Core Duo (Dual Core CPU) at 1.67Gghz or 1.83Ghz
- 667MHz frontside bus.
- 2 DDR2 DIMM sockets for a max of 2GB of PC2-5300 RAM.
- DVI output
- Built-in 802.11g AirPort Extreme.
- Built-in Bluetooth 2.0+EDR.
- Built-in Gigabit (10/100/1000BT) Ethernet.
- One Firewire 400
- Two USB 2.0 Ports
- Express Card/34
- 80GB,100GB, or 120GB 5400RPM Serial ATA drive.
- 8x Read, 4x Write SuperDrive
- Built in iSight camera
- MagSafe power connector.
That’s the basics, and for the most part it is good. The Intel Core Duo CPU will be a large upgrade over the G4 in previous PowerBooks. Additionally, the increase bus speed and faster RAM will give the laptop a little extra kick.
Networking seems to be pretty standard and the only change is the lack of a built-in modem. Apple now sells a USB modem as an external accessory. I find this to be a small problem for something like a laptop. The whole purpose is to be mobile, and not having a modem reduces your connectivity options, or forces you to carry another piece of gear around. I don’t personally use the modem that often, maybe once a year, but when I need it, I need it.
Only one Firewire 400 port. This is actually quite a downgrade from the previous PowerBooks. Previously, models contained one Firewire 400 and one Firewire 800 port. Is Apple abandoning Firewire 800 just as it has started to take off? I sure hope not. FW800 is an excellent interface, and is especially useful for video professionals due to its increased bandwidth. I myself have a nice external FW800/400 hard drive that I use for back-ups and storage. Not having a FW800 port means the money I invested in this drive is wasted, at least if I were to purchase the current MacBook Pro.
ExpressCard/34 seems a worth addition, although keep in mind you are loosing a PCMCIA card slot. The ExpressCard slot has some rather nice features and hopefully will be the future of notebook external device interfaces. Oddly Apple chose the 34pin slot over the 54 (called ExpressCard/54). Were they really that constrained for space they couldn’t put the larger interface in there? Note: There are Firewire 800 cards for ExpressCard however, they appear to be ExpressCard/54, woops.
The SuperDrive was kind of a shock. It’s slower that its predecessor, the 8x SuperDrive that is present in all newer G4 based PowerBooks. Additionally, this model drops dual layer DVD writing support in addition to its slower speed. Some preliminary research seems to indicate that this model may be thinner that the previous SuperDrive which may account for its reduced feature set. Still somewhat of a disappointment.
Finally, we come to the build-in iSight camera. Normally, I wouldn’t mention this feature, but the little camera built into the top of the top of the MacBook’s screen comes at the cost of 60 lines pixels. Instead of 1440×960 of previous 15″ PowerBooks, we get 1440×900. Personally if I’d wanted an iSight I’d go buy the external one. It’s not such a critical feature that it needs to be integrated into a “Pro” notebook, not at the sacrifice of other functionality.
Apple has actually done some pretty nice thing with the new Intel based machines, especially the iMac. However, I think the MacBook Pro sufferers from a couple of things that prevent me from whipping out my credit card and pulling the trigger. It appears that this MacBook Pro is more of a “iBook Xtreame,” it doesn’t appear targeted at the professional market, and certainly not at the professional video market. The omission of the FW800 port tells us that.
I think this first revision of the MacBook was more for the marketing effect that anything else. It was Apple’s way of announcing their new Intel based machines in a big way with one of their top end classes of machines. I’m quite certain the announcement wouldn’t have had the same impact if they had announced a new Mac Mini instead of a new high-end laptop.
In short: The MacBook Pro suffers from Revision A syndrome, something I’m all to familiar with as I purchased a Rev. A PowerBook 17″ when they were just announced. So lesson learned, I’ll wait for the next revision of the MacBook and see what Apple does in the intervening months to improve the line.