The Macbook Pro 17-inch Apple is probably one of the 17-inch laptop’s most expensive market. Is it worth the trouble? In fact everything depends on your needs and your means. On the design side, we must admit that Apple stands out among its competitors with an aluminum very attractive.

The finish is exceptional with the unibody carved directly into a block. There is therefore no assembly or visible screws and the whole is more rigid. Furthermore, the release button of the screen that adorned the front edge of the old models disappears in favor of a magnetic system more practical and solid. To top it all, the Macbook Pro 17 is undoubtedly the computer’s thinnest 17-inch market. It is therefore possible to carry for trips as far as we can possibly fit into a bag dedicated to a 15 inch. Although its weight is consistent with nearly three kilos on the scales.

Finally, it is interesting to note that with the MacBook Pro 17-inch, Apple continues to resist (for now) to the allure of 16 / 9. It will therefore be with the black bars top and bottom of the screen during playback of videos, but in return we gain vertical display surface. If the MacBook Pro is generally silent thanks to the thermal diffusion induced by the aluminum chassis, the CPU fan is still sometimes be heard without it being embarrassing either. However, the heating is very noticeable after a few hours of use especially during demanding operations such as encoding video in high definition. In this case rather than put it on your lap, consider acquiring a suitable support.

The backlit keyboard of the Macbook Pro 17 Apple is a model of its kind and we forgive him the lack of keypad. The buttons are large and spaced and the text entry is not a problem. Adjusting the backlight can be accessed directly via the function keys while an ambient light sensor can automatically control the brightness. On both sides of the keyboard are integrated speakers whose gates are again directly molded into the unibody. The wrist rest is very wide which adds to the comfort of the seizure.

Like the 15-inch Macbook Pro touchpad 17 Apple is now devoid of a button. Very broadly, it is sufficiently sensitive and responds perfectly to the slightest pressure of the finger. Coupled with better operating system Mac OS X, you can use one, two, three or even four fingers.

For example, by pinching two fingers on the touchpad, you can make zoom in on photos or web page. Dragging two fingers up and down, there is no need to use elevators to scroll through the pages in any application. On the other hand, a clean sweep of the fingers can browse images in your library. Finally, using four fingers you can see at a glance all the windows open or show the desktop (no need therefore shortcut). And of course, if the default right click is not available, a detour through the system settings is enough to activate. As such, he must praise the efforts of Apple offers video tutorials really well made directly in the preferences of the operating system Mac OS X. In few minutes the touchpad has no secrets for you so that one regrets such a system truly practical and innovative in our good old PC.

Indeed, the glass of the display is arsenic free now while mercury has completely disappeared as the PVC internal cables. In addition, the packaging is also experiencing weight loss with a consequent reduction in size (34%).

The keyboard is comfortable with keys that are well sized. The resistance to pressure is balanced, and unlike some competitors, it does not sag at a pressure a little high on the keys. It may still blame him a bit small arrows and enter key too narrow.

Remains that it will soon with a little practice. Last important point, Apple is the only manufacturer with its keyboard and ambient light sensors with a backlight. If like me you are sometimes forced and forced to tilt the screen to illuminate your laptop keyboard to enter text in the dark, here is the kind of detail that is truly welcome. The light sensor also adjusts the brightness of the screen.

The wrist rest is very wide which adds to the comfort of the seizure. It’s the same for the touchpad and mouse button are generously sized. In office use, the MacBook Pro is so quiet that you might think off. The large ventilation grids are cleverly concealed in the hinge of the screen and the heater is imperceptible. It remains equally discreet in a more intensive use.

Despite its thinness, the MacBook Pro embeds all the connections we are entitled to expect a high-end laptop. Apple has chosen to integrate a DVD burner type snap disc (slot in) on the front. This allows us to save space compared to traditional drawer. Just next door is an infrared sensor to control multimedia applications using the remote control is provided.

On the right spine are a USB port, an Ethernet jack (RJ45), a DVI port and two FireWire (IEEE 1394). As such, the MacBook Pro is the only computer we have tested two FireWire 400 and 800 which provide data rates of 400 and 800 Mbit / s. Owners of compatible hard drives will appreciate. There’s no HDMI port even if a DVI-HDMI suffice to overcome this shortcoming. However, the sound does not channeled through that connection and will therefore require a different cable in the event of a connection to a TV for example. Another notable absentee, no memory card reader is integrated. A peak for a computer to charge high prices. To end this tour of the left edge loads a second USB port, microphone and headphone jacks, an ExpressCard slot and power jack. It deserves attention because the system MagSafe is both original and practical. Indeed, just near the magnetic connector located at the end of the cable so that it is positioned correctly. Moreover, it is appreciated that the power supply is so compact, a detail that Toshiba would do well to learn as we have seen here. Finally, the height of refinement, the battery has a charging indicator light.



