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Apple MacBook Pro MB766LL/A 17-Inch Laptop (2.5 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, 4 GB RAM, 320 GB Hard Drive, Slot Loading SuperDrive) | 
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| Brand: Apple
Category: Personal Computer
List Price: $2,499.00
Buy New: $2,494.00
You Save: $5.00
New (4) from $2,494.00
Rating:  48 reviews
Sales Rank: 193
Media: Personal Computers
Operating System: Apple MacOS X 10.5
CPU Manufacturer: Intel
CPU Speed: 2.5
CPU Type: Intel Core Duo
Processors: 2
System Bus Speed: 800
System Memory: 4000
Memory Type: DDR2 SDRAM
Hard Drive Size: 320
Floppy Disk Drive: None
Graphics RAM: 512
Modem: None
Display Size: 17
Shipping Weight (lbs): 11.4
Dimensions (in): 20.3 x 19.2 x 5.6
Warranty: 1 year warranty
MPN: MB766LL/A
Model: MB766LL/A
UPC: 718908999196
EAN: 0885909261994
ASIN: B0013FJNCM
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 3 to 5 weeks
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| Features:
| • | 2.5GHz Intel Core Duo | | • | 4GB Memory | | • | 320GB hard drive | | • | Double-layer SuperDrive |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The latest Intel processor, a bigger hard drive, plenty of memory, and even more new features all fit inside just one liberating inch. The MacBook Pro has the performance, power, and connectivity of a desktop computer. Without the desk part.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 43 more reviews...
 PC to Mac Convert and lovin' it! December 1, 2008
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
I am a long-time IT professional with enough certifications (mostly Microsoft) to make a large can of alphabet soup, and this is my first Mac. I had played with a few of them here and there years ago, and never saw what people liked about them. The closest I ever came was back in the late '90s when I was tempted to run Windows on a PPC, but just about the time I was going to do that, Microsoft pulled their support for it from Windows, and that ended that.
So, I was anti-Mac for quite a few years. All that has changed. I began to believe in the OS when Apple began to base it on Unix. A solid, time proven technology that I trust. The big thing that changed it all for me is VMWare. For 70 dollars, I have the ability to run Vista Ultimate, XP, and Ubuntu Linux on OSX. My Vista Ultimate is my previous Dell (not a slouchy box, either). It's a complete clone of my old computer. Windows still shows it being a Dell! Spooky. Windows had it a 3.6 rating, and a retest of the VM on my Mac shows a 3.6 rating. That alone earns 4 of the stars I give this machine.
Now, here's another reason why I'm so happy. I put Office 2008 on the MBP, and I seldom have any reason to even start the Vista VM anymore. The last two times I did, it was only because I miss the great Vista solitaire game. That earns the fifth star -- I'm not "homesick" in the least. I think I'll be staying right here on planet Mac. As a matter of fact, I got a MacBook for my wife, I liked this MBPro MB471LL/A so much! Bought her the MB403LL/A.
I use it with an external monitor about 90 percent of the time, so the glare of the glossy screen hasn't been an issue for me. The built in screen is gorgeous, and I've not been in a situation where glare became an issue.
This machine is truly desktop horsepower in a gorgeous carved aluminum notebook chassis. I'm a very happy camper.
Very Impressive December 10, 2008
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
I'm not a gamer so this review may not be helpful to those who want a computer to play games.
I have worked as a professional software developer/architect for 17 years. I started with MSDOS 2.0 and have ridden the Microsoft wave all the way through Vista 64 and I had a few years with UNIX. I have personally owned or worked with computers from Dell, HP, Compaq, IBM. I have heard of Apple products but for the most part dismissed them as more toy than tool. (I was not alone in this perspective.) I like Microsoft but after working with it for the better part of 20 year I decided to look at something different.
I never thought I would purchase an Apple yet here it is. I am impressed to say the least and I see Apple as a serious tool that also makes a cool toy.
