If you're doing as you should and regularly backing up your hard drive's contents with Apple's Time Machine backup app, you can use that to copy files, too. Using the Migration Assistant, located in the Utilities folder, I was able to move 70GB of files and data to the review system from my own Time Machine backup drive in about two hours.

What's not new

While the 15-in. models get the new unibody look and feel, those of us who've come to love the 17-in. version will have to wait. The larger model soldiers on in the same old aluminum style Apple has used to for years. A week ago, it was the epitome of style, and -- as Apple officials are quick to note -- it's still the slimmest of the big-screen laptops. But compared to the new models, it now looks somehow... tired. At least Apple made the high-resolution screen standard -- it's a stunning screen -- and it's now LED-backlit. The price remains unchanged at $2,799.

I'm hoping the 17-in. model will get the same unibody treatment; maybe we'll see one at Apple's next MacWorld Expo in January, but Apple officials were mum on that prospect when asked. Ditto when I asked about the super-svelte MacBook Air, which received minor tweaks to boost its graphics hardware and hard drives but remains largely unchanged from its predecessor.

As for the Air, the solid-state hard drive size has been doubled to 128GB, and it now uses the same shared graphics processor that powers the new MacBook line. It also gains the faster 1,066-MHz front-side bus, meaning users should see modest speed increases from the first-generation model. Prices for the two Airs remain unchanged at $1,799 (for the 1.6-GHz version) and $2,499 (for the 1.86-GHz version).