Apple MacBook Pro 17 inch 2011-02 MC725D/A
Specifications
Notebook: Apple MacBook Pro 17 inch 2011-02 MC725D/A (Macbook Pro 17 inch Series)Processor: Intel Core i7 2720QM
Graphics Adapter: AMD Radeon HD 6750M 1 GB MB
Display: 17.3 inch, 16:10, 1920x1200 pixels, glossy: yes
Weight: 2.925kg
Price: 2499 euro
Average of 13 scores (from 16 reviews)
Reviews for the Apple MacBook Pro 17 inch 2011-02 MC725D/A
Apple's Figurehead. The MacBook Pro 17" is Apple's top-of-the line model as far as laptops go and stylishly combines powerful performance with excellent mobility. The most recent version now has a new hardware arrangement, offering a powerful duo consisting of the Core i7-2720QM and Radeon HD 6750M including GPU-switching technology. Sounds good, right? But how does the latest MBP measure up to the competition?
Source: Reg Hardware
I admit the MacBook Pro is not perfect – actually, it is bloody expensive at a mere quid short of £2,100. Add to that the cost of any of the aforementioned adapters, which might involve a new found love of the ExpressCard/34 slot, if you get really desperate. Yup, it is, quite simply, out of my price range. The Top Gear team spend less than that on second-hand Bentleys. Yet it does deliver an exceptional user experience. So ask your employer to buy you one, or get the next-best alternative: the 15in model. Either way, no-one will convince me that it’s money badly spent.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 08/23/2011
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: Comp Reviews
Apple's MacBook Pro 17 remains an extremely expensive investment with a base price of $2500. Thankfully, the 2011 version has increased the overall performance and features with a new quad core processor, larger hard drive and AMD graphics. It remains one of the sleekest and longest running laptops in its class. While the Thunderbolt port has some great potential, it really just functions like a DisplayPort for now.
Single Review, online available, Short, Date: 07/05/2011
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: ITNews Australia
If you’re looking for a portable workstation, it isn’t the winner it could have been; we’d avoid running intensive apps with it on your lap, for example. Of the three sizes, however, it holds the widest appeal. There’s something about paying less than $2000 for such an impressive piece of hardware that makes it feel like the best value of all the new MacBook Pros.
Comparison, online available, Short, Date: 06/24/2011
Source: Tweaktown
There are more positive feelings toward the MBP than there is negative and virtually every product in the world is not flawless - the 17-inch MacBook Pro is no different. However, I have a feeling for people that haven't used a Mac before that the following quote would apply to them: Once you go Mac, you never go back.
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 05/24/2011
Rating: Total score: 95%
Source: Digital Versus
The MacBook Pro 17 inch 2011 is the latest Apple laptop to join our review. A powerful processor, a good quality panel, an impeccable finish, a graphics card that can handle a good few games titles and really excellent battery life: this is what you get with this 17 inch machine. Even its little imperfections (lack of number pad) don't affect its 5-star rating.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 04/15/2011
Rating: Total score: 100%
Source: Computing
The latest MacBook Pro laptops from Apple deliver improved performance and battery life, and boast a Thunderbolt I/O port, which in tests came out faster than USB 3.0. At £999, the 13in model is likely to be the biggest seller, but professional users who require power and performance above all else should look no further than this 15in model.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 03/31/2011
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: Digital Trends
If you’re looking for a notebook with all the power and creature comforts of a desktop, it’s hard to find a homier setup than Apple’s 17-inch MacBook Pro. Gamers and pros like video editors will appreciate the additional processing power, graphics power and speedy new Thunderbolt interface, but at $2,500, you had better plan on really leveraging them to make the leap.
Single Review, online available, Long, Date: 03/22/2011
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: T3
Apple’s early 2011 MacBook Pro isn’t perfect. It could use a Blu-ray drive, or even a faster DVD drive, and at £2,099 it’s far from cheap (though not outrageously priced, given its undoubted quality). Even so, it's not for the casual user, instead will appeal to the high-demands professional who needs to take his or her work out of the office; perhaps a graphic designer, web builder or video editor. Or indeed anyone who wants – and can afford – the most powerful notebook Mac on the market.
