First Impressions: Mini Core Solo, iMac & Mac Book Pro
March 20, 2006
by Craig Reidel
This past week I had the opportunity to check out the three new Intel Macs at the local Apple reseller, Carbon Computers. I’ve read all the reviews and interpretations of how Rosetta works but I wanted to see first hand what these new Intel chips have to offer.
First up the Mac Mini Core Solo. I really wanted to like this machine. I think its a fantastic size, and it’s so quiet, but the performance was really lacking. It’d played 720p video alright, but it just felt slow overall and hooked up to a 20″ Apple Display didn’t help things. I owned a 1.42 Mac mini for over 8 months so I know what that machine had to offer. I found Rosettas performance to be really disappointing as Word bounced in the dock 10-15 times before finally opening. I really think that the value just isn’t there for the new intel minis. The main reason is that when you price out a mini with 1GB ram, you are really starting to get close to the price of the 17″ iMac. If the Mini had some different features such as TV recording capabilities or something else to set it apart from the iMac so that the cost could be justified, then I could see a place for it.
The Intel iMac 17 & 20″ models feel much like the previous iMacs, which is a good thing. The performace for the price is just fantastic, considering that usually you pay a premium for a Mac, a 20″ monitor, and a dual-core processor running at 2Ghz for under $2000.00 CAN, that’s pretty amazing. Consider that you can’t buy a PowerMac Dual Core G5 for under $2399.00 and that according to BareFeats.com, the iMac gives it a run for it’s money or beats it in most tests.
The Macbook Pro was impressive. It plays HD video flawlessly and Rosetta applications open up with ease. Word was very snappy and much faster than the Mini. I found the profile of the machine a bit odd though as it’s a lot wider than the previous 15″ Powerbook, and took some getting used to. The screen is incredibly bright and really gives the 20″ cinema display a run for its money. Front Row looks fantastic and the iSight’s quality was way better than I had anticipated.
If I had money to burn and I needed a laptop I would not hesitate in picking up a MacBook Pro, the only thing that would make me think twice is that there could be new 64bit Intel chips out in the fall that would replace the current ones. Apple has pushed ahead fullsteam with the transition to Intel chips and two of their three first offerings are really great machines that are great value for your money.
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