is this possible with a Macbook Pro?

[acrahm]

I have a MBP and use it at home about 80% of the time, i have a 22' monitor and would like to be able to hook it up to the MBP in a way that i can turn on the MBP without having to open the screen up, pushing the power button then closing it again,

is there such a device that will do this?

 

[dissdnt]

Not sure but i rarely turn off my mbp and you could just leave it on and bring it out of sleep mode with an external keyboard or mouse.

 

[vniow]

is there such a device that will do this?

Yes, its called "sleep mode" and can be found on every Macbook Pro. Follow the previous poster's instructions and you'll be set.

 

[acrahm]

i really dont want to leave it on all the time, i was more looking for some sort of external "on/off" button/cradle i could put it in so i dont have to open the mbp to turn it on

 

[vniow]

i really dont want to leave it on all the time, i was more looking for some sort of external "on/off" button/cradle i could put it in so i dont have to open the mbp to turn it on

Why not simply put it to sleep? Its essentially turning the computer off with only the very basics being powered by a small battery. As far as I (and Google) know, there's no such device unless you have some desire to open up your MBP and solder a couple of wires onto the power button. The only feasible way to do it is as the above poster suggested. Sleep mode can't possibly be that bad.

 

[rdp5008]

How do the MBP's do with heat build up when the lid is closed?

My Powerbook gets kinda toasty with the top down...

 

[alphaod]

i really dont want to leave it on all the time, i was more looking for some sort of external "on/off" button/cradle i could put it in so i dont have to open the mbp to turn it on

No there is no external power button... but you can always rewire the power button to the outside.

 

[UltraNEO*]

i really dont want to leave it on all the time, i was more looking for some sort of external "on/off" button/cradle i could put it in so i dont have to open the mbp to turn it on

What's wrong with sleep mode?
Mines been on for about 6 months now, it's still working!! Yay!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I use sleep mode all of the time, except when I'm away for a few days and have not brought the MBP with me, when I shut it down fully instead. It has not done the MBP any harm. Sleep mode works well, but shutting down and starting up. Cheers and good luck.
MPB 15.4", 2.4 ghz, 2 GB RAM, 160 HDD; iPod classic 30 GB

 

[dissdnt]

Actually you can set it to hibernate which is totally turning it off, caching the current desktop then it starts up at the last state.

There's 0 power consumption in hibernate mode. The computer is essentially off.

I think that's your best bet.