REVIEWS: Apple MacBook Pro 17-inch i5

Desktop replacement, Apple style

So, you know you want a computer with a big screen but you want to be able to move it around reasonably easily. So a desktop machine like the iMac 27-inch screen computer is right out.

Well, there are plenty of Windows PCs on the market, but the most stylish laptop is still the MacBook Pro which, of course, comes loaded with Mac OSX 10.6.4 Snow Leopard. If you're a Windows die-hard but want a better-looking laptop, you can splash out on the MacBook Pro and install Windows, since all Macs with Intel chips can run both systems. This is handy if you have some key programs which aren't available for Macs.

We've looked at the latest 15-inch MacBook Pro – this week we'll tackle its bigger brother. As handsome and well-built as you'd expect, the screen and base perfectly weighted so the bottom stays put when you lift the lid. The 17-incher weighs 2.99kg, so is on the edge of portability.

The keyboard is outstandingly good: comfortable, well-spaced and enjoyable to use. It is backlit so you can see it easily even in low light, which is useful as the lettering is white on black keys. There's the now-standard large, glass trackpad with multi-touch so it reacts differently according to whether you touch it with one, two, three or four fingers. Perhaps the next iteration will have a five-finger option, too.

The screen is great: glossy, with high 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution though you can opt for a matte screen instead if you want, but you'll pay extra for this. It's so big that you notice it not just because it takes up so much of your vision, but because dragging something from one edge to the other is a bigger movement.

Strangely, the 17-incher lacks the SD memory card reader of the smaller 15-inch and even 13-inch models. This is a shame as it's a handy addition and if the littler ones have space…?

Like the other MacBook Pros, this model has a built-in instead of a removable battery. A pain if you're on the road for too long and it runs out of juice just when you can't get to the mains. Still, it's a big battery so it'll give you most of a day easily. And of course, to be extra sure, you could also carry a HyperMac - the Mac laptop battery which gives peace of mind, looks good, and will even charge your USB gadgets, too.

Speaking of which, the three USB sockets are neatly in a line, as on the 15-incher, which can be a little too snugly placed if you have big thick USB attachments like 3G modems and some USB sticks. And none of the three is the useful recharge-my-gadget-while-the-computer's-off sort. Apple is sometimes late with these kind of enhancements, but can we have one next time, please?

Like its smaller-screened brother, this MacBook Pro has a speedy 2.53GHz Intel i5 processor and it shows, along with 4GB of RAM. It launches programs much faster than last year's model, and every bit of processing feels noticeably faster, which is highly enjoyable.

It also has the Nvidia GeForce GT 330M which takes care of the demanding graphics, whilst the in-built Intel HD graphics take care of lesser tasks. This uses Apple's auto-switching feature, so you aren't draining the battery running the graphics card when you don't need it.

Verdict:

This is a tremendous piece of kit. Of course it's not cheap as Apple stuff rarely is, but your money buys you handsome, super-efficient and enjoyable computing. It's a real pleasure to type on the keyboard, the screen looks magnificent and it's fast, fast, fast. What more could you want?

Tags:HardwareLaptopsAppleMacbook Pro

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Apple MacBook Pro 17-inch i5 originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:37:57 +0100

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REVIEWS: Apple Mac mini 2.4GHz

A perfect companion for your TV?

Apple has refreshed its Mac mini and made more substantial changes than we saw at the last evolution of this tiny desktop computer. But does the Mac mini deliver, or is the new asking price of "649 just too much to bear"

Apple have been masters of design for some time and the new Mac mini is certainly the best looking iteration of this computer. Gone is the plastic, offering up an aluminium body, aping the design of the MacBook Pro. It is beautifully crafted, with minimalist lines and free from fuss. Compared to some of the other small format nettops out there it looks far superior.

Designed like this, the Mac mini is the sort of desktop PC you will be happy to have on display, and Apple also has its sights on the home cinema market. On several occasions when we were introduced to the Mac mini by Apple, they pointed out that people liked to connect the Mac mini to their TV, hence the inclusion of an HDMI connector, a first for Apple.

The Mac mini won't just look the part set alongside your high-end home cinema rig, but it offers up more power than your average nettop, such as the Acer Aspire Revo, which offers an Intel Atom processor, rather than the 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo on offer here.

It measures 197mm square, with a height of just 36mm and effectively offers up the same internals as the MacBook (except the hard drive is a little bigger at 320GB in the Mac mini), which adds a screen and keyboard in its plastic enclosure for an additional ?200. Fans of Apple Mac computers can't help but notice the creep in price, especially as when we reviewed the Mac mini in March 2009 it was under ?500.

