Apple Music raises the price of its student plan in the US, UK and Canada
It's the first hike since the student tier launched.
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch unibody
This product hasn't been reviewed yet.
We've added this product to our database but we haven't actually tested it yet. If you want us to review it drop us a line and we might just bump it to the front of our reviews queue.
Apple
MacBook Pro
Engadget - Not yet scored
0
Critics
5 reviews80
AVERAGE CRITIC SCORE
Users
110 reviews89
AVERAGE USER SCORE
View All Critic & User Reviews
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch unibody
- Critic Reviews (3)
- User Reviews (110)
- 80AVERAGE CRITIC SCORE3 ReviewsMacworldNot RatedMacBook Pros (15-inch, Mid 2009) Review | Laptop |The 15-inch MacBook Pro has historically been the most popular model in Apple’s pro notebook lineup. It’s certainly easier to tote around than its more powerful and hefty 17-inch big brother, though its feature-to-price ratio compared favorably. Now, with Apple’s debut of a 13-inch MacBook Pro, the standard-bearer is now relegated to the middle ground. While this update to the 15-inch category delivers better value and even more specification options, the upgrades to this newly appointed mid-2009 model are more nuanced than flashy.Engadget80MacBook Pro (mid 2009) in-depth impressionsThey remain attractive, well-constructed, and high-performing, and hey -- FireWire's back.ComputerworldNot RatedReview: Apple's 15-in. MacBook Pro now faster --Maybe it's because I've been staring at 13-in. screens for the better part of a year now -- starting with a MacBook Air and moving on to a late-model MacBook. For whatever reason, the 15-in. MacBook Pro seems larger than it is. This is a good thing. (More than one person asked me whether this was the new 17-in. model when first seeing it.)Gizmodo80Gizmodo - MacBook Pro 2009 Review - Macbook pro reIt's cheaper, faster, has more consumer-friendly features and now even has a 13-inch option for people who need slightly more portability.CNET80Apple MacBook Pro Summer 2009 (Core 2 Duo 2.8GHz,Apple's 15-inch MacBook Pro makes only minor tweaks to the previous version, but cutting prices and swapping the ExpressCard slot for an SD card slot are enough to make it a solid improvement over its predecessor.
- 89AVERAGE USER SCORE110 ReviewsEngadget Reader80March 24, 2014Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90February 13, 2013Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90September 27, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90September 21, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90March 15, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Best damn notebook on the planet. Don't know what I would do without it! I's my daily driver!Engadget Reader100February 27, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I will never buy a regular PC again!Engadget Reader80February 15, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90February 12, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90February 12, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90February 7, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80February 1, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90January 30, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80January 16, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90January 11, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90January 10, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90January 2, 2012Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80December 27, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 26, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80December 24, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 24, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader80December 23, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I love it. Need to upgrade to core i7 in the new year. I love Lion OSX except for the annoying application opening after reboot.Engadget Reader80December 21, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 4, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90November 29, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!My first laptop purchase. Everything was nice and neat when compared with the Dell workstation running XP that I upgraded from. The price was steep, but I wholeheartedly believe it was worth it. The specs were good, and for nearly all my computing requirements the MBP handles without problems. Some games are not optimized for OS X, so there is some stuttering and loud fan noises, but productivity and web surfing are no problem. There were some initial fullscreen problems with Flash, but they eventually sorted themselves out (I removed Flash anyways). The keyboard is quite clicky and shallow, and the keys are a bit too small. The trackpad, though, is perfect. It's to die for. As well as for the Magsafe. There could be more USB ports since my peripherals are all wired. The included software with Snow Leopard is a nice touch, and I personally prefer Mac OS X to Windows now. Surprisingly, I was an Apple hater before I became disillusioned with Windows. I actually became enamored with Apple, and this purchase proved to me that Apple is the shiz.Engadget Reader100November 29, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader80November 25, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90November 17, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90November 13, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80November 11, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader70November 2, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80October 26, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90October 5, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100October 4, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader80September 28, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90September 20, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80September 17, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90August 22, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80August 19, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100August 9, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader70August 7, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90August 1, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90August 1, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80August 1, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90July 29, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90July 22, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!really the only gripe I have with this laptop is that sometimes it can get really hot and really loud, not always but every once in a while.Engadget Reader90July 18, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This is by far the best laptop I have ever owned.Engadget Reader100July 14, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - Engadgetbaileylo90July 13, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I was given this laptop at work, I've used the 12 inch MacBook Pro and 13inch white MacBook. Feature and hardware wise this is on par with all Mac Products.Engadget Reader90July 10, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!With its great features and performance (without expose things would really suck) this laptop is great for anyone who can overlook the Apple tax.Engadget Reader80July 4, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Best notebook i've ever used, and would only trade it for a newer one.Engadget Reader90July 4, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Very good, beautiful and powerful computer; and it is portable too!Engadget Reader90June 30, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90June 20, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Overall, this product has provided a stable environment for me to work with. I have installed Windows 7 Home Premium alongside the preinstalled Mac OS X 10.6.8 Snow Leopard, this platform has allowed me to run the best games, including Left4Dead, Portal, the Crysis series, and the F.E.A.R. collection very smoothly on any setting thanks to the Intel Core i7 chipset as well as the NVIDIA graphics card. The fan only kicks in when I'm playing a graphic-intensive game, which keeps the computer running quietly and smoothly.Engadget Reader70June 18, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90June 6, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90June 3, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!In terms of HARDWARE, this is why you should buy a Macbook Pro:•Build Quality - Unibody design is SOLID and looks great•Battery Life - 6-8 hours or more on a charge is awesome•Touchpad - The Touchpad makes mouse-less operation a dream and no notebook can even come close. Multi-touch gestures, large surface area, soft buttons. It's a dream.•Keyboard - Keyboard feels solid, no flex like cheap plastic notebooks, backlight is gorgeous•Form Factor - A powerhouse computer in a 15" thin package.•Display - If you opt for the HD Glossy display and you have the eyes for it, you'll absolutely love the quality, crispness and screen real estate.Engadget Reader100June 3, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!It's interesting to see the transformation of the MacBook Pro from the PowerBook to the current generation ones with the new Sandy Bridge processor. Apple has gone a long way in decreasing the impact of the previous claims that their hardware were subpar compared to other Windows laptops.Can't wait for the 2012 revision, which is rumoured to have a completely new design.Engadget Reader70May 28, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetEngadget Reader70May 27, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I liked this laptop. It was an excellenet machine to run Windows Vista/7 or Mac OS X on. It was fast for the time and I liked that it had a user-replaceable battery. The time to get the new battery was a negative for me (at a year mark Apple no longer carried the batteries in stock in their local store).The only other problem I had with this machine was that the Super Drive was always a little flaky. I eventually replaced it and the new owner hasn't reported any issues with the drive.Engadget Reader80May 25, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Replaced a 2006 MacBook Pro. While I miss the keyboard on the old MacBook, that is all. Took advantage of a brief financial windfall and got a custom build machine with maxed out RAM, SSD, and