Pros:
Lightweight - Probably the lightest laptop I've ever worked with or owned
Solid - Normally when you get laptops at 15.4 or larger, chassis flex becomes evident as you can see them bend and they creak. Yet because of its single piece construction and light weight aluminum the MacBook feels good when you need to move it. I doesn't creak and there is no noticeable bend when lifted.
Battery Life - It just keeps going, and going, and going... Actually I am seeing up to 4 hours life on the fully charged battery. My previous computer never surpassed 1.75 hours.
Size - It is very thin and carrying it around is very comfortable. I had a 17" and while I like the large display its uncomfortable to carry like a book.
Magnetic Clasp - When closing the lid the owner is rewarded with a very solid thump instead of a "creak" "clack" that you hear from so many other laptops that use a plastic display and mechanical clasp. Opening the monitor is equally a pleasing. You place you thumb under the lip and lift. The laptop may slide a little on smooth surfaces but the lid comes up smooth and controlled.
Keyboard - This is a great piece of work. Does it have "Home", "Page Up", "Page Down", the legendary "Any" key? No. Doesn't need it. A little research and practice and you will find that these "missing" keys are functions of the keyboard and I don't miss them at all. Secondly the keyboard "key-float" (that rattle you hear when you lightly stroke your finger back and forth over a laptop keyboard) is almost completely non-existent. So when you're typing it doesn't sound like your wadding up crinkly plastic and you don't annoy your neighbors. The key throw is short but very pleasant. Another thing I like about the keyboard is that you don't feel like you will break the keyboard if your touch is a little heavy.
Display - The display is a work of art. No only does it look good, but flex has been reduced to almost nothing. It feels very solid and you don't feel you need to worry about tilting the screen from the corner. The glass cover over the LED lit LCD display is awesome. You can actually clean the screen without LCD screen colors distorting. Not to mention that is automatically dims in low light and the key board lights up in the same low light conditions. that's a nice touch. The display brightness is every bit as bright as my desktop LCD display in strong light.
Touch Pad - Any who has tried to use the touch pads on other computers (I hate them generally) will love this touch pad. It works like the iPhone (except scrolling is reversed for obvious reasons - you're not actually touching the screen). The touch is light and very smooth. Making the entire touch pad the button is brilliant, it took me almost no time to get use to it and now I nearly push a hole through the Dell touch pad before I realize I have to click the buttons. I have no trouble with inadvertent touch that moves my cursor away from where I'm typing.
Quiet - I have yet to hear the fans. It makes me wonder if they ever work.
DVD Superdrive - Finally! No cup holder comes sliding out of the side of my laptop. Just simply slide the disc in and your done. It operates like the CD player in a car. It is easy to eject from the screen or a key on the keyboard.
Fit and Finish - The best I've ever seen. The only thing I've seen is a very slight misalignment of the Express Card/34 slot door. But you really have to look close to see it.
Operating System - WOW. Fast, no anti-virus, stable: it just works. I won't get too much into the OS but I will say that once I understood how Apple likes things done OS X is very appealing. Not to mention that it sleeps and wakes up faster than anything I have ever worked with. Open the monitor and it's sitting there saying "come on, I'm tired of waiting for you".
Built-in Accelerometers - Not sure what they're good for, but they're cool. Like the iPhone the MacBook Pro has three accelerometers. There is an Stanford Laptop Orchestra uses MacBook Pros to make music using these accelerometers.
No Fresh Air Openings - I really dislike fresh air ports on the bottom of laptops. They are easily plugged and they suck fuzz and dust into the heat sinks. With my previous computers the fresh air ports were placed underneath the computer right where it sets on your legs. The result was you ran a big risk overheating the computer. The MacBook Pro pulls the cooling air through the keyboard and therefore has a smooth bottom making it far better to place on you lap.
CONS:
Chassis - While it is a brilliant piece of engineering there are a couple very minor issues.
