It has been some eight months since Apple released an update to their laptop lines. Given the delay, us Apple zealots were expecting something big -- and I mean really big.
After the hour I spent on sites such as Gizmodo, and MacWorld reading up-to-the minute updates on the press conference this morning, I can't help but be a little disappointed.
Two things really bothered me. First and foremost, the new models don't sport any processor upgrades. Some models actually appear to have slower processors than the last revision. It is true that Intel is expected to release new mobile processors in the coming weeks. If I were Apple, I would have waited until the new processors were available.
The second thing that bothered me was the absence of the Firewire port on the MacBook model. On the MacBook Pro, only one Firewire 800 port is available. This is a cause for concern for any recording enthusiast, as you will need a Firewire 800-400 adapter in order to plug in your audio interfaces. Furthermore, you won't be able to use the that fast external hard drive, unless it is daisy-chained to your interface, and then you lose more than half of your bandwidth.
The bottom line is -- if you want to record on your laptop, the MacBook Pro is your only option.
Now, that being said, there were some advances in the MacBook and MacBook Pro models that are very impressive. The new design is beautiful, strong, and lightweight. All Laptop models now have LED-backlit displays, which means brighter, truer color representation, and lower power consumption.
The most striking news is the inclusion of the new NVIDIA graphics chipsets, which boast more than 5 times the performance of the Intel integrated graphics chipsets of the last-generation MacBook. The extra gigaflops of processing power will be better realized next year when Apple releases Snow Leopard, which will have the technology to utilize unused GPU-cycles on operating system tasks.
The price points aren't terribly impressive either. That may be partially due to the falling Canadian Dollar, but I digress.
As much as I love portables, I always feel that I am paying a premium for portability. That probably explains why I still have a desktop computer as my main audio workstation. When you consider that you have much greater storage capabilities, faster processors, larger screens (in the case of the iMac), more i/o options, the desktop computer wins hands-down.
I guess I'd be better off to wait another 6 months and see what upgrades the first-revision MacBook Pros will boast. I made the mistake of purchasing a first-generation MacBook, and thanks to an extended warranty, all the issues the computer has suffered has been repaired free of charge. This includes random shut-downs, cracking case (twice!), and audio jack issues.
Yeah, I'm thinking it would be a good idea to wait a little while.
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