Apple MacBook Pro Winter 2011 Notebook Computer Review - Release-news.com (press release)

In early 2006 Apple swapped out the actual Powerbook G4 with the MacBook Pro. Designed for professionals on the go, Apple continued to refine their family of high-performance laptop computers every year. The most recent release, called the Apple MacBook Pro Winter 2011, signifies a significant improvement in a number of important characteristics.
The Pros

The Apple MacBook Pro Winter 2011 notebook computer joins the Sandy Bridge bandwagon as each of its models include Intel second generation Core i5 and Core i7 processors. The Intel Core i5 2620M is the new engine underneath the hood of the 13-inch MacBook Pro. 15-inch and 17-inch designs now have quad-core power which is needed for running high-end programs like Final Cut Pro and Adobe Photoshop smoothly. While 4 GB will be the minimum memory shipped, you can obtain up to 16 GB for an additional cost. If you are into gaming or other graphic intense programs, the AMD Radeon HD 6490M can fully suit your needs. If that's still not really quick enough, you can also upgrade to the Radeon HD 6750M. Do not worry about losing out on battery life, as the Intel HD Graphics 3000 works very efficiently. With these kinds of overall performance improvements, the new 2011 models literally soar in the benchmarks.

Yet another brand new technology has been introduced in the new large monitor hook-up or Display Port. With the Apple MacBook Pro Winter 2011 notebook, a technology by Intel called Thunderbolt has been put in place which makes the port a lot more flexible. Finally transfer speeds, that have increased by as much as 1200%, will stop being the bottleneck which has slowed down file transfers to high capacity hard drives. Thunderbolt provides the additional advantage of supporting a number of devices in a daisy chain while maintaining maximum performance.

The old iSight webcam was actually replaced by the FaceTime HD camera, similar to those found in the iPhone 4 and iPad 2. Apple has established 720p as the completely new standard resolution for video calls using the FaceTime HD camera.

Drawbacks

With all of these types of improvements, the battery life had to decrease and the Apple MacBook Pro Winter 2011 notebook still uses the same battery as the previous model. You shouldn't be too concerned though, since it still lasts a reputable seven hours with wireless turned on. The latest 13-inch model MacBook Pro relies upon the integrated graphics of the Intel processor, which in turn results in a small decline in speed. Nevertheless, the Intel graphics is much better as compared to previous versions, with only gamers likely to spot the minimal decrease in speed.

Summary

The criteria for the high-end laptop category have been significantly increased with the launch of the MacBook Pro Winter 2011 models. Fresh MacBook Pro buyers can be certain that they will be able to run the most demanding software applications for the near future.