[minderbinder]

"Note that this is a "quote" from an email that theoretically came from Acer. It really doesn't represent an actual quote to purchase a system."
Yep. See below.
"I doubt at the very least that the base system comes max'd out with 2 GB or RAM for $2500 if nothing else."
That's the spec acer's website gives for that model. Have a link:
http://us.acer.com/a...&crc=1074370188
"I googled the the SKU given and I got numbers all over the place but none in stock obviously."
By which I guess you mean "numbers within about $100 of 2500 either way"? Based on the numbers found in that google search, it looks like 2500 is probably their list price, with the typical variations in price you see from store to store. Would you prefer to use the lowest price found for comparison sake?
And it's OK to wait and see what the shipping price is...after all, you can't actually buy the macbook today either, can you?

[jdb8167]

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And it's OK to wait and see what the shipping price is...after all, you can't actually buy the macbook today either, can you?

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No, but I can order one today and know the price. I bet you can't order one of the Acer books if you try. Since I have no interest in an Acer I won't bother, but I would be interested to see if one of those 10 or so websites would guarantee a price.
The Acer site doesn't show an MSRP for that model.
edit: I just checked 5 of Acer's authorized dealers and none even show the TravelMate with the Core Dual in their catalogs yet.

[minderbinder]

"No, but I can order one today and know the price. I bet you can't order one of the Acer books if you try."
It sure looks like you can from the websites that show up from searching the SKU. Why would you assume that these pages wouldn't let you pre-order it at that price?
I get the impression you're just trying to make an excuse why the Acer shouldn't be discussed, and hoping it is forgotten by the time both machines ship.

[jdb8167]

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It sure looks like you can from the websites that show up from searching the SKU. Why would you assume that these pages wouldn't let you pre-order it at that price?

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Because they look like fly-by-night online stores. They don't even have pictures of the Acer yet. I didn't find one site that had a technical description of the laptop. And mostly because Acer doesn't list them as authorized dealers.

In reply to:

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I get the impression you're just trying to make an excuse why the Acer shouldn't be discussed, and hoping it is forgotten by the time both machines ship.

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Not at all. I think the Acer is the one we should be comparing the MacBook to since it is functionally so much closer than the Dell. When it is actually available from an authorized Acer dealer with a reliable website where we can look at different configuration options then I think it will be an excellent comparison point. If Acer sold computers like Dell, Gateway and Apple then I think it would fair but right now there are too many unknowns for me to be comfortable discussing relatively small price differences.

[minderbinder]

Well, if you consider $400 plus the value of a faster processor "relatively small"...

[jdb8167]

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if you consider $400 plus the value of a faster processor "relatively small"...

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I'm skeptical on the price and will remain so until the machines show up on a reputable site.

[minderbinder]

Fair enough. I'm looking forward to your response once the boxes start shipping and they turn out to really cost that much.

[netrox]

Interesting...some of you complained the MacBook is not 64-bit but when did iBooks/powerbook ever had 64-bit CPU? G4 is not a 64-bit CPU. Only G5 is and it cannot run on a laptop.
As for MacBooks running on battery, I don't think it will last 6 hours. While Duo Core requires less than 31 watts, the display and the graphics chip require a lot of power and when it said it's as bright as Cinema Display, then I can bet that it will use a lot of power.
So, don't expect a long life battery anymore. It just won't work unless Apple works on scaling down the MacOS graphics with smaller displays. Quartz requires a lot of GPU for it to be responsive.

[jwdsail]

MacBook "Pro"?
While I've been typing this, I've come up with a great slogan to go with MacBook Pro...
"MacBook Pro, a downgraded name, for a downgraded PowerBook"
I don't think they'll use that...
The new iMac seems to be a great bargin... No need for Universal Binary Pro apps on the consumer iMac.. Huge upgrade from x600 to x1600 graphics... Impressive..
Of the 2 Intel Macs introduced, the iMac is the one that for me, wasn't downgraded...
The Intel PowerBook (who's the idiot that decided to do away with millions of $$$ of marketing and brand awareness and came up with MacBook Pro?) is missing so many things that as a laptop user I NEED that it is a significant DOWNGRADE from the PowerBook G4...
oooo it's faster.. Great, about damn time, but what about features road warriors need?
No Firewire 800... The lack of Firewire 800 is disappointing.. So, I buy the new IntelBook and see less performance with my ext. drives? I could go out and buy a Firewire 800 PC Card... Oh..
No Cardbus support... If they had kept the PC Card/Cardbus standard, I could add a Firewire 800 card, but, no. The ExpressCard size they offer support for is the smaller of 2 card sizes... If the larger format card had been supported, we'd have S-ATA and Firewire cards already available.. Searching the ExpressCard site, reveals many interesting ExpressCard/54 cards, but none will work with this new "Pro" Mac laptop... So now what? We buy the latest, greatest Apple "Pro" machine and not use our "Pro" accessories to their specs?
Downgraded Superdrive? The new Powe.. MacBook Pro no longer offers a high speed dual-layer SuperDrive? Again, I thought this was supposed to be an upgrade???
No modem? Um, great... I guess Jobs never travels outside a WiFi cloud, but for the majority of road warriors, that just isn't the case! Now when I and my belongings are being strip searched by TSA, I have to worry about the small white piece of plastic (Apple's $49 usb modem) getting lost? Who's the brainiac that came up with this one?
No S-Video out? Great, so now I can't connect the laptop to my clients TVs they have in their conference rooms without gasp some kind of 3rd party adaptor I'll need to lug around? Again, isn't this supposed to be Apple's latest and GREATEST "PRO" laptop??? And they're removing features? This isn't the iBook Steve, it's the POWERBOOK! Apple's PRO laptop!!!
While this laptop may be faster than stink, in all other ways, it just plain stinks. The lack of attention to the needs of the potential users of this product is the kind of thing I'd expect from Micro$oft, or Dell.. Not Apple.

[jwdsail]

Well, there are ExpressCard cards that support Firewire 800, however, they are of the ExpressCard/54 variety, and the new Powe.. er MacBook Pro only supports the smaller ExpressCard/34 cards...
ThinkPads support the /54 cards, you'd think that Apple would have.. shrug.

[jwdsail]

Close but no cigar! The card in the photo is an ExpressCard/54. The MacBook Pro only supports ExpressCard/34.
There are allot of interesting /54 cards out there ;-) Too bad the MacBook can't use them.

[sereluna]

MacBook Pro and Battery Life

[doglesby]

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Apple plans to have Intel processors in all of its hardware by the end of 2006

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Did Apple officially announce this change? I know they are six months early with the first intel-based machines, but they're going to finish the transition a year early?

[minderbinder]

There's a review with specs and pricing in pc magazine for the ACER. Is that a reputable enough source?
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1907155,00.asp