Macbook impressions

[sandau]

This is the base model, $1099, White.

Glossy screen isn't bad at all. I really had to look to notice it. I don't like the monster bezel around the screen but the screen is bright bright bright!

Keyboard is a step up in quality from the previous PB and iBook. Nice job.

Magsafe connector is small and discrete with a satisfying click.

This thing runs hot like the fires of Hades. Goodness, DO NOT PUT ON LAP, you will roast your chestnuts, guaranteed. Seriously, this thing is HOT as in pain. This may make me return the thing even though it is pretty fantastic.

Big Trackpad with two fingers on pad and click for right click is fabulous.

Very quiet.

Boot camp runs nicely on this thing. Boot Camp burns to disk specific XP drivers depending on model, so the disc I burned for my iMac didn't work at all. WIndows looks and runs fabulous for whatever a 6 year old OS should look and run on new hardware.

iSight is micro tiny compared to the size of the one on the iMac.

Magnetic latch works. Will it start collecting little metal bits from the dust in the air?

Build quality seems better than iBook. Lots of little design details that make a big difference. It doesn't feel as cheap.

Other than the brutal heat, its a nice NOTEBOOK (not laptop).

[kim kap sol]

Originally posted by sandau
Magnetic latch works. Will it start collecting little metal bits from the dust in the air?


I'd be really scared if I were living in an area with 'little metal bits' floating in the air.

Dunno if you're joking about this or not but 'metal bits' don't normally float. And if you're serious, you might want to pack your bags and move because inhaling metal is hazardous to your health.

[netdog]

"Better" Model Report
White 2.0

Great display.
No whine. VERY quiet.
Heat not bad - coolest running laptop I have had in some time.

Thoroughly impressed.

[shetline]

If you play around with System Preferences/Energy Saver/Options/Processor Performance, can you get the MacBook to run cooler by cranking the CPU down a bit?

[Tomster1300]

Went and test drove one last night (once I finally shoved the nerds away from the table.)

I came away slightly less than impressed. It's certainly thinner and lighter than my daughter's iBook. The screen is brighter but I did not go for the reflective one.....too.....uhm.....reflective. I wasn't a big fan of the flat keys. They seem too large, if that's possible. I had a difficult time not making typos. The biggest disappointment was that it seemed like it took forever to load apps like iPhoto, iMovie and MS Word. Once in iPhoto, the individual photos loaded much slower than I expected. For comparison purposes, I moved over to the iMac and found it to load the same material noticeably faster. I don't know which processor was in this particular one but, either way, it was too slow.

All-in-all, a nice laptop and one I will definitely buy for my daughter as she goes off to college this Fall. I just wasn't blown away. I was expecting some amazing new form factor and all I really got was something pretty damn close to the original. That said, get your butts out there and buy the Hell out of these things! The recent stock drop is killing me!

[jivebaby]

I found the macbook to be blazing fast but I am coming from a g4 12" powerbook. I liked the keyboard and screen too. I think you have to applaud apple for putting so much value in their "low end" laptop. But instead everybody whines about the screen, the premium for black or integrated graphics.
If the proc was a single core I think you would have some basis to complain but overall I think this laptop makes apple's future look bright.

Mike

[Tomster1300]

I'm coming from a 15" G4 aluminum and I honestly don't think the the new Macbook loaded any of the above-referenced apps any quicker than what I'm already used to.

I think I was expecting it to be revolutionary and was a little disappointed to find it merely evolutionary. So the kid gets one of these while I continue to wait for the Blu-ray reading/writing MacBook Pro.

[jivebaby]

Load times are hard-drive limited. You really shouldnt expect them to load faster if the harddrive speed is the same/similar. Application speed seemed to be 2-3 times what I was used to seeing.

[sandau]

Originally posted by Tomster1300
I'm coming from a 15" G4 aluminum and I honestly don't think the the new Macbook loaded any of the above-referenced apps any quicker than what I'm already used to.

I think I was expecting it to be revolutionary and was a little disappointed to find it merely evolutionary. So the kid gets one of these while I continue to wait for the Blu-ray reading/writing MacBook Pro.

how much ram on that machine? Even my iMac (intel) was molasses until I put 2gb ram in it, now its uber fast in OS X even while running windows xp in virtualization mode concurrently.

