Review: The new 17-in. MacBook Pro wins over a skeptic

Information technology'south a desktop replacement 'in near every sense of the word'

Contributing Writer, Computerworld |

In that location's something I have to say at the outset of this review: From the time Apple Inc. announced the first 17-in. PowerBook G4 models five years ago, I've e'er been a little prejudiced against them. I'd never have tried to talk someone out of ownership i, but I ever shared my opinion that a laptop with a 17-in. display barely qualifies equally a laptop at all. It seemed to me that the 17-in. PowerBook and its successor, the Intel-based MacBook Pro, was but too big, too bulky and as well heavy -- though I confess I'd never carried 1 effectually.

With that out of the way, let me say this: I have spent a week getting to know Apple tree'southward newest 17-in. MacBook Pro -- the two.half dozen-GHz model with LED backlighting, to be specific -- and I'm still non sure information technology'south the perfect motorcar for me. Much like the ultraslim MacBook Air isn't for everyone, neither is the biggest of the MacBook Pros. But it is one incredibly impressive laptop, and it doesn't seem as bulky as I'd e'er idea.

First, permit me detail what this particular model will set y'all dorsum, should you decide to purchase it. The 17-in. model starts at $2,799 and comes with a 2.v-GHz processor and 2GB of RAM. Opting for the marginally faster 2.6-GHz processor adds $250 to the bottom line. Want 4GB of RAM instead of 2GB? Tack on some other $200 if you buy your memory from Apple. And if y'all're going for broke, you might go the high-resolution screen for another $100. That brings the cost to $iii,349 for a fully tricked-out MacBook Pro. Of class, you're also getting the about powerful laptop Apple tree has ever made.

Information technology's at the opposite finish of the spectrum from the MacBook Air, which sacrifices performance, storage infinite, RAM expansion and a total set of peripheral ports to deliver an amazingly minor and light footprint. Past dissimilarity, the 17-in. MacBook Pro delivers all of the processing ability, RAM options and storage capacity of an iMac -- forth with approximately the aforementioned screen real estate. That makes the large MacBook Pro a desktop replacement in nigh every sense of the word, fifty-fifty if it gives upward some of the ultraportability that the MacBook Air offers in spades.

Though it is approximately twice the weight of the MacBook Air, I can't really say that the 17-in. MacBook Pro is overly heavy. Despite my assumptions nearly its bulk, at 6.6 lb., it is really lighter than I expected. That makes it just over a pound heavier than the xv-in. MacBook Pro and most a pound and a half heavier than the 13-in. MacBook.

Fifty-fifty though information technology isn't overly heavy for its size, there is definitely a size upshot (for ameliorate or worse, depending on your perspective) to this computer. Sitting side by side to a MacBook, it looks huge. The MacBook Pro even seemed big when it was being taken out of the box. I had to laugh at the idea of putting it into the backpack-manner case that has served me for both a MacBook and one of the very kickoff 15-in. MacBook Pros.

The new 17-in. MacBook Pro
The new 17-in. MacBook Pro Photo courtesy Apple.

The best notebook screen in the globe

The LED screen is new to the 17-in. line with this model. I'd seen this technology on the MacBook Air and thought it was impressive so in terms of screen brightness, merely on the MacBook Pro, information technology is simply stunning. Even during the operating system's start-up sequence, when there's nil but a grey screen with a darker grayness Apple tree logo on screen, I found myself staring at it. By the time I'd finished walking through the Setup Assistant, I was every bit as much in love with this display as I was with my first HDTV.

The 17-in. high-resolution model offers a native resolution of 1,920 by ane,200 pixels, the same as the 24-in. iMac and the 23-in. Apple Picture palace Hd Display. (It costs $100 more than the standard fluorescent backlit model, which offers a more minor one,680-past-1,050-pixel native resolution.) The LED backlighting is the i you desire: Information technology'southward vivid, crisp and at total power immediately. With the glossy screen -- an option for MacBook Pro displays -- the brightness and colour luminescence is out of this world. It has to exist seen in person to be appreciated.