First Look: Pairing the new 2010 17 inch MacBook Pro with iPad

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Comments

  • Reply 41 of 86
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nasdarq View Post


    I would think that import taxes apply also to the U.S. machines - as all Apple computers are imported from China. Not sure whether the testing costs are higher in the U.S. or Europe, given in particular that the EU-wide compliance is certified by one authority, similarly as in the U.S. The only difference between the EU and U.S. price is essentially in the risk calculated by Apple in regard to the exchange rate fluctuation.



    Sure, but I'm pretty sure there are different taxes involved. Apple being an American company importing to the US is different than Apple being an American company importing to Brazil. For example, the PS2 only officially became available in Brazil last year at prices you can buy the PS3 for on the gray market so I'd say there are definitely fees and laws associated with outside companies trying to profits abroad.
  • Reply 42 of 86
    aaarrrggghaaarrrgggh Posts: 1,609member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Soskok View Post


    Hope Apple understands that sophisticated sync software has to go bounded with the system. I have many colleagues that use 2 macs as i do. Every one finds it strange that iSync only helps with contacts, calendars and such. What about full HDD sync?



    Either learn to write a cron script with rsync or get Unison for two-way synchronization. Easy, effective, reliable thanks to OSX's Unix origins.



    Quote:

    17" MBP? throw in just a couple more notes and get yourself a Mac Pro/iMac if you don't need a portable workstation. iPad? its entertainment only, unless your work is to reed rss and send emails. MMP + iPad? it just doesn't seem like a good working couple. its more like "work hard, play hard" but psp is just a little bit better on the latter.



    I'll be replacing my 17" MBP with a couple ipad's, a MacMini, and my wife's 13" MBP. Can't justify $2600 to my partners for a laptop when they get a $1500 Dell. (Interestingly, the Apple Care is what kills the sale.). Apple will get about the same money, but the "High End" gets replaced with "trinkets"
  • Reply 43 of 86
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    Note: "My shiny new MBP is currently stuck in China due to the Eyjafjallajokull ash cloud."



    Oops.

    Thanks Solipsism
  • Reply 44 of 86
    zunxzunx Posts: 620member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nasdarq View Post


    What do you mean? Are there conversion issues with keynote (or pages) files on the iPad and the Mac?



    On the other hand, I understand that doc or ppt files may not be properly converted by the iPad's iWork applications, similarly as they are not always properly converted by the Mac OS itself.



    iWork files created on a Mac are not compatible with iWork on iPad and vice versa. Just try files with movies, animations, transitions, backgrounds, tables, special fonts, audio, etc. Google for it to find more information.



    Likewise with Office files created on a Mac or an iPad, even with DataViz Documents to Go (to be released soon).
  • Reply 45 of 86
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by synp View Post


    I don't get the idea of pairing a big notebook with an iPad.



    Basically, they're saying that you can get the big notebook, because its portability is now less important - you have the iPad for the portability. So you don't need to lug around the big notebook when you're going home or on a business trip, just take the iPad with you.



    But if the notebook has become stationary, why do we even need it to be a laptop? An iMac or even a Mini with a screen will give you:
    • A better keyboard

    • An even bigger screen

    • A real mouse

    • A bigger, faster hard disk

    • A lower price

    • All that without fiddling with a lot of little cables - Mac laptops don't have docks.

    All this, of course, depends on the iPad fulfilling all you mobile needs. If it doesn't, well, you're stuck lugging that 17" laptop around.



    I tend to agree. I will be upgrading my Mac Mini instead of my MacBook Pro and get me an iPad for my portable needs. I see no need anymore for a laptop which for my needs is actually bulky and weighty even as a MacBook Air or whatever. I use my iPhone all the time with Bento but I need a larger screen. However I will still need to have a proper desktop computer though so the Mac Mini and the iPad is the perfect solution.
  • Reply 46 of 86
    nchianchia Posts: 124member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Like other new MacBook Pro models, the 17" now ships with the right angle MagSafe power connector similar to the MacBook Air. While you can still use existing adapters with square MagSafe connectors, the 17" and 15" models' power adapters supply 85 watts, so if you use older versions (or the 60 watt adapter intended for the 13" MacBook Pro), it will take longer to charge. The new MagSafe design looks a bit slicker, directs the power cable backward, and appears to be a little more resistant to wear and tear than the original square design.

