Mac Product Guide: 17-inch MacBook Pro/2.66GHz

17-inch MacBook Pro/2.66GHz

Apple filled in the last piece of the unibody puzzle, introducing this new MacBook Pro at the January 2009 Macworld Expo. It sports the same enclosure as the 15-inch laptops introduced in the fall of 2008. The chief feature in this new 17-inch system is a new battery that uses custom-shaped cells. That should give the machine a battery of eight hours using integrated graphics, according to Apple. The downside? The battery is not removable. Other changes include a faster processor (2.66GHz) and the removal of the FireWire 400 port (though FireWire 800 remains).

	Reviewed	Full Review

The new 17-inch MacBook Pro has a lot going for it, from the faster processor, front side bus and memory speeds, to its thinner and lighter, unibody design. Add in a new battery that lasts longer per charge, and you've got yourself a winner.

Pros: Thin, rounded design; large trackpad with numerous multi-touch gesture choices; great new keyboard; longer battery life than predecessor; only Apple laptop with anti-glare option.

Cons: Battery is no longer user-replaceable; trackpad button can be hard to press; no video adapters or Apple Remote in the box.

Basics

Reviewed Price: $2,799

Processor: 2.66 Intel Core 2 Duo

Information about this system on Apple's website

Price Comparison

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Lab Tests

Speedmark 5 Score	224
Cinema 4D XL XL 10.5	0:48
iMovie HD 6	0:46
iTunes 7.7	0:59
Photoshop CS3	0:56
Compressor	1:42
Quake 4	72.4fps
Tested Configuration	OS X 10.5.6 with 4GB of RAM

Tested Configuration	OS X 10.5.6 with 4GB of RAM
Display	flat panel (glossy); 17 inches; 1,920-by-1,200
Processor	2.66 Intel Core 2 Duo
Cache	6MB shared L2
Frontside Bus Speed	1,066MHz
Memory	4GB of DDR2 SDRAM ; 8GB maximum - 1,066MHz
Graphics Card	Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT (256MB of GDDR3 with dual-link DVI support) and Nvidia GeForce 9400M (256MB of DDR3 shared with main memory); Maximum resolution:2,560-by-1,600; Port(s):Mini DisplayPort port
Hard Drive	320GB Serial ATA, 5,400-rpm
Optical Drive	8X SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)
Ethernet	10/100/1000BASE-T
Wireless	AirPort Extreme built-in Bluetooth 2.0+EDR built-in
Peripheral Ports	Firewire: 1 FW 800 port; USB: 3 USB 2.0 ports
Audio	Inputs: Combined optical digital input/audio line in;Outputs: Combined optical digital output/headphone out
Expansion Slots	ExpressCard/34 slot
Dimensions	15.47 x 0.98 x 10.51 inches
Weight	6.6 pounds
Battery Life	8 hours