With Tuesday's changes, the base 15-in. MacBook Pro now has a 2-GHz Intel Core Duo processor and sells for $1,999; the faster model sells for $2,499, with the upgrade to a faster hard drive still a $100 option. "This pulls [the pricing] back in line," Schiller said.

Unlike Apple's professional laptop lineup, which has dedicated graphics cards offering either 128MB or 256MB of video RAM, the new MacBooks offer 64MB of integrated video graphics memory. The Intel GMA 950 graphics processor drives a native screen resolution on the MacBook line of 1280-by-800 pixels.

"In our tests, the integrated graphics on the MacBook are faster than the graphics on the iBook for things most people use these for, like surfing the Web," Schiller said. "The place where discrete graphics shine is if you're doing high-end games like Doom 3, or working with professional [programs] like Aperture or Final Cut."

Dedicated graphics cards also allow the more expensive MacBook Pro models to run Apple's 30-in. Cinema Display LCD monitor. The new MacBooks can only power the smaller, 20-in. and 23-in. Apple Cinema displays.

Schiller also noted that the new MacBooks are about 20% thinner than the iBooks they replace, checking in at 1 in. thick when the display is closed. "If you put a MacBook next to an iBook, it's just about the thickness of the base of the iBook without the display," he said.