Just got a Macbook Pro... 1st impressions...

Hey folks... I just got a MacBook Pro at the local CompUSA and I am having second decisions... I am a noob to Macs as a whole and also have a Sony SZ120P/B...

My intitial impressions are that I LOVE the comfort of the keyboard as it has excellent responce and key travel... This is my main complaint for my Sony as it is not as good as the MBP... Keyboard is also very quiet as well... The backlit/illumination is what every Notebook needs... I do miss the convience of having separate "Backspace" and "delete" keys... Very responsive OS. I like the front row interface... I love the way when you make changes in the system preferences you see the effects immediately, not having to find the "APPLY" button and waiting to see the changes... I love the slot loading SuperDrive... It is thinner than my Sony... My Sony with battery weighs 4.2 pounds, but the MBP weighs 5.6 pounds (13.3 vs. 15.4 though)... Case construction is top notch and the materials (aluminum housing) is quite nice... I am worried about scratches appearing on the surfaces easier than my Sony... The battery life appears to be the same as the Sony (3.5 hours) so no big diff there... Adjustment to the OS is going okay, but will obviously take a little more time...

Some cons... This thing gets SOOOOOO HOTTTT!!!! I am one of those users who will sit on the couch with it on my lap and I can tell you it is reducing my sperm count as I type this... It is the single biggest concern for me as it is a big change from any of my other notebooks... and I have 6 other Windows based notebooks... I have mixed feelings on moving back to a 15.4" screen... I have been trying to downsive for the last 3 years... I went from an HP ZT3010 (15.4) to a Compaq V2140US (14"), then to a Sony SZ120 (13.3.)... now I am back to the big screen and it is nice to look at but a little less comfortable to transport compared to the Sony... The obvious issue with software since some apps are not Intel based for the MacOSX yet... Doom3 was loaded and the newest patch to make it universal were loaded and there was still a good amount of choppiness while playing on Medium settings... I am having trouble using Mac Office... An excel document I have been using in Windows for some time with Macros refuses to be opened in Mac Office... This is somewhat a problem as I wanted to move away from needing a secondary notebook, so I am not sure what to think of that... Safari keeps closing on me unexpectedly saying there was a problem and it is reported to Apple for evaluation... Same with MacOffice... I have a Netgear rangemax router and a Netgear wireless print server... No problems surfing, but the Print Server is useless now (software is not mac compatible)... It is the one that has 2 ports and a 4 port switch... I love it as I have a laser and a photo printer connected to it and it works flawlessly... All my software is Windows based, including my Acrobat 7 Pro... I have all ready purchased the MacOffice, but am dreading having to purchase the Mac version of all my apps, including Acrobat 7 Pro...

I have a couple of options... I can take this unit back and sit back and wait to see if things change with the heat dissipation and the app support, or I can buy a "lapdesk" and use 2 different machines (one PC and the MBP), and a possibly different wireless print server that is both PC and mac compatible... I do not do any music production nor any pro Video or Photo editing... I am a manager for a national retail chain and need something I can work on when I am away from my desktop at work and to surf the net, email, occational games... I use it mostly at night and the backlit keyboard is an envious want on any notebook... I am torn...

Someone please give me some advice...

Don

 

hmm i went to a dealer yesterday
and he admitted that the MBP gets pretty hot at times,
and especially when burning a DVD (have you tried?)
then also i tried feeling the bottom part of the MBP
and it did feel really hot

i doubt there's anything you can do about it though..
other than underclocking or whatever..
and i don't even know whether it's possible (or how)

i suggest you get a pc, since you don't really need the MBP for the stuff you do. or you could delay your purchase for a while, get an intel ibook (they might have backlit keyb), or wait till they solve the heat problem. and i think there's a thread on the hardware discussion group on backlit keyboards. but im not too sure.. you could check it out..

hey no backlit keyboards you can live with. but critical spermcount?

 

I returned the Macbookpro... Just too dang hot...
Don

 

One of the reasons why i sold my Powerbook...
It ran at 60 degrees C.
Using a IBM Z60T and it runs sooo cool

 

Mine you guys are a bunch of weenies, Im using my PB right now, and I can barely feel the thing on my lap.

