Macbook Pro 13″ MB (MB991LL/A) — The Unboxing

Over the last month, I’ve been using the Dell Vostro A90 (Mini 9) almost exclusively.  Unfortunately, what I discovered is that while it’s a great little box for checking e-mail and the occasional e-Bay browsing, its little 1.6 Ghz Atom processor (even with 2gb of RAM and a fast SSD) simply isn’t enough to do the type of tasks that I do just to keep sane.

For example, while I can fire up iMovie or Garageband, there simply isn’t enough power behind the Atom processor to actually DO anything beyond what a netbook’s good for.  No podcasting, no Photoshop, no WarCraft, no Call of Duty 4.

So.. That being said, and the histrionic issues caused by the sincerely apathetic speed of the Best Buy trade-in program behind me, I set out today with my $469 gift card, along with $30 in Best Buy member gift cards in hand, with the intent to purchase a new base-model MacBook Pro, 13″ laptop.  Let me just state, out-front that most of you simply cannot imagine the amount of thought that went into the decision.

Should I buy a base laptop?  Should I buy the bigger badder 15″ laptop?  Should I just buy a Mac Mini and a 20″ monitor and make plans to sell it back later?  Should I just tough it out and not get anything at all? (in which case, what would I have done with $500 in gift certificates???)  ARGGhhh.

It was actually the local Best Buy in Huntsville that talked me out of anything but the base setup.

Having decided at least on a laptop — to keep from having to haul a monitor around — I couldn’t decide on either a 13″ or base 15″ model.  Being most unhelpful and disinterested in helping a customer, after much frustration, I discovered the local store DIDN’T EVEN STOCK the model I wanted.

This of course called for the obligatory 200 mile road trip to the nearest Mac-selling Best Buy, which happened to be in Murphreesboro, TN.  It was a beautiful day, I had a moral imperative and I was “on a mission from God” (which for the cretins out there is a big tip of the hat to the Blues Brothers).

To cut a long and presumably boring story short, the people in the alien Best Buy in Murphreesboro were the exact opposite of my local shop.  They were helpful, attentive, and even had an honest-to-god Apple rep on hand to answer questions…

Now I just need to sell the Dell Hackintosh and the new baby will be a fairly inexpensive upgrade.

Here is the unboxing of what I ended up with;