New MacBooks are just as good/better than my MBP?

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I ordered my MBP like... 3 weeks ago. Haven't even gotten it... but I just got on Apple's website and saw that I could've paid $500 less for a 160 drive instead of 120.... with just as much everything else? the only thing that is different is the screen size... right? should i cancel my order before my mbp gets here? man. this sucks. apple needs to warn us before this happens.
 
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You get a bigger screen, thinner laptop, a real graphics card, illuminated keyboard, FireWire 800, ExpressCard
 
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BethanyLieb
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what is firewall 800? haha... god... i suck at life. i don't know what the expresscard is either. :(
 
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firewire 800 is the fastest expansion port available. USB 2.0 can go up to 480mbps (never does), Firewire 400 (what all the old iPods used, most video cameras use) goes at 400mbps, and Firewire 800 goes at 800mbps. This is useful for external hard drives if you are doing video because it can transfer very very fast.

ExpressCard is a new technology that will be used for wireless internet through your cellphone provider.
 
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I guess it all boils down to what you need your laptop for. If you don't mind the screen size of the MB then maybe it's the way to go.

Personally, I never use the Firewire port on my MBP or my PB for anything so my MB purchase was driven by screen size and portability.
 

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You get a bigger screen, thinner laptop, a real graphics card, illuminated keyboard, FireWire 800, ExpressCard

what he said - all these things add up to being well worth the $500 bucks for me

you're gonna need that video card if you don't want to be limited on what game you throw on it

if you like to sit in the dark, or maybe go to bed and maybe do a little browsing or finish off those last couple of posts here at m-f instead of reading, the illuminated keyboard is the bomb

If you get into saving videos, you're gonna want the FW800 to connect your external drives

and expresscard slot - for those that really want to speed up data transfers, there are eSATA cards available now which bumps the FW800 up by another 25-50% in some instances

and besides that, once you open up the box with that shiny new MacBook Pro - you'll not have another thought of trading it for a MacBook
 
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Sorry, fixing some things.

firewire 800 is the fastest serial bus interface standard available.


USB 2.0 can go up to 480mbps (never does),

translates to 60 Megabytes per second. Explaining things in megabits to a person that's "a computer noobie" is useless...some times Megabytes are too, but they're a lot more common...

Firewire 400 (what all the old iPods used, most video cameras use) goes at 400mbps,

50 Megabytes per second

and Firewire 800 goes at 800mbps.

100 megabytes per second

This is useful for external hard drives if you are doing video because it can transfer very very fast.

Not just video, but audio editing and file transfers, watching movies from the drive, listening to music, etc...It's very limited though as far as storage goes because there's no where near the choice in drives as compared to USB and firewire 400 drives. I found a Western Digital mybook 500gb with FW800 support for about $200 on www.newegg.com. Problem is, half the people that reviewed it said that it died on them...that's not normal WD quality. And most enclosures I've seen run more than $100, so it's no cheaper to build your own. Not unless you can find a quality 500gb drive for under $100
 
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translates to 60 Megabytes per second. Explaining things in megabits to a person that's "a computer noobie" is useless...some times Megabytes are too, but they're a lot more common...


Actual transfer speeds aren't really even important here either. Its all relative. I doubt Bethany actually cares if its 50 or 60 or 100 mb/sec
 
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and expresscard slot - for those that really want to speed up data transfers, there are eSATA cards available now which bumps the FW800 up by another 25-50% in some instances

eSATA transfers up to 2400 mpbs, which is 300 Megabytes per second, so it can be considered closer to 300% than 25-50%. That would only make it at 125 Megabytes - 150 Megabytes per second.
 
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BethanyLieb
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Yeah i'm not sure what any of that means... HAHA... but hey... I like the silver metallic case and the big screen so I'm fine with it I suppose. Thanks guys!!
 
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Yeah i'm not sure what any of that means... HAHA... but hey... I like the silver metallic case and the big screen so I'm fine with it I suppose. Thanks guys!!

Wealthy AND attractive... wow!!!
 
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BethanyLieb
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haha... thanks ride. i hope you're talking about me and not village idiot, or else I'll feel pretty silly posting this.
 
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Definitely you... definitely.
 
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Definitely you... definitely.

x2.... ;D


I've had my MBP for 2 months+, and for me, the bigger screen, dedicated graphics card & design (other than wishing it had a magnetic latch) was more than good enough reason for me to spend the extra $$ The MacBook update doesn't (or shouldn't?) change the reasons why you got the MBP in the first place... Just my 2 cents!!
 

bobtomay

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eSATA transfers up to 2400 mpbs, which is 300 Megabytes per second, so it can be considered closer to 300% than 25-50%. That would only make it at 125 Megabytes - 150 Megabytes per second.

You're only looking at theoretical throughput. Means nothing in real world practice and what can actually be achieved through the interface. Need to spend some time reviewing actual comparisons and benchmark testing on the different connections to see what can really be acheived. Here is one at the bottom of the page. You can find others with google, but these will be typical of what you will find. MHC had one posted in another thread from Barefeats, but there are plenty out there.
 
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Yeah i'm not sure what any of that means... HAHA... but hey... I like the silver metallic case and the big screen so I'm fine with it I suppose. Thanks guys!!

Realistically, it sounds like you may not need the additional MBP features. It depends on what you really want to do with the laptop. But, it sounds like the bigger screen is important to you. Each person has his/her own needs.

For me the MB portability is great. And the smaller screen is mostly unimportant since I am typing this on a 22" WS secondary monitor. For the price difference between the top-line MB and bottom-line MBP, I got my monitor, wireless keyboard, and mouse. That is a serious productivity increase for the same money.
 
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I had a similar experience.

The day after i bought my Macbook from a local store, the cpu went up to 2.16, the hdd went up to 120Gb, and all for £70 less than i just paid for this one.

Oh well, never mind.
 
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BethanyLieb
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yeah it's kinda like a nice little slap in the face :) haha oh well.

i STILL haven't gotten it in the mail, i'm frustrated. i'm still on this stupid iBook! it's taken 2 weeks... it's getting ridiculous. really.

i thought the MBP had a magnetic latch though? in response to someone's post earlier.. they said they wish it had a magnetic latch. that sucks. i read a review somewhere that said it did?
 
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When you finally have it in your hands you'll quickly forget about all these other issues.
 
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yeah it's kinda like a nice little slap in the face :) haha oh well.

i STILL haven't gotten it in the mail, i'm frustrated. i'm still on this stupid iBook! it's taken 2 weeks... it's getting ridiculous. really.

i thought the MBP had a magnetic latch though? in response to someone's post earlier.. they said they wish it had a magnetic latch. that sucks. i read a review somewhere that said it did?

Nope, no magnetic latch on the MBP...some may see it as a downside, but so far, hasn't affected me. I just hope it doesn't get stuck like some people have experienced. The "Pros" if you will, of the MBP still outweigh the pros of the MacBook for me anyways...I originally had the MB, but the Pro is just something else altogether...very happy with it. I have the same spec'ed one that you're getting! :D
 

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