Mixed Feelings
I didn't whine when the wait was upon us. A little bit of patience never killed anyone. But now that the smoke is clear, and after reading some thoughts from the posters on this thread, I have some mixed feelings towards this upgrade. Clearly, the Macbooks got the lion's share today. Anyone in the market for one will be pleased no doubt. Now on to the Pro.
I own the first gen. MBP, and have been wanting to upgrade, especially after hearing that the performance on the CD2 is incrementally better. And I think this will be my buy very soon. BUT, I cannot feel but somewhat displeased at Apple's cockiness, now that it's become a shaker and mover company.
(1) Design: I love MBP's design. I for one, never want a keyboard change. The color is sexy. But that does not mean that an improvement is not imminent. Now that a product like the MBA has been released, thinness has become an issue no doubt. Why not make it a smich thinner? .80 instead of 1.0 perhaps? IT would make a huge difference in appeal. Anyone seen the picture on gizmodo yesterday (with the black keyboard)? And the plastic outlining, IT HAS TO GO. it makes a beautifully looking laptop less beautiful (i wont say ugly). If thinness is not an option, then why not increase the peripherals? One more USB port for those who don't like using a hub (I personally do). What about a HDMI port instead of the becoming-obsolete DVI?
(2) Performance: Now the 4BG RAM has pretty much become the standard in high-end computers. Why keep it as an option? Why not include them all in the purchase? At least in the $2500 version. But of course, more money. Well, anybody upgrading from the Apple store is definitely not right in the head. You can buy a single 2GB RAM from crucial for around 60 bucks. The price difference is huge. The vram in this upgrade is remarkable. At least it equals the competition's offerings. Hard drives? The MB and MBP are now almost identical in space. Why not offer a bigger hard drive? Now laptop hard drives can go up to 500GB. But im not really complaining about that. I for one have 5 external hard drives, and a laptop's internal memory will never suffice.
(3) Display? No attempt at higher resolution yet again. The folks at alienware are offering 1200 (not sure if it's p yet) for a small fee. Yes, i know the technology does not support it yet, but still...some higher resolution screen would have been nice.
(4) Blu ray: It's not just about viewing Blu ray movies, but having the option to burn Blu ray DVDs. And now that the so-called 'war' is over, there is no reason why Apple would hold this option back (except of course to hold it back to another upgrade so that consumers would buy ANOTHER MBP specifically for that option).
(5) The optional Apple remote: Thank God we can use our older remotes on any Apple device. Because this epitomizes Apple's lone quest for profiteering, which I am not holding against them. They're a company and a company's sole existence and purpose is profit for them and the shareholders. But for a high-end laptop to shed inclusions? That is unheard of, especially with a company that boasts mobility and practicality. Apple is becoming a shadow of itself, where it is neglecting the consumer's contentment at the expense of sheer profit. And this is only the beginning. As its profits soar, it's desire and efforts to understand the consumer and deliver products BASED on his/her needs will falter. We will see.
(6) Apple is increasingly relying heavily-and rightly so, but to an extent-on its winning card: The OS. As I look at every other competitor in the laptop industry, Apple does not come remotely close to its rival hardware offerings.
Of course, the OS will always be the deciding factor for us who have used it, and for those who are so pissed off with Windows and want an alternative. But to not consider the hardware it is presenting just because it owns the monopoly over the OS? Come on, yes save your maximum upgrades for later tweaks to the laptop, but do not do it so overtly, and expect us, the consumers to not notice it, and react with disappointments. We are talking about a high-end product here, the most powerful laptop this company can offer.
I will probably buy this upgrade, because I need a faster computer, and because I will never buy a windows-operable computer again. And instead of paying $300 for a new battery and Leopard, I will just go with this upgrade, which for me will definitely show a huge difference in performance, at least that is what i am hoping. I am just afraid of the future; that the consumer will continue to pay premium price for a downward spiraling product. But time will tell.
always update the specs every few months in seems. It sucks buying something that expensive only to know that theres a better version for the same price.
