Colorware's well known for offering up all sorts of consumer electronics in all sorts of hues, but the outfit has definitely stepped up its game with the Stealth MacBook Pro. This limited edition piece is an all-black 15-inch MacBook Pro with a matte display, 3.06GHz CPU, 8GB of DDR3 RAM, 256GB SSD, an 8x SuperDrive, zero gloss finish and a SofTouch coating that'll make it downright impossible for your fingers to stop stroking it. Reportedly, these will be limited to just ten units, and each one will cost a not-at-all affordable $5,999. See Apple, this is what you get when you voluntarily axe the BlackBook. Opportunity, lost.

[Via Engadget Polska]

We've seriously no idea why Apple didn't just ship all of the June 2009 MacBook Pro units with the SATA 3Gbps specification enabled, but at least it caved to the chorus of complaints and enabled it today via a firmware update. MacBook Pro EFI Firmware Update 1.7, as it's called in Software Update, weighs in at just 3.35MB and requires OS X 10.5.7 to be installed. According to Apple, the update "addresses an issue reported by a small number of customers using drives based on the SATA 3Gbps specification with the June 2009 MacBook Pro." Of course, it goes on to say that it still doesn't support the use of drives that can take advantage of such speeds, but at least you have the option now of taking matters into your own hands and upgrading to a non-hamstrung SSD should you choose.

[Via MacRumors]

It's been one hell of a month, hasn't it? New Palm phones, new iPhones, a big Kindle, that Natal thing... LL Cool J. Yes, a lot has happened in the past few weeks, and it's tough to contain all of that activity inside one teensy podcast -- but we've tried. Join Josh, Paul, and Nilay for another adventurous adventure through time, space, and love as they explore the deeper meanings of the cosmos, the universe, and consumer facing gadgetry. If you don't love the way you feel after listening to this thing, you may already be a zombie.

Update: We had some issues with the MP3 of the podcast -- should be working now. Ping us if you have trouble!

Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, Paul Miller
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Song: Viva La Vida

Hear the podcast



00:02:05 - iPhone 3G S review
00:13:47 - Video: Josh, Jimmy Fallon, and the iPhone 3 Ga-Speed
00:25:54 - MacBook Pro (mid 2009) in-depth impressions
00:41:30 - Nokia N97 hands-on and impressions
00:45:12 - LL Cool J's hilariously aggressive N97 ad: "don't call it a comeback"
00:50:20 - WebOS homebrewers say 'Hello World!' to Palm Pre
00:58:00 - Pre gets NES emulation in Linux; our thumbs are in for a world of hurt
00:59:18 - Amazon Kindle DX unboxing and hands-on!
01:06:30 - Project Natal basis for new Xbox console coming Fall 2010?
01:06:50 - Like weeds: new Natal Xbox rumor shot down, 3D Xbox rumor pops up to take its place
01:07:35 - Project Natal recognizing retail shelves in 2010, says Ballmer (update: maybe not)
01:09:50 - Johnny Chung Lee joins Project Natal team, puts Wii hacking experience to good use
01:13:17 - Olympus E-P1 'digital Pen' gets official, so does our lust
01:15:25 - Olympus E-P1 video samples posted, camera turns up in ad-within-an-ad Blendtec spot
01:19:00 - Engadget Chinese goes hands-on with the Olympus E-P1
01:20:00 - Adamo redux: Dell teases new thin-and-light laptops in Paris with no specs


Subscribe to the podcast

[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (enhanced AAC).
[RSS MP3] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically.
[RSS AAC] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator.
[Zune] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace

Download the podcast

LISTEN (MP3)
LISTEN (AAC)
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Contact the podcast

1-888-ENGADGET or podcast (at) engadget (dot) com.

Twitter: @joshuatopolsky @futurepaul @reckless @engadget

Let's be straight here: we're a little perplexed by the new MacBook Pro line. On one hand, Apple didn't really make enough changes to warrant a whole new review of the unibody lineup, and minor speed bumps aside, briefly using one of the new machines feels pretty much like using most any recent Mac: it's OS X on a really nice, albeit extremely glossy screen. On the other hand, after a week in the trenches, it's clear that all those seemingly minor changes will have a big impact down the line -- especially the move to sealed-in batteries across the board, which is a decision with decidedly mixed consequences. What's more, we think these changes impact the 13-inch and 15-inch models very differently -- the $1,199 13-inch configuration might have a shiny new Pro label on it, but even Apple admits that it's an entry-level consumer machine, and consumers and professionals don't have the same needs.

So while this isn't going to be a full-on review, we think just slightly more than just our usual bullet-pointed impressions are in order -- and we think it's important to actually break things down by model. How do Apple's latest laptops stack up? Read on for more.