the higher resolution monitor. Gorgeous machine.Engadget Reader100May 25, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!you'll have to pry it out of my cold, dead hands.Engadget Reader100May 24, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 24, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 23, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 23, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80May 22, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100May 22, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 22, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 21, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!It's the best laptop I've ever had. It's the perfect working machine and portable. I'm using the anti-glare screen and it has broken once but when it's working its a perfect screen.Engadget Reader70May 19, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetEngadget Reader70May 18, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Overall, Over priced, under powered and hot as hell. not worth it. Ended up trading it in for a Vaio and never looked back.Engadget Reader90May 18, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 17, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!My only issues with this laptop that it gets too hot, just too hot.Engadget Reader90May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Very quality laptop that I've had for almost two years with zero major issues.Engadget Reader100May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Couldn't be happier with my discussion to purchase the 15" with the higher resolution screen over the 17" It's just more manageable of a size. It runs CS5.5 great. Plays most Steam games good enough. It is what it is. Great for designers. Not a computer for hardcore gamers. Not as portable as a tablet, but more features. It fits into it's niche very nicely. Love the trackpad, love the backlit keyboard and love OSX.Engadget Reader100May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!highly recommended for both the hardware and softwareEngadget Reader90May 15, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90March 13, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80March 10, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100January 19, 2011Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - Engadgetjustdep90December 3, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I was forced to get a Macbook Pro for my work, but in the end, I'm glad I did. Though I have my quibbles with OSX and Apple in general, they do make nice technology.Engadget Reader90November 23, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90November 20, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetChris100October 17, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90September 15, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100August 18, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90July 30, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader70July 25, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Overall the first generation Unibody Macbook Pro is a fantastic laptop. A huge step up from the HP laptops I had been using, and my first foray back into Apple's world since the 90's.The build quality was the first thing that took by breath away. Very fine tolerances have been used, shut lines are very tiny, and the overall physical feel is deeply impressive. There is an inherent strength to the construction that gives you faith in the laptop putting up with physical abuse. Only two USB ports have been somewhat limiting, especially when a usb key is used that is too large and intrudes on the next port.I was a little worried that the glass display would be a little glare happy (it is under certain lighting conditions), but it's never actually been a huge problem. Colours are vibrant, and look great, but next to a newer unibody do look a little washed out. Next time I would go for the higher resolution display (it wasn't an option when I ordered mine), and would fix my only annoyance with the display.The battery has been a huge disappointment for me. After 19 months of use, it's completely useless. I do use my laptops hard (usually running photoshop & illustrator concurrently and working on large files, or bootcamp into windows to use Revit), and the heat has ruined it. Thankfully I can easily order a new battery and replace it, but it's a cost I wasn't hoping to see after only 19 months. If you don't use a laptop as hard as I do, you'll see a good length of life from the battery, my partner's macbook battery after 26 months still retains 88% capacity.It's a good all rounder laptop. Decently powerful without being heavy, in an appeasing form factor. Apart from cooking it's own battery, I'm happy with it.Engadget Reader90July 23, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90July 23, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100July 22, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader100March 30, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Apple is known for their build quality, and with the Macbook Pro Unibody, they did not buck the trend. The Unibody construction make the Macbook Pro feel like a tank in your hands. The backlit keyboard is a breeze to type on. The trackpad