Apple's current notebook product matrix, notwithstanding its lack of
a netbook, is as complete and coherent as it's ever been. Prices are
lower than ever too, and the line is simultaneously more integrated
design- and engineering-wise than ever before.
It's a truly wonderful time to be an Apple laptop user - and many
consumers seem to agree: Despite the recession,
demand for the 13" MacBook Pro is outpacing supply.
After five months using a Unibody MacBook, I'm
increasingly convinced that the unibodies may be among the best Apple
notebooks ever offered. It's too early to factor long-term ruggedness
and reliability into the equation, but thus far my aluminum MacBook has
been a delightful and completely dependable tool.
I still love my old Pismo PowerBooks and my
17" PowerBook G4,
but if the MacBook continues providing trouble-free performance, it's
on track to become my favorite among 'Books I've owned - and the new
13" MacBook
Pros should be even better.
$999 Entry Level
At entry-level, there's still the polycarbonate MacBook White, brought
up-to-date with a 2.13 GHz Core 2 Duo processor, a fast Nvidia GeForce
9400M integrated graphics chipset, 2 GB of standard RAM upgraded
to 800 MHz DDR2 SDRAM (as opposed to the 667 MHz RAM used in the
preceding version), a 1066 MHz frontside bus, a 160 GB hard drive, and
a FireWire 400 port, all for the lowest-ever Mac notebook price of
$999. In a historic context, the white MacBook is a superb value,
providing an amazing amount of power and value for the money. It's also
the only current Mac laptop available with a user-swappable
battery.
The mid-2009 MacBook Pro family.
Eclipsed by 13" MacBook Pro
However, the WhiteBook is eclipsed in value by the 13" MacBook Pro,
whose base model sells for only $200 more. It gives you a slightly
faster Core 2 Duo CPU (2.26 GHz); the same graphics chipset; 1066 MHz
DDR3 SDRAM upgradable to 8 GB instead of the 800 MHz DDR2 and a
4 GB ceiling; a LED backlit 1280 x 800, color-corrected AU
Optronics display with with 60% greater color gamut instead of the
WhiteBook's old-school CCFL backlighting and lower-quality screen; a
FireWire 800 port (backwards compatible with FireWire 400 via an
optional adapter); a SD Card slot; a backlit keyboard; a Mini
DisplayPort instead of Mini DVI; a glass multitouch buttonless
trackpad; and the beauty, solidity, and durability of the unibody
aluminum enclosure.
That seems like more than ample added value for the extra $200 up
front.
Then there's the $1,499 2.53 GHz 13" MacBook Pro, which comes with
4 GB (rather than 2 GB) of RAM and a 250 GB hard drive. I
never thought the high-end 13-incher's higher price was justified by
what you got extra, but if 2 gigs more RAM, a 12% faster processor and
90 GB more hard drive space look like $300 worth of value to you
. . . by all means.
Bargain 15" MacBook Pro
Perhaps more interesting value-wise is the low-end 15" MacBook Pro.
Selling for $1,699 with essentially the same specs as the $1,499
13-incher, you get a larger (15.4"), higher-resolution (1440 x 900)
display. Besides the larger screen, a couple of other distinctions you
might want to consider in weighing these two alternatives' relative
merits.
In order to cram the new FireWire 800 port and SD Card slot into the
13" MacBook Pro, it was necessary to substitute an iPod-style
combination audio input jack in place of the separate digital audio
jacks in the preceding, 13" Unibody MacBook. The 15-incher still has
separate audio jacks and can also be ordered from Apple with a 7200 rpm
drive, while the 13" MacBook Pro is restricted to 5400 rpm options
(plus SSD). Other than that, they're the same, aside from the obvious
physical and screen size/resolution differences.
Again, whether those differences add up to $200 (or $500 if you're
comparing the 2.26 GHz 13-incher) more value is a matter of subjective
preference and priorities. InfoWorld's Tom Yager has declared the 15"
MacBook Pro
"The Best Laptop Money Can Buy".
MacBook Air Hits Its Stride
The mid-2009 minor revision of the MacBook Air got a substantial cut
in price, one configuration providing a 1.86 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with
2 GB of RAM and a 120 GB hard drive for $1,499 (down $300), and
another offering a 2.13 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with 2 GB of RAM and
a 128 GB solid-state drive (SSD) for $1,799 (down $700). Both models
come with Nvidia GeForce 9400M integrated graphics - now ubiquitous
throughout Apple laptops from top to bottom and a big improvement over
the poky Intel GMA 3100X graphics chipset that equipped the original
MacBook Airs.
Reportedly, the latest Core 2 Duo/GeForce 9400M combo offers higher
performance, lower heat production, and better battery life.
I've never been a big fan of the MacBook Air and remain put off by
its poverty of I/O ports (one USB port, one Mini DisplayPort) and lack
of RAM expandability, but it's definitely improved and a much better
value with this latest price and feature revision for users who put a
premium on small size and light weight.
The Mid-2009 MacBook Matrix
| 3.0 lb. |
4.5 lb. |
5.0 lb. |
5.5 lb. |
6.6 lb. |
|
13.3" MB White
$999 |
|
|
13.3" MBP
$1,199-1,499 |
|
15.4" MBP
2.53 - $1,699
2.66 - $1,999
2.8 - $2,299 |
|
13.3" MBA
$1,499-1,799 |
|
17" MBP
$2,499 |
Take your pick of size, weight, speed, and
price.
Moving Up - Discrete Graphics
As noted, Nvidia GeForce 9400M integrated graphics are used in all
current Mac laptops from the price-leader MacBook to the 17" MacBook
Pro, but with the 15" model from its 2.66 GHz, $1,999 variant on up
through the poshest 17-incher you also get Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT
discrete graphics with 256 MB of dedicated GDDR3 video memory. Leaving
the 9600M graphics out of the base 15" MacBook Pro had much to do with
Apple being able to sell it for $1,699, but if you need more graphics
power than the GeForce 9400M chipset (which is no slouch) provides -
say for high-end graphics, video editing, or serious gaming - you can
get it for $300 more (and up), along with a faster CPU.
With the $1,999 2.66 GHz 15" MacBook Pro you also get 4 GB of
1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM and a 320 GB 5400 rpm hard drive, while the
high-end 2.8 GHz 15-incher at $2,299 you get a 500 GB 5400 rpm hard
drive, which seems a questionable value for the extra $300.
Build-to-order options for the 15-inch MacBook Pro include a 3.06 GHz
Intel Core 2 Duo processor, RAM upgrades to 8 GB, hard drives up
to 500 GB 7200 rpm units or 128 GB or 256 GB solid state drives.
King of the Hill
Topping the range is the big 17" MacBook Pro at
$2,499 with a 2.8 GHz Core 2 Duo CPU, the LED-backlit 1920 x 1200
glossy display, 4 GB of RAM, and an ExpressCard/34 expansion slot
(instead of the SD Card slots now used in the 13" and 15" models).
Build-to-order options are as with the 15" model, plus the availability
of a $50 anti-glare display coating.
The Value Leader
So there you have it, in my estimation the most excellent selection
of Mac laptop choices Apple has ever offered. For my money, the value
leader in this matrix is far and away the base 13" MacBook Pro, which
gives you nearly everything you get in the $1,699 15" model save for
the larger screen, 2 GB of additional RAM, a quarter-gigahertz of
processor speed, and 90 GB of hard drive capacity for $500 less - and
it's only $200 more than the MacBook White.
It's no surprise to hear that Apple is having trouble
keeping up with demand for the 13" and entry-level 15" models.
