A Cogent Mélange of Lutheran & Pop-Culture Punditry

So, I’ve had the new 17″ MacBook Pro for a couple of days now, using it enough to form more than just the cursory first impressions ( pretty, big, fast, cool, etc… ). Here’s a quick rundown on what’s struck me as the most significant & impressive elements of this beast so far.

The Screen: It’s not just that it’s big (which it is), it’s also that it’s so clear & bright. Frankly, the reason I pushed to make the jump from the 15″ to the 17″ was in the hopes that the extra workspace on 17’s 1900×1200 display (as compared to the the 15’s 1440×900) would be more than worth the extra 1.1 lbs. It is. It would be worth another pound. The extra screen real estate is useful, empowering, and gorgeous. WIN

The Body: I’ve watched the videos on the new MBP unibody design. I’ve even handled my mom & dad’s 13″ & 15″ MBP’s a few times. I knew they were solid. But I didn’t know just how solid, and now (and I use this word advisedly) sensual, the unibody design was until I got the chance to live with this 17″ MBP. It’s solid, supple, and just plain nice to touch. It feels good, and that translates into a computer that’s nicer & easier to use. The tolerances to which it is engineered are simply amazing. Everything fits. Everything works. My old 15″ MBP was solid, but this one makes it look/feel creaky & flimsy by comparison. WIN

The Keyboard: I’ve long been a fan of the new style (sleek, low-profile) Mac keyboards. I use one on my PC at work, and have one as the external keyboard for when I have the MBP “docked” & connected to a second monitor at my desk. The 17″ MBP has one of these keyboards (the old 15″ MBP didn’t), and in combination with the unibody engineering, typing on this is simply a joy. No stress, no strain, & great tactile feedback. Granted, it’s no IBM Model M – but what has ever matched that? No, pair the MBP keyboard with the fabulous multi-touch trackpad, and you’ve got a big WIN

The Battery: This MBP has one of the new Apple-designed, lithium-polymer, long-life batteries that is hardwired into the laptop. I.e., you can’t swap it out on the fly. I don’t care, as it doesn’t really impact me. I never had that come up with the old MBP, as I’m not a road-warrior type user. This new battery is rated for 1000 full discharge/recharge cycles, and up to 8 hrs of (theoretical) life per charge. Thus far, out of curiosity, I’ve done two cycles just to see what I could get using as I normally would if I had it plugged into the power. And I’ve gotten right at 4 hours each time. WIN

The other stuff is expected, really, in that it’s not surprising that a C2D 3.06 is fast, that 4GB of RAM is roomy & fast, that a 500GB 7200RPM HD is big & fast, and that the whole package is perfectly integrated with Snow Leopard.

All in all, I’m pleased as punch, and about as happy as a Mac fanboy can be…

-ghp