Apple might have bumped the 13-inch unibody MacBook to Pro status at WWDC last week, but it looks like all the shuffling around to reduce costs has had an unfortunate side effect: new MacBook Pros that ship with HDDs only have a 1.5GBps SATA enabled, while SSD configs are apparently getting the full 3.0GBps SATA II experience that used to be standard. For most people this won't make too much difference since traditional hard drives can't move data that fast, but it's something to keep in mind if you're hoping to buy an HDD unit and swap in a speedier SSD, since your max performance will be bottlenecked. We've verified that our review units with HDDs all have the slower settings, but we've put in a call to Apple to get some more answers on this -- stay tuned.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

We've only just started playing with our new 13-inch MacBook Pro, but the cats at iFixit have different ideas -- they've already torn one open for your morbid viewing pleasure. Interestingly, battery replacement involves only the removal of a couple tri-wing screws and a sticker, so the situation isn't totally dire, although we'd obviously prefer if Apple had left well enough alone. Other than that and the addition of FireWire and the SD slot, things seem to be about the same as the original unibody MacBook, but don't take our word for it -- hit the read link and feast your eyes.

What would you call this? A "fleet" of MacBook Pros? A "catch?" A "murder," perhaps? In any case, Apple just dropped off the entire line -- including the newly-status-bumped 13-inch MacBook Pro -- at Engadget HQ, and while we'll have some in-depth impressions and benchmarks soon, we thought we'd throw up the unboxings and family photos for you right away. We're sort of struck by how amazingly similar these are in person, but we're eager to see how the internals stack up -- and whether that integrated NVIDIA GeForce 9400M in the 13-inch can handle a professional workload. Anything else you want to know?

Update: We just noticed that the 13-inch has lost its dedicated audio input jack, we're guessing because of space constraints with the addition of SD and FireWire 800 -- but we're told the new single jack supports both input and output. We're testing it out, we'll let you know.

Sure, Apple didn't really shock anyone with the announcement of the iPhone 3G S this morning at WWDC, but there was no shortage of news at the Moscone Center -- we also got new MacBooks, final Snow Leopard details, and a release date for iPhone OS 3.0. On the other hand, it wasn't all good news either: AT&T's iPhone upgrade pricing and service levels leave a lot to be desired, and Apple's unfortunate penchant for sealed-in batteries has finally hit the 15-inch MacBook Pro. Apple's posted its stream of the keynote if you want to relive things in real-time, but here's a quick rewind in case you missed anything:

The good

• Current iPhone owners will get iPhone OS 3.0 for free, although some features like video recording and voice control are limited to the iPhone 3G S. It's not perfect, but we don't really complain about free.
• Snow Leopard upgrades will cost just $29, instead of the usual $129.
  
• The original 8GB iPhone 3G is now only $99 for new AT&T subscribers. That's definitely going to make some waves in the smartphone market.
• We'd have loved to see some external design improvements and maybe some more surprising features that weren't rumored, but overall the iPhone 3G S is definitely in the "good" column -- it's a solid set of improvements to an already very good platform.
• MacBook Air and MacBook Pro (including the new 13-inch Pro) specs have increased while prices have come down, and glory be, FireWire is back on everything but the Air.
  

The bad

• As usual, iPod touch owners are going to get dinged $9.95 for the iPhone OS 3.0 upgrade. Hey Apple -- maybe switch these guys over to subscription accounting as well?
• Let's face it, "iPhone 3G S" is a pretty clunky name.
• Sure, it's nice that the MacBook Pros now have an SD card slot, but losing ExpressCard hurts. And why not a multicard reader? Pro DSLRs still use CF.

The ugly

• Sure, new customers and qualified upgraders are getting some sweet pricing on iPhone hardware, but AT&T's basically flipping existing customers the bird -- they'll have to pay anywhere from $399 to a whopping $699 to get an iPhone 3G S. You'd think they'd have looked at how many people went from a first-gen iPhone to a 3G and realized those same people would want a 3G S, but apparently not.
  
• On top of that insult, AT&T isn't supporting all of iPhone OS 3.0's features out the gate: MMS is coming "later this summer," and tethering has been promised but there's no timeline and no pricing information. Thanks, AT&T.
• Sure, it's grand that the 15-inch MacBook Pro's battery now lasts for up to seven hours on a charge and won't lose capacity for five years, but a non-swappable battery on a workhorse professional machine just doesn't cut it for us.

So all in all we'd say that the good outweighs the bad, although AT&T really disappointed here. Of course, that's just scratching the surface -- check out the rest of our coverage after the break and let us know what you think!

Apple wasn't totally clear about this earlier, but it turns out all the unibody MacBook models are now MacBook Pros -- the only remaining "MacBook" is the white plastic number. That's definitely a big change from Cupertino's usual rigidly-maintained product matrix -- we'd say that the lower-end Pros with GeForce 9400M integrated graphics definitely blur the line between consumer and professional machines. Still, it's not hard to tell one from the other on the outside, at least: MacBooks are plastic and MacBook Pros are aluminum. We all straight?

