We believe in the long term value of Apple hardware. You should be able to use your Apple gear as long as it helps you remain productive and meets your needs, upgrading only as necessary. We want to help maximize the life of your Apple gear.
Apple overhauled its entire notebook line this week, with the
exception of the MacBook White, which was just updated in May. From the
MacBook side of things, the biggest change is that the 13" Unibody
MacBook has gained FireWire and an SD Card slot while adding "Pro" to
its name.
The May 2009
MacBook White is the third model to bear the MacBook White
designation, and at 2.13 GHz it's the fastest yet. It is the only Apple
notebook with a FireWire 400 port - all of the MacBook Pro models use
FireWire 800. It's also Apple's only notebook with a built-in Mini DVI
port - all the other Mac notebooks use Mini DisplayPort
exclusively.
In addition to a faster CPU, the May 2009 MacBook White has a faster
memory bus (1066 MHz vs. 800 MHz) and a larger hard drive. As with the
previous model, maximum RAM is 6 GB (all of the June 2009 MacBook Pro
models support up to 8 GB of RAM).
The MacBook White is Apple's only consumer notebook. It's 13.3"
glossy display has 1280 x 800 resolution, and its size makes it a good
candidate to replace iBooks, both 12" and 14". At US$999 retail, it
remains the least expensive Intel-based Mac notebook. Benchmarks find
the 2.13 GHz MacBook White is 6.5% faster than the 2.0 GHz model -
exactly what you'd expect.
We updated our MacBook
price tracker this morning. Here are the best deals on new MacBook
White models:
2.0 GHz, $889 shipped
2.13 GHz, $925 shipped, after rebate ($990 without rebate)
There are no refurbished MacBook Whites available at present. If you
don't mind the hassles of waiting for a mail-in rebate, the 2.13 GHz is
the better value: 6.5% more processing power, 40 GB more hard drive
space, and a 4% higher price.
The Used Market
Used MacBooks are quite a bit less expensive and generally sell with
a 90 day reseller warranty. Here are some current deals:
2.0 GHz Core Duo, black, $599
2.0 GHz Core 2, white, $695 shipped
2.16 GHz Core 2, black, $765 shipped
While the new MacBooks represent a good value and do have slightly
more efficient CPUs and architecture than these older models. Hard
drives are easily upgraded, and unless you need more than 3 GB of RAM
or Nvidia graphics, these could be all you need. And on the used
market, the premium for black is minimal.
Bang for the buck, the 2.0 GHz BlackBook for $599 is a steal.
Dan Knight has been using Macs since 1986,
sold Macs for several years, supported them for many more years, and
has been publishing Low End Mac since April 1997. If you find Dan's articles helpful, please consider making a donation to his tip jar.
Links for the Day
Mac of the Day: DayStar Genesis, introduced 1995.10.30. The first 'Mac' with multiple processors, technology Daystar licensed to Apple.