One: Always pick the computer up with both hands. While this is true of all laptops you want to last, it's a little more important with this one. The metal around the ethernet port has been machined very thin which was necessary to fit the large jack in the rather narrow side of the laptop. So if you have the monitor open and grab the laptop with you left hand and your thumb over that jack you could dent the metal around it. It doesn't warp or twist the whole chassis, it's too strong but you could see a small indention in a otherwise straight piece of metal.
Two: The metal in the Battery/Hard Drive Cover is very thin and sometime appears to hang below lip of the chassis. You really have to look to see it and it isn't all the time. I don't think is is warped or bent, but just the natural flexibility of aluminum.
Touch Pad Click - While I absolutely love the touch pad (in fact I only use a mouse anymore when I am programming on it because of the nature of the software). If you try to click at the top of the pad (nearest the screen) the force required to click goes up quite a bit.
Price? - Not really a Con. Some have complained about the price. Three and half years ago I paid $5700 for a Dell 9100 laptop (All the bells and whistles, Window XP Pro, Office Pro, the works). It has been a great computer that has been put to pasture and my family uses it. I've only had two problems with it. The dreaded mexican jumping keys (a key flies off the keyboard after you press it down while typing; AKA broken key) Dell replaced the keyboard without any trouble and the hard drive crashed and needed to be replaced. The Dell computer when new cost more than twice the MacBook Pro does today and the only thing it has over the Mac (old age and technology not withstanding) is it's 1920 x 1200 pixel display compared to the Mac's 1440 x 900 display. If I were to order the most power 15.4 laptop Apple sells today, I would still pay half the price of the Dell and the Apple does much more and has better quality overall.
To summarize this is an accomplishment that the engineers, designers, and developers should feel proud. There is some room for improvement but these improvements are at a level that other laptops have to improve a great deal just to achieve Apple's shortcomings.
I could go on further but I think this is enough. Apple has truly developed a great product in both hardware and software and I recommend it highly.
Excellent November 30, 2008
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
In more more than 25 years as a computer "power user," this is the first Mac I have ever owned. I had never considered Macs to be relevant to me in several key ways, including the proprietary, non-Intel hardware and lots of "funky things" about the old Mac OS. However, I had also become dog-tired of the Wintel boondoggle--machines needing to be rebuilt on a regular basis, blue screens, virus hassles, etc, etc. Supporting family computers was even more of a pain. "Dad, what does this error message mean?!" Clearly Macs are now a viable alternative for technical business users (okay, they have been for a while), so I took the leap even though the hardware is very pricey, competitively speaking.
I'm absolutely delighted with this purchase. Everything just works. Although I'm still finding my way around in some areas, I am reveling in the joy of a human-use-oriented user interface. I installed VMware fusion based on my comparisons between it and Parallels, and on my experience with VMware on other platforms. I exported my work machine with VMware Converter and imported it into Fusion. Works great. Performance is at least as good as it was on the old machine (2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo, 4 GB RAM)--and stability is much better. Integration of Windows apps into OS X is excellent using Fusion's Unity mode. I have not had to revert to my work-issued HP laptop even once since making the jump.
The only challenge I had, and it was minor, was installing the RAM upgrade. I bought 4 GB RAM at the same time as the machine because I wanted to have the full memory capacity, especially for business apps and VMware Fusion. The upgrade isn't difficult (unlike the Mac Mini!), but it does take some care and two sizes of small screwdrivers to complete. Eight screws have to come out, and four of them are quite small. Take care to keep from dropping any of the smaller screws into the machine when you're reinstalling them. Cover alignment is also important to get just right, or the battery/HDD hatch doesn't close properly. As with any project, put all the screws in before tightening any of them.
Unlike other reviewers, I have not found the high-glare, glass display to be a big problem. Glare is sometimes an issue but reorienting the machine slightly minimizes the inconvenience. The display is gorgeous, very much in keeping with the overall product design and quality. The glass trackpad is excellent, with intuitive, tunable multitouch features. The MacBook Pro runs much cooler, and quieter, than any laptop I've used over the last 5 or 6 years as well. The milled aluminum case is both rugged and attractive, as well as providing a great heat sink for the high-heat components.
