17-inchMacbookPro
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Apple axes 17-inch MacBook Pro, giant laptop owners weep
As we suspected when Apple updated traditional MacBook Pros, Apple has quietly dropped the 17-inch MacBook Pro. From here on out, it's either the 13- or 15-inch models if you want Apple's conventional form factor. The next-generation MacBook Pro is now your best option if you want more than a 1680 x 1050 resolution in a portable Mac, and there's no internal recourse for an ExpressCard slot if you lived on it. That said, we imagine Apple is counting on two pairs each of USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt on the new system to take care of ExpressCard's former duties. We'd add that it's also the end of an era: Apple was one of the first with a 17-inch widescreen laptop, and it's now one of the first to bow out.
Apple quietly updates MacBook Pro with optional 2.8GHz Core i7 processor
Sure, Apple's "Back to the Mac" press conference was all about software and a manila envelope or two, but Cupertino also sent out a silent love letter to its MacBook Pro lineup. Specifically, the 15-inch and 17-inch MacBook Pro laptops can now be configured with a 2.8GHz Intel Core i7 processor, up from the 2.66GHz model they were limited to before, for the primo price of $200 more. That's a pretty penny to pay for a simple 140MHz boost, but base clockspeed is only part of the story -- this is almost certainly the Core i7-640M that Intel owned up to just last month, which can turbo to a lap-scorching 3.4GHz under load. If you feel like buying one, do be a dear and let us know for sure? [Thanks, Steven H.]
Apple firmware update aims to fix vertical line issues on 17-inch MBP
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]
17-inch unibody MacBook Pro gets disassembled, examined
The battery on the now-shipping 17-inch unibody MacBook Pro may not be removable for average, warranty-abiding users, but that didn't stop the folks at iFixit from removing it and just about everything else that isn't soldered on. As you might expect, however, apart from that over-sized battery, the internals aren't too different from the 15-inch unibody MacBook Pro, although the 17-incher unsurprisingly has a pair of noticeably larger fans to keep everything cool, and iFixit describes the component density as "amazing." Hit up the link below for the complete teardown, and try your best not to imagine a matte black MacBook Pro after catching sight of that battery.[Via Mac Rumors]
Apple's 17-inch unibody MacBook Pro gets unboxed
We had heard that quite a few early birds were receiving shipping notifications, and sure enough, Apple's 17-inch unibody MacBook Pro has left the docks. One proud owner has even taken the time to host up a handful of unboxing shots as proof, and while nothing here is out of the ordinary for those acquainted with Apple's newest 15-incher, the actual machine just looks a touch longer and wider for some reason. Maybe it's just our eyes.[Thanks, Derek and Michael]
