More on Apple's new LED-backlit MacBook Pro

Apple left a little mystery in their MacBook Pro announcement today, and being that this marks their first official release of an LED-backlit laptop we had to take out the guesswork and get confirmation on a few of our more burning questions.

• All 15-inch MBPs now use LED-backlit displays standard; 17-inchers still use CCFL (cold cathode fluorescent)
• Apple claims users can see a battery-life benefit of between 30 mins - 1 hour (depending on use). They did not have stats on exact efficiencies between LED and CCFL backlit displays.
• The new LED backlight is the same brightness: 300 vs 300 nits of the previous gen's CCFL
• The viewing angle is also the same as before
• In other words, besides faster time from fully-off to full-brightness and an increase in battery life, Apple claims users should notice absolutely no perceivable difference between last-gen displays and the new LED-backlit ones.

Other bits

• To clarify, MacBook Pros are using Santa Rosa, but MacBooks are not yet using Santa Rosa
• Even though the MBP is 0.2 pounds lighter, we're still without an internal / integrated 3G option

[LSG501 @ Jun 5th 2007 12:10PM]

didn't sony release led backlit laptops before apple. I'm sure the x505, tx1 etc used LED's atleast as an option.

[bethel03 @ Jun 5th 2007 12:12PM]

Its amazing how long LED's have been around and how they are barely making their way into more modern technology.

[jabar @ Jun 5th 2007 12:12PM]

Where is the Blue-Ray Drive??
HDMI?

[bobvilla @ Jun 5th 2007 12:13PM]

uhhhh:
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921665064281

been out for almost a year i think.

[Ryan Block @ Jun 5th 2007 12:23PM]

Interesting! Updated the post, thanks!

[kwake22 @ Jun 5th 2007 12:15PM]

My year old vaio sz has LED backlighting

http://b2b.sony.com/Solutions/subcategory/notebooks/sz-series

[Jon @ Jun 5th 2007 12:23PM]

This must be some kind of aftermath relating to Steve Job's RDF.

Come on Engadget, first for Apple does not mean first for the industry. Others has gotten there before them.

[Romey Rome @ Jun 5th 2007 12:14PM]

This seems a bit disappointing...

[thomas landy @ Jun 5th 2007 12:17PM]

it is a santa rosa chip too as the 800mhz fsb is only on the santa rosa chips, no previous intel centrino chips had that fsb speed

[notfreelance @ Jun 5th 2007 12:19PM]

The MacBook is not yet using Santa Rosa
Supporting the fast Intel Core 2 Duo processor is an advanced system architecture that includes up to 4GB of 667MHz DDR2 memory (the fastest portable computer memory on the market), an 800MHz frontside bus, 16-lane PCI Express graphics, and a Serial ATA hard drive.-apple
Santa Rosa features an updated mobile Core 2 Duo microprocessor. Notably, the Front Side Bus speed has been increased to 800 MHz. -wikipedia

read up about the santa rosa in the new macpros at pc magazine

[Seth @ Jun 5th 2007 12:19PM]

Thomas: yes, and engadget's last announcement on the macbook pro says it uses santa rosa

[Seth @ Jun 5th 2007 12:21PM]

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2141842,00.asp

[Jon @ Jun 5th 2007 12:36PM]

You should still remove the reference "industry's first official releases of an LED-backlit laptop". It just sounds like you want to have a dig at Dell at the expense of factual information.

BTW Asus U1F uses LED as well and it has been out for a couple of months now.

[ITR @ Jun 5th 2007 2:32PM]

This is the first 15.4" backlite LED screen.

All the others are 13" screens.

[Harsh Agrawal @ Jun 5th 2007 12:30PM]

As much a fan I am of Apple - and I will be switching to one of these latest MBPs soon - it's amazing how convenient some people find it to give them credit for *anything* and *everything* they come out with, no matter how false the claim! Just like some other readers have pointed out, SONY has had spectacular LED backlit screens available on certain premium SZ and TX laptops for more than 2 years now!! Also, Sony's regular XBRITE laptop screens, which are not LED backlit, still remain the industry standard for brightness, sharpness and evenness! I am sorry to say this, but the Apple laptop displays are extremely poor in comparison. Let's see how good the new screens are, though. Still, give SONY the credit they truly deserve when it comes to being the first in the industry for incorporating LED technology in laptops.

[MisterE @ Jun 5th 2007 12:34PM]

The author is such an Apple fanboy, what is the point of the sentence "one of industry's first official releases of an LED-backlit laptop (behind Sony, but still ahead of Dell)", who really cares about Apple being first, second or last, geeezz.

By the way, since Sony introduced this more than a year ago, means it's old technology now!

[Jonathan Keim @ Jun 5th 2007 12:33PM]

Thanks Ryan, good objective article with all the facts clearly mentioned. Thanks

[Enrico Sola @ Jun 5th 2007 12:44PM]

Yes, Sony has LED backlit laptops since almost 2 years. I'm writing right now on a SZ3 with LED backlighting, which is also present on TX series and the new ultra-portable line.

