So I bought a MBP last week, and not only was it my first MBP, but my first mac ever. Though it is a beautiful machine, my experience was ultimately dismal.
Pros:
Design is still second to none
The machine and OS X are beautiful
Performance is excellent
Cons:
High price for (lack of) quality
Myriad of defects
Still runs very warm (though no more scalding)
Upon opening the package, I noticed the lid wouldn't close all the way, leaving about a 1 cm gap between the lid and the base on the left side. Paying $2000 for this machine, I was dissatisfied but chugged ahead nonetheless. I was very pleased by Leopard's interface, but this feeling was fleeting, as I soon noticed a yellow band going across the screen. Other than this problem, the matte screen is great. Oh well.
I tried to ignore these defects and continued to use the machine for about a week. I fell in love with the OS - it is simply beautiful. Sadly, my problems didn't stop there.
First off, (an OS problem), the head drive makes a loud noise every few seconds due to excessive head parking. This creates wear on the drive, and runs the risk of HD failures. The sound, though annoying, is bearable. Other users have reported that when they switched to another OS (windows), the noise stopped.
When I plugged in my headphones, I noticed a hissing and beeping sound when listening to audio. As I understand, this is a problem with the current logic board and most if not all current MBPs have this problem (using low impedence headphones).
Then I also noticed electricity is actually being conducted through the case! Though not as extreme as the experiences of some other users being "shocked," getting a tingly feeling each time I ran my finger over the case is concerning (a possible health hazard). To those who simply "man it up" now, what if one day due to prolonged exposure to current your heart develops arrhythmias or other serious conditions? No thanks.
The cosmetic defects alone I thought were enough to warrant an exchange, so off to the Apple store I went. Unfortunately, both managers said all of these defects are "within spec". Searching around the web, it seems this is the *default answer* to many many problems. I was utterly disappointed when I found not only were they patronizing, they were lying through their teeth. When I brought up commonly known problems, they denied knowledge of it (either they are lying or just clueless about their own products). An *exchange* they said would cost me a 10% restocking fee (I was still WITHIN the 14 day period). Fed up with them, I paid the restocking fee and *returned* it instead.
I've done a lot of research about these problems, and I found I wasn't the only one with them. It's certainly NOT some *ridiculous* number as some people like to quote: 1, 5, or even 10%. So no, I don't think it's a result of extrapolating from a larger sample, with problems being magnified through the web. The problems are real, and they are more common than you'd think. Take a look for yourself, though the link is a bit dated, still applies: http://www.macintouch.com/reliability/laptops.html#charts. For example, the commonly noted yellow screen issue has been COMPLETELY ignored, since Apple still chooses to use the older faulty screens in the newer line of Penryn MBPs.
I considered the MB a bit, but with all the cracking cases and other problems (such as rampant HD failures), I decided against it.
For those who don't believe me, some places to start:
http://applequalitycomplaints.blogspot.com/
http://www.appledefects.com/ (dated, but people still have these problems)
I will stop here, since I think the point is made.
Also note that rather than sparking arguments, I just want this to be a fair cautionary note for anyone considering the MB/MBP. I too was fooled by all the Apple hype. Let's not have it happen to you.
It's too bad, since I've been looking forward to the MBP for about 5 months. Maybe in a few years it will be better, but for now I can wait. It's sad to say goodbye to OS X, but the trouble is not worth it. Who knows what the future will bring? A new QC department? Windows 7?
I can predict some people will refute these claims despite the evidence, so the following note is only for those such people (meaning: skip the bottom portion if you are not a "fanboy"):
-True, all hardware is susceptible to problems...BUT
-For the price, one would expect to have perfection!
-Does any other company boast even half as much as Apple?
-With such an image, surely one should expect better?
Veteran technology industry analyst Rob Enderle told the Statesman that Apple isn’t paying enough attention to quality issues and customer relations right now. “I think they are *feeling invulnerable* right now,” he said. “Because they’ve been so successful as of late, it looks like they can do no wrong and that *customers will take whatever they give them*. But that’s the quickest way to stop a (growth) trend that I know of.”
The path to better quality is by acknowledging and voicing these issues. Or else Apple will continue to ignore commonly known problems like they have in the past. Do you remember those hard-pressed product recalls from Apple? That was only after a result of coordinated and constant voicing by customers such as yourselves. Let's not fall into his "reality distortion field"
.
