Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Macbook Pro
Expanding Apple's Pro line of 'Books
Long ago, before Intel had stolen Apple's heart, there was a time when a certain company's line of "Pro" notebooks consisted of three model lines. These three PowerBooks were differentiated by screen size and, at the time, they were 12-inches, 15-inches, and 17-inches.
Fast forward a few years to Monday's WWDC '09 keynote, Apple surprised us all and moved the 13" aluminum MacBooks up a few notches in the product line. As we reported Monday, the 13" aluminum MacBook now has a little "Pro" attached to the end of it. Thus, the differentiating factor between the MacBook and MacBook Pro line is (again) based on building material (plastic or aluminum). With the disappearance of the ExpressCard slot from the majority of the Pro line (except the 17"), even the expandability story becomes similar across the model lines.
Some will try to tell you that Apple has muddied the waters and tarnished the "Pro" branding by re-badging the 13" aluminum MacBook as a professional model. I, however, disagree; I believe that up until yesterday, the MacBook waters were muddy and Apple has finally cleared things up. It makes perfect sense that Apple would include the 13" aluminum MacBook in the Pro line -- it fits right in with the Apple "rule of threes" -- given that there were previously three models of professional notebooks.
It has been said that one of the differentiating factors between the professional and consumer laptops was the presence of a dedicated graphics card. If you'll recall, however, the 12" PowerBook G4 actually featured an NVIDIA graphics processor with shared virtual memory from the main system. This is extremely similar to the 13" MacBook Pro and the entry-level 15" MacBook Pro. These two models also feature NVIDIA processors with shared virtual memory, although they do lack the dual graphics chip capabilities of the higher-end models.
My belief is that Apple was wrong for ever releasing the 13" aluminum 'Book as anything other than a professional model. Ever since the Intel switch heralded the death of the 12" notebook, I have longed for Apple to provide a replacement. When the unibody line of notebooks was first released, the 13" MacBook Pro of my dreams had been born. It may have been missing a few important letters at the time but Monday's WWDC keynote address rectified that problem.
As Christina so eloquently put it, "It used to make sense to differentiate between a consumer-focused laptop and a laptop aimed at professionals... Continuing to brand nearly-identical products differently doesn't make a lot of sense." I agree with her on this, which is why I believe the re-branding of the 13" MacBook is a good idea. In my opinion, the white, plastic MacBook and the aluminum MacBook falling under the same moniker was a little non-sensical. Moving the aluminum MacBook up to the Pro line was a logical step for that piece of hardware.
Further, I think the fact that there is only a single model in the MacBook family points to the possible release of a future product slotted below the current 13" MacBook. Whether that is the fabled Apple netbook or the iTablet is yet to be seen. It is simply my opinion that the single consumer product rationale in the MacBook line is not going to last.
When you're out there mulling over the question of whether Apple's professional products have any significance in their name or not consider this: it doesn't matter. That's right, at the end of the day it all boils down to choice. Whether you think Apple made the right call or not is pretty insignificant in the face of having several different options from which to choose.
Update: As noted by commenter Tom , the PowerBook G4 never used shared system memory in any model. It had a dedicated GPU and dedicated VRAM whereas the "entry-level" MacBook Pros feature only a dedicated GPU and shared RAM. It is worth pointing out, though, that the iBook G4 also featured a dedicated GPU/VRAM combo which made the iBook G4 and entry-level PowerBook G4 very similar in terms of graphics-processing power.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Mystic said 11:52AM on 6-10-2009
Does anyone know if the new 13" MacBook Pro will have the same nice screen as the MacBook Air?
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trayser said 12:44PM on 6-10-2009
Yes, As far as i remember during the keynote, it was said that 13" macbook pro shares the same 60% increased color gamut (or something like that) of the 15" macbook pros. I assume this is comparable to macbook air.
Also, the following page does not make any distinction between 13" and 15"
http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/graphics.html.
Yet, the 'nice screen' part is difficult to quantify. It will be best checked by actually looking at the real screen.