The good about Sony Vaio LED laptops is that they offer better luminance than CCFL traditional displays.

I'm deluded by this Apple update to its lineup.

[james @ Jun 5th 2007 12:43PM]

Im pretty sure Engadget did mean MacBook and not MacBook Pro when they said 'isn't using Santa Rosa', and yes, I was initially confused by this.

Engadget - its an article about the newly released macbook pro.

Why engadget would bring up such an unrelated 'other bit' is confusing and shows the nature of their journalistic talent - nil, its just a bunch of guys doing what they like, it doesnt make them good at it. goes to show not everyone with a keyboard is a journo!

[nebulus @ Jun 5th 2007 12:40PM]

I just popped into my local Apple store and I could have walked out of the shop with one of the these, but I didn't as I'm confused about the release date for Leopard.

The guy in the shop said it wasn't coming out till October as it had slipped due to the iPhone release, but I'm sure I read a report on engadget saying it was still on target for spring release ie pre June 21st.

Not too keen on shelling out 1599pounds for the 15inch model then having to dig deep for an OS upgrade a couple of months after thats just daft!

Can anyone clarify when leopard is supposed to be coming out?

[psxp @ Jun 5th 2007 4:45PM]

Its October. iphone DID made the date Slip.

B

[js @ Jun 5th 2007 12:45PM]

The P7120, P7230, and Q2010 from Fujitsu also sports LED screens for over a year.

Apple as being "one of the first official"? I don't think so.

[Ryan Block @ Jun 5th 2007 12:52PM]

Lightened it up a bit -- thanks for the input guys!

[Zach @ Jun 5th 2007 12:56PM]

The press release specifies that this is an industry first for an LED backlit display of this size, 15.4". All of the Fujitsu and Sony machines mentioned as having the technology for longer are ultraportables with screen sizes topping out at 13". iPods, with their tiny screens, have had LED backlighting even longer. Compare like for like, and read the actual content of a claim before balking at it.

[Bhaal @ Jun 5th 2007 1:02PM]

Ah nothing like an Apple update to make the loonies and famboys come out of the woodwork. It's a product update people, and it's not claming to to be the second coming or the reinvention of the wheel. If you don't like it don't buy it. However as I will not use windows again by choice, ever I think this is pretty significant as it's the only way to get OS X and santa rosa together. It's also an update to the premier laptop in Apple's lineup and you know, a lot of people like to use Apple laptops, last time I checked they had a significant share in that sector so they must be doing something right.

In the UK it's also significantly cheaper than Sony's offerings, at least at the (student) price I can get them at.

[O S @ Jun 5th 2007 1:15PM]

I am in Canada and I just went to compare the educational prices of Canada and the US (due to the high Canadian dollar) and found that there is a significant glitch on the American educational store.

When you log in as an American student and click to purchase the lowest of the three models, and then click to upgrade the HD capacity to 160GB, rather than adding $67, the price actually reduces by $67 to $1731US.

Moreover, this is evident across the other HD options. When you select the most expensive upgrade to 160GB @ 7200 RPM for $202US more, it is only charging the buyer an extra $67US from the actual original price of $1866.

Somewhat of a big glitch for the Apple Store!

[MrWhite @ Jun 5th 2007 1:18PM]

:| Come on people neither Apple or Engadget claimed Apple to be the first with this technology. It is a first for Apple, that is all. Jobs promised the tree huggers that the company was going to greener with its upcoming products, and this is the first installment of that promise. Calm down. Geesh.

[Jon @ Jun 5th 2007 1:32PM]

Engadget did. Fortunately they updated the article.

[coyotej @ Jun 5th 2007 1:20PM]

"still no integrated 3G"

I think integrated 3G is dumb if it ties you to a carrier. Given Apple's relationship with cingular/AT&T and lack of pervasive 3G from them at this point, how can it make sense to offer this? I'd rather just use the ExpressCard slot for this. It's not like I'm using it for anything else.

[Jeremy @ Jun 5th 2007 1:25PM]

White, non-RGB LED's still have a problem producing light in the red spectrum and their life will likely be less than that of the CCFL. RGB LED's while able to produce a more balanced spectrum are also more power hungry than CCFL's. I think I'll wait a bit.

[michael @ Jun 5th 2007 1:24PM]

I guess people have already beat me to the punch, Sony had it first, longest, and has done it the best.

So this is a really disappointing update. Where's the HD-DVD drive? I'm going to stick with my old MBP and wait for something worthy to come. These new specs aren't bad, but aren't enough to upgrade for me.

[supes @ Jun 5th 2007 1:27PM]

Why is the optional glossy display cheaper on the MacBook Pro 15" than the standard. Choosing the Glossy over the Standard deducts $150 from the price. Is it still LED backlit?

[Mike Pope @ Jun 5th 2007 1:28PM]

People come on… calm down. The error shows in the price when you are building the machine, but not when you put it in your cart. At least not for me.

[nazgul @ Jun 5th 2007 2:05PM]

So, is that 1920x1200 *real* millions of colors, or *kinda* millions of colors?

