MacBook Pro - Any good?

[The Gentleman Scamp]

I've been faffing over which laptop would best suit my video editing, music making, graphic design passions for a year and a half now and from what I have read, the MacBook Pro seems to be the one for me.

My only concern (other than the fact it will be my first computer) is that it has only just come out and I don't fancy being a guinea pig.

I am also in China, I don't know if this is a worry or not but Shanghai is 2 hrs up the road so I would get it there at a proper Apple shop.

At 23,500 Yuan (About 1,620 UKP) it is not cheap so my other concern is insurance and then having to lug it about with me in October when once again I will be drifting aimlessly around Thailand waiting for my next work assignment.

Thanks in adv for advice.

[poolcleaner]

good to see you checking in Scamp.

No idea about Macs though but it did occur to me that you would get a shitload of beers for that money!!

Spend wisely.

[MeMock]

looks and reads pretty spiffy

http://www.apple.com/au/macbook/macbook.html

[Marmite the Dog]

I presume it's the one with the 17" monitor that you're considering?

[MeMock]

I would hope so.

[Skulldigger]

At 23,500 Yuan (About 1,620 UKP) it is not cheap so my other concern is insurance and then having to lug it about with me in October when once again I will be drifting aimlessly around Thailand waiting for my next work assignment.

Thanks in adv for advice.

Right after mobile phones, laptops are darling objects to steal. You dont want to bring along anything that expensive to a guest house, let alone a beach bungalow...

[Wallalai]

I've read about complaints about this wonderful machine on many webpages concerning overheating.

Some images.
http://home.sc.rr.com/mixedbag/MBP/Welcome.html

Should be fixed soon by Apple.

[The Gentleman Scamp]

I hope so, I'm about a month away from buying.

Right after mobile phones, laptops are darling objects to steal. You dont want to bring along anything that expensive to a guest house, let alone a beach bungalow...

I'd leave it with a trusted friend with a house or apartment when going to the beach, or perhaps even pay a hotel to keep it safe for me?

I presume it's the one with the 17" monitor that you're considering?

I think the only difference between 15" and 17" is that the larger of the two would be heavier, more cumbersome and more difficult to conceal in a filthy old backpack.

[The Gentleman Scamp]

Why can't I find an Apple Store in Shanghai on the web?

[buadhai]

My brother-in-lw owns a ad agency in Los Angeles. He does what is called "animatics" -- animated mock-ups of proposed TV commercials. He has an all-Mac shop: they do all the animation and editing with Macs. When the MacBook Pro came out he went out and bought one right away and is enormously pleased with it's performance for what he does to make a living.

I had a look at the machine when I was in LA last month. It is a beauty -- so thin and light, lovely display and incredibly quick. I didn't notice overheating when I used it, but I do know that it has been reported as a problem.

His web site is Brain4est if you wanna see some of the work they've done on Macs.

[The Gentleman Scamp]

My brother-in-lw owns a ad agency in Los Angeles. He does what is called "animatics" -- animated mock-ups of proposed TV commercials. He has an all-Mac shop: they do all the animation and editing with Macs. When the MacBook Pro came out he went out and bought one right away and is enormously pleased with it's performance for what he does to make a living.

I had a look at the machine when I was in LA last month. It is a beauty -- so thin and light, lovely display and incredibly quick. I didn't notice overheating when I used it, but I do know that it has been reported as a problem.

His web site is Brain4est if you wanna see some of the work they've done on Macs.

I still don't know if there is a Mac Store in Shanghai, however the above post has made my decision final and I will take a look at the link.

Never met him but he's a nice bloke that Baudhai!

Cheers mate.

[stroller]

I'd leave it with a trusted friend with a house or apartment when going to the beach, or perhaps even pay a hotel to keep it safe for me?

Most Kao-san rd. guesthouses have a locked room for returning lodgers to deposit some stuff in.

[buadhai]

Never met him but he's a nice bloke that Baudhai!

Thanks, but I'm sure not everyone would agree....

[The Gentleman Scamp]

I'd leave it with a trusted friend with a house or apartment when going to the beach, or perhaps even pay a hotel to keep it safe for me?

