New 17" MacBook Pro

http://store.apple.com/us/configure/MB604LL/A?mco=MzA3MTE3NA

For an extra $50, you can get it with a non-glossy screen.

http://store.apple.com/us/configure/MB604LL/A?mco=MzA3MTE3NA

 

For an extra $50, you can get it with a non-glossy screen.

I'm pleased to hear they provide that option for a non-glossy screen. I wish they would do that for the 15" as well. Fortunately I have no need to upgrade my 15".......yet!

They added a 2.93GHz dual core which is nice. Wish they'd offer the 2.0GHz quad core part as well. 256GB SSD factory option too and wider gamut display standard.

They added a 2.93GHz dual core which is nice. Wish they'd offer the 2.0GHz quad core part as well. 256GB SSD factory option too and wider gamut display standard.

And the rumored battery is in there

Interesting if it really comes close to 8 hours.

Yours fully-loaded for only $5,200!

Yours fully-loaded for only $5,200!

Hey I thought you were a P.C. dude type, but you did something eevery Mac geek does - press all the option buttons just for S&Gs When the new Octo Core came out early last year I was able to get it up to $20,000, think I threw 2 30 inch Monitors, a ton of RAM and anything else in it

Actually I have one of the 17" MacBook Pros (1st Generation) and knowing how well it runs, the stock machine is going to be pretty powerful...

And what happens if the battery dies? $500 accessory non-user replaceable? $50 for non-glossy? That was free before. I'm underwhelmed. Hackintosh looks more and more appealing.

And what happens if the battery dies? $500 accessory non-user replaceable?

I think anytime one buys an Apple product one should buy Apple care. I have been very happy with the service and support from AppleCare. There has always been a no questions asked replacement policy. In the last six months I've replaced 2 batteries on my kids' laptops, and the screen on my laptop which had a few dead pixels. No questions asked, immediately for the batteries and 2 hour wait for the screen at the Apple store. Software, video card and OS support and troubleshooting by phone has also been stellar.

And what happens if the battery dies? $500 accessory non-user replaceable?

The non-replaceable gave me pause on the MacBook Air also, not so much as the cost but if something goes wrong while travelling. Apple Care may find itself busy with batteries for awhile. Did not see the $500 replacement cost. Hopefully it will not be that much, but I still like to be able to change a battery on the laptop.

I know they made the laptop slightly thinner, but the weight is the same. I retired my 17" from dive trip travel and will stick with my newer 15" for the time being.

I think anytime one buys an Apple product one should buy Apple care. I have been very happy with the service and support from AppleCare. There has always been a no questions asked replacement policy. In the last six months I've replaced 2 batteries on my kids' laptops, and the screen on my laptop which had a few dead pixels. No questions asked, immediately for the batteries and 2 hour wait for the screen at the Apple store. Software, video card and OS support and troubleshooting by phone has also been stellar.

On Laptops I always get Apple Care because I do not get my way around them as much as the towers. The last tower I did get the Apple Care since I added the RAID Card and Video card to the mix. Apple Care has always been very good to me when I have had to use it. I live near a store which helps, some of them recognize me at this point and I come in with detailed explaination ahead of time including all the things I did to troubleshoot so we can get past the 20 questions quickly since I answer them before they are asked

Hey I thought you were a P.C. dude type

Truth be told, I only owned Macs and Atari computers from '82 to '98 ... these days, I have 8 machines under my direct control:

** 2 XP Desktops

** 1 XP Laptop

** 3 Vista Laptops

** 1 Old Skool PowerPC MacBook Pro (now used by my wife)

** 1 Kubunto Desktop (thought 2008 was the year I was gonna teach myself Unix - never happened)

My principal machine these days is a new Lenovo W500 Thinkpad running 64-bit Vista, Lightroom 64-bit and CS4.

BTW - Lightroom 2.2 for 64-bit Vista is a NIGHTMARE ... I had to roll back to 2.1 ... fortunately I had a copy of the 2.1 installer laying around.