[Jason @ Jun 5th 2007 1:52PM]

What's with the HD-DVD and Blueray complaints on these Apple threads? Neither technology has proven itself better than the other yet, so it's not a wise thing to add a few hundred extra for a slow drive that plays possibly antiquated technology later on.

Also, if you want slimmer and lighter, why are you looking at a 15" notebook with a metal casing?

All the main specs have been bumped and the price has remained the same. I'd call that a good deal.

[jabar @ Jun 5th 2007 11:38PM]

In order for technology to become a winning format, companies like Apple need to put them in their hardware. Hardware like the MBP with intergrated Blueray means a higher demand for Blueray media which means MORE sales of the format.

[Jason @ Jun 5th 2007 2:04PM]

Where's Robson? I knwo software support will have to wait until Lepoard but I hoped to see the MacBook Pro's at least include NAND Flash Memory for when the feature gets released...

[pwfletcher @ Jun 5th 2007 2:07PM]

I just bought one and am in the Apple store now ... brightness is about the same, a little more evenly distributed. Blacks are noticeably blacker. A great upgrade if you are a photo pro. Interestingly, the first one I got out of the box had 4 dead pixels ... manager gave me crap about exchanging it even though I had just bought it 5 minutes ago, but ended up giving me a new one without dead pixels. FSB boost is not really noticeable to me yet. Conclusion, very nice but not stellar upgrade. I would have liked to have seen a SSD HD.

:-)

[Dom @ Jun 5th 2007 2:12PM]

"Even though the MBP is 0.2 pounds lighter, we're still without an internal / integrated 3G option"

Would this not require making different, country specific - and possibly carrier specific - versions? That sounds like a dumb idea, and in no way financially viable to me.

[Bob @ Jun 5th 2007 2:46PM]

When are they going to do away with the physical latches? The Macbook magnetic closing top is much better.

[mathew @ Jun 5th 2007 6:24PM]

This is exactly what I've been waiting for. LED backlighting and no crappy ATI video hardware. I'll be buying one.

[Slvrgun @ Jun 5th 2007 3:13PM]

For a limited time, only five easy payments of $999.99.

[XGM @ Jun 5th 2007 4:22PM]

I dont give credit for what apple do, but more like how apple do it. Shure in the early years they invented things like what is known as firewire tooday, and the mouse too. Now apple isn't exactly inventing but more revolutionising existing but lesser known technologies, with a mix of look and simpleness.

Now if i only held out on my new MacBook Pro for the new ones... I could run ColinMc Rae DiRT at much higher setting on the new card :P

[Beau Gunderson @ Jun 5th 2007 5:41PM]

I honestly can't believe they didn't transition to the new style Macbook keyboard.

[bitbear @ Jun 5th 2007 5:35PM]

Now if the price would just come down to PC levels.

[Sindre Strandum @ Jun 6th 2007 12:58PM]

>> bitbear @ Jun 5th 2007 5:35PM
>> Now if the price would just come down to PC levels.

PC levels? Can you show me a cheaper and just as good, or a better specced PC in the same price rage?

Think this is great, finally upgraded their graphics as well!

[JK @ Jun 5th 2007 9:02PM]

No HDMI -- real shame
That new Dell XPS 1330 could be a MBP killer

[Sindre Strandum @ Jun 6th 2007 1:06PM]

To continue the Mac vs PC price:

The old MacBook Pro was often compared to the Acer 82XX series.

Right now the Acer TM that are in the same pricerange is the less specced 8215:
ACER LX.TEH06.103 TM 8215WLMi_VOIP_Carbon/Cen 2 D T7200/15.4" /1 x1024MB DDR2/120GB/BT/ATIX1600-256/512MB/XP Pro
If you want the same speccs (wo the gfx) you have to go for this one, and thats a tad pricier than the MBP:
LX.TEH06.039 Acer Travelmate 8215WLMi/CenD2 T7200 15.4"/2048MB/160GB-SATA/ATIX1600/BT/XPP

And we haven't talked about graphics, if you want same graphics performance you have to go for the: (more expensive) Asus Lamborghini VX2, (less specced and maybe cheaper) Asus F3SV, (much bulkier) Asus G1 or some of the Zepto flawors.

But none of these got a LED-backlit LCD, dual-link DVI support, FW800 or the small size and sleekness of the MBP, however they do have a higher resolution monitor, and possibly more USB-ports and other expansion.

Right now, if you want nice speccs for a ok price, go MBP.
I'm sure the rest of the pack will follow very soon.

P.S. I'm from Norway, so the prices and speccs may be different in your country

[M@ @ Jun 5th 2007 10:28PM]

jabar @ Jun 5th 2007 12:12PM - Where is the Blue-Ray Drive??
michael @ Jun 5th 2007 1:24PM - Where's the HD-DVD drive?

There's your answer!

[Imran @ Jun 6th 2007 8:54AM]

My 15inch MBPro has dead pixels :( All over the place too, but it's an old one, from December.