Apple replaced my MacBookPro (2nd quarter 2008) with a new MBP (4th quarter 2008) under warranty. Yeah! I’ve had the machine less than 24 hours. First thoughts:
I like the keyboard. Jury remains out on the new trackpad — it seems I have developed some trackpad “gesture” that I’m unaware of! I keep getting a right-click popup, and I’m not sure what I’ve done. =:-0
I’d been using the tap-to-click/2-figures-to-right-click feature of the trackpad only a little while with the old MBP. I’m using it more with this new one. I’m certain I’ll get so accustomed to it that I won’t be able to live without it — but right now it’s more than a small cognitive load. I can’t figure out why sometimes it works and sometimes I need to “double-click.” Or sometimes it simply doesn’t work, and I have to “click” the trackpad in frustration.
Safari is being wonky. It won’t let me stay in my uspolitics account at gmail – it keeps saying I’ve “expired.” It did the same thing with motogrrl, even after a reboot. It kicked me out of kegill earlier today – 400 error – even after a reboot. Ugh. (Screenshots distributed via Twitter.)
So far, no negative issues with the shiny screen. Although there is a service that will replace it with a matte one. $200.
Ah. The new machine bus speed (1066MHz frontside bus) is faster than the old machine (800). I can feel the speed difference — or else my old machine really was hosed on many levels!
Data Not Mirrored As Promised
I have a minor annoyance with the guys at the Genius Bar. I asked them to do the OS updates there, so I didn’t have to download and install all of them. They offered to do a data transfer from my old machine; they said it would be faster than a TimeMachine restore. So I said OK and deleted a lot of files that I had on a secondary external drive. That left about 20 GB of ‘data’ plus applications, preferences, etc. All of that was supposed to be copied over. (There was 60 GB used, including OS.)
They said the new machine would basically be “mirrored” (their words, not mine).
Didn’t happen.
The tech told me that they had issues with the old MBP; this is why the transfer took so long, he said. (2+ hours for 60GB with FW800) What he didn’t say was that the transfer wasn’t complete. I knew immediately when I opened the unit — wrong desktop picture, dock in the wrong place, no request to login. No applications moved. No calendar data. Just the docs and music. Grrr. I could have done that and it would not have taken 3 hours out of my day (which is what the other process took).
Now I have to find a Firewire800 to Firewire400 cable (The Mac Store on 45th has one) and a Mini Display Port to DVI Adapter (no, the unit did not ship with one, unlike the old machines).
Grumbles aside, kudos to Apple for making good on a lemon.
1 reply on “MBP: First Thoughts”
Glad you finally got satisfaction from them. I truly question (a) Apple’s quality control; and (b) their changing port configurations. My Macbook Pro 17″ has now gone through two logic boards, two screens, one battery (that nearly melted down) and one power supply. But I would not trade it in for the newer one, because I don’t want to lose FW400 or gain some proprietary video-out port.
Time Machine has been very finicky for me, it doesn’t seem to like certain files. But I’ve started relying on it more…