Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn), at $3,149 (direct), isn't the first laptop to undergo an Intel brain transplant in the form of a next-generation Penryn processor, but it's among the most sizzling we've seen so far. At the heart of this MacBook Pro, the 2.6-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9500 CPU and 4GB RAM played a pivotal role in tearing up performance tests, including a compelling 15 percent increase in battery life. There are other new additions worth talking about, but performance enhancements alone should encourage first-generation MacBook Pro owners and frustrated Windows users to take the plunge. For that, it retains the Editors' Choice for mainstream laptops.

With all the time spent on perfecting the MacBook Air's design, it's surprising that Apple did little to enhance the looks of the MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn). Until someone can come up with a lighter 15-inch laptop, I guess Apple is sticking with what works. The system's 5.3-pound frame still measures an inch thick, no matter where you apply the ruler. Other laptops, such as the Dell XPS M1530 and the HP Pavilion dv6500t, have a sloping chassis that becomes thinner as you move toward the front. Still, those two are also heavier, weighing 6.2 pounds and 5.8 pounds, respectively. The MacBook Pro's brilliant widescreen sports a 1,440-by-900 resolution and is still the only 15-inch screen to use an LED backlight. LED-lit screens, as seen on many ultraportables, have power-saving characteristics, supposedly longer life spans, and a color gamut wider than that of their CCFL counterparts.

The MacBook Pro (Penryn) has an intriguing feature—the gesture-based touchpad, which debuted on the iPhone and later showed up on the MacBook Air. This pad, with its ability to manipulate documents and images by finger movements, is a welcome addition to the MacBook Pro line. Although the MacBook Air's touchpad is noticeably larger than the one on the MacBook Pro, allowing more room for your fingers to pinch and rotate, movements worked just as flawlessly on the MacBook Pro's pad. The only other significant feature that Apple added is a pair of new hard drive options: a 250GB, 5,400-rpm drive (which my review unit had) and a 200GB, 7,200-rpm one. For performance seekers, a 7,200-rpm drive is highly recommended, though it's usually accompanied by some extra heat. The rest of the features—the slot-loading DVD burner, Front Row remote and sensor, two USB ports—were left untouched from the previous iteration.

These upgrades won't be enough to tempt those who bought their MacBook Pro a year ago to move to the new model, but early adopters bought a MacBook Pro when the model first came out and those who are migrating from Windows will find the performance benefits of this new model intriguing. With this Penryn system, Apple moves from a 65-nm CPU process to a 45-nm one in this model line. In other words, the 2.6-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9500 is based on an architecture that's completely different from the one for the 2.2-GHz T7500 in the previous MacBook Pro, translating into faster speeds. Since most of my performance tests are Windows-based, I loaded Apple's Boot Camp and Windows Vista Home Premium to gauge performance scores against other Windows-based laptops. SYSmark 2007 Preview Overall scores showed a 25 percent improvement over the previously reviewed version, the MacBook Pro 15-inch (LED). Granted, the clock speeds are a little slower on the Merom-based MacBook Pro, and the RAM count wasn't on a level playing field. The MacBook Pro (Penryn) loads 4GB RAM, producing some of the fastest Photoshop CS3 scores to date. Video-encoding tests were over 20 percent faster than those of the previous MacBook Pro.

Apple wasn't the first to come out with a Penryn-based laptop, but this MacBook Pro is one of the fastest laptops I've tested since these processors launched in January. Similar Penryn configurations, like the Sony VAIO VGN-SZ791N and the Fujitsu LifeBook A6120, lagged behind the MacBook Pro (Penryn) on SYSmark 2007 Preview, CineBench R10, and video-encoding tests. Gamers might also appreciate the enhancements to the graphics chipset. Although the actual graphics card—the nVidia GeForce 8600M GT—hasn't changed, video memory has been upped to 512MB, from 128MB. This boost improved 3D gaming at native resolutions (1,440-by-900) over the previous model. Intensive 3D games like Crysis and World in Conflict showed significant improvement at native resolutions, though I still wouldn't recommend them for this laptop. Scores at low resolutions (1,024-by-768) benefited from the faster processor on the MacBook Pro (Penryn).

The one test that stood out more than anything else, though, was battery life. The batteries themselves didn't change, nor did the Leopard operating system. Apple didn't invent some great new power-management utility. The improved battery life is a direct result of the Penryn CPU's deeper sleep states and its more energy-efficient processor core. The new MacBook Pro produced 3 hours 56 minutes on MobileMark 2007 tests, which is a significant jump from the 3 hours 10 minutes of the previous-generation MacBook Pro. That's about a 15 percent improvement, which should be music to the ears of road warriors.

A more energy-efficient core means that the new MacBook Pro is up to its nose in green certifications. It meets Energy Star 4.0 requirements, and though it didn't snag EPEAT Gold, it did receive a Silver rating from the consortium. Circuit-board laminates and internal cables are free of brominated flame retardants and PVCs. Apple's attention to removing hazardous materials such as these from laptop production also earns the company recognition from the RoHS consortium.

Even so, it wouldn't be right if PC Magazine didn't conduct its own energy readings. Using a Kill A Watt meter, the MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn) measured 16 watts at idle state, making it more energy efficient than the Dell M1530 (23W), the HP dv6500t (19W), and the previous MacBook Pro (19W). It didn't, however, hit the 14W required by Energy Star 4.0 in my own testing. And until Apple can achieve EPEAT Gold status, it's not ready to receive the PC Magazine Green Approved seal.

I still think the Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn) is due for a design change. Upgrading to the new Intel Penryn processors is a nice touch, improving performance scores and battery life over the previous MacBook Pro by significant margins. It also brings over the gesture-based touchpad from the MacBook Air. My configuration is rather pricey, because Apple tricked out this system with 4GB RAM (+$400) and a 2.6-GHz T9500 processor (+$250). Otherwise, you'd still be very happy with 2GB of RAM and a 2.5-GHz processor ($2,499).

For now, I can't think of any mainstream laptop other than the Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn) that does as good a job of combining fabulous design elements with top-of-the-line performance parts. Nonetheless, if Apple continues to upgrade processing parts every six months without any design changes, someone else will take the lead.

Check out the Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn) test scores.