    [ View this article at AppleInsider.com ][/c]



    Actually, the "older" 15" and 17" models also use a 85W power adapter, except for the entry model which did not have a discrete graphics card:

    [MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2009) and (15-inch, 2.53 GHz, Mid 2009) - Technical Specifications]
  • Reply 47 of 86
    bugsnwbugsnw Posts: 717member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anonymouse View Post


    I still think the iMac + iPad makes more sense for most people than MBP 17" + iPad, and would have made for a more sensible article. The premise of this article seems to be, buy 2 portables so you can leave one at home.



    This was exactly the conundrum I faced with a client who wanted to move to Mac. The iPad was a definite. It was a matter of MacPro, MBP or iMac to go along with it.



    In the end, after considering the activities of office and home + traveling, we opted for the 2 iMac (one for work, one for home) + iPad. We'll see how this formula worked out when the iPads arrive, but after going over all the scenarios multiple times, I'm sure we made the right choice.



    Personally, I always shoot for top-end iMacs and need something else for portability. The iPod touch was fun, but the iPad is going to fit the bill perfectly. I think.



    The bonus is this saves me a lot of money while giving me the the excellent advantages of both.



    Bad news for Apple in that they are going to lose a MBP sale. I'm betting that I would rarely grab a laptop over the iPad when needing mobility
  • Reply 48 of 86
    As soon as I get a $3000 gift card to the Apple store I'll get a 17" MBP and iPad
  • Reply 49 of 86
    welshdogwelshdog Posts: 1,897member
    Pairing an iPad with anything has one sticky problem: A little thing called a file system. Moving your work between the two systems is a pain. You can't mount the iPad nor mount the MBP. You can't even use something like Air Sharing yet. Email is all you gotz. That will get old.
  • Reply 50 of 86
    rnb2rnb2 Posts: 61member
    This article does start from an odd supposition, but the basic idea is sound enough. My biggest beef is that, for less money than the i5 17" MBP, you can buy an i7 iMac that runs rings around it, and has a screen that has quite a few more pixels than the 1920x1200 MBP's. If we're already looking at an iPad as a replacement for much of what a laptop normally does, then what is the point of spending that much on a portable computer at all?



    I personally have recently moved from a Mac Pro to the i7 iMac, and still have my unibody 2GHz MacBook for portable use. However, as soon as there's an iPad with 128GB of storage, I'm likely to ditch the MacBook. I only use my MacBook for photo storage while traveling, and have a 128GB SSD dedicated to that task (with a separate 80GB SSD for the OS and Apps). Once the iPad hits that mark, I'll put the 128GB SSD in a data storage device (Sanho HyperDrive or similar) to maintain redundancy, and stop carrying a laptop.



    So, as I said, not a bad idea in theory, but I don't really see the 17" MBP as the best application for it. You end up spending an awful lot of money to get a machine whose performance is blown away by a good desktop, and for less money, with the intention of not using its portability except in the narrow set of circumstances that the iPad can't cover in some way.
  • Reply 51 of 86
    Hi,

    I travel and work on distant locations in the film business. So at least half the year I am away from home, needing a laptop. Your suggestion would work well for me: have the biggest possible screen on my (hotel room) desk, and yet have the ipad to carry around daily, watch the movies on the airplane, etc.