[Ireland]

Originally posted by sandau


Big Trackpad with two fingers on pad and "click for right click is fabulous" Do you mean when you click the left side of that single button it left clicks, and when you click the right side of the same button it right clicks??

[sandau]

Originally posted by Ireland
Do you mean when you click the left side of that single button it left clicks, and when you click the right side of the same button it right clicks??

no, when you put two fingers on the trackpad and click the button it right clicks. one finger on the trackpad is normal click.

[garyuk]

I noticed there was an article regarding how easy it was to replace the MacBooks hard drive, and it was user freindly.

Does this mean that the MacBook Pro does not have a user replaceable hard drive?

I always thought that was one of the main reasons for buying a Pro version, or it's previous iterations was its ability to be opened up to get access to wireless, hard drive, and memory?

Cheers
Gary

[Ireland]

Originally posted by sandau
no, when you put two fingers on the trackpad and click the button it right clicks. one finger on the trackpad is normal click. That's so cool8)

[gloss]

Originally posted by Ireland
That's so cool8)

It really is.

So is the two-finger scrolling functionality.

[shetline]

Originally posted by Ireland
That's so cool8)
I hope that a driver update comes out soon, or a third-party utility, to do this right-click trick on the 15" MacBook Pro I finally gave in and ordered. It should be nothing but a matter of driver software to make the same thing work on a MacBook Pro.

[Ireland]

Originally posted by shetline
I hope that a driver update comes out soon, or a third-party utility, to do this right-click trick on the 15" MacBook Pro I finally gave in and ordered. It should be nothing but a matter of driver software to make the same thing work on a MacBook Pro. Seen as you do not have this on your MacBook Pro, do you know if it's a new thing to apple notebooks? Was it on the iBook etc?

[sandau]

Originally posted by shetline
I hope that a driver update comes out soon, or a third-party utility, to do this right-click trick on the 15" MacBook Pro I finally gave in and ordered. It should be nothing but a matter of driver software to make the same thing work on a MacBook Pro.

My buddy says it is in his preference pane (mouse and keyboard) and he uses it on his MBP 15".

[>_>]

17: MBP:

http://homepage.mac.com/xidius/temp/prefs.jpg

- Xidius

[shetline]

Originally posted by >_>
17: MBP:

http://homepage.mac.com/xidius/temp/prefs.jpg

- Xidius
Great! Probably just means that the 15" MBP I just looked at isn't fully up-to-date with system updates. I'll know in about a week. :)

[jpennington]

Originally posted by garyuk
I noticed there was an article regarding how easy it was to replace the MacBooks hard drive, and it was user freindly.

Does this mean that the MacBook Pro does not have a user replaceable hard drive?

I always thought that was one of the main reasons for buying a Pro version, or it's previous iterations was its ability to be opened up to get access to wireless, hard drive, and memory?

Cheers
Gary

I upgraded the 80GB 5400RPM on my MBP to a 100GB 7200RPM in about 30 minutes. It was the first time I took apart a mac laptop and it was simple.

Check out the link below, go to the hard drive replacement area and select the quality for the MBP video.

http://eshop.macsales.com/tech_center/index.cfm?page=Video/directory.html

I'm sure it isn't as easy a as MacBook, but it wasn't too bad. Hopefully it will be a one time thing.

[atomicham]

Originally posted by jpennington
I upgraded the 80GB 5400RPM on my MBP to a 100GB 7200RPM in about 30 minutes. It was the first time I took apart a mac laptop and it was simple.


I watched the video, thank you for the link; however, I am curious as to what the warranty implications of disassembling the case are. I realize they will not warranty your new hard drive; however, by doing that, did you void your entire warranty? Maybe a question for my local Apple store?

I don't mind replacing my hard drive myself. I do mind if something happens 3 months down the road and I can't get it repaired under warranty.

[jpennington]

Originally posted by atomicham
I watched the video, thank you for the link; however, I am curious as to what the warranty implications of disassembling the case are. I realize they will not warranty your new hard drive; however, by doing that, did you void your entire warranty? Maybe a question for my local Apple store?

