Confirmation of Fixed 17" MacBook Pro Battery, Mac Mini with Firewire

[Padraig]

Pardon my ignorance but what is so evil about a non removable battery? I mean, the worst thing I could imagine is that you put your battery through so many cycles that you'd need to have Apple install a new battery which I doubt would run more than $100-$150 or so. Based on the cost of the 17" MBP, I can't see what the huge fuss is about?

Imagine a battery recall, as has happened three times to me.

 

[twoodcc]

wow. some people will hate this. but 50% more battery? what is that, almost 9 hours?

 

[iParis]

Mac Mini here I come!!!
This sounds great.
Now I'll I want to know is the price and spec bump, that is, if there is a spec bump.

From a selvish point of view, where's the news on the new iMacs!!

...anything...please!

I don't believe the iMacs are expected to get a redesign.
Most likely only a spec bump and NVIDIA chip sets.

 

[DaBrain]

A Fixed battery on a 17-inch supposedly "prosumer" laptop? So I now have to ship my entire laptop in for a battery replacement. That sounds much easier and hazard free than just shipping the replacement battery.

And yes, not everybody is near a local Apple store or dealer. The nearest apple service shop to me is 45+ minutes away.

Lucky you as our nearest apple store is 2.5 hrs away making a round trip in just driving time 5 hours, plus tolls, plus gas not to mention time spent at the store.

Not too good of a choice for many!

 

[Rorikynn]

Count yourself lucky. It's 3 hours and 15 minutes for me (probably a lot longer considering the traffic and weather). Double that to come back home, making it a day-long trip and probably over 50$ in gas and 20$ in meals.

More probably, the battery won't be "user accessible" since you'll need to unscrew the bottom panel to access it or something.

Ouch...

Hopefully that is the extent of being "fixed".

 

[OriginalMacRat]

Pardon my ignorance but what is so evil about a non removable battery? I mean, the worst thing I could imagine is that you put your battery through so many cycles that you'd need to have Apple install a new battery which I doubt would run more than $100-$150 or so. Based on the cost of the 17" MBP, I can't see what the huge fuss is about?

And you are assuming that Apple will still offer the battery for as long as you want to use the laptop?

 

[xhambonex]

no but i bet you could make them install a new one for you, you just would have to buy a new battery, which you would do with a normal laptop anyway so...now you just aren't doing it yourself

 

[rick3000]

And you are assuming that Apple will still offer the battery for as long as you want to use the laptop?

You can still get PB and iBook batteries new.

 

[Chicane-UK]

Stupid question but.. assuming the supposed new Mini comes with the 9400M GPU, how does that GPU compare to the ATI 2600HD in the current iMac's? I have an iMac (pre-mid '08 refresh) but would happily trade it down to the new Mac Mini if it was on a par performance wise - would mean I could upgrade to a bigger screen for a lot less than it'd cost to upgrade to the bigger iMac!

 

[djellison]

So the Mac Mini will have FireWire 800.

Why on earth would they do that. Nobody uses Firewire according to Jobs.

 

[dbwie]

mini with firewire

I hope the mini has firewire, so I can continue to use my external firewire iSight camera with it. For all other peripherals, USB will do for me.

 

[badNameErr]

As FSJ would have said....

I welcome the place where my non-removable batteries and your cash become one.

Namaste.

 

[Dredd]

About the not being able to replace your own battery.... come on. If you have an issue with your battery just drop it @ your local Apple Store or dealer, they replace it in a few minutes.

Spoken as someone who doesn't live two hours from the nearest "Apple Authorized" anything.

All I have to say is that I fly internationally quite a bit. If that new battery can't survive a twelve-hour international flight in coach (e.g., no AC power) then it's a non-starter for me.

Because right now, I can happily bring along fully-charged spares to swap out as I drain (I've got four spares sitting on a shelf behind me right now). If that's not possible, then that "upgrade" is a boat-anchor as far as my needs are concerned.

 

[150hp]

I like how the Mini sounds. Don't care 'bout the MPB.

 

[Beric]

Thinner does not mean better. -100 for non-removable battery. Looks like I'm not buying an Apple portable in the future.

QFT.

IMO, thicker=better, because thicker means there's both a better cooling system and more and better components inside. Weight affects portability. Thinness does not.

 

[xhambonex]

im more interested in their explanation of why this is a good idea.

 

[chaosbunny]

mac mini: cool

MBP: don't really care, I don't see the appeal of having a notebook bigger than 13"

And I don't see the appeal of having a notebook smaller than 15".

 

[Compile 'em all]

QFT.

IMO, thicker=better, because thicker means there's both a better cooling system and more and better components inside. Weight affects portability. Thinness does not.

your post is better suited for the year 1980.

 

[Clive At Five]

FIVE USB ports???

For what?

All the external Hard Drives people need because Apple won't release a mid-tower? (someone had to say it...)

-Clive

 

[iBookG4user]

I wonder if the new 17" MacBook Pro will have the easy access hard drive like the 15" MacBook Pro.

 

[iThinkApple]

Apple Makes a 9 HOUR BATTERY No Way..

There's no way they can pull of a 9 Hour Battery life? The only way is if the battery was twice as thick...Or Twice as LONG..If it was longer it would be slimmer so the NoteBook could keep it size. But when it Says "9 Hour Battery life on a Box or 5 Hour battery life always Minus 2 Hours of what it says the battery life because it depends on what your running/watching...So Maybe if it says 9 hours its probally means your going to get 6 to 7 Hours of Battery life.. HOPE THAT HELPED =)

~iThink (iThinkApple)

~ CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE THE IMAGE =) ~

 

[Bonte]

Hopefully de mini plays .MTS files in frontrow, we want to use it with the plasma TV but it needs to play these files smoothly. Current dual G5 en core2 Mini don't don't have the power so i'll have to choose between the next gen aTV, Mac Mini or the Popcorn player.

 

[Beric]

your post is better suited for the year 1980.

Thanks for the compliment. I happen to not have been alive then.

My number one complaint with Apple is the obsession with thinness, at the cost of reason and logic. Your average 1.5" thick PC notebook is the form factor I want. Much cooler, better specs, and a whole lot cheaper. Same weight (or close enough).

 

[iParis]

FIVE USB ports???

For what?

All the external Hard Drives people need because Apple won't release a mid-tower? (someone had to say it...)

-Clive

Hmmm... I can name off five things I would have plugged in at once.
Keyboard.
Mouse.
External Hard Drive.
Webcam.
iPod.

And in case you say "well you can plug the mouse into the keyboard..." Ok then, I have two external hard drives. One for the majority of my music/videos/apps and another I use to store a bunch of OS's (Windows 7, Vista, XP, and Linux).

There, Happy?

Even if Apple released a mid tower I would most likely still use an external drive to store everything.

 

[KingYaba]

Thanks for the compliment. I happen to not have been alive then.

My number one complaint with Apple is the obsession with thinness, at the cost of reason and logic. Your average 1.5" thick PC notebook is the form factor I want. Much cooler, better specs, and a whole lot cheaper. Same weight (or close enough).

In before a so why don't you buy it comment. Well, looks like I will be. I hope used Mac Pros go down in price.