Hope this was informative.
Pros:
Design is still second to none
The machine and OS X are beautiful
Performance is excellent
Cons:
High price for (lack of) quality
Myriad of defects
Still runs very warm (though no more scalding)
Upon opening the package, I noticed the lid wouldn't close all the way, leaving about a 1 cm gap between the lid and the base on the left side. Paying $2000 for this machine, I was dissatisfied but chugged ahead nonetheless. I was very pleased by Leopard's interface, but this feeling was fleeting, as I soon noticed a yellow band going across the screen. Other than this problem, the matte screen is great. Oh well.
I tried to ignore these defects and continued to use the machine for about a week. I fell in love with the OS - it is simply beautiful. Sadly, my problems didn't stop there.
First off, (an OS problem), the head drive makes a loud noise every few seconds due to excessive head parking. This creates wear on the drive, and runs the risk of HD failures. The sound, though annoying, is bearable. Other users have reported that when they switched to another OS (windows), the noise stopped.
When I plugged in my headphones, I noticed a hissing and beeping sound when listening to audio. As I understand, this is a problem with the current logic board and most if not all current MBPs have this problem (using low impedence headphones).
Then I also noticed electricity is actually being conducted through the case! Though not as extreme as the experiences of some other users being "shocked," getting a tingly feeling each time I ran my finger over the case is concerning (a possible health hazard). To those who simply "man it up" now, what if one day due to prolonged exposure to current your heart develops arrhythmias or other serious conditions? No thanks.
The cosmetic defects alone I thought were enough to warrant an exchange, so off to the Apple store I went. Unfortunately, both managers said all of these defects are "within spec". Searching around the web, it seems this is the *default answer* to many many problems. I was utterly disappointed when I found not only were they patronizing, they were lying through their teeth. When I brought up commonly known problems, they denied knowledge of it (either they are lying or just clueless about their own products). An *exchange* they said would cost me a 10% restocking fee (I was still WITHIN the 14 day period). Fed up with them, I paid the restocking fee and *returned* it instead.
I've done a lot of research about these problems, and I found I wasn't the only one with them. It's certainly NOT some *ridiculous* number as some people like to quote: 1, 5, or even 10%. So no, I don't think it's a result of extrapolating from a larger sample, with problems being magnified through the web. The problems are real, and they are more common than you'd think. Take a look for yourself, though the link is a bit dated, still applies: http://www.macintouch.com/reliability/laptops.html#charts. For example, the commonly noted yellow screen issue has been COMPLETELY ignored, since Apple still chooses to use the older faulty screens in the newer line of Penryn MBPs.
I considered the MB a bit, but with all the cracking cases and other problems (such as rampant HD failures), I decided against it.
For those who don't believe me, some places to start:
http://applequalitycomplaints.blogspot.com/
http://www.appledefects.com/ (dated, but people still have these problems)
I will stop here, since I think the point is made.
Also note that rather than sparking arguments, I just want this to be a fair cautionary note for anyone considering the MB/MBP. I too was fooled by all the Apple hype. Let's not have it happen to you.
It's too bad, since I've been looking forward to the MBP for about 5 months. Maybe in a few years it will be better, but for now I can wait. It's sad to say goodbye to OS X, but the trouble is not worth it. Who knows what the future will bring? A new QC department? Windows 7?
I can predict some people will refute these claims despite the evidence, so the following note is only for those such people (meaning: skip the bottom portion if you are not a "fanboy"):
-True, all hardware is susceptible to problems...BUT
-For the price, one would expect to have perfection!
-Does any other company boast even half as much as Apple?
-With such an image, surely one should expect better?
Veteran technology industry analyst Rob Enderle told the Statesman that Apple isn’t paying enough attention to quality issues and customer relations right now. “I think they are *feeling invulnerable* right now,” he said. “Because they’ve been so successful as of late, it looks like they can do no wrong and that *customers will take whatever they give them*. But that’s the quickest way to stop a (growth) trend that I know of.”
The path to better quality is by acknowledging and voicing these issues. Or else Apple will continue to ignore commonly known problems like they have in the past. Do you remember those hard-pressed product recalls from Apple? That was only after a result of coordinated and constant voicing by customers such as yourselves. Let's not fall into his "reality distortion field"
.Hope this was informative.