I am going to apple store today to look at the macbook pro (I currently have a 13" macbook that i bought about a month ago). I believe I will be able to quickly know the difference. Will let you know after that.
(of-course all this is subjective)
trayser said 7:47PM on 6-10-2009
I am just looking at my new MacBook Pro (15") and I do see a visible difference in display as compared to earlier MacBook (also unibody 13")
I can't be sure whether it is the 60% color gamut increase and I also cannot compare it to MacBook Air since I havn't seen its display enough time to compare.
But I am sure people can make out the difference between this and earlier unibody models
Dave Barnes said 11:52AM on 6-10-2009
Well written commentary.
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Tom said 11:57AM on 6-10-2009
No PowerPC Mac had a video card that used system memory. The GeForce 5200 in the 12 inch Powerbook has 64mb of dedicated VRam.
Apple's marketing at the time liked to poke fun at integrated solutions back then, especially with the Mini. Funny how integrated video became good enough for Apple when they switched to Intel. At least the new NVidia 9400m provides an integrated solution that works really well.
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mrrevlis said 12:00PM on 6-10-2009
the ExpressCard 34 slot being gone from the 15" is bad! that slot was perfect for those indie film makers using the SxS cards... rather have that back vs the SD card.
Great article though.
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mr kitty said 1:36PM on 6-10-2009
Perhaps. But the 17" retains it, and if your concern is video processing, I'd think the extra screen real estate would be desirable anyway.
I'm surprised by the inclusion of a SDHC card slot, but I'm curious to see what it can do (can we boot off it? what is the data rate compared to USB2.0). Since most digital cameras are using some SD compatible memory card, it makes sense numbers-wise. It's more useful to more customers than the ExpressCard, which didn't see wide adoption.
What I'd really like to see is an on-board SSD option like the Xserve has... if you could have 128GB SSD on board in addition to an internal 2.5 HDD in the 17" machines... THAT would be a killer video editing machine.
SubGenius said 12:02PM on 6-10-2009
The return of FireWire is what really makes the 13" a Pro machine again.
I also never thought I'd see the day Apple would put a media card slot on a Mac.
They should also bring back the black MacBook to match the iPhones.
I would like to see the same clear "plastic/aluminum" delineation in Apple's desktop line.
The Mac mini should be made of white/black plastic and not aluminum.
They should also introduce a 17" iMac in white/black plastic for the low end iMac.
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bg said 12:09PM on 6-10-2009
Strikes me that apple have just cleared the decks for some cheaper macs to come out under the the MacBook name.
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Marcos said 12:06PM on 6-10-2009
Now what we need is more MacBook models. Add another model at a lower price point ($799 would be great, even if it has a slightly slower processor and Intel integrated graphics) and make all MacBooks availabe in black or white.
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deanypop said 12:15PM on 6-10-2009
Having used a couple 1st gen Macbook 13"s, they are definitely not "pro-worthy"...
The lack of firewire killed that dead. Bringing that back, plus an SD slot, definitely moves the 13" into Pro land.
But, yeah, kinda annoying that expresscard is gone. Though, honestly, that only kills compatibility with one device for me, so it's an easy trade. Would've been easier if they'd just put an external SATA on the thing, but...
Now I just need a job, and my wife can FINALLY get a machine that satisfies her needs (Japanese support, SD slot) while still being a Mac. Yay!
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Chromedevil said 12:17PM on 6-10-2009
Yes, the PowerBook had dedicated VRAM; I don't know where or why you made up that bit about shared video ram.
BUT, so did the iBook. It had a ATI card. It was just less powerful.
Look the bottom line is that "integrated" vs "discrete" doesn't mean anything. To the end user, the video cards are all integrated... it's not like you can pull the cards out and swap them.
What does mean something is performance. The only debate is whether the Nvidia 9400M delivers enough performance to warrant a Pro, designation. At a price point of $1,100 and only having to push around 1280x800 resolution, I'd say yes. Plus you get all the same I/O, design, build and other features of the Pro line.