I don't mind replacing my hard drive myself. I do mind if something happens 3 months down the road and I can't get it repaired under warranty.

I called apple twice (sometime you get different answers) and applecare is not voided if you open the machine. They said that obviously the hard drive would not be covered, but everything else still would be. Obviously if you break something while you in the computer and send it in with a new hard drive in it they will not fix it, but otherwise you are fine. Everything is still covered, I made sure of that before I did it.

[Mac Voyer]

I was very impressed with the specs for am fortunate enough to be within a block of an Apple Store. So after work, I have been able to play with them as much as I like. At first blush, they seem as powerful as the iMac and MBP. But I believe there is good reason they are not loaded with the pro app demo that the other machines have. The MB chokes a bit on the iMove and iDVD demo movies. In FR, one the highest res BBC HD video, while playable, is clearly choppy. The reps at the store had no explanation for this behavior. The MB had a gig of ram and nothing else was running at the time. Clearly, there is a performance differentiator that is reflected in the price. CPU is not everything so be very sure about what you need the machine to do for you before your buy. GB worked just fine. But I could not say how Logic Express would perform. No matter how it looks on paper, it is still an iBook level machine. It serves its function well enough. But no one should be swayed from buying a more powerful machine if power is what you need. The MB would make a great secondary machine.

[Placebo]

Originally posted by gloss
It really is.

So is the two-finger scrolling functionality.
If you have mammoth fingers or use your member as a pointing device, does it detect it as one or two fingers?

[Flounder]

Originally posted by Placebo
If you have mammoth fingers or use your member as a pointing device, does it detect it as one or two fingers?

Three fingers silly!

That's how you invoke expose :D

[shetline]

Originally posted by Placebo
If you have mammoth fingers or use your member as a pointing device, does it detect it as one or two fingers? I could see big fingers tripping up the way the trackpad works. Your member? Same as using your pinky, I'd think. ;) :lol:

[gloss]

It can get confused if you really push your fingers down on the trackpad. All it needs is a light touch of the fingertips and it works fine.

[Outsider]

I also read somewhere it senses the shape, not just the area to determine if it's 2 fingers or not.

[jpennington]

I'm on my 15" MBP right now and that option isn't there. :( :( :(

[sandau]

Originally posted by jpennington
I'm on my 15" MBP right now and that option isn't there. :( :( :(

have you run the latest SMC firmware update from the 16th? Maybe its packaged in there.

[jpennington]

Yes I have. Software update says everything is up to date.

I ran have the latest firmware and the lastest SMC update (a couple days ago).

Anyone have this feature on a MBP15?

[Ti Fighter]

mine just got here, oh man oh man, black is amazing

[Messiah]

Originally posted by jpennington
Yes I have. Software update says everything is up to date.

I ran have the latest firmware and the lastest SMC update (a couple days ago).

Anyone have this feature on a MBP15?

I've got all the latest updates as well and it isn't available on my machine either!

[Danosaur]

The two-finger on trackpad equals right click was first innovated by iScroll. I have that on my 12" Powerbook. It's been out for years now: http://www-users.kawo2.rwth-aachen.de/~razzfazz/

[jpennington]

Originally posted by Ti Fighter
mine just got here, oh man oh man, black is amazing

You got your black macbook that you ordered from apples online store?

That is awesome. I ordered mine the night it was released, but it still says won't ship until the 25th. Did your order update status?

-Justin

[Ti Fighter]

Originally posted by jpennington
You got your black macbook that you ordered from apples online store?

That is awesome. I ordered mine the night it was released, but it still says won't ship until the 25th. Did your order update status?

-Justin

I got mine from mac mall, ordered on tuesday with two day shipping and it shipped out last night, and suprise!

Came before my 2 gig ram I ordered :)

[bryan.fury]

Originally posted by jpennington
I'm on my 15" MBP right now and that option isn't there. :( :( :(

same here :(

[jpennington]

That sucks, I would have ordered mine from them if I knew that. I just assumed apple would send out to their own customers before resellers.

[Ti Fighter]

as did I, but at macmall I paid no tax and will get $100 rebate, so that’s why I went with them, and it was a surprise it shipped so fast.

