Before I get to the review I would just like to mention that I am a hardcore windows user. I've been using windows as far back as I can remember. I only came to know about the existence of Mac about 7 or 8 years ago and heard that it has got a really good interface and is much more user friendly than windows. I had also heard ( what happened to be a big bummer for me!) that there were only a limited few and lousy games available for the Mac. So why even bother. At that time, more than work, a PC was a gaming machine for me. Plus, the plethora of applications available for windows. A Mac was nowhere near windows. I began to wonder... Why is it that people use a Mac? Is it just to show due rivalry towards Microsoft?
It was only about three years back that I got to look at a Mac and admire its sheer beauty in design. All Mac machines look so sleek and elegant. So I felt this could be at least one of the reasons why a user pics up a Mac. So that his machine stands out in the crowd. But does the look of a machine really matter that much? What about performance?
I learn a year later that Mac machines ( loaded with OS X operating systems ) are virus free and never hang up. Now this is a very hard claim. But this is so true at least 95% of the time. Please jump to the next paragraph if you do not need the technical reason for this!! It is not very easy to create a virus for the Mac because it is built on the Unix shell. Unix file access permissions and user control features allow access to only restricted system files to the end user and to actually manipulate system files you need to run as a superuser. No user is given superuser permission without a password and hence these files can only be manipulated after providing a password. The main reason for a machine to hang up is when the processor gets overheated or overloaded. In the case of a Mac, operating system was built in close coordination with the hardware so it is optimized for the processor and peripherals it works with. More often than not, in windows, the processor is not used to its full potential because it is built to suit many processors and chipsets. Building an operating system by keeping the hardware specifications in mind is like building an edifice with a perfect foundation. This is exactly what Apple has done and they have nailed it.
Now let me get to the actual review of the MacBook Pro. The specifications of my system are as follows:
Display: 13.3 inch
OS: Snow Leopard ( OS X 10.6.2 )
HDD: 250 GB SATA @ 5200RPM
GFX: nVidia 320 M 256MB GDDR3
RAM: 4 GB
CPU: 2.4 Ghz Core 2 Duo with 3MB L2 Cache
I was in a fix whether to just go for the MacBook or is it really worth the extra cash for the Pro. Let me tell you the main differences between the Pro and the regular MacBook.
ARCHITECTURE: The MacBook Pro comes with an Aluminum unibody finish whereas the MacBook comes with a polycarbonate unibody finish. The unibody is a revolutionary design by Apple where the entire body is made up of one single block of material. This technology makes the device very rigid and durable as there are no moving parts in the actual body except the lid.
This technology is patented by Apple and can only be found in the MacBook family. This goes up to such an extent that even the battery is no longer removable (but replaceable by Apple). This is not much of a concern because the new battery provides up to 10 hours of battery with normal usage and Apple claims that the battery can be recharged 1000 times before it needs to be replaced.
DESIGN: Some of the reasons I picked a MacBook Pro over the MacBook. Well, the MacBook Pro looks much better with its aluminum unibody. It has a much sleeker look than the MacBook and looks more majestic. The MacBook looks really cool no doubt but it would better suit a college student. The Pro looks Professional. But looks is not everything. Why just dish out the extra cash for a better finish? There are several extra features provided in the MacBook Pro, some of which are not even mentioned in the website. The Pro comes with a back-lit keyboard which adjusts its brightness based on the intensity of the light in the surroundings. This can also be changed manually. There are battery level indicator leds present to the left side of the device which, on the push of a button, displays the battery level of the device without the need to turn on the device or open the lid. The card reader is missing in a MacBook which is a big bummer for those who frequently transfer photos from memory cards.
SOUND: I have checked many reviews online and I found it very difficult to find a comment on the sound quality of a Mac.. Well from my experience I would say, this is the only place where the Mac falls back. The sound quality is not awful but it can be classified as average. For regular alerts or to watch videos on youtube, the sound quality is good enough but when watching a movie or listening to music, speakers or earphones are highly recommended. This is one area Apple seems to be neglecting for whatever reason.
PERFORMANCE: This is the area where the Mac simply excels. Here I am going to compare this to my experience with a windows laptop. Let me tell you why I feel the MacBook out performs every other laptop out there. You can forget about every other point mentioned above. The ultimate reason why you choose a laptop over a desktop is portability. When we say portability, we can take size, weight, durability and lifetime as metrics. The body of the MacBook Pro is made up of aluminum and is hence very light, durable and scratch proof. The boot up time is just supreme. From the push of the power button to a state where it is completely usable at optimum performance, it takes less than 30 seconds! But the best part of it is the sleep mode. When you close the lid of a Mac, it enters sleep mode which is indicated by a blinking while led near the lid. When you lift the lid, it wakes up to a fully operational state in less than 2 seconds!! Recovery from sleep mode or hibernation mode is never this quick on a windows machine. Moreover, very less battery is drained in sleep mode. If the device is to be used on a daily basis, there is hardly a need to shut down the machine. Oh and I forgot to mention. Shutting down takes less than 2 seconds as well. You can click on the shutdown button and the machine is switched off before you can even close the lid.
APPLICATIONS:
This is the area where the Mac falls back when compared to the PC in most cases. The Mac has its share of great proprietary software such as Garage Band, iPhoto, iMovie, etc but this is nowhere close to the huge library of applications available for the PC. With the Mac becoming more and more popular these days, the number of applications continue to rise. The only true place where a Mac lags behind the PC is in gaming. Macs may boast a powerful graphics card built into it and may claim it plays the latest demanding games. But the Mac is NOT a machine which should be chosen by the hardcore gamer for gaming.
There is so much more that can be said about the MacBook. Even though I have said so much, I still have a feeling I have only covered a few layers of the trifle. There is a lot more than meets the eye. Overall I just have to say its a very great product. I can confidently say that I have reduced the usage of the PC and use the Mac for almost all my daily computer activities except gaming of course ;)
Cheers!