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 03/11/2011
Rating: Total score: 60%
Source: Techradar
The MacBook Pro range takes a great leap forward with the 2011 refresh, and this 17-inch model is no exception. The popular unibody aluminium form factor is retained, but across-the-board component upgrades (SuperDrive excepted) gives it a huge performance improvement over its predecessor. Apple is wise to spec-match the sole 17-inch model to the top 15-inch MacBook Pro instead of the next one down, and although expensive, the price increase from the mid-2010 refresh is reasonable.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 03/10/2011
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: PC Pro
Powerful, long-lasting and with a wonderful 1,920 x 1,200 screen, but the price remains unpalatable
Single Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 03/03/2011
Rating: Total score: 67% price: 50% performance: 100% features: 83% ergonomy: 83%
Source: It Pro
There's no Blu-ray writer built-in, even as an optional extra, which may disappoint if you want to author Blu-ray movies on the go or want to backup large quantities of data onto a single disc. There aren't any complaints about the large 750GB hard disk though. This can be substituted by Apple with a SSD up to 512GB in capacity, although this will be costly.
Single Review, online available, Short, Date: 03/02/2011
Rating: Total score: 83%
Foreign Reviews
Source: Notebookcheck
DE→ENSingle Review, online available, Medium, Date: 05/10/2011
Rating: Total score: 87% performance: 90% display: 85% mobility: 81% workmanship: 98% ergonomy: 93% emissions: 85%
Source: Notebookcheck
DE→ENSingle Review, online available, Long, Date: 03/20/2011
Rating: Total score: 86% performance: 90% display: 83% mobility: 81% workmanship: 98% ergonomy: 93% emissions: 85%
Source: Mac Welt
DE→ENComparison, online available, Medium, Date: 03/18/2011
Source: Notebookjournal
DE→ENSingle Review, online available, Long, Date: 03/11/2011
Rating: performance: 90% features: 50% display: 70% mobility: 70% workmanship: 90% ergonomy: 70%
Source: c't - 7/11
performance good, battery runtime and fan noise bad
Comparison, , Long, Date: 04/01/2011
Comment
AMD Radeon HD 6750M:
Essentially a renamed Radeon HD 6650M but with faster GDDR5 memory.
Modern games should be playable with these graphics cards at low settings and resolutions. Casual gamers may be happy with these cards.
» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Graphics Cards and the corresponding Benchmark List.
Intel Core i7: The Intel Core i7 for laptops is based on the LG1156 Core i5/i7 CPU for desktops. The base clock speed of the CPUs is relatively low, but because of a huge Turbo mode, the cores can dynamically overclock to up to 3.2 GHz (920XM). Therefore, the CPU can be as fast as high clocked dual-core CPUs (using single threaded applications) but still offer the advantage of 4 cores. Because of the large TDP of 45 W / 55 W, the CPU is only intended for large laptops.
2720QM: Fast Quad-core processor based on the Sandy Bridge architecture with an integrated graphics card and dual-channel DDR3 memory controller. » Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Processsors.
17.3": Meanwhile the 17 inch display size is a more frequently offered standard format for desktop-replacements. The DTR-laptops can't be carried easily, need much energy but on the other side texts can be read easily and high resolutions are no problem. DTR mainly are intended for stationary usage on desks, where the weight and the energy need are unimportant.
» To find out how fine a display is, see our DPI List.
2.925 kg: This weight is average for notebooks. Therefore the numerous mass of laptops with 15 inch display fits in this class of weight.
Apple: Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation which designs and manufactures consumer electronics and software products. Apple software includes the Mac OS X operating system but nowadays Macbooks are also able to run Windows. The company operates more than 250 retail stores in nine countries and an online store where hardware and software products are sold. Established in California in 1977, Apple has about 35,000 employees worldwide and had worldwide annual sales of US$ 32.48 billion in its fiscal year 2008. Market share regarding sales of personal computers in 2007 (market research IDC): HP 18.9 %, Dell 16.4 %, Acer 9.9 %, Lenovo 7.5 %, Apple 5.7 %
81.92%: This rating should be considered to be average. This is because the proportion of notebooks which have a higher rating is approximately equal to the proportion which have a lower rating.
» Further information can be found in our Notebook Purchase Guide.
