Waited and waited for the update - bought it sight unseen the day it was released - and I love it. Quick summary of thoughts about the controversial concerns:
1. The Glossy Screen - Beautiful. So bright I usually tone it down a notch or two. I tuned out the reflections within hours. I work in a high flourescent overhead environment, and the reflections are a non-issue. Even with iPhoto and Aperture. I never use the laptop outdoors, so can't comment on that- but boy, what a sharp image! The black bezel is beautiful, and artificially brightens the image on the screen even more. That's why I have black drapes around my projection screen at home too.
2. The Single Button touchpad - Took to it easily. Thumb automatically goes to the bottom to click. Slightly different pressure. No problem. Multifinger scrolling is a joy. Wouldn't have known it was glass unless I read it. Perfect friction coefficient.
3. Chicklet keyboard - Love it. I swear my typing speed has improved!
4. Haven't noticed any heat yet- unlike the Pbook it replaced which got quite hot.
To buy or not to buy, isn't that the question?
My son has last year's MBP, the model that is currently selling in the Apple store ("refurbbed") for $1349. What to do? I'd say ask yourself what you need rather than what you want. Performance on both machines is very, very similar - unless you are running lots of games. There's really no question that the main change has been cosmetic. (And that's meaningful, I know) but if you're looking for a good laptop for work or school, it is well worth asking yourself if it is worth spending the extra $650 or so for beauty.
I know some will jump all over me for saying that, and will point out the changes inside as well as outside, but really, this new MBP seems to be very, very close in performance to my son's MBP.
So - bottom line - if you can afford it - go for it! The new Macbook Pro is a state of the art laptop - sans card reader, I know - that combines beautiful engineering with great performance. If your budget is somewhat leaner, buy the older refurb, and know that you are still getting a great laptop.
Either way - you really can't go wrong.
1. The Glossy Screen - Beautiful. So bright I usually tone it down a notch or two. I tuned out the reflections within hours. I work in a high flourescent overhead environment, and the reflections are a non-issue. Even with iPhoto and Aperture. I never use the laptop outdoors, so can't comment on that- but boy, what a sharp image! The black bezel is beautiful, and artificially brightens the image on the screen even more. That's why I have black drapes around my projection screen at home too.
2. The Single Button touchpad - Took to it easily. Thumb automatically goes to the bottom to click. Slightly different pressure. No problem. Multifinger scrolling is a joy. Wouldn't have known it was glass unless I read it. Perfect friction coefficient.
3. Chicklet keyboard - Love it. I swear my typing speed has improved!
4. Haven't noticed any heat yet- unlike the Pbook it replaced which got quite hot.
To buy or not to buy, isn't that the question?
My son has last year's MBP, the model that is currently selling in the Apple store ("refurbbed") for $1349. What to do? I'd say ask yourself what you need rather than what you want. Performance on both machines is very, very similar - unless you are running lots of games. There's really no question that the main change has been cosmetic. (And that's meaningful, I know) but if you're looking for a good laptop for work or school, it is well worth asking yourself if it is worth spending the extra $650 or so for beauty.
I know some will jump all over me for saying that, and will point out the changes inside as well as outside, but really, this new MBP seems to be very, very close in performance to my son's MBP.
So - bottom line - if you can afford it - go for it! The new Macbook Pro is a state of the art laptop - sans card reader, I know - that combines beautiful engineering with great performance. If your budget is somewhat leaner, buy the older refurb, and know that you are still getting a great laptop.
Either way - you really can't go wrong.
