Apple MacBook Pro 17-inch Reviewed

The Apple MacBook Pro, 17-inch, 2.33 GHz was given a thorough, balanced review by C|Net UK on Monday.

The review was notable in that it appeared to be written by someone well familiar with Apple notebook computers. This is not always the case with publications that are not Apple specfic. It presented the facts and made useful comparisons to other Apple models. The review also cited various options and their prices. (All prices are in pounds.)

A great feature of the review was the complexity of the document. The review itself was one tab. Other tabs were: overview, images, comparison to other PC notebooks, and a forum for user opinions. There were also buttons to print the review or e-mail it to someone else.

Despite the balance, the author also properly pointed out the huge cost penalty in going from a system with 2 GB of RAM to 3 GB.

The review went on to evaluate the battery life, conducted some benchmarks, and gave a performance number for Quake 4 running in 1280 x 1024 mode. (Nearly 33 fps.) In the iTunes benchmark, an informative comparison was made to an HP Pavillion dv6000t. Adobe CS2 and CineBench performance results were also provided.

This review was a model of professionalism, clarity, even-handedness, and completeness. Anyone considering the purchase of a MacBook Pro should read it.