Forty-eight hours after Steve Jobs showed off his latest MacBook collection to the public, a pair of shiny new Apple laptops have arrived in the CNET Labs.
We're currently benchmarking these new systems--one
The 13-inch MacBook is the more radically redesigned of the two, with an aluminum body that closely apes the classic MacBook Pro--so much so that we've heard it referred to as the "MacBook Pro Mini." The edge-to-edge glass on the display and giant touch pad are also new.
Side by side with a previous generation MacBook, the new model is slightly thinner, and the metal body (carved from a solid block of aluminum) feels much sturdier (not that the older MacBooks felt particularly flimsy).
The giant touch pad will take some getting used to--it lacks a separate mouse button. Before opening the box, we had assumed the new touch pad was strictly tap-based, but in fact the entire pad depresses like a button. It's actually a bit hard to get used to, and feels a little clunky at first compared to a totally fixed-position touch pad. On the other hand, there are some useful new gestures: you can hide all your apps by sweeping four fingers up on the pad, and you can also designate one corner as a "right-click" zone.
Check out these unboxing and comparison pics, which will hopefully hold your interest while we test and review the new MacBook and MacBook Pro.