Apple's 2009 MacBook Pro: Battery Life to Die For
by Anand Lal Shimpi on June 12, 2009 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Mac
Final Words
There’s no other way to say this. If you care about battery life and portability at all, buy the new MacBook Pro. Go to the Apple store and buy one. While I only tested the 15” model, I’m guessing the 13” model should leave a similar lasting impression.
Ever since I first looked at the power consumption specs of Nehalem I thought it didn’t make any sense to buy a new, expensive notebook before Arrandale’s launch in Q4 2009/Q1 2010. While performance will definitely increase considerably with Arrandale, Apple just threw a huge wrench in my recommendation. The new MacBook Pro is near perfect today. If you need a new laptop now, thanks to its incredible battery life, I have no qualms recommending the new MBP.
The only thing you have to come to terms with is knowing that if the roadmaps still hold, that in 6 - 9 months there will be a much faster version of your notebook on the market; most likely at the same price. Combine the performance and power efficiency of Arrandale with the battery advancements in this new MacBook Pro and you’ll have one beast of a notebook.
Today I am more than comfortable saying that this is the best Apple notebook I’ve ever laid my hands on. The build quality is excellent, the base specs are solid and of course, the battery life. There’s no doubt that it could be better; toss in an SSD or drop the price even further, but as it stands the new MBP is an excellent choice if you’re looking for a Mac laptop.
Obviously, you can attain the same battery life with a cheaper notebook and one or two spare batteries. But there’s something to be said for increasing battery life by at least 50% without increasing the bulk or weight of the system.
I’m not sure there’s much else I can add other than Good Job, Apple.
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ltcommanderdata - Friday, June 12, 2009 - link
I guess your findings on MacBook Pro battery life should make those who say Macs are only commodity notebooks with a fruit sticker and a higher price think twice. The 15.4" MacBook Pro may not be the fastest 15.4" notebook or the cheapest, but it offers great battery life and light weight without sacrificing too much performance. That's certainly a combination some people would be willing to pay for.Pirks - Friday, June 12, 2009 - link
[EDITED: Pirks, watch your comments please.]Summary: I'm glad to see someone showing all the Wintel fanboys that Apple is great. Anand showed them GOOD. Thanks Anand! :)))
mesiah - Saturday, June 13, 2009 - link
Wow, I come to this site to get good reviews and avoid 10 year old remarks like that. Please, have mommy take you to the mall to buy more toys and leave this place to the grown ups, its about all we have left.Pirks - Saturday, June 13, 2009 - link
NOT FAIR EDIT!!! Mods, where the heck have you been when chicko was writing expletives about me? Double standard! Wintrolls can swear at me and I can't swear back? Why? Why they CAN and I CAN NOT??!!JarredWalton - Saturday, June 13, 2009 - link
We just got mod ability for the comments section. :-)Pirks - Saturday, June 13, 2009 - link
Does it include comments on DailyTech too?JarredWalton - Saturday, June 13, 2009 - link
Nope... we're technically "sister" sites, so essentially we have nothing to do with what they write about. The editing ability (and post deletion ability) is mostly for when people step way over the line... try and keep the comments more professional rather than less - and remove any outright name calling.just4U - Monday, June 15, 2009 - link
Yep that's why I like reading the comments here. Always quite professional as people leave the Apple/Windows Nvidia/Ati Amd/Intel love hate thingie pretty much alone and are mostly cordial about their biases .. if it's even evident that they have any.PlasmaBomb - Friday, June 12, 2009 - link
Did the 15" model you reviewed the battery life on have the optional 9600gt?I know apple let you disable it, but it being absent may be more energy efficient than being simply disabled.
Also what processors do the MBPs run? As apple simply state 2.53 GHz, when there are several mobile chips which run at that speed - the T9400, P9500, P8700.
Great review.
Thanks :)
sillyfox - Tuesday, September 8, 2009 - link
Yes!Great review! Thanks for kindly sharing.
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