The screen was excellent. In addition to a high definition compared to its size of 15.4 inches (1440 x 900 pixels), it still retains the color and contrast is high. Despite some light reflections, it remains legible even in direct sunlight. Finally, the viewing angles are very wide. Note also that the screen seems bigger than it really is thanks to a relatively late. As we said above, the keyboard features ambient light sensor to automatically adjust the brightness of the screen.

The speakers are placed on either side of the keyboard for a good stereo effect. If the sound is once again the pride of the acute, it is especially pleasant and less tiring than on competing models.

To develop something truly different, you have to work in a way that is truly different. The designers and engineers collaborate Apple at every stage of product development. This partnership enables innovation. And that’s exactly how the new MacBook Pro has been created. With its unibody innovative new features and its design-friendly environment, it marks a revolution in how notebooks are made.

Until now, all notebooks were designed in the same way: by assembling multiple pieces to create a single enclosure. But the integration of all parts needed increased dimensions, weight, complexity and risks of failure. Solving this problem required a more gradual change. It required a breakthrough. To create the new MacBook Pro, the design teams and engineering have devised a way to replace these multiple pieces by one. This unique piece is called the unibody. This is a case in one piece, cut from a single block of aluminum.

The development of a unique piece generates its own set of difficulties. With multiple components related to each other, it is not necessary to obtain a perfect tolerance. There may be loose, in every sense of the term. But when the same piece has a number of functions, it is essential that this piece is manufactured with absolute precision, to Micron. Every time. Millions of times.

There was only one way to achieve this level of precision: it had cut the unibody from a solid block of aluminum using CNC (Computer Numerical Control for CNC machines), the type used by the aerospace industry to make strategic components of spacecraft.

The thickness of a notebook depends on the technology that integrates: LCDs typically use cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFL) to create a light source and projecting an image on a screen. But that poses two problems. First, these lamps require more space, so the screen can not win with finesse.

Secondly, like the fluorescent lights in your home or office, those that fit a screen backlight CCFL take time to warm up before reaching their full luminosity. In sum, a lose-lose situation. That’s why Apple engineers chose the technology with LED backlight for the new MacBook.

But where’s the button? The amazing new trackpad also serves button: press anywhere and feel that you have clicked. The lack of a separate button allows you to identify 39 percent more space: much space to walk your fingers won on the glass surface to soft. Now that Multi-Touch manipulation can be performed on a MacBook, you have all the functions at your fingertips. Use two fingers to scroll a page vertically.

Pinch the screen to enlarge or reduce the elements. Swipe with three fingers to flip through your photo libraries and rotate an image with your fingertips. With the new handling of four-finger swipe, swipe vertically to switch between your open applications. If you come from a world ruled by right-clicking, you can even configure a right click area to access shortcut menus. The more you use the Multi-Touch trackpad, the more you’ll wonder how you ever did without it.

Simply wonderful. The screen LED-backlit MacBook does not shine only by its superb design seamless, a remarkable finesse. Open your MacBook and you are instantly greeted by a wonderful light from the screen. The aluminum enclosure is perfectly integrated into the glass screen, so that the image of perfect clarity, appears larger and more striking than ever. Everything you look, including the glossy widescreen display itself, proves spectacular. The backlit LED operates more energy, which translates to greater autonomy. And since it contains no mercury or arsenic, it is greener than ever.

The new darling of Apple fans arrived in our offices: the MacBook Air . And we must recognize that leaves no one indifferent. Even the fiercest critics of the Apple brand will be forced to recognize that Mr. Jobs has struck a blow. 1.94 cm thick! It is THE feature that distinguishes this from other laptop models. As shown so advertising on television, he holds a kraft envelope. Consequently, its weight is equally minimalist: 1.36 Kg With such measurements, it fits easily into any pocket or bag, wrap himself the trouble of a large suitcase dedicated to mobile phones. The finish is no exception, since the same design all-aluminum MacBook Pro. The keyboard offers backlit keys, not only is beautiful, but this appears to be especially handy when you need to work in low-light conditions. A part of the case must surely be the radiator to cool the internal components.