** 1 Old Skool PowerPC MacBook Pro (now used by my wife)

You are a good husband giving the good machine to your wife

My principal machine these days is a new Lenovo W500 Thinkpad running 64-bit Vista, Lightroom 64-bit and CS4.

 

BTW - Lightroom 2.2 for 64-bit Vista is a NIGHTMARE ... I had to roll back to 2.1 ... fortunately I had a copy of the 2.1 installer laying around.

That the Thinkpad for the deceased one? Thanks for the heads up on LR. I am not sure which is the last update I have installed on my Mac. For some reason I think I had started downloading 2.1 but never installed it. Overall I am liking LR.

From Apple Care:

Notebook Owners

Your one-year warranty includes replacement coverage for a defective battery. You can extend your replacement coverage for a defective battery to three years from the date of your notebook purchase with the AppleCare Protection Plan. However, the AppleCare Protection Plan for notebook computers does not cover batteries that have failed or are exhibiting diminished capacity except when the failure or diminished capacity is the result of a manufacturing defect. For MacBook Air owners, Apple offers a battery replacement service. You can purchase replacement batteries for late models of Apple notebooks directly from the Apple Store.

The battery replacement fee for the MBA is $129 + tax. The battery replacement at Apple Store is very subjective to the person you get. I had to TWICE argue with the manager because the genius said the battery was just over used after 1 year. That was for a MBP. I'm still underwhelmed.

Thanks to my clumsy dog and the insurance company I'm about to get a new notebook.

Any more opinions on the new 17" 2.93 matt screen combo ??

mmm lets see now, I'm looking into a new laptop to buy.

MAC = $4500 AUD for a 17inch 2.66GHZ Core2Duo Macbook Pro.

PC =$1800 AUD for a 17inch 2.53 Core2Duo, 1066Mhz FSB 6MB L2 Cache with 4 gigs ram, twin 250 gig hardrives (can be set up as Raid), dedicated 512meg DDR3VRAM graphics.

MMM... I wonder which one I will buy

Sigh Wags, before you start comparing specs, just use one for a few days. While I'm underwhelmed with the latest rendition (the fact is intel processors will always lag behind in implementation at Apple), various things like the multi-function trackpad, lit keyboard and most importantly OSX is worth the premium in price. I suggest you spec out directly comparable products and not just a few specs machines here and there. The MacBook Pro 17 is a complete machine, underwhelming in the processor, but as a package of software and hardware, it's a nice combo.

Well I bet it is really nice to use Drew but not $2500 better.

If it was twice as fast maybe I would think about it but it aint, it's basically the same speed.

Don't like touch pads, have to use an external wheel mouse.

Don't care what it looks like or what software/OS it comes with, just want something to work with graphics on using CS3 FLASH, Illustrator, dreameaver, photoshop, plus email, VOIP, surfing, and video editing on.

Besides it will be outdated in 12 months anyhow.

Anyhow I'll make a post about it once I get it sorted.

Wags

Obviously you know what you want in a machine to fit your needs. What I don't understand is why do you have to disparage Macbooks just because it doesn't fit your criteria. However itt obviously fits many other people's criteria (otherwise it'd be bankrupt).

I have a glossy 17 incher...

I went for the 2.93 but didnt want to wait for the matt screen, the new trackpad takes some getting used to as does the spacing on the keyboard.

I understand Wag's sentiment with regards to looking at the pricing, but once you've used a mac for a few months it really does become part of you. Plus they have a much nicer resale value.

Hey guys, I don't hate them, they do look really nice but they just cost too much to buy for what I need to get my work done.

Just cannot see the sense in spending twice the money on something that will be out dated in a year when a $1,800 PC BOOK Pro will do the same thing and more.

I was also looking at tinkering with making some iphone apps but it's all just too Apple restrictive and I would need a MAC to build them......Flash lite covers more different phones and stuff ...

On another note it looks like flash lite apps will not run on iphones as the phone has not got enough guts to run the programs.

Anyhow I will leave this thread to the happy MAC book pro folks.