has literally revolutionized its namesake. I was skeptical, but the multitouch really does make working without a mouse an amazing pleasure. The LED backlit LCD screen is bright as hell and has a great picture. It is wonderful to watch movies on. Great for work in graphic design. The battery is not swappable, but at 4-5 hours of real life usage, a backup is almost unnecessary.With Snow Leopard, this laptop is a breeze to use. It is quick and very responsive. I use it as my home computer as well as for freelance web design and video production. I would say that aside from gaming, video production is one of the most taxing things on a computer. This MBP cuts through it like a laser. I am impressed daily with it's speed. The two graphics card setups make so much sense as well. For the hard work, you can set it to the better GPU at the expense of the battery life. But if you are just tooling around the internets and IMing. Then the lesser GPU is enough to get things done. It even handles HD ok. I can't recommend this computer enough!Engadget Reader100February 5, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The unibody MacBook Pro does everything right and pretty much nothing wrong. The battery life is excellent, graphics power is astonishing, and screen is gorgeous. Plus, the aluminum unibody construction is incredibly solid. If you drop this thing (hopefully not), I have no doubt that it'll escape with only minor scratches. If there is any downside, it's that it carries a bit more weight than you might expect (more than the pre-unibody MacBook Pro), but it is lighter than some Windows-based laptops in the same price range. Speaking of price, some will complain that it's too high, but in my opinion, you get a lot of features and performance for the money.J100January 20, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Apple yet again has scored big with the latest unibody lines of Mac Book pros. Their physical design is bar none, as alwats, and technically its above par with comparable notebooks.No secret is made by users of the fact apple notebooks on average cost a premium over their PC counterparts, but at the end of the day, its worth the price. Those times where you NEED windows solutions, its there for you with solid bootcamp support, even with gaming. The rest of the time, OSX is proven time and time again to be the best OS for day to day needs, especially of the internet browsing variety. There is a reason more and more startups and dev shops are moving to apple solutions, even though they are generally budget minded places. You put your money where the quality is, and the quality lies with apple!Engadget Reader90January 11, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!People always ask me why I spent the extra money and got a MacBook. I always give them the same answer; With Boot Camp it's easy - one machine, two computers! I always have the option to run Windows if I need to. The only thing I really use Win for are the games. That's Mac's only downfall; the lack of game titles available. They obviously have the hardware to handle it! And with the addition of the Magic Mouse, I have the ultimate portable computing system. The whole sleek package fits into a slip case that's under 2 inches. Including the power adapter!Engadget Reader100January 7, 2010Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!One thing I like about buying Apple products is the issue that I don't need to worry about upgrades, installation of new OS and also experience less crashes. Since I am an open source advocate, installing Linux is a breeze for me. I bumped up the system 2.8 GHz and 320GB harddisk and till now, the whole system is running pretty stable and also it integrates my iPhone and all other devices I have all the time. However, I need to get used to the trackpad early on. Having it a year makes me feel that it is still as new as ever. It's definitely one of my favourite gadgets and if the weight of the computer can be reduced, it would have been great. Otherwise, I hope that I will get the budget and get a Macbook Air sometime in the future. :)Engadget Reader100November 24, 2009Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This is by far the best computer I have owned or used: it's attractive, a powerful performer and yet so easy to use. The notebook feels solid and well built, yet light. It is sleek and sexy. The multi-touch trackpad is a productivity booster and easy to use. The backlit keyboard is a fantastic bonus that seems silly at first, but proves itself quickly in a dark lecture hall or study at home. The screen is bright and pops with colour, although it is a little reflective. Mac OS X is a cinch to use, and compliments the features under the hood. Apps are snappy, and there is plenty of processor and memory to work with. Prices have dropped significantly since the original in late 2008, so they are very affordable; it would be crazy to not give them a look. After all, you can run WIndows and Linux on the machine too, and you still get amazing battery life and performance. Apple has done a fantastic job with this machine, this is my first Mac, and I will continue to buy them into the future.Engadget Reader100November 5, 2009Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!People always ask me why I spent the extra money and