[sandau]

well, its been a few more days and I've had some time with this thing.

Doesn't run nearly as hot as i first thought, maybe it was all the CD reads... but this isn't bad.

I'm very impressed by this keyboard, i absolutely love it now. Wireless range is fabulous. First time I've had a solid connection at my dining room table.

Battery life is surprising. I've been here almost an hour on wireless using a bluetooth mouse and wireless, and my time left on battery says 3:06. I did the drain, let it sit and fully recharge right away so maybe that helped. oops, now it says 3:08...going up? :D

I added 2gb of patriot ram, this thing flies. I don't plan on gaming on it so the integrated video is a no biggie. I use my gaming xp box for that. I usually keep 512mb allocated to XP in Parallels, which is fabulous to be able to switch to play online poker.

So far, its solid. I did have some initial CD eject issues but after some ins and outs it seems to have fixed itself.

love it.

[jpennington]

Just got my macbook and it does have the two finger click option :). It is so much better than a second mouse button.

[gloss]

Having used it in Mac OS and XP I have to agree.

[maclayman]

Did anyone run FCP on the new MacBook? Im really courius to know how it will perform with this particular app.

Best...

[jpennington]

Nope, but if you want to send me a copy I will be glad to :)

[blackbird_1.0]

I'm slowly getting used to the new keyboard and trackpad. This 'Book is awesome. :D

[jpennington]

I like the new keyboard. I'm sure most people here type ridiculously fast, so I don't I'm alone with the following problem. Do your fingers every pull up on the other keys on the MBP or powerbook? Maybe once in a couple thousand keystrokes it happens to be. It doesn't pull the key off or anything but it throws off my typing.

[shetline]

Originally posted by >_>
17: MBP:

http://homepage.mac.com/xidius/temp/prefs.jpg
I just got my 15" MBP, and apparently, unlike with the 17", that "secondary click" option isn't there. :(

Rumor has it from someone running a beta 10.4.7 that this option is on the way, however, so that 15" MBP owners aren't left out on a nice feature that both MB non-Pro users and 17" MPB users get.

[sandau]

Originally posted by shetline
I just got my 15" MBP, and apparently, unlike with the 17", that "secondary click" option isn't there. :(

Rumor has it from someone running a beta 10.4.7 that this option is on the way, however, so that 15" MBP owners aren't left out on a nice feature that both MB non-Pro users and 17" MPB users get.

I think i read that it IS there, just doesn't appear if you have one of the other options selected. Try selecting 'clicking' and see if it shows up.

[baygbm]

This is my fourth day with the black model and it is hot… No, seriously, as has been noted above, this may be the hottest laptop on the planet; the underside of the Macbook quickly gets hot enough to fry an egg!

Given past Powerbooks, the keyboard looks unusual but the feel and usability is perfectly fine; I’ve experienced no feelings of displacement or adjustment from the moment I started touch typing.

The screen is bright! Much brighter than my black G3 laptop. (btw, what does one do with an old G3 laptop?) Screen reflection is a nonissue… but the screen does feel small; it’s wide enough but too short!

The one other complaint, I have about this consumer Powerbook (will the Macbook name really catch on?) is the puny speakers. Even at maximum output, the sound from this machine is lame. My old G3 Powerbook could sing circles around this new Mac.

I needed to buy on the spot so I had to take the stock model from the store shelf. They should ship different (obviously desirable) configurations to the Apple stores. Not everyone wants a 512k/80gig set up; if they had a 1 or 2 gig of RAM model I certainly would have bought one of those instead. I expect to upgrade the memory soon.

Critics of this machine need to remember that it is not supposed to be the Ultimate laptop. It is supposed to be an inherenlty limited consumer machine that does not compete with the Macbook Pro.

For what it is, I score this Mac 8/10.

[Aquatic]

I've been thinking about that magnetic latch and I'm kind of getting paranoid as to its data loss potential, with credit cards, other things with magnetic strips, and disks. Plus does it really stay closed? Seems like a bad idea on the face . I also wonder how the MagSafe is working out. I really have to get my ass to an Apple Store some time and kick the tires on these things!

