Apple refreshes MacBook Pro family with Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors... at long last!
By Paul Miller 
posted April 13th 2010 8:34AM
posted April 13th 2010 8:34AM
All machines come with 4GB of RAM, and while hard drives are standard (320GB and 500GB in the higher end), you're free to add a 512GB SSD to your machine if you so choose, for a mere $1,300. Interestingly only the 15-incher is getting that top Core i7 chip, with the sole 17-inch model is consigned to the 2.53GHz Core i5 (though you can choose Core i7 in the build to order options). Prices range from $1,799 on the 15 (up from the last-gen's $1,699 base price!) to $2,299 on the 17, with a $1,199 starting price on the 13. On the 15-inch you can pick between a 1440 x 900 "glossy" display, a 1680 x 1050 glossy display for $100 more, and an anti-glare hi-res display for another $50 on top of that (you 17-inch users are stuck with 1920 x 1200 and glossy). The biggest tweak outside of these beefy internals is "inertial scrolling" support for the trackpads, à la iPhone, though we're not sure why this couldn't have been added with just a software update. Everything's up on the Apple Store right now for your perusal, with the bigger models shipping "within 24 hours" and a 2-4 day delay on the 13-inch.
Update: Ars Technica confirms that the autonomous graphics switching is indeed from Apple. The boys in Cupertino wrote their own code in order to extract the longer battery life. Unlike Optimus, Apple's solution powers down the integrated graphics when the discrete GPU is required -- something that happens automatically whenever an application requires advanced graphics frameworks like OpenGL, Core Graphics, or Quartz Composer. Optimus works off a master list of GPU intensive apps that NVIDIA maintains. Yeah, we can definitely see Apple not going for that.
@ajwoodhouse Agreed. It's a rather bland update and brings very little to the table. I don't think Apple are trying to be competitive any more in terms of hardware, and in all honesty, they probably don't need to be with such a loyal fanbase.
Human nature is weird :)
I still think it's overpriced. corei7's out there with more RAM and storage for under 1700, that's for sure.
Its worth noting that education pricing has improved, it's still the same $200 off, but configurations are cheaper too. They are still overpriced, and I had my fingers crossed for bluray. Apple needs to get a grip, MS isn't too far behind anymore, and people won't be hypnotized by the little glowing fruit that somebody took a bite out of too much longer.
@DLeb for some, the apple is a lie
You may also notice that Apple dropped the price for 8GB of RAM down to $400 when with the last model is was an $800 upgrade.
How big of a difference is the new 2.4 MBP13 to the 2.26 from last year, in terms of speed and performance?
I can safely get an Asus now or any other vendor for that matter... Apple almost got me converted in the last couple of months mainly because of OSX, but these new Macbooks are such a let down hardware-wise...
Pathetic graphics card, no HDMI, no Blu-ray, not even a simple numpad on the 17-incher... I know Apple has reasons for these decisions but they are still a deal-breaker for me.
That confirms it, NO QUAD cpus on the mbps. They should still be fine for most mac people. Even the magic apple company cannot change the laws of physics and give so much battery life on the current quads with current parts.
Yawn.
Dual core at the highest config, even in the 17" ?
Nvidia 330 GFX ?
No other significant updates?
Yawn.
Just picked up the new 13". Store in Houston TX (Willowbrook) only received 1 today. Looks good so far, and yes it does come with the new style power adapter.
It's a shame they use i7-620E's, the 720QM or 820QM would've been so much faster.
Do the matte screen models still have the old silver trim or are they now glass to the edge? And why $150.00 more for the option. Wasn't it $50 more before?
Gonna have to hit the apple store and look at the 13" model. I've been wanting one and waited for the refresh before buying. The upgrades seem welcome but I'm still a little gunshy about paying the "apple tax".
great another super priced mac book pro WITHOUT HDMI???
fml!
p.s. i know you fanboys are going to scream bloody murder about the mini display port but really... i don't want another stupid dongle to buy or carry just so i can patch into a high def monitor. give me straight hdmi comp to tv with 1 cable and i'm happy!