    The lack of express card on the 15" macbook pro is really galling. It's supposed to be a 'pro' machine. Most 'pro's' are using things like esata, compact flash (especially now that DSLR's) are shooting video and memory cards like the Sony's that directly plug into express card slots. All Apple had to do was offer the silly SD card to express card adapter, instead of caving in to periodicals (mostly PC) that carped about the lack of photo card slots. Now, more than ever, the compact flash is essential. A shame, and one that will probably force me to get a 17". does anyone know an adapter or other way to plug a compact flash reader into the SD card slot?



    thanks!
  • Reply 52 of 86
    aslamaslam Posts: 12member
    I have two questions...



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Third party RAM dealers will sell you an 8GB kit for around $350, plus they're give you $50 back for providing your 2x2GB parts.



    1. Which RAM suppliers will give you a trade in rebate (as suggested in the article)



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Apple's upgrade fees for SSD drives are very expensive, but that's largely because the drives are still very pricey. Even so, the company's upgrade prices are close to the component costs of drives you can find online, so if you pay Apple's upgrade fees, you're essentially throwing away the value of the stock drive (nearly $100).



    2. Where would I find a 512GB SSD drive? Does anyone have a Make and Model number they can supply me? I have looked at the usual suspects (best buy, future shop, etc.) but I cannot find any 512GB SSD drive for sale independently.



    Thanks!

    Aslam
  • Reply 53 of 86
    charelcharel Posts: 93member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by gotApple View Post


    Lower price tag? Where? Here in Europe the 17" MBP costs 2249 euros. That is around 2900USD... In the States it costs 2299USD. So 600USD less than here in Europe. Why is that?



    If you add the 20% or so of VAT you come out at US$ 2760.

    Apple also has to take into account the uncertain changes in the exchange rates of the US $ vs the Euro currencies.

    In addition they have to take into account the fact that the European market is still made up of many different languages and business practices. $140 is not all that much to account for that.
  • Reply 54 of 86
    mac31mac31 Posts: 44member
    What I'd like to know, is what stand they were using for the iPad in those photos. It looks slick.
  • Reply 55 of 86
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by aslam View Post


    I have two questions...



    1. Which RAM suppliers will give you a trade in rebate (as suggested in the article)





    OWC is offering $60 for your two 2GB RAM sticks when you buy RAM from them:



    http://eshop.macsales.com/Customized...atecenter.html





    I am replacing one of my two 17" MBPs with an iPad for an upcoming business trip. It is a trip carrying my backpack with 13 lbs of MBP! For most of my uses, I need two. For this one, I'll be mostly playing music with one and the iPad is so much lighter to carry. Will be interesting to see how well the iPad's iPod works compared to iTunes. I've done a few test runs and it seems to crash more often than iTunes. ::fingers crossed::



    Ciao. Joel.



    PS I am so looking forward to the i7 MBP to go with my i7 iMac! One of these days... .
  • Reply 56 of 86
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by aslam View Post


    1. Which RAM suppliers will give you a trade in rebate (as suggested in the article)



    edit: Pipped by jrhall. Welcome to the forum, jrhall.



    Quote:

    2. Where would I find a 512GB SSD drive? Does anyone have a Make and Model number they can supply me? I have looked at the usual suspects (best buy, future shop, etc.) but I cannot find any 512GB SSD drive for sale independently.



    Google Shopping — http://www.google.com/products?q=512...,000&scoring=p



    I don't know which brand(s) Apple uses.
  • Reply 57 of 86
    aslamaslam Posts: 12member
    @solipsism and @jrhall: Awesome... thanks for these links!! And so quickly too... gotta love good communities.



    If anyone finds out which brand of drive Apple uses, please post it. I'm curious.



    Thanks,

    Aslam
  • Reply 58 of 86
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by aslam View Post


    @solipsism and @jrhall: Awesome... thanks for these links!! And so quickly too... gotta love good communities.



    If anyone finds out which brand of drive Apple uses, please post it. I'm curious.



