After two weeks of waiting, my MacBook Pro finally arrived last week. The MacBook Pro is the first portable Intel-based Mac, the successor the the PowerBook laptop computer. So, here’s yet another MacBook Pro Review.
Specification
- MacBook Pro 15”
- Intel Core Duo 2 GHz
- 2GB RAM
- 100GB @ 5400 rpm Hard disk
- ATI Radeon X1600 (256MB VRAM)
I ordered the MacBook Pro to be upgraded to 2GB RAM and 100GB @ 7200 rpm. Apparently, someone at Apple forgot to put the hard disk upgrade. I couldn’t wait another 2 weeks to get a new laptop, I decided to take the one without 5400 rpm.
You probably know the MacBook Pro’s design is very similar to PowerBook G4, only slightly thinner. It comes with a very thin and attractive package just like all other Apple products.
Initial Setup
Turning the computer on will take me to a welcome screen and took me to the initial setup. It will ask for my location, .Mac information, Migration Assistant, Wifi settings, Registration. Migration Assistant makes it easy to upgrade, it will transfer files folders, network settings, user accounts from your old mac into the new one.
I did not want to use software update because I wish to keep my MacBook pro clean. My old mac is very messy, too much files I don’t really need anymore. I will transfer my files from old mac using Windos sharing (SMB/CIFS) later on.
Once the initial setup is finished, I ran software update to upgrade Mac OS X and iLife 06. It’s a few hundred megabytes upgrade so while waiting for the update to finish. I installed some essential softwares.
Calibrating The Battery
The next thing I need to do is to calibrate the battery of the MacBook Pro to get the battery functioning at it’s fullest capacity. According to page 24 on MacBook Pro User’s Guide, to calibrate the battery you need to follow these steps:
- Plug in the power adapter and fully charge your MacBook Pro battery until the light on the power adapter plug changes to green and the Battery icon in the menu bar indicates that the battery is fully charged.
- Allow the battery to rest in the fully charged state for two hours or longer. You may use your computer during this time as long as the adapter is plugged in.
- Disconnect the power adapter with the MacBook Pro on and start running it from the battery. You may use your computer during this time. When your battery gets low, you will see the low battery warning dialog on the screen.
- Continue to keep your computer turned on until it goes to sleep. Save your work and close all applications when the battery gets low and before the system goes to sleep.
- Turn off the computer or allow it to sleep for five hours or longer.
- Connect the power adapter and leave it connected until the battery is fully charged
again.
Firmware update
5 hours passed, I woke the computer up and now it’s time to upgrade the firmware. Unlike PowerPC Macs, firmware updates do not appear automatically in Software Update, so you must download them manually. The instruction to update the firmware is available at http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=303364.
Performance
After 2 years of using iBook G4 1 GHz, The speed of the MacBook Pro really amazes me. My MacBook Pro only took 25 seconds to boot. Starting from power on until login window. Most Binary Applications only took 1 - 2 bounces in the dock icon. iPhoto with 2000 images in the library took only a few seconds to launch and load. Spotlight search results appear immediately.
I really cannot give a good comparison benchmark because I don’t have a recent PowerBook G4, Comparing an iBook with a MacBook Pro is like dueling a tiger and a cat. Here’s a XBench comparisons:
I try to install only applications that are already universal binary in order to enjoy the speed. However, some applications such as Adobe software, Microsoft Office, Filemaker Pro are not universal binary. Running them require Rosetta, a lightweight dynamic translation emulator for Mac OS X.
To test the performance of Rosetta, I try running Google Earth Beta for Mac which is not a universal binary and will run via Rosetta. It took ~ 15 bounces to launch Google Earth, which is very slow. However, the application is still usable even though it won’t be as fast as the latest PowerBook G4.
Display
The MacBook Pro display is 15.4-inch (diagonal) with 1440 x 900 native resolution. The MacBook Pro display is really bright, setting the brightness to maximum is too bright. Going back to iBook makes the iBook display really dark and unpleasant.
Keyboard and Trackpad
The MacBook Pro comes with the same keyboard as the PowerBook / iBook. Just like PowerBook, the MacBook Pro is equipped with an illuminated keyboard that is adjusted by the ambient light sensing (ALS) system according to the available light in the room. It doesn’t really matter to me because I touch-typed but it makes the keyboard really pretty in the dark. The green light on caps lock button is greener than usual and I think it looks better than the old green light.
The trackpad is wider then PowerBook 15” / iBook which is nice. You can scroll vertically/horizontally in a window by placing two fingers on the trackpad. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have a right click function when two fingers are placed when clicking. On iBook, I used iSCroll 2 which allows me to right click from the trackpad.
Issues
There are a lot of reported issues on the MacBook Pro on the web. Most of the complaints are noise related issues. DailyTech reported that the noise issue had been addressed and MacBook Pro with serial number starting with W8611 don’t have the noise issues.
My MacBook Pro’s serial number start with W8613 and I do not have the whine issues. I can hear some noises from the fan if I put my ear really close to the laptop and it only happened when the cpu usage is very high. I believe this is normal, since I asked a few PowerBook owner and they do occasionally hear the fan.
I do have an issue with Airport unable to get an IP address via DHCP from my Linksys Wireless Router. This issue happened only when I start the computer, and it is not a big issue for me because turning off the airport and quickly turning it back on will connect the laptop to the wifi and receive an IP address from the dhcp server. Once connected to the wifi, it will no longer have issue until the next reboot.
Another issue with the MacBook Pro is it is very HOT. Coming from an iBook G4 1 GHz, the bottom of the laptop do get extremely hot. This is an old problem though, my friends with PowerBook G4 also experience the same issue.
The optical drive that comes with the MacBook Pro is slower than the latest PowerBook G4, which came with 8x dvd writing speed and dual-layer burning support, the MacBook Pro only comes with 4x dvd burning speed and no support for dual-layer burning. I never use a dual-layer disc during my entire life, so I have no problem. However, burning at 4x speed took really long. For now, I will use my other PC to equipped with 8x dvd burning rather than using my MacBook Pro to burn dvd.
The MacBook Pro is not equipped with a 56k modem. This could be an issue for people who live in a place where broadband connection is hard to get. For people who need a modem, you will need to get an Apple USB modem available in Apple Stores.
Conclusion
I really love my MacBook Pro, after using it for a week I really don’t wanna go back to an iBook. Professionals who use software such as Adobe softwares, Microsoft Office, etc should wait until those company release a universal binary version of their software.
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