MACBOOK PRO. Yummy.

[From our Mac guru, KRAIG.]

It was one of those rare occasions when I went to the mall and my destination wasn't THE APPLE STORE (you still gotta buy socks every once in a while).

But hearing that the new INTEL-inside MACBOOK PRO was shipping I decided to swing by and see if they had a demo unit on display.

Yup.

It is quite gorgeous. Although I have no need for a laptop I could feel the urge to pull out my AMEX BLUE CARD.

They must have some sort of STEVE JOBS' infamous RDF (REALITY DISTORTION FIELD) broadcasting inside the stores these days.

Anyhoo, I resisted (I wasn't one of those lotto winners).

If you are in the market for a new APPLE laptop I suggest you stay far away. This thing is sleek and light, has a beautiful aluminum case and a brilliant display, the scrolling trackpad, etc.

To touch it is to want it.

It has the combo analog/digital ins/outs. It has a tiny ISIGHT camera built in and an IR sensor for the FRONT ROW REMOTE.

But this is the first iteration of Apple's transition to Intel processors. It has only one FIREWIRE jack so if you want to hook up an external drive and a camcorder and capture video I think you're screwed. I don't think daisy-chaining would work all that well with video capture. You could buy a FIREWIRE EXPRESS CARD and do it that way I guess (if there is actually one on the market).

If you are a video pro or a photographer keep in mind that PHOTOSHOP and AFTER EFFECTS versions written in UNIVERSAL BINARY CODE are a LONG ways off!

If the display is falling off of your TiBOOK I would still advise waiting a couple of months to see what bugs/flaws emerge. If you can wait longer I would hang on until Rev. B or C.

And the new MacBooks are on the way as well. Who knows what features those will have -- and at what price?

Finally, these new Intel chips are only 32 bit. If you are going to do some serious PHOTOSHOP or FINAL CUT PRO heavy lifting you might want to wait until the 64 bit versions arrive.

Ah, that horrible technology dilemma -- buy or wait?

There will always be something better around the corner for less money.

But then you might wait forever.

Kraig Bailey, thanks for the post.