The 2011 MBP refresh / buyers and owner's thread (1 Viewer)

[Sam Posten]

Nope, as I posted the other day that info is incorrect Ron! This is my 17" quad core MacBook Pro. There are many like it but this one is mine! #fb http://bestc.am/sBIFZ With government discount in tax free Delaware I got that configuration AND AppleCare for $12 less than the $2799 price this in store configuration that many stores carry lists for!

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Nope, as I posted the other day that info is incorrect Ron!

I suppose that varies from store to store because here in

NJ the salesman told me that as of right now all the area

stores are only stocking the base systems of each line.


Congrats again on your Macbook purchase.

 

[Sam Posten]

Did you guys notice my box says it has an sdxc reader instead of an express card slot like the 17s are supposed to? I went back to the store and they said it was a typo! I told em Apple doesn't DO typos About to unbox and take pix, place your bets now!

 

[Ronald Epstein]

That was the one feature I didn't want on my 17"


I could use an internal card reader and I wish the

17" model had it.


An Express Slot has no use for me anymore since

I stopped using a PC card for Internet and now tether

off my iPhone 4.

 

[Sam Posten]

As expected it's a typo, there is an Express Slot on the side.

 

[Sam Posten]

Full unboxing set!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kadath/sets/72157626197038216/with/5497543075/


Migration is running now!

 

[DaveF]

Nice

What do you think about the front edge? My brief playing around at the store put me off of these designs. Those corners, at the opening-feature, are too sharp for a surface that's going to be in contact with my wrists. It's an oddly bad design feature for an Apple product.

 

[Sam Posten]

So far front edge is not a bother!

 

[Sam Posten]

Any opinions on good quality 17" bags? Ron likes his SF Bag, but I'm leaning towards this Brenthaven:

http://store.apple.com/us/product/H1516ZM/A?mco=MTY3ODQ5OTY


Or maybe the Pro-Light:

http://www.amazon.com/Brenthaven-17-Inch-ProLite-Shoulder-Notebooks/dp/B000R6QU3S/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1299458713&sr=1-4

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Sam,


What I suggested to you was nearly a sleeve that goes

into a case.


http://www.sfbags.com/products/sleevecases/sleevecases.php


Not the same thing as a case.


However, that $119 case is seriously nice. I may get

one myself as the case I bought from Twentieth Century

Fox studio store is falling apart.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Damn you, Sam!


Gonna buy that $119 bag this week.


I prefer also having a case for two reasons....


First, the 17" Macbook Pro is generally slimmer
and smaller than comparable PC laptops. For

that reason, there may be a lot of room for the
laptop to move around in there. The case makes

the laptop fit perfectly.

Second, putting the 17" Macbook Pro in a sleeve

allows you to pull it out at airport checkouts and

place it on the belt without exposing the Macbook

itself. In other words, the Macbook stays in the

sleeve. You just pull the sleeve out. It's TSA

approved.


However, with this bag, I see you can simply

fold it open and allow it to go through the TSA
scanner. It is also being warned that TSA may

still ask you to remove the laptop out of the bag.

If that is the situation, it's still in the sleeve.


The sleeve also allows me to carry around the

Macbook Pro under my arm without it being exposed.


You don't necessarily need both. The bag is

more important than the sleeve, of course. I just

like having the convenience of either.

 

[Sam Posten]

I wish Amazon carried it but it doesn't look like they do. Brenthaven's site stinks, but I found a link to this actual bag via Google.

http://www.brenthaven.com/pc/prostyle-iii-xf-shoulder-case


Think I'm ordering it via Apple store now too....

Edit: The video sold me. Ordered.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Sam,


I checked the Amazon site too. Bummer. Would

rather have bought from there and I bet it would
have been cheaper w/free 2-day shipping.


Need to wait for my credit card to recycle this

Tuesday. Will order the bag then.


The one downside to this bag -- it's not waterproof.

 

[Sam Posten]

I thought you had one of these from SF too Ron:

http://www.sfbags.com/products/racerx/racerx.htm

http://www.sfbags.com/products/cargo/cargo.htm

http://www.sfbags.com/products/cozmo/cozmo.htm


Those look great too, but a lot more expensive...


Not sure if I am going to go for slip case AND laptop bag or not...

 

[Michael_K_Sr]

I love Brenthaven bags. Ever since I got my first one seven years ago, they are the only bags I'll buy for my MBP's.

 

[Thomas Newton]

Originally Posted by Ronald Epstein

That was the one feature I didn't want on my 17"


I could use an internal card reader and I wish the

17" model had it.


An Express Slot has no use for me anymore since

I stopped using a PC card for Internet and now tether

off my iPhone 4.

I think I've found a use for your ExpressCard/34 slot. A couple of companies have built memory card readers that they say fit flush inside an ExpressCard/34 slot; some users say they leave the readers installed all the time. (Catch: this assumes you are not leaving a memory card in the reader. A SD card will protrude from the reader and should be removed when transporting the Mac.) They don't seem to be very expensive.


For example, Sonnet has the MMRW-E34:


http://www.sonnettech.com/product/memorycardreaderwritere34.html

http://www.amazon.com/Multimedia-Reader-writer-Expresscard-34SLOT/dp/B000ZH7J9S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299471805&sr=8-1

 

[Sam Posten]

Only problem with that is that it is not SDXC compatible.... And that's what you'll really want.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Thomas,


What a fantastic idea -- and the price

is reasonable. Thanks.


I have an SDHC card so that would work.

Don't know what the difference is with a

SDXC.


Edit: I see they store larger amounts of data.

Maybe I will wait for a refresh on that product

just to futureproof myself.


Edit to the Edit: Looks like Sonnett did an

SDXC upgrade:


http://www.hdwarrior.co.uk/2010/08/27/sonnetts-express-card-reader-now-sdxc-cards/




Sam,


No, don't own those bags.


Will order tomorrow but I am going to

see if I can save tax by purchasing from

the company directly (that is, unless they

get me on shipping).


Edit: Brenthaven now sold out till Mid-Feb

Will have to purchase from Apple.

 

[Sam Posten]

Interesting, just a firmware upgrade to enable SDXC?

 

[Thomas Newton]

SDXC is the latest 'SD' standard to increase per-card capacity:


SD - Up to 2 GB per card.

SDHC - 4 GB to 32 GB per card.

SDXC - 32 GB to 2 TB per card. Uses exFAT file system instead of FAT16 (SD) or FAT32 (SD/SDHC).


http://www.sdcard.org/developers/tech/


It seems that Mac OS X 10.6.5 is the first version of Mac OS X to include exFAT support for all models, which explains the Sonnet note about SDXC support requiring Mac OS X 10.6.5 or higher.