[Macworld]

Post your comments for New MacBook Pro speed tests here

[scoodog]

In your full reviews, please take a close look at the displays of the 13" MacBook Pro models. I just visited the Apple Store -- they had approx. 10 13" MacBook Pro's on display, and three of them had washed-out displays. Quite disappointing. I checked to make sure the same color profile was selected on the inferior ones, and two of the Apple employees even took a look and acknowledged that something wasn't right.
Also, rest assured that all of these were indeed MacBook PRO units -- none of them were the original MacBook's that are still on the floor as they sell their remaining inventory of that product.
So Macworld, perhaps a blind visit to your nearby Apple Store to assess the image quality of the 13" models...

[aralim_1]

I think for me, the most interesting comparison is the new 2.66 GHz 15" MBP vs. the Mar. 2009 2.66 GHz 15" MBP. Both systems have identical CPU speed, identical graphics systems (although IIRC the Mar. 2009 model's 9600M GT had 512 MB of GDDR3 RAM), 5,400 rpm HDD, etc. The only real difference is the cache RAM: The new model has 3 MB of cache, while the Mar. 2009 model had 6 MB.
In spite of the cache being cut in half, these two laptops performed 100% identically. Their speedmark scores differed by just one point (no statistical significance), and all other tests except game frame rates and the Zip / Unzip tests were within a second of each other.
It looks like CPU cache doesn't matter as much as it used to, which I'm thrilled to see. I'd been very concerned about that, and even posted here and on twitter about my reservations of how cutting the cache would impact overall performance. I'm very happy to admit I was wrong, and thrilled that the new systems perform just as well as the older models.
- Joe -

[Jerame]

I realize you're testing stock machines, but the 15" and 17" MBPs have a 7200 RPM drive option. If you're calling the 17" a desktop replacement, perhaps you should equip it like a desktop replacement. There's no way I could live without my 7200 RPM drive on my 17" MBP. My 2.33GHz machine is way faster than my friend's 2.4 GHz stock machine by almost every measure we've done with real world tests.
That 7200 RPM drive makes all the difference in the world AFAIC.

[alansky]

Speaking of 7200 rpm drives, does anyone know to what extent a 7200 rpm drive shortens how long a battery charge will last?

[WilfredLaurier]

I hope you take a detailed look at the battery life claims of the new MacBook Pros as well.
http://www.anandtech...doc.aspx?i=3580
Anandtech took a look at battery life and found the Apple's battery claims to be very realistic under light usage.
Since you are testing more games, might I also suggest looking not only a modern native Mac game like Call of Duty 4, but also at Cider titles like Red alert 3 and Prince of Persia. Even though it's not an ideal solution to Mac gaming, Cider looks to be here to stay, and it'd be great if you can investigate the factors that effect Cider performance the most, say the importance of CPU speed, GPU speed, memory, etc. It wouldn't surprise me if Cider games are CPU bound due to the wrapper compared to the original WIndows version or traditional Mac native ports.

[ncj37]

The million dollar question is whether the new displays (particularly on the 13") are any better than the previous models. You'd do the Mac community a great favor by producing carefully controlled pictures showing the differences in viewing angles between the old 13" and new 13" models. For that matter, it would also be useful to compare the 13" to the 15".
Just about any other "benchmark" test can be inferred from the CPU clock speed.

[BEW]

If you equip the 15" with the 500GB 7200 HDD it's surprising how little difference there is in price between the 2.66 and 2.8 GHz processors (about £80 or US$130, so looking at the figures in this review I would say a no brainer.

[whitedog]

Once again the changes are incremental, which is what we've come to expect. Apple uses new CPUs when Intel makes them available. The biggest difference, as has been observed already, is the availability of BTO bigger, faster hard drives. This is particularly important in a laptop (desktop replacement) computer.
Of course the other factor of note is the dramatic price cuts. Oh, and the return of FireWire to the 13" MacBook Pro. All in all it's nice to see Apple is keeping its head in the game. Sad to say, though, for people who own Apple stock, the price cuts have hammered the stock price all week. Hopefully it will recover next week when folks start considering the potential impact of the lower prices on sales volume.
Some new Apple TV ads might help. ;-) No doubt the new iPhone will be in for some star treatment.

[machine37]

Looking forward to full review. As I'm sure many people are interested in this, could you please review how the 13" & 15" deal with Final Cut Studio and all the associated applications that come bundled with it.
It is interesting to me they now call the 13" a "Pro" machine, but fail to include a proper graphics card that seems (or I am told at Apple's website) to be needed for the "pro" applications.

[Lancelot9201]

All these numbers & tests make for a great read but they don't mean a thing if the freaking internal battery dies in 4 hrs. & you can't easliy install a replacement like you could on earlier models..!!!

[ElProto]

So the white plastic 2.13GHz MacBook is currently the only laptop in the MacBook line? All the others are MacBook Pros? Where does that leave the MacBook Air?

[Bectonchaos]

Hurray for bad economic times, in your face advertising towards apple and slightly better product design from other manufacturers!!! Apple has added more value to their laptops. Sooner than expected. I have a hunch that an ultra mobile device will launch in the 4th quarter priced between $549 and $699. The competition is doing better phones and mp3 players, apple will have to jump into the netbook segment or risk a further slide in market share. I think powerful shareholders are applying pressure. No company likes volatile stock prices. I love my apple computers, with higher specs and lower prices I just may marry them.

[Don_Quixote]

Well, it looks like the new MBP 13 could have been faster, if it had the full speed of SATA.
http://redirectingat...32%26tstart%3D0