THE MacBook Pro
It’s been… 2 weeks? since I have gotten my MBP. This feeling of intense love for an iBook/MBP has been there ever since I watched Legally Blonde (don’t laugh, it was, and to some degree still is, my favourite movie). All this originally culminated into an iBook, the beautiful and white thing that I once was a part of me… but no longer.
Besides that, being such a massive gamer previously, it was not feasible to own a Mac because most of the games I played did not port well, if at all, into the Mac. When Bootcamp arrived, I heard conflicting issues with using Bootcamp that I just didn’t think it was worth the effort. Why get a Mac to use IdiotWindows on it?
However, in the last couple of years, I have went from just WoW, to virtually nothing - just facebook games that requires just about an iota of ram and graphics worth of anything. So, when my HDD flew through the monitor of my Dell XPS 1530, a part of me sigh a massive relief to find a reason to buy a new computer, nevermind that I couldn’t afford it ^_^v
After just 2 weeks of the Mac, getting myself used to a Mac environment again and so on, I realised that the iPad and iPhone really helped the transition by leaps and bounds, as compared to when I previously dropkicked myself into a iOS. Yes, they are vastly different OS (duh), but there’s a certain, distinct familiarity here. However, just to get the questions out of the way with, here’s the why’s and the what’s that some have already asked me:
- Why a Mac when you already have the iPad?
I need a base. I could get a desktop I supposed, but Mac’s are built to be shown off, sit around with, sleep with and cuddle up with. Their desktop versions are currently quite incapable of doing that with me. Once I can figure out how, sure thing.
The other half of the coin is also that, and this I have repeated to death, an iPad is not a computer replacement. It is a complementary product. I can do various things with it, of course, but nothing is, in essence, saved properly on it. Even using Dropbox, for example, the question is, where do I do certain things? e.g. how do I save a photoshop file and edit it openly on the iPad… or a dreamweaver file (no, I don’t use that LOL!).
And, without my “base”, there’s no where I can download, convert, rip and upload files to my iPad. it’s a very lonely sea out there for something that’s requires a mommy once in a while. I can go on, but I don’t want to and I believe I have explained myself sufficiently for that.
if not, here’s the last 2 things: I still game and the iPad still does not run flash.
- why the MBP 13?
I came a long way to this decision too. I could go with the 15″ and the graphics would have allowed me to feel more at home. I could have gone with the MacBook Air 11″ and saved a little more money for other things, not to mention that it’s a little more aesthetically pleasing to me.
Ultimately, I am now just a casual, hobbyist geek. The 15″ would hardly serve much more purpose to me than a 13″ would, and I have realised that anything bigger than a 13″ stays on my desktop (ooo I have opened the doors on this one) since it’s often too big/heavy/awkward to cart anything bigger around. the Air11, however, won’t even hold my Itunes library with it’s Sad Sorry Drive. I love it’s existence, don’t get me wrong. it makes for so much possibilities. But, until the day it grows bigger than that, I rather space over form, aesthetics and even the speed. Besides, if I had wanted a netbook, I would have gotten one. the MBP 13 feels just a little more substantial to me.
That, and if I ever felt the craving for it, I might Bootcamp it up ^_~
2 weeks later….
Firstly, the actual feel of using an iOS after so long… it does feel strange at first, especially when you can’t ctl + v things LOL… And then having to remember to actually QUIT the program was a little annoying at first. however, minor details.
The 13″ monitor was a lot smaller to go back too after nearly 5 years worth of 15″/16″ monitors, widescreen included. It took more than a while to get used to, and even now the form of the iOS still looks like it got cramped in. The end of the windows feel like some invisible wall is stopping it from stretching any further - it just feels claustrophobic sometimes. That said, I did knowingly choose the 13″ and I am starting to enjoy the smaller screen. it feels just that little bit more “personal”, not like I am sharing what’s on my screen with the entire neighbourhood.
The Aluminium unibody is something so aesthetically pleasing to touch, feel and utilize. this is further enhanced by the fact that I HAVE YET TO FEEL ANY OVERHEATING!!!! Yes, the ram area (I presume) did get somewhat warm over a lengthy period of time when I was still setting up and transferring my back ups on to the laptop. However, by warm, I mean something just a couple of degrees higher than the norm. With all my previous laptops, especially the Acer Aspire I originally came to Australia with, it was actually too hot to touch, so imagine what the heat was doing to my motherboard and RAM.
The CPU chipset is obviously different to my old CPU. While the old XPS 1530 was an Intel Core 2 Duo, this Mac baby is using the new dual-core i5, a complete leap and bound in terms of generations of technology. Considering the amount of CPU usage this baby uses and more, this is definitely not the place or time to do a fair comparison between the 2 CPUs which were performing with 2 different OS.
That said, if I am going by sheer feel alone, the Mac feels a lot faster, stronger and smoother than Windows Vista did. When I first got my Vista, while I did enjoy the initial feel of it (it felt like a Mac LOL!), the eventual abruptness and clunkiness just wore me down. Of course, having to deal with the BSOD over the first couple of months of owning the XPS really didn’t improve my hopes either.
the stability of this thing is just simply amazing. I haven’t encountered a BSOD yet, nor a “hang” or an extreme, abrupt, sudden over use of RAM (which I often encounter for no reason on my Windows).
In terms of physical aesthetics, the keyboard itself is a vast improvement over the easily worn out keyboard that was the Dell. Within the first couple of weeks or so, my WASD was completely wiped out from being used. Where the metallic part below the keyboard was, there’s an obvious black patch from where my palm/wrist was resting while the hdd was getting overheated there - resulting in a melted paint I guess, which meant I had a perma palm print there.
this MBP? Not even my spit stays on convincingly (from being sick!!)
The best part is, being able to go to sleep with it. I have my IPad, I watch movies on it yes. But, as everyone knows and I hope they do too, most of my anime collection is on my external hdd or on the MBP (post downloading). Without conversion, it’s easy to just watch it off my MBP.
Considering how I have had laptops for the last 9 years on and off, I could have easily done the same thing and watched my animes/movies from the bed, am I right?
not really. The overheating extends from the top of the laptop, to the bottom. the heat even seeps through my doona and it gets incredibly uncomfortable. not to mention, most times, they survive the length of 1 movie or about 3-4 episodes and I am pure out of juice. The MBP plays for nearly 7-8 hours without depleting the battery entirely (I think I watched like a couple of movies, animes and played some games before it hit 10% battery). THAT is engineering.
Current Mood: accomplished