For a high-end laptop, you won't find many frills on the 15-inch MacBook Pro ($1,849). Apple's approach is to focus on the basics, and get them right. The MacBook Pro is stylish, it's functional, its built like a rock, and it goes like the bejesus.
The Pro has the tech specs to match other high-end laptops -- Intel Core i5 or i7 processors, 512 MB dedicated graphics cards, 4 GB of memory, ample hard drive space -- but like its sibling, the MacBook, it's more than the sum of its parts.
This machine is all about smoothness: from its rounded edges, to the way the screen instantly fades back to life when you lift the lid and wake it from sleep. The outsized glass trackpad is extremely easy to use, and the screen is almost outrageously bright. This computer powers its way through mundane tasks that give other machines pause, and the Mac OS offers a satisfyingly no-headache, no-hassle way of using a computer.
Of course, many of these qualities are shared by the small white MacBook, which is half the price and a fair sight more portable. So, lust factor aside, why consider shelling out $2,000 or more for the top-of-the-line edition?
For one thing, if you're planning on doing more than reading, writing, watching and surfing, the Pro will handle whatever you throw at it. It's geared for video and music production, as well as graphic design grunt-work. And if you need to run a PC application - a 3D game, for instance - you can install Windows, either under emulation or on a drive partition, effectively turning the Mac into a part-time PC.
Your needs might not justify the price, but if you're looking to invest in a good computer, the MacBook Pro is one of the best laptops out there.