Spend part of the afternoon yesterday at Fry's playing with the new MBPs and also a MB Air. Didn't realize how really cool the Air is. That machine feels like a little delightful sliver of aluminum when closed, with a nifty little pop-down access door for the ports - very clean design.
The new MB - you can have it... just not that impressive. The new MBP... fairly nice, really sharp vibrant display, good construction, but the unibody edges seem too sharp for me around the palm rest. The chicklet keys work on the Air, but just seem "me, too" on the MBP. Not distinctive. There were tons of Sonys and HPs and Toshibas also on display, and the new MBP just looked like an imitator. Not the classicly unique design of the prior generation MBP. The new trackpad took a bit of getting used to - I'd have preferred leaving things the way they were, but it did eventually begin to feel more comfortable with the 'clicking' issues. Typically, whenever I'd click, the arrow would move and I'd miss my button, or click on the wrong thing, unlike with the separate button where movement over the button wouldn't move the cursor. You have to think about it more with the new model to avoid making the cursor move when you are clicking, which is a step backwards (IMHO) in the GUI design/user-friendliness area. With my current trackpad/button arrangement, I often click the button with a motion, which doesn't matter, because I'm not touching the actual trackpad with that move, whether it is with my thumb or finger. The old design was just about perfect, so I don't see the new one as an improvement. Also, the surface of my older trackpad feels just as smooth as the new glass one... not sure what's gained there either.
I didn't like the flimsy-ness of the new display/lid. It just seemes weaker, despite being glass covered. The hinge is looser, which maybe makes it feel that way. On my older MBP, when I close the lid, it makes a nice solid, quiet sound, and feels secure when closed. I have no creaks in the body, so it in no way feels flimsy, especially when compared to any other laptop. Sure, metal (especially thin metal) dents, while plastic doesn't (which is why most SLR cameras are still plastic) but plastic cracks easily.
The classic MBP was a great design that still looks modern compared to the glitzy stuff out there how in the PC world.
Hopefully, some of the stylistic things that made MBPs stand out will come back in the next design, incorporating the best of the old and new construction methods.