Expert's Rating
Pros
- Thin, rounded design
- Great new keyboard
- Only Apple laptop with anti-glare option
- Large trackpad with numerous multi-touch gesture choices
- Longer battery life than predecessor
Cons
- Trackpad button can be hard to press
- No video adapters or Apple Remote in the box
- Battery is no longer user-replaceable
Our Verdict
Apple filled in the last piece of the unibody puzzle, introducing this new MacBook Pro at the January 2009 Macworld Expo. It sports the same enclosure as the 15-inch laptops introduced in the fall of 2008. The chief feature in this new 17-inch system is a new battery that uses custom-shaped cells. That should give the machine a battery of eight hours using integrated graphics, according to Apple. The downside? The battery is not removable. Other changes include a faster processor (2.66GHz) and the removal of the FireWire 400 port (though FireWire 800 remains).
The new 17-inch MacBook Pro has a lot going for it, from the faster processor, front side bus and memory speeds, to its thinner and lighter, unibody design. Add in a new battery that lasts longer per charge, and you’ve got yourself a winner.