I think I found my new MacBook

by Volker Weber

macbookbottom.jpg

Lots of news from Apple today. Faster Mac mini - that was about time, Mac mini server - kind of expensive for the hardware, new iMacs - Jumbrotron does not look too old, and a new Macbook - for a little bit less in Euros.

I was going to buy a MacBook Pro, but the new MacBook actually has more power than the entry level Pro (250 GB vs. 160 HD), for less money. Polycarbonate unibody should be strong. And it has something I have been waiting for quite a while: a non-slip bottom in a notebook without using rubber feet that can get lost. A round edge means it can be carried easily, and the white bezel means that it does not have the reflective black surface around the screen. LED backlight sounds good. If it only had a matte display, but you can't have it all.

It's all but ordered. I think I also want this mouse:

newapplemouse.jpgs

Comments

There is a good video of the mouse here.

Alan Lepofsky, 2009-10-21

>> "Mac mini server - kind of expensive for the hardware"
What's the price of a Domino or Exchange server after you've added the licenses - or are most people here using open-source 'nix messaging tools?

David Richardson, 2009-10-21

I was clinging to the fragile hope that Apple would roll out the i7 processor in its Macbook Pro Line. Dream on... maybe next year. If I can wait that long.

Brendon Upson, 2009-10-21

Teardown of the new MacBook: iFixit

Derek H. Pokorny, 2009-10-21

The i7 probably is not the best choice for notebooks. The number of Core2Quad laptops is sparse either. Intel has promised better revisions of the Core i7 for 2010. Maybe the i5 would fit although I am not sure if you would get the most out of an i5/i7 on a notebook anyway. The surrounding hardware normally is not powerful enough to build a balanced system.
If have build a few workstations with the Core i7 and while those are very powerful machines its power consumption is beyond everything what would make sense for a Laptop.

Henning Heinz, 2009-10-21

@vowe

already ordered!? But there's no Firewire 400/800 and IR for Apple Remote included.
ok it's not the first or second mac in your machinepark ;)
in my opinion an SSD like the x25-m is a must have inside a macbook.

Martin Jaecke, 2009-10-21

No, not ordered yet. Gravis wasn't stocked. I think I will pay the Apple Store in London a visit next week, and make up my mind, whether it's the Macbook or the Pro. SSD can wait.

Volker Weber, 2009-10-21

For me upgrading my MBP with an SSD was a night and day experience.
The effect wears off like every advancement in performance, but until then a 6 Ghz processor would not have had such an effect (to me).

Mariano Kamp, 2009-10-21

Seriously thinking about one of the "unibody Macbooks" with 4 GB RAM and a 500 GB drive, and then getting one of these: http://www.mcetech.com/optibay/ and a SATA SSD like the OCZ Vertex, and then switching drives (boot off the SSD, move the HD into the Optibay).

Not sure if I want the new mouse or a Logitech VX Nano.

Kevan Emmott, 2009-10-21

Just in case you want to use Bootcamp. There can be serious issues with SSD upgraded Macbooks (not bought from Apple). Apple recently fixed this for OSX but they don't really care about Windows.
Thank you for the Optibay link.

Henning Heinz, 2009-10-22

Hello Volker,

my own experience with the unibody MBP is:
Even with intact rubber feet the clearance between aluminium bottom and table surface is so small, that small grains - smaller than sugar grains! - get in the way. As a result I have now scratched both table and unibody - the latter on the bottom only, the table lightly on the surface.

A rubber bottom will act like sandpaper on the surface it is placed on, if you have whatever material in between. And rubber tends to attract grains.

Do you know the orgteam in Frankfurt? Directly off the A648, very competent, own repair center.

Magic mouse - To put away with the dust collecting scroll wheel is a good move.
From the pictures seen I deduce it might be less ergonomic for people with big(ger) hands. Only the personal experience counts.

Good luck with your decision!

Jörg Hermann, 2009-10-23

Today I tried the Macbook and the magic Mouse at an apple store.

The Magic Mouse is large enough to cope with bigger hands. I really liked it, unfortunately they had no magic mouse to sell only on display :-(

As for the macbook: first thing I recognized - it has sharper edges on the inside than the MBP. The rubber bottom is not as sticky as the one on TimeCapsule. I support Jörgs comment on scratching, I think this is going to happen - haven't thought about that. I fear the white keyboard might look dirty after some usage. Besides that the macbook looks to me like a thinner iBook. It will be easily recognized as an apple product with all the pros and cons.

From using it, I can tell it's fast and up to the speed I expect from a high-end notebook.

Most impressive for me was the new iMac 27". This is really huge and has a bright screen - unfortunately a glossy one :-) Need to think about having a quad-core desktop with four memory slots ... You can connect your MBP directly via a new cable and use the screen of the iMac as external screen for the MBP (req. optional adapter).

Greetings from Florida

Thomas Koester, 2009-10-23

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