Considering a MBP, some questions.

Im looking for a laptop replacement and they all look rather ugly (the cheap ones) cept for the zepto but that has a "cheap" keyboard. My mate keeps telling me to buy a MBP and im starting to consider buying one (15.4 inch) but im not sure yet. If i do get one then itl be next month when leopard is released. Should i wait until after january instead because of some hardware update? will they lower prices then, let me know. Some questions i wanted to know aswell are the following:

1. I use msn a lot and there is a msn for mac but i dont think it has support for voice clips or does it/will it and when? i use voice clips a lot im not botherd about video chat. so can i use parallels with the newest msn messenger and have no problems doing voice clips and it will recognize my sound drivers etc.? i know there is a program called amsn but i tried it on ubuntu and it doesnt look very nice at all.

2a. how much hd space does parallels use up if i was to install vista on it and also whats the space for xp

2b. how much hd space does bootcamp use up if i install xp on it (i want to use xp for gaming and parallels for msn messenger)

I want to know these 2 things because i dont know what hd size i want 120 or 160, will they put in the hardrive at the apple store if i ask for 160 instead of 120 or thats only a order from the web thing.

Also with the ram is 2gb enough to run leopard parallels and bootcamp.

3. I also want to watch a lot of videos on the laptop so should i consider a glossy screen instead of a matte one because of the quality difference ? i alredy have a glossy screen and it does get very bright in the night so i have to decrease the brightness past 0 using a program which can decrease the gamma, the same program should be able to run under parallels i hope if the screen is bright like the one i currently have.

4. is the geforce 128mb good enough for excellent video performance (sharp pictures, no pixelation) running hd videos etc. and for gaming also (running newer games at acceptable details) or should i get the 256 card with the 2.4 ghz processor (i dont really want to spend that much money, the less the better).

5. can i use the laptop on my lap without burning my pants lol.

That is all for now.

 

It's spelled: Leopard

 

*oh damn i should of spell checked it all first!* fixed now

 

I would wait for leopard at this time, but not wait till January. There will always be an update around the corner, so its just best to buy when you need it.
Everything should be detected in windows.
As far as HD space, both bootcamp and parrallel take a couple hundred megs, but xp takes i think around 3-4 gigs, plus you wil make a partition for windows size depends on what you want.
I have the low end mbp with 120gb and 128mb of vram. I wish i had the 160gb. I recommend getting this upgrade atleast. As for gaming if its just something you do once in awhile save yourself the money on the better model. If you really like to game it might be worth it for you to spend the extra on the higher end card.
As for the heat, if you are just surfing and doing normal tasks its fine o your lap. If you are gaming it could get a bit hot.

 

thanks for the reply. yes gaming wont be a priority and il be doing it now and then, i heard theres a program called smc fan control but does this run under windows aswell? since il be gaming on windows and want the option to speed up the fans when only gaming but il need smc to work on windows then. will speeding up and slowing down your mbp fans damage them?

if anyone using msn on parallels let me know about my previous question please thanks.

p.s. il get the 160gb, now to decide on the ram...

 

If you upgrade the ram dont buy it from apple. Get it from newegg or somewhere like that and install it yourself.

I've read that the settings you make in smc in os x will be active when running windows.
I can't say for sure since i havent tried it

 

Yes, if you boot into OS X first and then set the fan speed, you can then go to Windows and the fan speed will remain the same. However, you can't change the fan speed unless you boot back into OS X.

As for the RAM, 2 GB of RAM will work but its best to get more than 2 GB of RAM if you want to run Parallels well with Vista + Aero. As myshkin stated, you will be able to get RAM much cheaper in places such as Newegg.com instead of from Apple.

 

can i ask to install 1X2GB instead of 2X1GB from the apple store? how much extra do you think itl cost me?

 

Gaming or NOT, the mbp does get hot and enough so that you will not want it to touch skin. Increasing fan speed will not dissipate it as the metal surface does not retain the heat and you will feel it.

Now if you think you can handle it, by all means but you should know what you will be buying.

 

i use a laptop on my lap all the time so if it does get as hot as your saying then i wont bother spending that much money on something il feel uncomfortable with.

 

maybe. although i can see myself dropping the MBP using that.

don't mean to dispute what shamilar is saying as i dont have any first hand experience with the MBP, but this is the first time i heard the current generation MBP having heat problems while not under extreme load. Could shalimar be talking about the last generation of MBP?

If you can wait, the 45nm santarosa refresh should come out early next year. that should make things cooler.

Or the HP 8510P is a great alternative. similar weight and size.as any other PC laptop atleast.

 

thanks, i think i shall wait then if things will get cooler. can someone answer my question about voice clips on msn please.

 

MSN and SKYPE for mac are always a few steps behind windows. MAC msn also does let you send messages if you appear to be offline.........or so im told by my mac using friend

 

He's asking about running Windows Live Messenger in Windows through Parallels, I believe...and yes, I don't think there will be any problem with video conferencing and voice clips on Windows on the MBP. It should be fine .

And about the heat...as long as you have jeans on, its okay to put the MBP on your lap. Just don't use it with shorts on or something .

 

My experience with the mbp was with a 2nd generation. There is debatable information on why the mbp gets hot, but IMHO, the "high" heat is just because of design. The mbp is a powerful machine packed into a slim, metal case and you will feel it more than some other plastic notebooks.

That aside, the heat is toward the back middle section and if you have your thighs holding up the two sides, you will be okay. Or just follow Sam's advice and not wear shorts.

 

Actually, I'm ok with my mbp even in shorts. The main thing to do - as Sam has pointed out several times - is to increase the rpm to ~3600 - it remains barely audible but the temperature drops to ~50 which is perfectly fine