Internally you get that Intel Core 2 Duo processor running at 2.4GHz, with a 2.66GHz version available for an additional ?123. This is supported by 2GB of RAM, upgradeable to a maximum of 8GB, although that would set you back an extra ?400. There is a 320GB hard drive, with a 500GB version costing you an extra ?80. So there are configuration options available to you, but they do come at a cost.

Fortunately, one of the changes made to the Mac mini is the new removable bottom. This simply rotates and comes away, revealing the innards, so you can easily upgrade the RAM yourself, giving you the freedom to shop around, or wait until you find you need to upgrade it.

The connections are precisely arranged on the rear, offering up Gigabit Ethernet, FireWire 800, HDMI, Mini DisplayPort, 4x USB 2.0, an SD card slot and headphone and mic 3.5mm jacks. Arranged as they are we didn't have a problem, until it came to the SD card slot.

Putting it on the rear makes the design look tidy, but if you regularly want to use it to access files from your digital camera for example, you'll be scrabbling around the back to do so. Its less convenient for those who might have the Mac mini as part of an installation, but for those who have it sitting on a desk it isn't a significant issue. The same could be said of the USB ports, if you want to regularly move files to a USB drive, you'll need to make sure you have easy access.

With the aim of making the Mac mini a tidy little device, Apple have done away with the power brick. This is now internal, so all you have to do is plug in the cable. This again makes it much tidier, both above and below your desk. Internally you also get Bluetooth 2.1 and Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, so you'll be able to hook-up wirelessly to peripherals and your network.

On the back beneath all the connections is the exhaust outlet. With the design offering no ventilation, we found that the Mac mini runs with a purr that is barely noticeable and nothing like the volume you'd get from the fan-cooling on games consoles, some Blu-ray players and PVRs. However, the Mac mini will get warm once you set it to various tasks and you'll hear the fan changing speeds, throttling up and down. We didn't find that the slot-loading SuperDrive made much noise once running.

The Mac mini isn't a power house like some of the iMac models. Ask it to do various tasks at the same time and you'll see it slow down and struggle, just as the MacBook will. It will handle regular daily computing tasks with easy however and also being capable enough to work with our images and transcode your video. If you are planning to hook it up to your TV to play HD content from your network, then it copes well enough. Rarely will you be running a number of applications as well as your HD content, but if you are in the business of editing large amounts of HD video, you might find it won't quite be up to the challenge.

We tried some HD movies and video camcorder content and encountered no problem with playback of this type of material, thanks to the Nvidia GeForce 320M graphics chip, which Apple say offers 2x the performance of previous Mac minis. This will also handle your 3D gaming, although Windows fans will point out that you can buy a respectable gaming rig for this sort of money on their rival platform.

The inclusion of Mini DisplayPort means you'll be able to hook up to Apple's Cinema Display, or an existing monitor using one of a wide variety of adapters which will cost you around ?20 each, although you get an HDMI-DVI adapter in the box. Those with newer monitors or taking the TV route will be able to use the HDMI (no cable supplied).

A variety of resolutions are included to get the best option for your TV and we found we had to tweak the HDMI monitor settings too on the 1080p setting to get the screen to fit properly. The same will most likely apply to your TV, so you'll have to dig in the picture settings of your TV to get the best result. The HDMI will carry the audio stream, so you can easily get your audio content to your TV or AV receiver with the option of having system "Sound Effects" use the internal speaker, so they don't boom out.

Verdict:

Overall the Mac mini wins a lot of points for the design. You'd be hard pressed to find any desktop computer that looks as elegant as this. But at the same time you are paying for that design statement. You can get a more powerful Windows PC unit for a fraction of the price, but that's not the point. You buy the Mac mini because you want Mac OSX.

The addition of the HDMI is appreciated as it makes it really simple to connect it to your TV so you get all the benefits of having a proper computer connected to the big screen, for whatever reason, be it for staying connected, using IPTV services or connecting up to your network - or all of the above. We also hope that this is a precursor to HDMI coming to the next iteration of MacBooks, although this is purely speculation on our part.?

We were originally concerned that the Mac mini would run overly hot, but this didn't appear to be a massive problem in our tests. It runs quietly enough to slot into your lounge without being offensive, so is a convenient and powerful alternative to some of the devices out there.

The only issue is price. The entry-level model is expensive and upgrading makes it more expensive than is reasonable. It looks great, but if bang for your buck is important, you'll find better value elsewhere.

Tags:HardwareDesktop PCsNettopsAppleApple Mac miniMac mini

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Apple Mac mini 2.4GHz originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 14:07:24 +0100

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