Macbook Pro 13 inch review
With the most recent Macbook Pro updates, Apple has finally extended the “Pro” to a Macbook with a screen smaller than 15″. Apple’s previous diminutive pro machine, the Powerbook G4 12″, was discontinued years ago, but many fans of the machine clamored for something smaller than the 15″. With the Macbook Pro 13″, Apple has given these fans something to be excited about.
Of course, the new Macbook Pro is very close in appearance and features to the Macbook 13″ Unibody machine it replaces. The big additions come in the way of Firewire 800, Backlit Keyboard, SD Memory Slot, and of course, the built-in 7 hour battery. Additionally, Apple bumped the CPU speeds and memory/hard drive capacity, all while lowering the prices. In short, Apple has really out done itself with this release of portable computers.
Style
Having owned every Mac laptop iteration since the Titanium Powerbook G4, I can say without a doubt that the unibody aluminum Macbook Pro form factor is most impressive enclosure Apple has ever produced. The previous generation of aluminum Macbook Pros was impressive, but the form factor had a few issues. First, it was designed and assembled in such a way that something as simple as replacing a hard drive was an hour long affair, requiring you to tear the laptop apart. Second, the design just didn’t feel all that solid. Apple has rectified both of these issues with the new form factor. The machine is the most solid feeling laptop I have ever laid my hands on – Mac or PC. And, even though Apple has sealed the battery in the enclosure, accessing the internals requires only the removal of 8 screws on the bottom of the machine, revealing the memory, hard drive, and battery.
When Apple debuted the previous generation unibody Macbook, the biggest criticism was that it lacked a Firewire port. Apple listened, and Firewire 800 is back on board. Additionally, Apple brought the illuminated keyboard to the 13″ Macbook Pro. This was long a feature that Apple reserved for the 15″ and higher machines, to differentiate them from the consumer focused Macbooks.
New to both the 13 inch and 15 inch models is the inclusion of a SD memory card slot. Most other laptops have had these for years, so it was surprising to see Apple finally relent on this. SD memory is most frequently used in digital cameras and camcorders. One of the nice benefits of having this slot on the new machines is that you can boot from these devices if needed, giving you easy way to keep a emergency restore disk handy, in case your hard drive ever has trouble.
Another improvement over the previous generation is the ability for the 13 inch machines to be expanded to 8GB of RAM. Of course, with 4GB RAM modules costing close to $400 each, you may find that 4GB of RAM is sufficient, at least until the prices on these modules drop.
Apple also improved the hard drive offerings on these machines. Notably, you can now custom configure the Macbook Pros with 500GB hard drives, in both 5400RPM and 7200RPM flavors.
Battery
When the Macbook Pro 17″ debuted, it featured a new controversial feature – a built-in battery that offered 8 hours of battery life. With the improvement in battery life came a trade off – the new battery is sealed in the machine, and not user serviceable. Apple will replace it for you if needed, at a cost of $129. Apple claims that the battery will last up to 5 years.
The initial outrage to the sealed battery died down rather quickly, because, Apple’s claims of 8 hour battery life were pretty much true. When the new Macbook Pros were released, no one was really surprised that Apple extended that feature to the 13 inch and 15 inch models.
The battery in the 13 inch and 15 inch Macbook Pros are of the same technology as the 17 inch model. Apple claims it can be recharged 1000 times. Of course, the battery is covered by the same 1 year warranty, so if it starts to fail after 15 months (200-350 charges approx.), you will need to pay Apple the $129 to replace the battery. These procedures can be done in any Apple Store, and generally only take a few minutes to perform. Apple claims that if you make a Genius appointment to have the battery replaced, you should have the machine back to you that same day.
How well these batteries fare will take a year or so to sort out. With regard to the immediate claims of 7 hours of battery life on the 13″ Macbook Pro, I can confirm that it exceeds that claim. In my test of using the Macbook Pro to do web surfing with the screen at 50% brightness (which is still very bright), Bluetooth off, and no optical drive activity, I was able to get nearly 8 hours before the machine forced itself to sleep due to lack of power. This is an impressive feature, and one that I am happy to trade for a removable battery. However, batteries tend to be fickle components, and I’ve had my share of issues with previous Macbook Pro battery packs. The real test of the new battery will come in 10-12 months, as users react to how well their machines fare with diminished capacity.
Screen
The biggest gamble for me on the 13 inch Macbook Pro was the screen. I’ve always owned 15 inch or even 17 inch portables, because they were used as my main Mac. Now I have a 24 inch iMac that I love, so my needs in a portable have changed. If I am doing design work, or looking through my photo collection, I am most likely going to use my iMac. Going to a portable display fixed at 1280 x 800 was going to be the biggest question mark for me in using the new Macbook Pro.
Of course, screen real estate is tighter than the 15 inch model. If you value screen real estate over portability, Apple has the 15 inch Macbook Pro available for just $200 more than the 13 inch model. In my usage though, I haven’t had any issues with the reduced real estate. If I ever needed to use this machine for Photoshop or any other design task, I would most likely attach it to an external monitor anyway. The smaller footprint and weight are significant in making this machine feel more portable than its 15 inch brothers.
The glossy screen is what it is. It gives you highly saturated blacks and richer, deeper colors. It also gives you potential glare problems if you are in the right(wrong) environement, or have the screen tilted to high or too low. Since Apple has standardized on glossy screens for all of it’s machines, you have little choice but to live with the glossy display. The one bit of relief is that Apple has a 17 inch Macbook available with a matte screen for $50 more.
Summary
Overall, I think Apple has produced the finest laptops money can buy. The Macbook Pro line is more affordable, more powerful, and more configurable than at any other time in history. If you’ve been waiting to buy a new Macbook Pro, your crazy to wait any longer.
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