got a MacBook. I always give them the same answer; With Boot Camp it's easy - one machine, two computers! I always have the option to run Windows if I need to. The only thing I really use Win for are the games. That's Mac's only downfall; the lack of game titles available. They obviously have the hardware to handle it! And with the addition of the Magic Mouse, I have the ultimate portable computing system. The whole sleek package fits into a slip case that's under 2 inches. Including the power adapter!Engadget Reader100October 23, 2009Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I've owned 6 Macs now over the years. The Mac Classic, the PowerMac 7500, an eMac G4, iBook G4, Black MacBook Core 2 Duo, and now the 15-inch unibody MacBook Pro.The construction of the unibody design is the best quality I have seen come from Cupertino. There isn't any squeaking of the casing or flex at all. The glass screen is gorgeous, and any glare is overcome by the bright LED backlight. The fiber optic backlighting of the keyboard is very nice to have, and the keyboard itself is even a bit nicer to use than my extended aluminum Apple keyboard.Another nice touch is the ability to switch between GPUs. Most of the time I run the 9400M integrated graphics, which is more than powerful enough for most tasks. However, when more horsepower is needed, having the discrete 9600M GPU is amazing.Part of me is a little jealous that I didn't wait a few months for the update in June (though none of us could have known about that in January!) as I would prefer the SD card slot over the ExpressCard slot, and battery life on my MBP is adequate, but not stellar. I'd rather have the built-in battery (I've never bought a second battery for any portable).Engadget Reader100October 22, 2009Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!When rating my Macbook Pro, I was trying think of what I would like Apple to do differently in order to get a perfect ten... I could only think of one thing: instead of having an express card 34 slot have a built-in 3G modem. Realizing that this is the only thing people use express card slots for anyway, they made the right move to replace it with an SD card slot on the newest machines, but that is why I gave it a 9.5/10. The 15-inch Macbook Pro is the most versatile and phenomenal computer I have ever owned, and I would almost consider it to be perfect... but not quite.That being said, it still kicks the butt of every other laptop computer I've seen to date. Enjoy!Engadget Reader100August 17, 2009Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!So, I wasn't a Mac hater, but over the years I just didn't see the point. Why would I want to spend a premium for a computer when my Windows PCs could do everything a Mac could do and do it a lot cheaper? Especially after using Windows 7 for almost a year, Mac OS X held no attraction for me either.I began to fall under the spell when I decided it was time to get an iPhone when the 3GS came out. I was already with AT&T and was eligible for the upgrade and I was less than enamored with Windows Mobile. Wow, the iPhone was like butter. It was instant, googly-eyed love, baby! I had always dabbled with software development on Windows, including the mobile space, so of course my first thought was "I have to learn to develop for this device." Well you have to have Mac for that, for all intents and purposes.It just so happened about a week later I got an e-mail from MicroCenter advertising Mac Minis for $350. Awesome! That would be a pretty cheap entry into Mac OS X and iPhone development.When I started using the Mini, I was actually sort of pissed. I am a long time Linux user as well, and OS X reminded me of nothing more than a very polished Linux distro. It just had that feel to it. Well it *is* Unix. Not to mention all the open source GPL stuff that Apple's integrated into OS X. I felt like they were cheating. Here they tout the superiority of OS X over Windows: it's more stable, it's more secure, blah, blah, blah, all done on the backs of open source developers toiling away and giving their stuff away for free. I dare say more of OS X is freeware than not. That being said, I didn't hate it and found my around pretty quickly. It made me realize that Apple is indeed a hardware company more than anything. The Mini itself is a pretty cool little machine and for the price I paid, even a screaming value, not something I would have thought I'd say about an Apple machine.So the opinion I formed was that these days, Windows 7 or Mac OS X, it's just a platform. At the end of the day, they're more similar than different. I wouldn't buy a machine just because it's a Mac. Then I laid my hands on the new MacBook Pro at Best Buy. Oh lord, here we go again. It was so sexy, so slim and smooth and silky feeling. I played with the touch pad and even brought up the help so I could learn all the multi-touch gestures right there in the store. With a sinking feeling I *knew* I was going to end up buying one, the only question was when.A month later, I have one. It's an absolutely wonderful machine. Completely silent. It might as well have an SSD (it doesn't) as I can't hear the hard drive at all and no fan. Very thin and impressively light, I don't even notice the bag I carry it in compared to my big thick and heavy Dell. The screen