[Netizen_Kane]

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Why do they not want to enter their password? Entering a password at a terminal to sign into your account is as old as networks themselves. What does this have to do with an optical scanner on a laptop? A terminal is very different than a portable computer that is subject to dirt and abuse. I am a second generation computer guy, and while this stuff is not my bread and butter, it is my father's and I can write novels about the problems with biometrics. They have their place, and they are getting better, but the cute little Dell fingerprint scanner is a novelty, not a critical function.

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Just because something has been done forever doesn't mean should be done forevermore. That's why most of us have given up CLIs, floppies, CRTs and other things that were once "the facts of life." The problem with passwords is that they take time to enter (especially if you have one hand tied up and have to hunt and peck with the other, for instance when I'm holding my laptop and getting ready to show something to a colleague) and they can be easily stolen by anyone looking over your shoulder. And once it's stolen, your password can easily be used by any number of people. Not to say that biometrics are foolproof, but a password can easily be a backup if and only if the scanner fails. I'm speaking as a first generation computer guy, playing and working with them since the Apple II days in the late 70s.

[doh123]

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1) what's the little hole/port/thing on the front of the MacBook Pro to the left of the catch?

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the little dark spot to the left of the LCD latch, is the infared reciever for the remote.

[Plecky]

Did anyone notice/see this in the Tech Specs, think it's the first time I have. Also, what's up with the 15" now getting worse battery life then the 17"? Sure it has a smaller battery at 60 instead of 68 li-polymer, but c'mon the screen is also smaller and in some cases the processor is slower (1.83) and the superdrive is slower/not-DL and I'm sure I could think of other things as well. Anyone know why the 15" is rated at 4.5 (which I am lucky to get, I usually get around 3-3.5) and the 17" is rated at 5.5 (assuming it's like mine, probably realistically around 4-4.5 hours). There's my one 15" whine/complain. I could also include the extra ports (USB and Firewire 800) and 8X-SuperDriveDL as well, but I'll save those ones for later... /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[cgrscott]

"Great! A pro level notebook when there is little or no Intel-Native(UB) Pro Apps to run on it.
I guess it's a good gaming machine."

I guess I shared an initial gut reaction to the Intel CoreDuo 17" MacBook Pro while forgetting some important information I heard on one of the MacWorld Podcasts and that is, one might get a speed loss in Photoshop CS2 if they went from an iMac G5 to an Intel CoreDuo iMac. But if you move up from any of the fastest latest G4 equipped Powerbooks to an Intel CoreDuo MacBook Pro, Photoshop will still be 50% faster, under Rosetta, than running natively on the single G4 processor of the recent PowerBooks. So, since there never was a G5 Powerbook, there is no speed loss for any Powerbook user to move up to the MacbookPro. You get a mild speed boost in the immediate future and a huge speed increase when the UB version of your favorite pro app becomes available.
So I am corrected on this one.

[Peter Cohen]

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Actually, the 17" is not a sedan. It's more like the ML350 SUV -- heavy, massive and more than some of us would like to have to deal with.

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The ML350 is a cream puff next to the Gelandewagen/G500, which is the one I've always liked. Again, for some of us, the 17-inch is what we're looking for.

[Machound]

> where's the 160 GB HD? perpendicular recording is here.
I added a 160 GB Seagate HD to my 1.33 GHz 17" PowerBook and I absolutely love it. Now I can keep my .mp3 library on my main drive and not have to go searching for externally located files.
In reality, you can pick up a 160 GB HD and pay an Apple certified technician $50 (as I did) to swap drives and you'll still probably come out ahead of what Apple would have charged. Plus, you get to keep the original HD for mobile storage.
Doubtless there are customers who don't want to be bothered with paying someone to do a HD swap. Apple, are you listening?

[mosley]

Put it this way; I used to carry bags of modem adaptors around with me going around Europe. Over the past 3 years I have had to use them less and less mainly because each time a hotel upgrades its rooms they fit new phones and these usually have detachable RJ-11 plugs. No, it's not a European directive just good old fashioned supply following demand. New room, new phone. But broadband in the room is still some way off.

[Netizen_Kane]

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The ML350 is a cream puff next to the Gelandewagen/G500, which is the one I've always liked.

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I suppose if you can afford that, you won't mind the $100 fill up at the gas station every couple of days.

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Again, for some of us, the 17-inch is what we're looking for.

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Nobody ever said otherwise. But we're not dismissing the 17", either. Different strokes for different folks. Many of us only need portable supplements to run a few things when we're on the road, not full desktop replacements. Actually, the rumored 13" iBook/MacBook may be enough for my needs, but I and many road warriors would love to have something thinner and lighter.

[johnnyapple]

A similarly equipped Dell PrecisionTM M90 goes for $3,501 - an extra $702.00
At first I couldn't figure it out, Macs are supposed to be sooo expensive. Then I realized that Dell must be charging by the pound.
MacBook Pro is $412 per pound, the Dell is $407.
That's gotta be it.

[HumanJHawkins]

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I so wish they'd do a "pro" small notebook, but it seems it's not to be (if one believes the rumors). <CUT> Sigh.

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Haven't you guys been around Apple long enough to know that they won't dissapoint?
They very well may never release a 12" MacBook pro. But have you ever considered that it might be because they decided to put all of the previously Pro features into their iBook line and sell a pro quality laptop at the previous iBook price?

[HumanJHawkins]

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My piano uses SmartCard, my GPS uses SmartCard, my phone uses SmartCard, my cameral uses SmartCard.

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This is not a joke, nor intended to be sarcastic... What is a smartcard?

[MacTel]

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A similarly equipped Dell PrecisionTM M90 goes for $3,501 - an extra $702.00

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As a premiere customer (any company can get this status) I get 10% off any purchase and Dell usually has a special or two going. If you're at the end of a quarter then they'll sweeten the deal even more. I just don't see Apple doing the same. Inventory is what kills Dell and it costs them more to keep parts laying around so they're always looking to move product.
I purchased a Dell Inspiron 9400 (which is exactly the same as a Precision M90 although white) for $2100 through my Dell rep but it listed for $2900 on their small to medium sized business web site.

[macnuke]

17 isn't portable.
i want a 10-12 inch.
preferably a 10" Newton. dual core /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
bet I still get another 6 years outa my 12" G4 tho.

[wardoggie]

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But if you move up from any of the fastest latest G4 equipped Powerbooks to an Intel CoreDuo MacBook Pro, Photoshop will still be 50% faster, under Rosetta, than running natively on the single G4 processor of the recent PowerBooks.

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This is an excellent point. When I went to MWSF to see the new Macs, I played with Photoshop on a MacBookPro. Since I don't do very complex stuff or work with files > 25 MB, it seemed fine compared to the 1.25-GHz G4 PowerMac at home... and light-years ahead of the 400-MHz G4 PowerMac I use at work.
I guess if I had a new-ish G5 tower -- and was still looking to move up to something faster -- I'd be disappointed with CS performance in Rosetta, too. But the Intel iMacs and MacBookPros are still an improvement over what I have now. And they'll only get faster when everything is Intel-compatible.