Right now the Pro line means build quality, quality of parts, and I/O. The price differences mean more computational power. But the 9400M as a baseline of the Pro moniker seems apt. For 2D work, the 9400M runs at about 80% of the "discrete" card in the last generation non-unibody MBP. So the 9400M is a pretty good chip.
The lineup makes sense to me.
And finally, "Pro" is just marketing. You can be a pro artist and just use an iPhone; or you can be a rich kid and get paid for nothing and buy a 17 MBP. It isn't like you have to be in some sort of union to buy a Pro machine.
The bottom line is today you get more computing for less price than you did four days ago. That will always be the case, whether Apple names the computers Pros or not.
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Eric Warnke said 12:25PM on 6-10-2009
How many people griped that they needed to spend $2k to get a 15" screen.... the new low end 15" will probably be a easy sell. If I had to fork over my own money that's probably the model I would go for.
I do believe that the new freedom for the MacBook line might yield some interesting developments down the road; I half expected them to rebrand the plastic unit "MacBook Classic" like the iPods.
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Nathan said 5:45PM on 6-10-2009
I was one who thought it dumb for Apple to make the entry price to a 15" model $2K, 15" being the sweet spot of the market and I would imagine a majority of all notebook/laptops (PC and Mac) sold are of the 15" class.
I still think the price is a bit high at $1699, $1499 15" with the 9400m would hit that magical price point where it's "under $1500" just as the iPhone 3G now has the magical "Under $100" ($99) price point.
The 13" MBP is a good deal now, cheaper with a better screen, better battery, and standard backlit keyboard. I do wish 4 GB of RAM was standard, along with a 250 GB hd instead of the 2 GB / 160 GB.
If I hadn't purchased a 15" HP notebook less than a year ago, I'd probably have one on the way right now. I may even try to sell that notebook and my 20" AluiMac and replace my desktop/notebook arrangement with the mid 15" MBP for $1849 with discount and the bluetooth keyboard and mouse and a nice 20"+ monitor for my desk.
What do you think a 6 month old HP ($800 new) and a 2.4 GHz C2D 20" iMac would bring? Plus I could sell the free iTouch, if I could get $1000 for all that, I'd bite and add it to the cart with my iPhone 3G S I will be buying to replace my original 2G iPhone.
Liam said 12:50PM on 6-10-2009
I'm a little confused. I have an original 1st gen white plastic MacBook now showing it's age. I always saw the major difference between the non and the Pro's being my little thing has an "integrated graphics card" which from what I read presumed wasn't the greatest thing in the world - certainly not the best for games for example, and the Pro's had something spiffier. Is the new 13" Pro got power in that department or still not?
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Liam said 12:53PM on 6-10-2009
I mean; I read the graphics card info above I just didn't really understand it as I don't know which referred to is the better.
mr kitty said 1:43PM on 6-10-2009
The integrated Intel video solution is crap. It has no dedicated Graphics Processing Unit (using the CPU instead) or Video RAM (uses the system's RAM instead).
The currently shipping MacBooks all have Nvidia chipsets, which, while they still share system RAM, have dedicated GPUs, which will allow them to take advantage of OpenCL in Snow Leopard.
Video-wise the 13" MacBook & (now) 13" MacBook Pro are identical. The difference being the higher gamut display in the pro model.
Laurence said 4:36AM on 6-11-2009
Now, if only they would make the 7200rpm HDD an option on the 13" and drop the price of the 8GB RAM upgrade I would be very, very happy.
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Stephen Lang said 1:02PM on 6-10-2009
Re-badging the 13" unibody as a MacBook Pro doesn't tarnish the line at all, since they already lowered the bar with the 15" integrated graphics MBP.
I personally don't care they call them, they did a great job with changes to the 13" line, the 15" line not as much (which is fine).
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latcam said 1:32PM on 6-10-2009
I'm really disappointed that they took out the Express Card Slot on the 15. With the express card slot you could have the SD card reader and everything else that was possible with express cards.
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