Okay, I'll admit one thing: I'm completely smitten with this thing.
Since I received my 2
GHz MacBook a few days ago, it's completely engulfed me. Sure, I
have a nicer 17" iMac with 3 GB of RAM sitting on my desk, but I
don't think it can match the sheer joy of this MacBook. The cool lit
Apple logo on the back, the awesome keyboard, the great looking screen,
the iSight, even the MagSafe power adapter is just amazing to me.
You have to understand, this thing is replacing a six month old
Compaq laptop that was perfectly fine, if a bit ugly and heavy. It ran
Vista Basic, which has to be one of the most unintuitive and ugly
operating systems ever put out by Microsoft. The next Windows Me? Not
so much, but XP is a much better.
Okay, enough Windows talk. Let's take a look at Apple's gem of a
laptop.
Specifications
If you think the MacBook is a Paris Hilton one note - sexy, but
really can't perform its way out a paper bag - think again. It's a lot
more like Cameron Diaz: sexy, yet with the brains and power to back it
up.
The MacBook I'm using is a refurbished October 2007 model, which
sells for $849 on the Apple Store's
refurbished page. My MacBook uses Intel's Core 2 Duo processor,
running at a cool 2 GHz with an 800 MHz frontside bus and
4 MB of L2 cache. Along with that is a paltry 1 GB of DDR2
RAM, a SATA II 80 GB hard drive spinning at 5400 RPM, a 13.3" WXGA
widescreen display with a resolution of 1280 x 800, a DVD/CD-RW Combo
drive, and Intel GMA X3100 video with 144 MB of shared graphics memory.
All of this makes for a very decent laptop, capable of keeping up with
the higher end MacBook models - and in some respects with the MacBook
Pro as well.
Design
The first thing is obvious - it's beautiful! Having owned an iBook
G4 about a year ago, I was expecting a similar feel and design. To my
surprise, the design of the MacBook is even cooler and more exciting.
It's a more thought out design, especially with the iSight and new
keyboard.
The smooth white exterior can also be ordered in a black model,
which I find less sleek and a little more PC-like. Sure, some people
prefer it and wouldn't have any other color, but the white seems more
Apple-esque and has an happier undertone. The black is almost somber in
a way, but also much more businesslike compared to the almost girlie
white. Yup, I said it, girlie! Proud of it too!
Keyboard
One of the first things you'll notice when opening up the lid is the
keyboard. It's not your usual iBook G4 or MacBook Pro keyboard, where
all the keys are combined together and almost rectangular in shape.
Instead, you get keys raised up slightly off the surface of the base
with a square design. The result is an excellent laptop keyboard with
great tactile feedback and a great sound while you're typing away.
Comparing the MacBook keyboard to my iMac's Apple Keyboard, it's a
different experience. I, for one, love the old white Apple Keyboard.
People have criticized it for being overly mushy, but I've always liked
that. After using the MacBook keyboard, it isn't easy switching between
the two. I'll get over it.
Another noteworthy feature about the keyboard is the new media keys
located along the top row. These allow you to adjust brightness, view
the Dashboard, skip tracks, pause/play your music, mute, adjust volume,
and of course there is the eject button. These really can come in handy
if you're constantly listening to music.
Display
What else is their to talk about? I've already mentioned the
beautiful design and excellent keyboard. What about the display?
Let's just say I've used better displays in my life. The MacBook
utilizes a 13.3" widescreen glossy display. There have been quite a few
complaints over the glossy finish, but I prefer it. It's a huge
improvement over the iBook's small and dim display. However, the
viewing angle isn't that great, and at the maximum brightness it's a
little too bright.
Another thing worth mentioning is that you might want to calibrate
the display. I find the standard profile way too yellow, and that can
easily be remedied using the Displays tool in System Preferences.
Performance
I was a little anxious to see how this MacBook would perform. After
all, laptops are known to be slower than their desktop counterparts.
With a Core 2 Duo processor underneath, I was expecting a speedy little
laptop. I'm happy to report this laptop is extremely quick for everyday
web browsing, organizing pictures in iPhoto, and even the occasional
movie edit with iMovie.
However, I do recommend upgrading RAM to at least 2 GB.
Leopard, like all other versions of OS X, really purrs with the
extra RAM. My iMac with 3 GB is absolutely perfect and flies
through everything I throw at it. The MacBook does it with similar
gusto, but it bogs down with lots of applications running in the
background.
Features
The MacBook comes with almost all the features of it's bigger
brother, including iSight, a slot-loading Combo drive or SuperDrive, a
MagSafe power adapter,a large trackpad, and a slim profile.
How about what is missing? It misses out on the awesome multitouch
trackpad introduced in the MacBook Air. Another feature that
is noticeably absent is a latch. That's a good thing, though, as the
MacBook uses magnets located at the top of display. Simply close the
lid, and it strongly latches down the lid. To open it, just pull up
where the indentation is. What a great feature, very similar to
the earliest multicolored
iBooks.
Also missing is a discrete graphics section. The MacBook uses
Intel's GMA X3100 graphics processor. This solution steals up to 144 MB
of your RAM. Hence, this is not a gaming laptop. If you want gaming, go
for the MacBook Pro.
Downsides
Aren't you sick of how much I like this thing? I sure am, so I'm
going to present you with some downsides.
For one, the edges of the MacBook are not rounded. That means that
if you are typing with your hands on the palm rests, your wrists feel
like they are getting cut into. Kind of an oversight on Apple's part,
especially since the iBook had nicely rounded edges.
Another issue I've noticed is the build quality seems to be more
lackluster than any Apple product I've owned. With the lid closed, I
can wiggle the display a bit. One of the edges looks to be buckling,
and the edges on the display are a little ragged. Sure I'm nitpicky,
but I expect nothing less than perfection from Apple. However, the
quality of the plastic is much nicer than the earlier MacBooks, and the
casing feels sturdier than that of my old iBook.
Apple has hit a home run: They've won the championship, and there
was really no competition. The MacBook is an amazing laptop with every
feature the average consumer could thing of. It has a timeless design,
loads of features, lots of power, and is extremely portable. It's the
best laptop on the market for under US$1,500.
It's also the most beautiful. I'm not sure how Apple could make this
thing look any better, but, I'm sure they'll figure something out.
Specs: 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 GB RAM,
80 GB SATA hard drive, Combo drive, 13.3" glossy widescreen display,
Intel GMA X3100 integrated graphics
Pros
- Gorgeous design
- Features galore
- Tons of grunt
- Great price
Cons
- Sharp edges hinder typing
- Built quality not up to Apple standards
- Integrated graphics
Share your perspective on the Mac by emailing with "My Turn" as your subject.