Why is it that every company loves to lie about the battery life... in Apple's case, 10 hours with an i7?
Now some people have pointed out the hardware limits that the macbook pros have. Sure they do have limits, after all this is not a gaming rig. For some reason a core duo macbook runs better at a lot of everyday activities than my quad core desktop. So there is more that you're paying for than just hardware and not all 2.4ghz quad cores are the same. So no blu-ray (I can live without it) there will be mini display to hdmi. Keep in mind this is not for gamers and the sony vaio z that was suggested I took a look at it, the thing was pretty much the same as a macbook. I think macbook is not being the most competitive in hardware but they are pretty competitive in other areas like user experience, osx, customer service, and quality. I am no apple fanboy. The only other apple devices I owned were iphone and itouch. I currently have a win 7 desktop. It was pretty cheap as well.
-Runs to refurb store-
WHAT?!? The refurb prices weren't dropped?!? Oh well, not that it matters. I'm rocking a refurb 15" original unibody, so I'm (mostly) OK. Now I just have to wait another 3 to 5 years. and I'll have i5/i7 goodness! YAAA- Wait a minute...
Damn, that apple logo truly really very expensive!
Thanks Apple, between the iPod Touch Maxi that can't even do flash and these overpriced relics this will be the first year I haven't bought anything new from Apple in a decade! Saving me thousands of dollars! Love my C2D MacBook with a real FW400 port, mini-DVI, & screen that doesn't double as a makeup mirror. No lust to upgrade here. iPhone 3G still crashes & freezes often enough with no help from Flash or cross-compiled apps. That said, I love the integration with iTunes & Mobile-Me (another prime example of how bug-free, fabulous & ready for prime time is HTML5). I do get the value. I will pay more for Apple products. I love my Mac OSX; but for the mobile stuff? Android & god help us Win 7 is actually looking way tempting. Apple may just not get my upgrade bucks this July. All said, the gouging on the mobile stuff is just good business. Fine, these are toys, status symbols. But the last round of computer upgrades from Apple were great, introduction of of the unibody, lower prices, and hidden gem - MacMini. I'm loving one as an HTPC. But a $2,000 laptop that's only marginally "faster" than one that's 2 years old? Yeah, the aluminum's pretty, but no. My laptops & desktops need to be real machines. These "upgrades" at these prices are all the more sign that Steve has jumped the shark. A fool and his money are soon parted, yes, but the tech community tends to be a little smarter than your average fool.
"(you 17-inch users are stuck with 1920 x 1200 and glossy)" -- wrong. You can get the Anti-glare option for the 17-inch model.
I have most definitely gone above and beyond the predicted hours of battery life for my mid-09, 2.8GHz, 15.4" MBP. Working all day and night on a big art project due the nest day requires a good amount of music listening and goofing-off, to keep going.
@pallen33 you are the perfect apple user :)
I want it so bad. I'm wondering if I should wait til the next refresh whenever that may be
@jtshawk You may have to wait for long before apple comes up with an update. I waited for long for this release and finally purchased it today. http://www.abt.com/product/46149/Apple-MC371LLA.html. I would suggest you buy it too.
This seems like a nice update however I'm still waiting for Apple to adopt Bluray. By now I think a Bluray drive should be something that is simply standard for a $1500+ Laptop.
What bothers me the most is that Apple is no longer the cutting edge - nothing "revolutionary", just "evolutionary". Yeah, it works, but for that kind of money I would expect something "insanely great". I don't even get the fastest processor in intel's lineup, is that something apple is saving for the next refresh? I am on a 1st gen MBP, and it is still working well except Aperture 3 is sucking all the power and takes forever to process files. Maybe I will build myself an i7 quad hackintosh that would run Aperture fast and save myself a grand or two?
For someone looking to get a 13' MBP would it be a better buy to get the new one or the older model for cheaper?