Of course, such a compact requires restricting connections. It is equally minimalist dimensions: a small pivoting door to discover the jack audio connector for an external monitor (with DVI and VGA adapters supplied), and the single USB port. No Ethernet jack, or Firewire. A USB to Ethernet adapter is optional, but lost a good portion of the flow of Ethernet as to meet the 802.11n WiFi team that this notebook. It supports 802.11 a, b and g, and with the preliminary version of n (which is still not finalized at present). It goes without saying that it is primarily the single USB to us grieve. A second would have been welcome.

Note however that the webcam is integrated into the frame of the screen. The latter offers a definition of 1280 x 800 points on 13.3-inch, is the same format as previous phones brand. The MacBook Air that we have received is equipped with an Intel Core 2 Duo 1.6 GHz. An optional version is available with a 1.8GHz processor. A little gain, but this adds a finishing disc SDS (flash memory), which pushed the bill of 1167 euros. To assess the overall performance of this little laptop, we face up to two processors Macs with the same generation: an iMac and a new iMac.Crash! This time it’s gadin. The slow hard disk is its small size: 1.8 inches, 2.5 inches cons for a standard portable, and 3.5 inches for desktops. The linear velocity of the end plate is smaller than on larger disks, thus reducing the transfer rate. Moreover, its speed limited to 4200 rpm is far from those of larger discs (5400 and 7200 rpm). This does not feel slow at loading Mac OS X, and during the startup of software that takes a little longer than usual, but nothing insurmountable.



Last, its autonomy. It is announced at 5:00 and has actually been measured at 2:20 during our tests. Note that our protocol test measures the self while playing a DVD. So we have shuttered the optional external drive, which represents an additional energy consumption. In addition, this use is much more greedy than office use. In the latter case, autonomy is around 4 to 5 hours. A great performance for a laptop so small.

We know Apple users we would at stake for such heresy. However, to compare the performance of some tests with PCs, we had no choice. For Photoshop CS3, Adobe sent us a dedicated Mac version of MacBook Pro 13 . Unfortunately, we could not install because of an incompatibility with the type of hard disk volume. So we had to fall back on the PC version on Vista. One never tires of saying, designated by Mac computers are beautiful. Whether you’re addicted to the Apple brand or not, is undeniable. The keyboard of the machine has no numeric keypad. The navigation keys are superimposed multimedia keys F7 through F12 (only work on Mac OS X, not Vista). Compared to a conventional PC keyboard, missing a few keys handy as screen printing, del, insertion. However, their smaller number offers a set airy and is very pleasing. The large and tactile pad out of a bar left click only. To right click on Vista, you must press two fingers on the pad and click.

The connection interfaces are proposed: one FireWire 400, two USB, one Gigabit and one mini-DVI out (without sound). A final point on the ergonomics of the product: making connection to the current magnet. The force exerted by the magnetic field is large enough that it does not come off permanently. However, if someone were to walk on the wire, it disconnects and avoids sending the laptop to land: ingenious.

The performance of the Apple machine are particularly penalized by a DVD very slow. The software installations are up to two times longer than the fastest PCs in the field. The maximum speed transfer files, read from our Western Digital external hard drive, was achieved via USB for large files (26MB / s) and FireWire for medium sized files (25 MB / s). For part writing, FireWire is the head of the two types of files using 25.5 and 14.5 Mb / s. Here, the absence of entry e-SATA is particularly acute. The maximum transfer rate (26MB / s) is almost two times lower than that Fujitsu-Siemens (Amilo Si 2636 model) proposes. The performance of the memory card reader could not be measured because it does not. In the middle of the screen on top, is a webcam. The image suggested by this device has not fully convinced. The image is noisy and tends to give you a very red skin tones. Feel free to drop a notch saturation of the image. The sound is much better however.



The autonomy of the portable MacBook Pro 13 has lived up to our expectations. With two hours and 51 minutes of continuous reading of films, he takes the helm of our chart.
The choice between a PC and a Mac is played sometimes little things. Here are 10 good reasons to succumb to the apple:
1 – Mac OS X
2 – Aesthetics (timeless)
Three – Ergonomics
4 – The ease of use of Apple applications (unless you are trained in the PC. In this case, the ease of use is inversely proportional)
5 – iLife’08 suite (iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand, etc.).
6 – The certainty of compatibility between Apple products
7 – The absence of virus
8 – The stability of the machine
9 – The ease of installation of Vista with the application Boot Camp
10 – You can read a PC hard drive on Mac, the reverse is not possible.