The 17-inch MacBook Pro went unibody today matching the revamp of the rest of the MacBook family. There is a “matt” screen option and Firewire 800, but the battery is non-removable. Apple claims a five year lifespan and up to 8 hours on a charge. Replacement must be done by Apple at the cost of $179.

New 17-inch MacBook Pro starting at $2799

• Unibody, 1920×1200 “Glossy” LED Display, 700:1 contrast, 60% greater color gamut with a $50 anti-glare option.
• Firewire 800 and 3 USB 2.0 ports, mini Display port, ExpressCard slot.
• New glass trackpad.
• 2.93GHz processor, up to 8GB of memory, hard drives standard with 320GB or could upgrade to solid state drive of 256GB
• Supposed 8 hour lithium polymer battery that lasts 3 times longer. NON REMOVABLE BATTERY! Battery lifespan is 5 years they claim. 7 hours on the 9600GT, 8 hours on the 9400M
• Very Green but no removable battery.

I am sure this model will have mixed reactions, especially from some pro users. The new 17 inch MacBook Pro does look beautiful so we will have to wait and see the benchmarks and the user experience.

I guess this means we better get used to the “sealed” battery as it may end up in the entire line eventually.

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