Apple just let loose a new 15-inch MacBook Pro at WWDC 2009, with what appears to be the same built-in, non-removable battery (or, non-user serviceable, if we're being proper) as in the current unibody 17-incher. Phil asserts that the cell will last the average user around five years (1,000 recharges), and could last around seven hours under ideal conditions. There's also an SD card reader rather than an ExpressCard slot (seriously Apple -- replaced? -- why not just add it like every other Wintel laptop available today?). Oh, and the starting tag just dropped to $1,699.

• Starting at $1,699 (down from $1,999 in prior lineups)
  
• $1,699: 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M graphics, 250GB HDD, SD card slot, no ExpressCard
  
• $1,999: 2.66GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT graphics, 320GB HDD, SD card slot, no ExpressCard
• $2,299: 2.8GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT graphics, 500GB HDD, SD card slot, no ExpressCard
• 17-inch unibody MacBook Pro remains the same specs-wise (it's the only Apple laptop left with an ExpressCard slot), but it's getting a price cut to $2,499.
• Shipping today

Not enough for you? The 13-inch unibody MacBook has been beefed up and revised, and it's now part of the MacBook Pro line as well. Yep, all the aluminum machines are now Pros, with the same built-in battery promising seven hours of life. The littlest Pro also gets the SD card slot, a FireWire 800 port, up to 8GB of RAM, upwards of 500GB of storage and a backlit keyboard as standard. You just knew Apple couldn't let its remaining white MacBook outperform its more expensive unibody for long, right? It'll be available (today, we expect) in two configurations.

• $1,199: 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M graphics, 160GB HDD, SD card slot, no ExpressCard
• $1,499: 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M graphics, 250GB HDD, SD card slot, no ExpressCard

Wilder still? A new MacBook Air, which starts at $1,499 (while the SSD unit gets going at $1,799). Yeah, that's $700 less than before.

• $1,499: 1.86GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M graphics, 120GB HDD
• $1,799: 2.13GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M graphics, 128GB SSD

Yep, Sanho's Hypermac is a big clunky external battery pack. Sure, we're intrigued by the idea of running a MacBook Pro for 32 hours straight, but we'd really rather hunt around for a power outlet than drop $500 on the 222Wh unit required to make that happen. On the other hand, we could definitely see splurging for the $150 car charger or the $200 60Wh model, but we're crazy like that. Shipping later this month, we're told.

Apple's latest firmware update for the recently shipped 17-inch MacBook Pro sure is light on details, but one thing's for sure: it reportedly nixes those weird vertical line issues that have plagued so many. Unfortunately, the "MacBook Pro Graphics Firmware Update 1.0" doesn't point out whether it was an overheating problem or a GeForce 9600M quirk that was wreaking havoc, but so long as it works, we guess it matters not. Hit up your Software Update when you get enough courage to suck down 770KB of problem-solving goodness.

[Via MacRumors]

Oh, brother. We can already tell this one's going to be a fun, enjoyable journey to follow. Shortly after Apple's 17-inch unibody MacBook Pro began making its way out to early adopters, small legions of owners have reported all sorts of bizarre graphical glitches. While we first assumed that it was NVIDIA's GeForce 9600M causing all the mayhem, further investigation has led us to believe that faulty fan controls could be the culprit. Granted, all of this is just speculatory at the moment, but it seems that some users have noticed that their fans aren't kicking into high gear when they should. 'Course, some folks have seen those RPMs spin up while the funky lines and psychedelic colors remain, so it's still hard to pinpoint a definite root cause. We're told that folks from NVIDIA and Apple are spending their weekends working to figure it out, but we can't help but be reminded of an eerily similar string of events with overheating MacBook Airs just last year. Hopefully a fix will be out soon; till then, just pretend those erratic colors are some new curative feature.

Read - Fan grumbling
Read - More discussions

It's hard to say at this point whether we should point the blame at NVIDIA, Apple or right in between the two corporate campuses, but it seems that an uncomfortable amount of 17-inch MacBook Pro owners are having some serious issues with their GeForce 9600M graphics card. For those unaware, there is actually a 9400M in there too, but word on the street has it that the random green lines and nasty artifacts are only showing up when the more potent card is kicked into action. Most folks are saying that a reboot solves the problem momentarily, but eventually it returns to bother, annoy and sadden new owners. Anyone else out there pulling their hair out over this? Here's hoping a firmware update is all that'll be needed to bring closure to yet another NVIDIA-Apple related fiasco.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Update: We just got word from an NVIDIA spokesperson, who had this to say: "Our understanding is that Apple is investigating this, and if they need our help we will certainly support them. But right now it's unclear what the issue is, so jumping to conclusions at this point is premature." We'll keep you posted!