Most Kao-san rd. guesthouses have a locked room for returning lodgers to deposit some stuff in.

I hope I never have reason to go there ever again. The area is vile.

[Marmite the Dog]

I think the only difference between 15" and 17" is that the larger of the two would be heavier, more cumbersome and more difficult to conceal in a filthy old backpack.

And of course the fact that you're doing video editing. Do you really want to be squinting at a small screen?

[buadhai]

Here's an article that may be of interest:

Mac still king for editing digital movies

[The Ghost Of The Moog]

I know what its like when getting your first computer, you end up going over and over the literature and specs, knowing that as soon as you buy, something better will come out.

So why not get a second hand mac. They cost virtually nothing.

In Hong kong an old Imac desktop might cost you literally nothing. I've seen people give them away on "Free Stuff" websites.

Then flog the hell out of it for a year. When it blows, get a nicer one, as by then you'll be familiar with the modus operandi.

[buadhai]

So why not get a second hand mac. They cost virtually nothing.

This is pretty good advice. My last two Mac's were heavily discounted discontinued models. They've been great.

The only problem here is that Scampy is going to be doing video editing, so he'll need the best box he can afford.

Me? I'm sure my CPU spends most of its time waiting for me to type the next character....

[The Gentleman Scamp]

The only problem here is that Scampy is going to be doing video editing, so he'll need the best box he can afford.

Decision is made, and yes - speed and memory as well as ease of use are top priority.

I saw a collage of meaningless sketches and music videos the other day that a colleagues friends brother had done on an Apple Mac G4 and from what I saw it could do everything I wanted to do.

The guy had used every special effect he could which gave me a good demo, though it made his feature look very amateur indeed. The only SFX I want at this stage is to be able to have white Hattenschweiler titles that appear and fade over footage.

I know a guy who bought a Sony laptop in China and it was ALL IN CHINESE!!!

I assume the retailer will programme it in English and download what software I require before handing it to me right?

[stroller]

Don't assume anything.

That the very latest laptop is somehow better and easier to handle for a complete beginner, is an assumption, too.

[Mr Earl]

Here are a couple of good forums covering Macs
http://forums.macrumors.com/index.php?

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/index.php?

Right now the local dealers are running a great promotion on the 12" IBook including a service contract and an ipod!

This a great basic laptop which is virtually indestructible.
The only drawback really is it only has a 32 bit video card making DVD playing less than satisfactory.
But for managing music libraries, photo albums, word processing and internet use it is fine.
The apple ox10 operating system is Linux based and is far superior and more stable than the windows based systems.

According to what I've been reading in the forums the new Mac Book Pro has gotten through the initial newness gestation with fairly minor issues which appear to have been solved already.

My 2 year old 12" powerbook is still working fine so I can't justify buying a new MBP.
I would also consider the new MacBook which is the replacement for the IBook.

Again for the money a new Ibook is really hard to beat if you can still get one.

[The Gentleman Scamp]

Am I safe buying in China? ...I am going al the way to Shanghai where there is a bona fide Apple store. I just hope they programe it so it's all in English and the instructions will be too.

I assume they will download whatever software I need and with any luck they may chuck in an ipod.

Now what about warranty?

[The Gentleman Scamp]

Cheers for the links Mr Earl, the Mac Forums one is one I'm sure I'll be joining soon enough. I was hoping such a thing existed.

[Mr Earl]

Almost all the apple computers are being assembled in sweat shops in China or Taiwan. There are quality issued with new models until they get the assembly process dialed in.

[endure]

Here are a couple of good forums covering Macs
http://forums.macrumors.com/index.php?

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/index.php?

Right now the local dealers are running a great promotion on the 12" IBook including a service contract and an ipod!

This a great basic laptop which is virtually indestructible.
The only drawback really is it only has a 32 bit video card making DVD playing less than satisfactory.
But for managing music libraries, photo albums, word processing and internet use it is fine.
The apple ox10 operating system is Linux based and is far superior and more stable than the windows based systems.

I think you'll find that OS X is based on the Carnegie Mellon Mach 3.0 kernel and FreeBSD rather than Linux.