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Review of Apple MacBook

Posted Dec 5, 2008 Jesper Berg

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Full review of Apple MacBook

For starters, a fair share of the new MacBook's circuitry comes from Nvidia instead of Intel. Most notably the 9400M integrated graphics, which is a big step up from the Intel X3100 found in the white MacBook. Apple claims it has five times the performance over the Intel IGP, but in the real world the difference is actually even more significant - the 9400M lets you to play some recent games whereas the old and tired Intel X3100 certainly does not.

Design

As far as the new design goes, this is arguably the best looking laptop since the Osborne 1. The no-doubt well paid broilers at Apple's design department have done an awesome job with the new "unibody" construction, allegedly made from a single piece of aluminum.

To get completely in line with an otherwise minimalistic design, they also decided to let go of the trackpad button altogether, opting for one built into the glass trackpad itself. Thanks to the multi-touch functionality, this works very well - actually there's no need to use the built-in button at all. The new four-finger gestures to bring down Expose and Spaces are also well implemented.

Connectivity

Unfortunately, they didn't bother to drill a lot of holes in that single piece of aluminum. There's not a single FireWire port to be found, which is bound to feel like a betrayal to many diehard Mac users with a room full of FireWire accessories. On top of that it only has a measly two USB ports and Apple's proprietary Mini DisplayPort, so forget about using your external monitor unless you fork over an additional $29 for a standard VGA or DVI adapter, or $99 (!) for the dual-link DVI adapter.

The new MacBook is available in two varieties (so far): one 2.0GHz version (our review sample) and a more expensive 2.4GHz model with a larger hard drive and backlit keyboard. Both models come with the same Nvidia chipset, a LED-backlit screen, and 2 gigs of top-of-the-line 1066MHz DDR3 RAM. It's worth mentioning that the hard drives that ship with the new MacBooks are very well isolated and silent. When the laptop is idle or doing light tasks like web browsing, it's almost inaudible.

Performance and Games

Thanks to the DDR3 memory, a 1066MHz front side bus, and the Nvidia chipset, the new MacBooks are faster than older models at the same CPU clock speed. Our 2.0GHz MacBook generated an Xbench score of 166.40. It is also perfectly capable of playing some games - WoW delivered fully playable framerates (50-60 fps) at high settings, which is to be expected from an aging game, but even Call of Duty 4 was playable with the settings tuned down a little. Apple promised five hours of battery life, which we found to be a little too optimistic, but the 4.5 hours we managed to squeeze out of it is still very good.

Overall, the aluminum MacBook is an excellent laptop. Although it's somewhat more expensive than we had hoped, you get a solid and great-looking laptop, and some features that you'll never find in a similar PC.

Apple MacBook Technical Specifications

  • Processor 2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Mobile
  • Memory 2GB DDR3
  • Harddrive 160GB
  • OS Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard
  • Weight 5.0 lbs
  • Screen 13.3
  • Screen resolution 1280 x 800
  • Graphic Card Nvidia 9400M
  • Battery Life 4,5 hours

Pros

  • Best-Looking Laptop on Planet
  • 9400M Integrated Graphics
  • Glass Trackpad
  • Aluminum Enclusure
  • Relatively Thin and Light

Cons

  • Mini DisplayPort
  • Only 2 USB
  • No FireWire
  • Somewhat Expensive

Rate this review

Comments

  • By: Dee Mar 13, 2010 11:37 AM

    Bob,

    Nobody uses a laptop for 10 years.If the savings come after 10 years, then they should keep it because in 10 years, the specs we have now will be obsolete. I bought a laptop for 1500 in 2006 because of a similar argument you made. I loved it but after 3 yrs, new programs have come that will not be installed on mine because it does not meet the processing standards of the new programs. Nobody should buy a laptop for the lang run (more than 5 years). If it can not pay for itself by the third year, then it's not worth it. Keep it long and stay behind forever

  • By: Bob Mar 11, 2010 3:30 PM

    Yes, I love the Macbook Pro! Yeah, I agree the price on these are expensive though.... http://hubpages.com/hub/Choosing-the-right-Apple-computer

  • By: http://www.mypopmkt.com/ Mar 02, 2010 3:50 AM

    But you got hate their price tags. They would probably be the most used laptops if they werent so expensive! Free Macbook http://www.mypopmkt.com/

  • By: munesh Mar 01, 2010 4:46 AM

    wooooooosh really dun know anything bout mac , but it looks damn cool !!!!!!!!

