Apple Macbook Pro 17 in. (MB166LL/A) Notebook

I grew up using PC's since the first DOS system came out. It wasn't until I was graduating high school that my older brother informed me about Macs. I decided to convert and bought my first Mac before I went into college. Since that day, I vowed I will never use anything but a Mac again! 

It's been two and a half years since I bought my MacBook and it's still incredibly fast. I am not a computer genius, but I remember when I purchased this computer, the gentleman that was assisting me told me that due to the amount of RAMs this computer had, it was super quick in loading pages and pictures and such. Man, was he right! Its so nice not having to wait around for pages to load, especially since I pay my bills online and get in contact with my distant family and friends.

Other than the speed that the MacBook is known for, it also holds an incredible amount of memory. I have over 3000 pictures and hundreds of documents and still plenty of room left to store more. The amount I have saved, incredibly, has yet to slow down my computer! It also has multi-touch capability where you can drag your fingers along the pad to re-size images, scroll, and select text. This function makes it so easy to get around websites...theres no need to click any buttons, you can "click" right from the pad itself. The keys on the keyboard are crisp and easy to use. They never stick (unless of course you spill soda on them). The built in I-sight (camera) lets you video chat with no delays or skipping, take pictures straight from the computer, and record videos that you can then make into DVDs. The programs on the Macbook are incredible for the creative type. "Garage Band" allows you to make your own music and record straight from home. "IMovie" is self-explanatory- you can create and burn your own DVDs. "IPhoto" is a cute little set-up where you can take pictures of yourself and friends directly from the MacBook itself and alter the pictures. Some of the options distort your face in hilarious ways like "bulge" and "stretch" and other options allow you to take pictures in sepia tone, black and white, "colored pencil", etc. Some other applications that MacBook has to offer are "Address Book" (I don't think I need to explain that one), "IChat"-- Mac's version of AIM, "Iphoto"-- where you upload all your pictures/videos, and also this really cool little thing called "Dashboard". Dashboard is a little hidden area with a bunch of widgets like the weather in your town, a calculator, "sticky notes" like actual post-its that you can leave little reminders for yourself on, a calander, a dictionary, a flight tracker, stocks, translations, white pages, and more! The only thing that the Mac lacks in comparison to PC programs is Microsoft Office. I really needed Word and Powerpoint for assignments and projects for college, so I purchased the Microsoft Office package for Mac computers and installed it on my MacBook. It is pretty pricey, but definately worth it. And if you keep the CDs, you can use them on new laptops to install the same programs. MacBook also boasts "Itunes" for all your music pleasures. If your a photo junkie, MacBook has incredible programs like the HP PhotoSmart Studio where you can alter all your pictures to your discretion. 

One of the most useful features of the MacBook that has solved 99% of my problems is the little blue smiley face that calls itself "Finder". When you can't figure out where to find something or how something works, you simply click on finder, type in a few keywords, or just one if its that simple, and "Finder" pulls up all the related options, programs, documents, etc. that it finds. It's incredible! One time a program got deleted off my bar of desktop icons, so I used "Finder" to find the program again and drag it back out on to my desktop bar for easy access. Oh- that's another great feature of the MacBook. You can drag anything! If you want a picture to be taken out of a webpage on saved onto your computer, you don't have to go through all the mundane steps of "Save as" and then search for the picture...all you do is simply click on the picture and drag it onto your desktop. Bam! The picture is off the webpage and on your computer for your desired use. I find this feature really useful when I need to move pictures around. For example, I'll take pictures on my "Photo Booth" program using the built-in camera and I'll drag them out of the photo booth and place them into the library of all the rest of my downloaded photos inside the program "Iphoto". This way, all the photos that I like are in one library. If you don't like a picture, you can drag it out of your library and directly into the trash bin icon that sits on your desktop icon bar. It even makes a little crumpling noise when you throw it away! 

As far as the battery goes, I get about two to three hours of use before my battery starts dying. The icon is up in the corner of the computer, making it easy to see how much battery I have left so I have time to save whatever it is I may be working on before the computer suddenly shuts down. You have the option to have your battery displayed in percentage or time. I have it displayed in percentage, so for example, right now I have 49% battery life left. I have an 85watt charger so it charges relatively fast. Maybe an hour and its fully charged. I believe the computer comes with a 60 watt so it will take a little longer for the battery to charge. Staying in theme with easy usage, another feature that I find very useful on the MacBook is the volume control and the brightness control. Both are buttons located on the top of the keyboard and all you do is tap them to turn up and down the volume, or to mute it completely. Same with the brightness buttons. I know this doesn't seem like a big deal, but I've noticed on other laptops how annoying it is to have to search for some dial somewhere hidden along the edges of the computer to control the sound...if I need to turn down the music immediately, MacBook shows you exactly where to go. No searching, no waiting. 

All in all, this computer is incredible. I am in love with my MacBook and having been an employee of Best Buy where many different types of computers are sold, I ALWAYS recommended to my customers that they purchase a Mac. The efficiency is wonderful, its easy usage is a delight, and the funky options allow creative people like myself to have so much fun with pictures, music, and videos. The lightning fast speed with which programs are run, including internet, cuts back on so much wasted time. I can get my business done quickly and with ease! This MacBook is a complete joy and I will never go back to using a regular PC after having experienced the wonders of the Mac world.