In the wish-list department, I would appreciate having more than two built-in USB ports, although I can migrate at least one device to FireWire to take advantage of that port. Also, the front edge of the base is slightly uncomfortably sharp for resting my hands or wrists. Lastly, I find it annoying to have to buy a $20+ adapter cable to connect an external VGA monitor. The adapter cable is also too short--but this isn't a review of the cable. All that said, these issues are not enough to drop my rating below five stars. This is an outstanding laptop. I like OS X enough that I have already added a Mac Mini as the family machine, to rave reviews among its three primary users. How can you beat that?
Go With The Pro! November 11, 2008
11 out of 12 found this review helpful
I just purchased the pro yesterday at my local Apple Store. I have had it for less then 24hrs so far, and I love it. I was going to get the high end Macbook, and then at the last minute decided on the low end Pro upgraded with 4GB of Memory. I am so glad I did. It is so fast, and powerful. The display is what made me make the final choice. It is still very portable. It weighs the same as my black macbook, and is thin. It would be very easy to just to throw in my backpack and be on my way. Also the firewire. It was going to be the easiest way to transfer all my data from my old black macbook to the pro. It only took and hour and a half, and I have all my information. I didn't have to do anything, just started it up and began to play. I didn't have Leopard on my old one, and I love it so far. It is easy and the graphics and set up are great. I love the stacks options, and the lighted keyboard. I also love how the controls for the dashboard, screen brightness, keyboard brightness, and dvd controls, are right on the keyboard. I was in between which laptop to get also because I am a casual gamer. However, the salesman did tell me that I could still play some of the games on the Macbook. The display alone is what I am enjoying the most. It is definitely worth the extra money to get the pro. Highly Recommended!
I didn't get it from Amazon, or order it. I wanted to look at the computer before I purchased it. From reading all the horror stories on the web about people receiving damaged, or broken laptops from both the Apple Store and other retail stores. I would also recommend if you are going to get a mac, go to the Apple Store itself and get one if possible. They are so helpful, and usually give you some kind of deal when purchasing one. They will also set it up for you, but transferring all your information to your new computer is very easy to do by yourself.
Macbook Pro/Leopard convert December 1, 2008
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
Finally took the bite and bought my first Apple computer. I'm a photographer and needed a new laptop since my old Gateway one was slowing down.. and since I've been eyeing an Apple since then, I finally purchased one after seeing the new one [I'm writing the review using it right now.]
First things first: it just works. No clutter, no unnecessary backgrounds running in the background, simple and definitely sleek. I'm still getting use to the file management since it is different but otherwise, a lot of the programs I've used on Windows are available on Mac.
:Design:
It's really light for a 15" laptop! And definitely thin too.. although it's not a cutting edge Macbook Air thin, it's definitely thin enough for easier transport. The all aluminum design is stunning. It's solid and feels sturdy. The keyboard is just right with its chiclet style keys and has enough tactile feedback.. not too loud either.
:Screen:
It's glossy and yes there is glare. Since I do photography, it's probably not the best screen to edit on but the colors and text and all is really good. It's a bright screen and makes pictures just look good.. too good as a matter of fact [opinion shared with another photography Joe McNally].
:Trackpad:
It's weird at first but it's really like a regular trackpad.. you place your hand as if on old trackpad and you'll naturally figure it out. Nothing really different but the space of the trackpad is really generous and I'm sure other manufacturers will follow suit.
:Performance:
I've yet to get bogged down after running Photoshop CS4, Lightroom, iTunes, and Firefox at the same time. So I have no issues just yet and will see later on if I'll need to upgrade to 4gb since I have the standard lower end version of the Macbook Pro.
Overall, I'm glad I made the purchase and i'm sure this will last me quite a bit since I've had my Gateway [tablet] for over 2 years.
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