Launches and Releases: Apple's New 17-Inch MacBook

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[Top, Not Steve Jobs intros Apple's new 17-inch MacBook; bottom, schematic of the new non-removable, embedded battery. Pix courtesy Gizmodo]

With Steve Jobs sidelined, Apple opted for a low-key suite of announcements at the MacWorld conference in San Francisco today: mostly DRM-free music in iTunes; updates to its iLife and iWork software packages; and a snazzy new 17-inch MacBook. The new notebook (obligatory Apple babble: "the world's thinnest 17-inch notebook!") carries the bells n' whistles of the recent MacBook 13-inch and 15-inch updates (sleeker screen, glass-touch trackpad) along with one new feature: a non-removable battery. While that'll probably throw some road warriors into a tizzy, ask yourself: when was the last time you swapped out a battery on your laptop? (Us: half past never ago.) And by making the battery permanent, it can fill more space inside, and thus last longer—up to eight hours on a charge, per Apple. (If the battery does die, Apple will swap it for you.) Anyway. Whee. Available by end of month; price: a cool $2,799.
· Macworld Live Coverage [Gizmodo]
· iTunes Going DRM-Free; Does Anyone Care? [Media Memo]
· All Apple Coverage [Racked]