MacBook Pro Index

17″ MacBook Pro (Late 2011)

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17" MacBook Pro

Overview

The Late 2011 MacBook Pros represent a small step forward from the Early 2011 models introduced 8 months earlier. The 17" model goes from 2.3 GHz to 2.4 GHz, a 9% improvement.

In addition to slightly faster CPUs, the Late 2011 model comes with 50% more spacious hard drives - 750 GB instead of 500 GB in the case of the 17" machine. The graphics processor (GPU) has been upgraded to Radeon HD 6770M with the same 1 GB of dedicated video memory.

There had been some speculation that the next MacBook Pro revision would include the same Bluetooth 4.0 built into the iPhone 4S, but no such luck - we're still living with Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR.

The Late 2011 MacBook Pros ship with OS X 10.7 Lion, but because this is a relatively minor revision, they should still be able to run Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard.

The best news of all is that with faster CPUs, larger hard drives, and improved graphics, there's no change in price.

This is the second MacBook Pro generation with Thunderbolt, a 10 Gbps data connection that uses the same connection as Mini DisplayPort. Thunderbolt is 12 times as fast as FireWire 800, over 20 times as fast as USB 2.0, and twice as fast as USB 3.0, which Apple may never adopt if Thunderbolt takes off. Thunderbolt can be used for video, hard drives, and networking, and adapters let you connect FireWire and USB devices.

Apple has improved AirPort performance by building three WiFi antennas into the 2011 MacBook Pros, allowing three channels with 150 Mbps bandwidth for a maxmimum bandwidth of 450 Mbps.

The new models are rated at 7 hours of battery power, down from 8-9 for last year's models, due to changes in the way Apple measures battery life. In testing, the 2011 models generally match or outperform the 2010 models.

These are the first Macs to use Intel HD 3000 Graphics, and for the first time it's coupled with AMD Radeon HD graphics. As before, it automatically switches between GPUs on the fly. The Intel GPU uses 384 MB of system memory, while the Radeon GPU has 1 GB of dedicated video memory.

4 GB of RAM is standard, and it can be upgraded to 16 GB, although Apple officially says 8 GB is the maximum. 128, 256, and 512 GB SSDs are extra cost options. This is the only current Mac notebook with ExpressCard/34.

Apple uses a true 24-bit display on all 17" Unibody MBP models.

Editor's note: The next paragraph is from the profile of the previous version of the MacBook Pro. At this time we do not know if it applies to the new model.

Unlike pre-2007 models, where every USB port could provide 500 mA of power, only a single high-powered device can be attached to the USB ports, and software will enable one of its downstream ports to supply 500 mA of power. If a second high-powered device is attached, it will behave like a normal bus-powered hub and only provide 100 mA per downstream port.

The Apple Remote is a US$20 option.

Closed Lid Mode: All Intel 'Books support "lid closed" (or clamshell) mode, which leaves the built-in display off and dedicates all video RAM to an external display. To used closed lid mode, your 'Book must be plugged into the AC adapter and connected to an external display and a USB or Bluetooth mouse and keyboard (you might also want to consider external speakers). Power up your 'Book until the desktop appears on the external display and then close the lid. Your 'Book will go to sleep, but you can wake it by moving the mouse or using the keyboard. The built-in display will remain off, and the external monitor will become your only display. Since all video RAM is now dedicated to the external monitor, you may have more colors available at higher resolutions.

To resume use of the internal display, you need to disconnect the external display, put the computer to sleep, and then open the lid. This will wake up your 'Book and restore use of the built-in display.

Intel-based Macs use a partitioning scheme known as GPT. Only Macintel models can boot from GPT hard drives. Both PowerPC and Intel Macs can boot from APM (Apple's old partitioning scheme) hard drives, which is the format you must use to create a universal boot drive in Leopard. Power PC Macs running any version of the Mac OS prior to 10.4.2 cannot mount GPT volumes. PowerPC Macs won't let you install OS X to a USB drive or choose it as your startup volume, although there is a work around for that.

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