  • By: udtekbattery Feb 24, 2010 3:50 AM

    to buy a good laptop battery; http://www.udtek.com

  • By: PANKSHITA Feb 23, 2010 2:22 AM

    APPLE !!!! ITS DA BEST PIECE MASTER PIECE

  • By: Bob Feb 07, 2010 9:12 PM

    People, this laptop is not expensive. 3 - 4 years ago this wouldve been one of the cheapest laptops available. Now Dell and HP have those $400 bargain laptops and people look at things like this and think its expensive, the difference is that this MBP will last you 10 years, while that $400 Dell will last about 2. So in the long run the Macbook Pro is cheaper and a lot more enjoyable to use thanks to its innovation packed design and Mac OSX

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  • By: ember Jan 20, 2010 3:13 PM

    i had an opportunity to borrow the macbook pro that my friend just got for her birthday.it was awsome! i had encountered old macbooks and the desktops, also with windows...but this was by far the fastest laptop that iv ever held. i had an opportunity to edit my raw videos as i was downloading multiple videos and upload my mega-heavy pics while video chatting with several friends, ALL AT THE SAME TIME! it was unbelievable how it wouldn't let you down, unlike some window based laptops that just LAG and u ultimately have to restart everything and have the consequence to inevitably but a new one (which was my fate). My friend let me tinker with her laptop for 3weeks and she was amazed with what i could do with it when i showed her how to work it to the maximum! haha! it seems like the MACbook kept saying "is that all you can do?" haha! damit! im so jealous and i aim to get me one! THANK YOU APPLE! ur a life saver!

  • By: udtek.com Jan 18, 2010 3:06 AM

    good laptops but it's too expensive.

  • By: uday Dec 25, 2009 7:52 AM

    i love apple ................. it may be most used laptops if they are not so expensive ....!

  • By: Yusuph Ally Dec 19, 2009 2:44 PM

    Please help.

  • By: Yusuph Ally Dec 13, 2009 8:23 AM

    I love Apple designs and would like to buy one of the Macbooks but am wondering if programs like visual basic from microsoft can be installed, all the programs we use at school are from microsoft. Can those programs be installed on a Macbook? If not can windows be installed on it? how?

  • By: Alex Oct 16, 2009 1:04 AM

    i want to know how windows xp can be installed in an apple laptop -kindly help

  • By: Gustavo Sep 24, 2009 11:31 AM

    Hello Guys, my friend just bought this computer and lend it to me, i must say its awesome, excellent contruction quality and great display.

    He got it on a great discount on this site:

    Macbook pro discount prices

    Im from Spain but if you are not you can also get it here with a discount:

    Macbook pro discount prices

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  • By: Anthony Aug 20, 2009 5:39 PM

    I have a 13 inch Macbook Pro and it's absolutely awesome. It works really well for anything like gaming or doing school work. And plus it's sexy. :P

  • By: Anthony Aug 20, 2009 5:39 PM

    I have a 13 inch Macbook Pro and it's absolutely awesome. It works really well for anything like gaming or doing school work. And plus it's sexy. :P

  • By: sarah Aug 20, 2009 2:41 PM

    Macbook is very lousy in my honest opinion Buy Natural Cure For Yeast Infection

  • By: sk8er dude Jul 21, 2009 4:52 PM

    uh. i have macbook pro 15" the most powerfull laptop ever. just fuck you you don know anything about macs. because you dont have money to buy.but i am rich and i can buy anything.MAC 's ARE GREAT FAMILY

  • By: asim Jul 20, 2009 2:49 PM

    when will be new n modified version get released?

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  • By: Elliott Jun 14, 2009 10:37 AM

    I am loving my MacBook Pro so much!! Shame that the new revisions have been somewhat downgraded, but meh. Consumers seem to want a less 'pro' laptop. Free MacBook | Apple MacBook | MacBook | MacBook Pro | Free iPod | Apple iPod

  • By: Wilfred Ocampo Jun 02, 2009 8:53 AM

    I just heard that there will be a revision on this laptop, is the firewire or some new slot will be added? And when will be the exact date release or sales of this new revised apple mac laptop com? Thank you very much and looking forward for the reply, actually I am planning to purchase this laptop but still waiting for the one to come out. More power and God bless always

  • By: Marlet May 15, 2009 4:58 PM

    But you got hate their price tags. They would probably be the most used laptops if they werent so expensive! Free Macbook

  • By: Andrew Jan 09, 2009 2:21 PM

    Gotta love apple. :)

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