is extremely bright and beautiful. The last three laptops I've had all have the glossy screen so that doesn't bother me at all, and of course you *can* get the ant-glare screen now as an option. Battery life is really excellent. My Dell has the 9-cell extended battery, which adds a bunch of bulk to it, and this MacBook easily beats it. I'd estimate real-world duration at about 4 hours, depending on usage. The keyboard is very comfortable and has good tactile feedback. Propping my wrists on the top of the case is a new experience, because there isn't that flex you get with a flimsy plastic case. It's solid aluminum. Which brings me finally to the touch pad. If there is one reason I love this MacBook so much, that would be it. I've always had to use an external mouse with my laptops because using a Synaptics touch pad is so awful. It's kind of my last resort if I don't want to take the time to plug in the mouse or if I forgot to bring it. Anyway, in my opinion, the touch pad on the MacBook Pro makes an external mouse almost unnecessary. I keep one in the bag, but I haven't used it yet. Once you learn the gestures, the speed with which you can move around and between apps and windows is impressive.I bought this Apple strictly for the hardware, and in my opinion that is the only reason to buy a Mac, and the only reason to pay the "Apple tax". In this case I believe it was worth it. It gives me a sense of freedom I've never had before. Where I used to have to cart around a big, heavy machine, a mouse, a WAN card and the huge bulky charger, now I only need this slender little MacBook and my iPhone (ssshhh....don't tell AT&T). If I'm expecting extended use where I'll need the A/C adapter for the MacBook, even that is compact and light.I don't hate Windows now either. I still use, and like my Dell laptop and my desktop with Windows 7. But for the most part, I'm happily enjoying myself on the MacBook and not concerned at all about the chunk of change I had to part with to get it. It's just so... cool!Engadget Reader100August 7, 2009Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Not so long ago I decided that my next personal project would be to begin learning the skills required to develop software for the iPhone. After a bit of research I discovered that in order to do this I was going to need a Mac. I began looking at the various models available to see what was right for me, and in the end I settled on the entry level 15″ MacBook Pro with a 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 2GB DDR3 Ram. I sold my Dell XPSM1330 and waved goodbye to Windows Vista (happily) and set off to the Apple Store to purchase my MacBook Pro. In all honesty I would probably have been able to get away with just purchasing a MacBook rather than the more expensive MacBook Pro, but after owning a 13″ Laptop for just over a year I was sure that the extra few inches of screen size would make all the difference for me and the way that I work. I chose not to upgrade the RAM to 4Gb in-store as it would have cost an additional £160 GBP, instead of this I ordered the memory from Crucial and fitted it myself. The installation was pretty simple – however – make sure that you have a good selection of very small screwdrivers available as the screws are different sizes (all of which are tiny!).When opening the box for the first time you are greeted with the fantastic new Aluminium Unibody chassis for the MacBooks straight away. The laptop sits on top of the bundled accessories and is an amazing piece of industrial design. Apple have done really well to produce a laptop which isn’t heavy at all, but doesn’t flex when picking it up. It is a solid unit – and one which I am sure will serve me well. The build quality is amazing, every single detail is beautifully finished, everything just seems to be in the right place. Whereas the black plastic on my previous Dell laptop picked up grime and fingerprints like a toddlers painting, the Mac has a matte finish which is mostly impervious. A cleaning cloth is included which does a great job of removing any dirt that does get picked up along the way. I would also recommend picking up some screen cleaner from the iKlear range of products (stocked in the Apple store) as this is invaluable when it comes to cleaning any fingerprints from the screen itself.The keyboard is the new chiclet style which has backlights for the keys. This is a great addition for people like me who prefer to work in low-light. The keys are nice and solid with just the right amount of movement available when typing and are well spaced. The wrist-rest area in front of the keys is comfortable enough to use for long typing sessions.The 15″ LED display is an amazing innovation which not only reduces power consumption but creates some of the clearest and accurate colour replication I have seen. The reflective coating on the screen is a topic of much conversation among Apple fanatics, and many are aggrieved that a matte version is only available on the 17″ Macbook Pro, however, my personal preference is for the reflective screen and in day to day use it is fantastic.In terms of performance the MacBook Pro, combined with MacOS X is incredible. It is light and agile and excellent for multi-tasking with little or no slowdown when running multiple programs. With the 4GB of Ram added