Apple's Next Re-invented Market: Convertibles

There's been a lot of speculation about OS X and iOS convergence. Some Kreskin wanna-bees have gone as far as predicting a date when the two operating systems will become one. I, for one, don't believe this will happen anytime in the foreseeable future, but I do believe there may be a different type of convergence on its way for the two software platforms. While I admit my crystal ball isn't magical, it's probably as accurate as many others' I've read. If they can make stupid predictions for pay, who could be offended if I do it for free? So, what the hell. Let's give it a shot.

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CalDigit Thunderbolt Station: The Closest Thing to a Real Dock for Your Mac

Coming from the corporate IT world, when I purchased my first MacBook Pro in 2006 I was disappointed by the lack of docking stations available for my shiny new Apple. I was accustomed to the Dell version that provided a complete desktop solution for my various Latitude models. When I got to my office in the morning I would just position my laptop on top of the dock, press down lightly until I heard the dock click and I knew the proprietary port on the bottom of the Latitude was connected correctly. The dock provided power, DVI, Ethernet, audio and multiple USB ports for my big monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers and external storage, all of which never left my desk. It even had a power button to turn on my laptop. I kept a similar setup at home. I got so spoiled by the "one-click" docking setup that when I was on the road I had to really concentrate on carrying everything I needed. Once I found myself 1500 miles away with no power supply. I just wasn't used to needing to carry one. Now that I'm a complete Mac convert (some say evangalist), a true docking solution is the only thing I miss from my PC days. My 2009 17" MBP bore a striking octopus resemblance when connected to everything on my office desktop. The only docking "solutions" available consisted of near-medevil looking devices with multiple probes for the various ports requiring precise alignment that was problematic at best. It was easier just plugging in everything manually.

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New 15" MacBook Pro: Best Laptop Made?

Let's see...How do I say this without sounding like I'm bragging? I JUST BOUGHT THE BEST LAPTOP IN THE WORLD!

Well, I guess I couldn't. 

Enough of that silliness. I just received my new 15" MacBook Pro a few days ago and I can hardly keep the smile off my face. Of course, I checked the box on every available option. Partly because I really need the horsepower, but also because Apple has designed the new machines with no user-upgradeable parts, so changing things later is not a viable option. The RAM is soldered to the logic board and while the flash storage that serves as what used to be a hard disk or SSD can be changed, it is no easy task to replace. In fact, iFixit.com just gave the machine its lowest possible score for repairability. Little wonder. It's still hard for me to believe this thin, light machine is the most powerful laptop Apple has ever made. The new power-sipping Intel Haswell processor and PCIe flash storage both allow for a smaller battery enabling this new Pro machine's physical dimensions to more closely resemble the original MacBook Air. The first time I picked it up when unboxing, I thought for a moment Apple had sent the wrong machine. At just 4½ lbs., it's the lightest portable I've ever carried and quite an upgrade from my 2009 17" MBP that weighed in at just over 6 lbs.

While the elegant form factor is wonderful, what this laptop is really about is power. Like I said, I checked all the boxes at the Apple on-line store: The fastest processor (2.6 GHz quad Core i7), 16 gigs if 1600 MHz RAM, discreet graphics (NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M with 2 gigs VRAM) and 1 TB of flash storage. I haven't done much benchmarking, but I did run the Black Magic disk speed test and it was off-the-charts. The one word that best describes this computer's performance is "instantaneous". I know calling it "the best laptop in the world" will draw fire from the Alienware crowd, but a professional machine requires more than just a high framerate. Yes, there are laptops with more memory. Yes there are laptops with faster processors and yes, 1 TB of storage is getting pretty common these days. But nobody comes close to packing this much power in a 4½ pound package that's less than ¾" thick! When carrying a computer from customer to customer on a daily basis like I do, size devinitely matters.

Of course, what makes this machine the undisputed champ is who makes it. Like everything I've ever purchased from Apple (and believe me, the list is long), this new MacBook Pro is built like the precision instrument it is. Like every unibody Mac, this thing is as solid as the chunk of aluminum it was carved from. The only visible plastic is the hinge cover and the keys. The retina display is stunning with vivid color and deep blacks. I haven't experienced any of the reported image retention and even the new onboard Iris graphics pushes the pixels around with no discernable lag.

One feature you can't find on any other manufacturer's computer is OS X. Mavericks (OS X 10.9) came installed and so far I haven't experienced any of the reported glitches. My GMail works just fine with Apple Mail, thank you. And Mavericks is optimized to take advantage of the power saving features of the Haswell processor. I don't have any battery "run down" tests to report, but I can tell you the battery life is significantly better than my previous MBP and I run down long before the battery in this machine drains. I started writing this an hour ago and the battery is still 93% charged.

As you can tell, I'm pretty stoked about this new box. It's certainly the best computer I've ever owned. If I could go back in time I'd gladly spend the $3500 again. For that price I should get the best laptop in the world!