I tested out the MBP at my local apple store and man was that thing sweet, I didn't think they could improve on the PB, but they really have. I wish I could get one, but it's just out of my Price range.

 

Your telling me 60 degrees C is nothing for more than an hour or two.
I get warm just using it and this is in the winter.

 

I like warm laptops as long my skin is unexposed. I always knew the stickers were for branding, but not the cattle kind.

 

How did doom3 run on the SZ120.

i am debating between the two and the game performance would be nice to know.

 

I can't seem to get a copy of Doom3, but I have Quake4 loaded and it runs better, smoother, and cooler than Doom did on the MBP... According to tweakquides.com, the Quake4 engine is based on the highly advanced Doom3 engine, so I can say this is an apple to apples (no pun intended) comparo... Based on this, the 7400 in the Sony SZ120 outperforms the X1600 in the MBP (both have 128MB RAM)... Hope this helps... BTW, I am still getting used to the spacebar issue... Go to the Sony forums for more details...

Don

 

I was reading some reviews online and they weren't that great for the Macbook Pro (even CNet gave it a 6.9)...I think you'll probably be better off to wait for future editions where Apple can fix these kinks out.

Hopefully you find a notebook that suits your needs.

 

Doom3 runs very well on the SZ. Medium detail, 2xAA, 1024x768. I've also run the FEAR demo and no problems there, but doesn't look as good as Doom3.

 

Well if your going for gaming then you're obviously not going to purchase a mac, that's just the plain and simple of it.

 

i think a macbook is about the same as a powerbook rite now running apps in rosetta but it has alot of potential for more speed when more universal apps comes out, it also has the possibility of dual booting windows when vista comes out. now that would be the perfect machine ... it has about the same config as the acer 8204 (which i returned to get my macbook) except for the ram, which can be easily fix (@ newegg ) so if vista runs natively on macbook, i wouldnt expect less of a performance than the acer 8204.

 

i was going to post my thoughts about MacBook in a separate thread, but you already summed it all up... everything is great about it, except it's a **** hot laptop, not even warm, but kinda like "ouch" hot. SZ, on the other hand, is awesome, it barely even gets warm under heavy load... Very disappointed in MacBook I was so looking forward to get one.

 

My opinion on why it feels so hot is that it uses the chassis to help dissipate the heat. Which would make it seem to run really hot imo.

 

Yeah, I always thougtht that the aluminum casing was to serve as a giant heatsink, instead of allowing proper cooling. Plus with such a slim design air flow was probably not a priority, rather than just getting the notebook to fit.

 

SZ also uses aluminium case, but it just never gets warm. it's really a pity that Apple designers overlooked this... total a dealbreaker for me and I am sure for many other people. I had Compaq v2000z with turion 64 which was also hot even on idle, but MacBook takes the first place now...

 

The heat issue seems to be something that comes up in all their first generation models. Seems to get it out the door and then look into ways to make it run a bit cooler.

I was hoping that they would do something about the wifi range in this one. I think the aluminum case doesn't help with that. My ibook and PC both have amazing range but my powerbook is much more limmited. How is the range with this one?

 

I have to chime in on the heat issues. I have owned several notebooks, Powerbooks, and now a Macbook (1.83). I don't believe the Macbook has a heat issue. True the case does run hot but not moreso than my previous 15" PB that I bought last year. I prop my all of notebooks up on a passive cooler. I've learned over the years that very few notebooks are laptops. Hardly anyone uses that term anymore and for good reason. Any modern thin and light notebook will exhibit one of two properties. 1) It will be quiet but run hot or 2) The notebook will be cool but there will be a fan running continuously. Fan noise has always been a pet peeve of Steve and that shines through on all Apple computers going back to the beginning.

True that the MB does run warm. The case can get hot if air does not circulate around the case and in particular the bottom. One thing you'll rarely hear a Mac owner (there are exceptions) complain about is fan noise. Go to a Thinkpad, Dell, Sony, etc. forum and you'll see alot of people complaining about fan noise and asking for ways to control the fan operation. I know this from personal experience. Apple has choosen to error on the side of quiet while compromising case temp.

