Notebook Hunter

For $1,889 the Apple MacBook Pro 15in is a powerful allrounder that has a uniquely pleasant aluminium finish. Apple products don't get discounted too often, and the 10% discount here is consequently sizable. This sale is only until Sunday though. Also, the other Apple notebooks also have a 10% discount, so if this MacBook Pro isn't quite right for your needs take a look at the more portable 13in MacBook Pro or the colossal 17in MacBook Pro.

A Sandy Bridge Intel Core i7-2630QM (2GHz) gives the MacBook Pro a lot of processing power, and along with 4GB of RAM it's possible to multi-task very well with intensive programs. Graphics rendering is looked after by an AMD Radeon HD 6490M graphics card, which while somewhat low-end is still going to pull its weight due to how heavily optimised Apple's programs are.

The 500GB of storage is on the small side though, so some discipline with storing files and installing programs would be desired. Another enjoyable feature here that functions well is the 15.4in (1,440x900 resolution) screen that has a 16:10 aspect ratio. At 2.54kg the MacBook Pro's weight is actually average given the screen size, although at just 24.1mm thick there aren't many notebooks that are as slender.

See the Apple MacBook Pro 15in (2011) in the Notebook Hunter database here.

See the special online at Dick Smith Electronics here.