While the design of Apple's latest series of MacBook Pro laptops remained generally unchanged, a number of nifty improvements have been made to the hardware configuration.
Among the most noticeable of these upgrades include the Intel Core i5 or i7 processors, a better NVIDIA graphics processor, and a significantly longer battery life.
If you've seen one of Apple's aluminum unibody MacBook Pros before, the latest release don't look much different.
Like their predecessors, these laptops have casings that are carved out of a single block of aluminum. This produces a very sturdy frame that's very good to the hold. However, the MacBook Pro does seem to be a tad heavier than what it looks like, though it isn't tipping the scales significantly much more than other laptops of its size and class.
One of the existing problems with this aluminum casing still holds true - it is pretty easily scratched. MacBook Pro owners can consider purchasing cases or film protectors to counter this, though from experience the best way to deal with it is simply careful handling.
Apple has kept the best of the MacBook Pro's design unchanged. Convenient features such as the SD card reader, the all-glass trackpad and lighted keyboard are all found in this latest range of laptops.
Performance-wise, this latest series of laptops are able to handle intense applications and processes better than their predecessors.
Graphics-intensive games played smoothly with no lag. The images were also pretty impressive - a combined effort of both the NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M graphics card and the MacBook Pro's very beautiful LCD panel.
Perhaps one of the best features in the upgraded MacBook Pro is its extended battery life. We managed to get the 15-inch model to run for slightly more than 8 hours before the battery gave out.
While the MacBook Pro is a little on the heavy side, it's long battery life makes up for this and definitely makes for a good travel companion.
For those who are planning to upgrade their very old MacBook Pro laptops, or are looking to purchase their first Mac, this one is a good buy.
If you already own a unibody MacBook Pro, you might want to wait a bit and maximize the lifespan of your laptop while waiting for the next new release.