I have an SZ and the case runs cool. BTW, the case is not aluminum. The bottom is magnesium and the palm rest is stainless steel. The rest of the base is plastic. Following what I said above the SZ's case does run cooler and that is because the fan pretty much runs constantly. Luckily the fan is very quiet, but you can hear it in a quiet room.

WiFi range seems better than the previous models. About the same as my iBook.

 

Congrats, now its time to install windows on it for gaming purposes

 

If the Wifi range is better than the older powerbook then im sold, cause on my previous 12" PB, the Wifi performance SUCKED big time!!

 

you are using words warm and hot for MacBook. I consider very warm something that I can stand like my v2000z w/ Turion, but I've tried putting MacBook on a lap and it's too hot... what's the point of it being a laptop if you can't put it on a lap comfortably?

 

You're the one that keeps using the term laptop. Manufacturers quit using that term years ago. Probably right after all the sterility due to heat lawsuits! You are right that the SZ does run cooler.

 

yeah SZ Is indeed very cool, cant wait for mine

 

when u put ur MBP on ur lap try not to cover the air vent in the bak and u should be fine...

 

@#(^$@#*$(*&#^$(@*#$^, stupid forum, logging me out and losing my post!!!!!!


k, after finally getting my hands on a macbook pro, i have to say that it is a very nice machine, and does get a little warm, but was cooler then my ibook. So for those that say it is hot, its not, just warm. To you cool must mean cold case, but apple designs their notebooks cases to act as heatsinks to help with the cooling, hence the case does get warmer. but not as hot as some people say, (exception is when you would do a lot to really tax the processor for a long time so that it really heats up).

The mag safe was cool, sucks itself in once the plug is close enough, and pops out easy if pulled. so wish my ibook had one. very fast machine, puts my ibook to shame.

In conclusion, very nice machine, so wish i could buy one.

 

I so wish I could afford a Macbook... It has everything I've ever dreamt of.

I have a question for you savvy people, though. I'm a newbie concerning everything related to notebooks, but I saw this product on one of those in-flight shopping catalogs, a sort of base for your notebook that allows you to put it on your laptop and it's supposed to dissipate the heat.

When I talked to a friend about it, he said a base would be a bad idea, since it could obstruct the vents on the notebook and overheat it or something like that. Is that true, or is it actually possible to get something that will let you put your notebook on your laptop?

 

That friend is wrong, a lappad (as i am going to call it) will not block the vents. If it did, then every time you put it on a hard surface, the vents would be blocked (unless it is some weird design that i haven't seen, but most pads are flat and just raise the laptop up so more air can get underneath).

 

Just ignore CNETs reviews, I know think they are morons. They've given a LOT of notebook grades in the 6.0 range.

 

One Week With Apple's MacBook Pro (A review).

 

I must say I have to disagree. I took a trip down to my local Apple store and found the MBP to run VERY hot. Now, I'm comparing the MBP's heat output to my E1705's, not an ice cube or something, just to put you into perspective, but I must say I was quite disappointed with it. The notebook itself runs very hot; the heat is particularly noticeable near the left speaker grille and on the palm rests and gets really annoying if you're trying to type a document. Now, I visitied right when the store opened, so the notebook was running for maybe a half hour at most, so this wasn't at the end of the day I was check it out.

I was really hoping this notebook would run cool, not hot, as I was looking into possibly getting one as my next notebook after Merom/Vista come out. Hopefully, Apple will redesign the MBP's insides after it gets the Merom update so the notebook doesn't run so hot - other than the heat issue, this notebook is spectacular.

 

New in-depth review of Macbook Pro

http://www.anandtech.com/mac/showdoc.aspx?i=2740&p=1

 

Excellent article. I read it a few days back - gives an excellent overview of the MBP.

 

just read it

sure makes you think huh

the processor is soldered, and the gpu underclocked heavily..

 

Guess Apple doesn't like you messing with the notebook and trying to upgrade the internal parts.

 

haha
aye
now i just sound stupid.