I was able to comfortably run Windows Vista Ultimate under VMWare Fusion. Windows XP races along under Bootcamp and the MacBook Pro is easily the best performing laptop I have ever used with XP. This is a great achievement, when considering that the MacBook was designed only to work with XP as a secondary function. Performance with the Adobe Creative Suite in either Windows or Mac modes is excellent and the graphics card performs well when playing games in either operating system.There are many things that I could say about the 15″ MacBook Pro, but all you need to know is that if you are a power user, looking for a laptop with a good sized screen and real processing power then this is the laptop for you.Engadget Reader100July 2, 2009Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Being a former hardcore gamer there really wasn't much of a choice for me when it came to computers. PC was the home of all games and your best bet for customization and having the ability to stay on the cutting edge of gaming tech.However, now that I've put my gaming years behind me (at least to the hardcore level), I've decided it was time to expand my horizons.I did so by purchasing the new Macbook Pro 15" from Apple. This was going to be my first extended experience with an Apple built computer, so you can imagine my apprehensiveness. Admittedly, right out of the box, I was impressed. The light-weight, solid design of this laptop took me back as I'd been used to some bulky products from the likes of Asus and Acer in the past. Upon my first start up, I immediately noticed the brilliance of the screen. The colors were all very vivid and just jumped out at you.The peripherals side of the laptop is quite well put together. A magnetic power cable and connection insures you won't drag your macbook to the ground followed by tears should you manage to trip over your power cord.The firewire 800 port is refreshing as you can be hard pressed to find a PC with this built in.Another refreshing addition is the SD card slot. Owning a Canon SD1000 I've already made great use of it and have no problems pulling my pictures off of it.The speakers are surprisingly powerful for laptop speakers, providing what is at times, too loud of volume.The trackpad works better than any I've previously used, interacting with OS X very well.The backlit keyboard is great for low light areas and turn it down or even of is an easy way to extend the already impressive battery life.The battery itself is rated to last up to 7 hours. I managed nearly 6 while doing simple tasks such as browsing the web, watching youtube videos, twittering, listening to iTunes, and grabbing photos off my camera.Overall I'm extremely happy with my purchase and would recommend it to anyone who's looking to move into the Mac family or perhaps upgrade from a previous model.
Key Specs
TYPE
Midsize
SCREEN SIZE
15.422
SCREEN RESOLUTION
1440 x 900
BUNDLED OS
Mac OS
CPU FAMILY
Core i7
PROCESSOR SPEED
2.6619
SYSTEM RAM
41
POINTING DEVICE
Trackpad
VIDEO OUTPUTS
DisplayPort
MAXIMUM BATTERY LIFE
Up to 920
More from Apple
Apple's second-gen AirPods drop to $100, plus the best early Prime Day deals you can get now
Samsung's latest Discover sale discounts smart TVs, earbuds and more.We have two newsletters, why not sign up for both?
Apple's Mac Mini M1 drops back down to $570
That's a return to its record-low price.
iOS 16 will let you skip CAPTCHAs on some websites
You might not need to enter strange text or tap pictures.
Google tries to send Apple an RCS message with Drake’s ‘Texts Go Green’
“Texts go green, it hits a little different, don’t it?”
Apple Store employees in Maryland vote to unionize
Towson Town Center will be the first unionized Apple retail location in the US.
The Engadget guide to the best midrange smartphones
Who says greatness has to be expensive?
The Apple TV 4K drops to $130, plus the rest of the week's best tech deals
There's still time to pick up three video games for the price of two at Amazon.
Apple faces another iPhone 'Batterygate' legal claim, this time in the UK
The complainant argued that Apple didn't disclose that it was going to throttle iPhones beforehand.
In-person Apple Camp creative sessions return June 20th
The company is debuting a new format for the creative classes.
Qualcomm won't have to pay its $1 billion EU fine over LTE deal with Apple
The court found procedural irregularities in the European Commission's investigation.
The base iPad will reportedly switch to USB-C this fall
You might also see a larger screen.
Apple TV will stream every MLS game for a decade starting in 2023
There will be no regional blackouts, but you'll need a separate subscription to catch every match.
13-inch MacBook Pro M2 will be available to preorder on June 17th
The upgraded laptop will reach customers on June 24th.
The best smartwatches
Our guide to picking the right timepiece (and no, the Apple Watch isn’t your only option).
WhatsApp finally makes moving from Android to iOS less painful
In case that was preventing you from making the switch.
Apple's AirPods Max are back on sale for $449
The pink and space gray models are even cheaper at $429.
Apple's 2021 iPad Mini falls back to an all-time low of $400
That's $100 off the regular price.
Apple TV 4K is at a new all-time low of $130 on Amazon
That's $50 off its retail price.
