Let’s recap what went on Apple’s “The spotlight turns to notebooks” event. Steve Jobs unveiled new 15-inch MacBook Pro and MacBook, dubbed as “Late 2008” model. They are also described as Aluminum and Glass MacBook and MacBook Pro. Some would call em as “the brick” MacBook Pro; well that sounds stupid, but this whole “brick” thing went out of control. Apple never once mention anything about “brick” or implying anything. The new MacBook and MacBook Pro can now have “unibody” designation, as Apple uses the word over and over.
MacBook is significantly updated , but missing one important feature: FireWire Port. The 15-inch MacBook Pro is also missing one FireWire 400 port, while retaining the FireWire 800 port. Both MacBook and 15-inch MacBook Pro gains new glass screen with LED-backlit display, and large multi-touch glass trackpad.
Overall, it is a significant upgrade for the MacBook and a nice incremental upgrade for the MacBook Pro. The inclusions of nVidia chipset is one of the biggest upgrade for the MacBook and MacBook Pro. The nVidia 9400M chipset adds h.264 support on the hardware level.
Now, whatever happened to the 17-inch MacBook Pro? For those who are complaining about the lack of 17-inch MacBook Pro update needs to take a big cup of “shut the hell up.” Apple is working on it, and it will be announced when it is ready for release. Apple engineers have been exploring different avenues in redesigning the MacBook Pro, and more often they stumbled upon some road blocks. The new unibody MacBook and MacBook Pro feature a reduced size logic-board similar to the one in MacBook Air. Apple engineers are working to find the balance between features and form factor in the notebook line. No coubt that Apple would like to include Intel QX9300 processor (or higher model) in the MacBook Pro. It is likely that the upcoming unibody 17-inch MacBook Pro would have this CPU in the BTO options. Even though the current MacBook and MacBook Pro seem to be running cooler compared to the previous models, there will be some thermal challenges with Intel QX9300 in the MacBook Pro form factor.
It is possible to have the Intel QX9300 in the 15-inch MacBook Pro, but it would make more sense to have it in the 17-in model. The 17-inch MacBook Pro would have some extra surface area to dissipate heat compared to the 15-inch model. Eventually Intel QX9300 or its successors would make their way to the 15-inch MacBook Pro, but we would see it on the 17-inch Model first.
Logically, January 2009 would be the next window for Apple to introduce the unibody 17-inch MacBook Pro. We all have to wait until then.
To quote Ice-T, “Shut up, be happy”
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Ice-T: The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech…Just Watch What You Say
If you bought it through Amazon link above, and I get some kickbacks.
“If you buy the CD, I can buy a MacBook Pro” to paraphrase the great Robert Schimmel.