If you’ve been considering getting a MacBook Pro, but can’t decide between buying used or new, consider this: among other great new features, starting in 2011, the MacBook Pro has a Multi-Touch trackpad. The Multi-Touch trackpad is located where the old trackpad was, but the major difference, appearance-wise, is that it is now buttonless. Nowthe whole trackpad can be used as a button.

The smooth glass surface of the MacBook Pro Multi-Touch trackpad works pretty much like the Multi-Touch function you know and love on your iPod touch or iPhone. It allows you to click anywhere you want. You can also pinch, swipe, click and drag, rotate, right-click, double-click…the possibilities are endless. Of course, you can customize it however you want, too. Want to have your secondary click set up in the bottom left or bottom right corner of the Multi-Touch trackpad? Go ahead. You can do that.

Another cool feature of the MacBook Pro Multi-Touch trackpad is that it can distinguish among gestures you make, depending on the number of fingers you use to make the gesture. For example, if you hold two fingers together and move them left or right, you browse horizontally through a window or webpage. When you hold three fingers together and move them left or right, you advance back and forth through Safari pages. When you hold four fingers together and move them left or right to open the application switcher. Swipe up with two fingers to scroll vertically through a window or webpage. Swipe four fingers up to clear your desktop, or down to bring the windows back. Swipe down again to see all your open windows.

To customize your trackpad settings, go into System Preferences. It has its own pane, with video demos so you can decide how to set up your trackpad. If you want to just keep all the default settings, that’s totally fine, too. It’s up to you – it’s your MacBook Pro, right?

In case you’re wondering, the Multi-Touch trackpad is now available on all new laptop models – so really, your choice from among the five models depends upon what other features you want and need. Check out the Mac section of the online Apple shop to compare, or step into your local Apple dealer to try one out for yourself.