[sandau]

Originally posted by Aquatic
I've been thinking about that magnetic latch and I'm kind of getting paranoid as to its data loss potential, with credit cards, other things with magnetic strips, and disks. Plus does it really stay closed? Seems like a bad idea on the face . I also wonder how the MagSafe is working out. I really have to get my ass to an Apple Store some time and kick the tires on these things!

yes, it stays very closed. Cool idea, but i have some of the same concerns...keep wallet off macbook..

[blackbird_1.0]

I'm confused about the "Drag Lock" option. If I want to drag a folder, I click on it twice, right? But see, instead the folder just opens. :\

[Joey]

I don't have my MacBook in front of me... but I do know that you can tap twice... but keep your finger on the pad for the second tap and you can drag the window, folder, etc... around.

[aplnub]

I went by my CompUSA today to look at the new MacBooks. The white ones were nice but the border around the screen was huge. The black MacBook was horrid looking. They don't have the color/gloss/texture right on it. Something about it. That and the fact when I first saw it I thought one of the ding bat Comp guys had stuck a HP notebook in the Mac section by accident.

I couldn't hear a processor whine either.

The screen was nice and not as bad as I thought it was going to be when I heard it was glossy.

If I hadn't purchased a MBP I would have one. Now I am just going to wait for the subnotebook. :)

[Joey]

Originally posted by aplnub
I went by my CompUSA today to look at the new MacBooks. The white ones were nice but the border around the screen was huge. The black MacBook was horrid looking. They don't have the color/gloss/texture right on it. Something about it. That and the fact when I first saw it I thought one of the ding bat Comp guys had stuck a HP notebook in the Mac section by accident.

I couldn't hear a processor whine either.

The screen was nice and not as bad as I thought it was going to be when I heard it was glossy.

If I hadn't purchased a MBP I would have one. Now I am just going to wait for the subnotebook. :)

I love the black MacBook. Each of the things you don't like (color/gloss/texture)... I love. So far as the color... well... black is black. A glossy black notebook would be a nightmare (think iPod). It would show every single finger print and anything else. The white is much more forgiving when it comes to that so glossy is more suited to white. And regarding the texture... I love it... it almost feels like metal when you run your hand across it. It's smooth and has a "tough" feel to it.

[aplnub]

Originally posted by Joey
I love the black MacBook. Each of the things you don't like (color/gloss/texture)... I love. So far as the color... well... black is black. A glossy black notebook would be a nightmare (think iPod). It would show every single finger print and anything else. The white is much more forgiving when it comes to that so glossy is more suited to white. And regarding the texture... I love it... it almost feels like metal when you run your hand across it. It's smooth and has a "tough" feel to it.

*Warning* Fall out of love with the black MacBook - *Warning over*

:smokey: :lol:

[gloss]

Originally posted by maclayman
Did anyone run FCP on the new MacBook? Im really courius to know how it will perform with this particular app.

Best...

It's about on par with the MBP and the dual processor G5 PowerMac.

[Catman4d2]

tried one out at the St. johns center Apple store here in florida...

cant believe how thin and light it is all the pics on the web do both models no justice..... until the transition is complete and most apps are universal,and these heat problems are solved i`ll stick to my Ibook g4 maybe when its time for me to buy again the macbooks will be up to 3.0 ghz. :)

[k squared]

Originally posted by Catman4d2
.. until the transition is complete and most apps are universal,and these heat problems are solved ...

Except that these "heat problems" will not be solved. MacBooks are thin notebooks with fast processors. My 400 MHz Titanium G4 was and is just as hot as my 2.0 GHz MB They only difference is that the Titanium's fan is a lot louder.

[jpennington]

The closest apple store to me is at the st johsn town center too :) cool.

See my sig for my computers. My macbook is slower than the rest, I notice a difference is some applications. Filemaker, photoshop, conceptdraw, etc. All non-universal but they are still faster on the MBP.

-Justin

PS: MBP has 2 gigs and 7200 RPM where MB has 1gb and 5400rpm, that is a major difference.

[sandau]

Re-route current thread here--> http://forums.appleinsider.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=63535

[lundy]

(Mod Note: Inappropriate new thread on identical topic merged into this existing thread.)