Macworld.Ars: First impressions of unibody 17" MacBook Pro

We stormed the Macworld Expo '09 showroom floor immediately after the Philnote to get our hands on the only tangible product Apple announced today: the new unibody 17-inch MacBook Pro. Clearly, the built-in, longer-lasting battery technology that Apple designed for its largest notebook was the cause of its delayed release, as the rest of the notebook line was revamped in October. The new unibody structure and aesthetic that the 15-inch MacBook Pro and 13-inch MacBook gained a few months ago looks great on the 17-inch, so check out a few photos and some brief first impressions.

Strangely, the 17-inch MacBook Pro almost didn't look like it was 17 inches, so we tossed an iPhone in for size comparison. Perhaps the size of the Macworld Expo hall was dwarfing the machine a bit, but the trademark wider speaker grills are still the best indicator that this is indeed Apple's largest notebook.

A side view of the 17-inch MacBook Pro, which maintains one more USB port than its smaller brethren and completes Apple's abolishment of FireWire 400 from its portables.

The 17-inch's display is thinner than ever now that the machine lost .02" in thickness overall.

The 17-inch MacBook Pro's right side almost seems barren, sporting nothing but a DVD/CD slot and a notebook locking connector.

Update: The bottom of the 17-inch MacBook Pro, sans the removable panel on the 13-inch MacBook and 15-inch MacBook Pro.

A comparison next to the latest 15-inch MacBook Pro, on the right, helps to put the 17-inch model into context.

One final comparison that gets down low to the bodies of both machines.

After playing with the 17-inch MacBook Pro for a couple of minutes, it pretty much feels like one would expect. Apple's new unibody construction makes the machine feel even sturdier, and its slight loss in weight is an appreciated, though hardly noticeable, bonus. Look for a much more thorough Ars review with performance tests in the near future.

Should I tell the graphics artist down the hall the he was just imaging having trouble editing those 1gb+ PSD files on his mac? But how do I explain to him why his problem went away when he went from 4gb to 8gb?

See not everyone’s working set is the same - some need more memory than others. I have some apps that will use as much memory as you give them. If they could the would use hundreds of gigabytes.

I have had innumerable people tell me how much more reliable the apple hardware is - how it rarely breaks - how unreliable dell equipment is. Was I told incorrectly?

You were not told incorrectly. Those innumerable people can't all be wrong. Apple's hardware is more reliable... because the software is more reliable. It is a fact of life that most service calls for Windows computers has little to do with hardware but a lot to do with software.

But Macs can still break down. When they do, Apple's customer service is unparalleled—especially at the Genius Bar—even for computers that are out of warranty. I took two 9 year old PowerPC G4 Towers that had failed about six months ago to the Genius Bar at the Sacramento Apple Store. These were computers that there was no doubt were out of warranty, using an OS that was far beyond what they were designed for. The guy at the bar worked with them and me for over an hour... and fixed both. When I asked what I owed, he said, "Nothing. No charge."

There are numerous reports of people bringing in dead out-of-warranty Macs and walking out with brand new, up-to-date replacements at no charge... with new warranties.

On the other hand, last week one of my clients' G5 iMac suddenly went blank. I opened it up and diagnosed a fried logic board. I took her along with her computer to the new Modesto Apple Store's Genius Bar. They confirmed my diagnosis... and offered to fix it for $987. She bought a new, faster, stronger, better, Intel iMac instead... for $1199. She is extremely happy.

“Offering free extended warranties is required as an inducement to the potential customer when you can’t sell your product.”

I notice how you added the word extended in there - I am talking about the standard warranty. For reliable produces it should be at least 3 years.

Or are you saying that Apple really isn’t a premium product - that their laptops really aren’t any more reliable then the other laptops made by the 3rd party contractors who make all of apples computers?

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