    Thanks,

    Aslam

    "Unfortunately SSDs [...] appear to only be sourced from Samsung or Toshiba. Despite the Intel lovefest elsewhere in the MacBook Pro, you still can?t get an X25-M officially sanctioned by Apple. One of these days I expect Apple will get onboard the SSD train, but until then you?re better off sticking with the hard drive and upgrading to an SSD on your own."
    The review is worth a read.
  • Reply 59 of 86
    RAM



    Yes, OWC http://macsales.com/ is excellent for whatever: RAM, HDs etc. Superb Customer Service! As of now, they don't seem to have 512GB SSD 2.5" as seen here http://bit.ly/dmgIwj



    Also, OWC's RAM ( not generic, but same as Apple, Samson?) is Lifetime Warranty, Advanced Replacement! Apple's is only 3 years with Apple Care, if I am not mistaken...



    SSD vs 7200 RPM



    Has anyone see a good article comparing 512GB SSD 2.5 and 7200 RPM on this latest MBP 17', all maxed out with BTO...?!



    I doubt that SSD would give it an Instant ON, ala iPhone and iPad... My PB G4, 1.67, 2GB, 10.4.11 takes 1.5 min to Start Up, a little to Restart! The battery is a joke, cause it's old. That long Restart/Startup is annoying.



    With the 8-9 hrs on the New MBP 17, I won't have to Restart/Startup to save battery life, thus not too many 1.5 min to Start Up, a little to Restart!



    Still I wonder how much faster SSD is vs. 7200 RPM with Restart/Startup and all else, including HEAT, noise, crashes!!!?!!?!



    Apple implies a greater DURABILITY with SSD on their BTO page!!!



    My use would be for Final Cut Express + Logic Audio!!! Would SSD run those faster than 7200 RPM HD, and would it help with battery life?



    I probably would be better off with 7200 RPM now, and do SSD later when the Prices fall considerably, and maybe get even greater capacity! Maybe there will even be 1 TB 7200 RPM by then?



    With SuperDuper, it would be a snap to Clone the HDs and swap them!



    Airpot



    I have an Airpot Extreme (looks UFO) that I bought in 2003... My RR ISP is about 10MB Down, on a good day! In that context, is there any advantage to getting the Latest Airport Extreme (I don't remember the letters)... If I get the latest one, I could use it with MBP 17', and old one with PB G4, 1.67, 10.4.11... But, I also want to Network them, so, I guess I'd need to have them on the same Airport..., right?!



    As to MBP + iPad...



    I wish it was possible to use iPad as 2nd Monitor with MBP! And why stop there? Tethering for MBP + iPad + iPhone + International Roaming!!! Hey, dreaming is allowed, right?!



    HOW DO I REQUEST A TOPIC FROM AI?



    On an UNRELATED Note... A Topic Request for AI Forum!!! Sorry about the Off Topic, it's just that I don't know if there is a Proper way to Request a Topic!!!



    I'd love to see an article here, on AI Forum, comparing the latest Dreamweaver to iWeb...



    I hope that my Dreamweaver 8 will run on my New MBP 17, when I get it with the latest iPhone this Summer! If not, I'd have to pay $500 for the Latest Dreamweaver, or switch to iWeb... But, I already have Hosting with GoDaddy, and how would iWeb work with that, and my multiple Domains?



    I just don't want to get caught in the cross-fire between Apple and Adobe! I don't do Flash, but I like how simple Dreamweaver 8 is for my limited needs, and GoDaddy has 24/7 Phone Support, that gives me a peace of mind...



    Hope AI Forum folks are reading this, and will address those Qs. I suspect that I am not the only one with such Qs.
  • Reply 60 of 86
    daharderdaharder Posts: 1,580member
    For now, I find pairing my iPad 64gb (customized with decal, lightly textured clear-coat, and matte screen protector) with my Palm Pre Plus (Hotspot) the best way to keep things nice and (reliably) mobile until my (probably less reliable) AT&T-based iPad 64gb/3g arrives next week.



    We'll See How It All Works Out...



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