[dixeyk]

Well, its been a while since I've been here (graduate school and a 3 year old have seen to that). Now after about 4 years of chugging away on my trusty 1ghz 14" ibook I decided to go with a new Macbook. The ibook will have a new life as my wife's school laptop. She got a brand new 17" intel imac and realized that she needed a laptop as well.

I opted for the 2ghz white C2D Macbook upgraded to 2gb RAM. I'll order a 120 or 160gb drive (much cheaper than having Apple do it) if the 80gb drive is too cramped. I doubt it will be since I have been using a 40gb drive for 4 years.

In case anyone is curious, I thought seriously about the Blackbook but after seeing it up close I wasn't all that hot on it. Its nice but it gets pretty marked up with fingerprints and after so many years in the corporate world I am pretty tired of black laptops. I know a lot of people think the white is "not professional" looking but I like the white. To each there own.

I also looked seriously at the Macbook pro. In the end the extra $300 or so (between a refurb and my education price on the Macbook) wasn't worth it for me. I like the Macbook Pro, but it was a bit larger than I wanted as I do a good deal of field work and the Macbook (if it even remotely like the ibook) will be a lot more sturdy for that kind of thing. Then there is the infamous intel 950 for the video.

As a graduate assistant at my school I manage a small computer lab. We have a mix of PCs running XP and G5 and Intel iMacs for video editing. We also got a 2ghz Macbook with 1gb RAM so I did some tests. It runs Final Cut Pro really well. In fact it trounced a dual G5 tower in rendering a 3.5 hour video in DVD Studio Pro. Additionally, the apps I use such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver etc rely primarily on the CPU. I would like to run Aperture (i understand Aperture 1.5 is now officially supported) but it won't be a deal breaker if I go with another solution (I use iView Media Pro right now).

Finally, I don't play video games on my computer very often. I use a game console for that. After many hours playing with that Macbook at our lab I came away REALLY impressed. I'll probably end up getting a Dell 20" monitor but other than that I'm set. I spent a good deal of time hunting these forums for information and it helped in the decision making process. I hope to post a photo in the picture thread soon (it comes in about a week).



Kevin

[legacyb4]

I'm [took] the plunge on a new Macbook myself. To ease the agony of deciding on black or white, I went to Best Buy where they had one each side by side. Suprisingly enough, I found that I actually prefer the Black over the White because of the matte finish and trim.

Obviously, my own laptop wouldn't see as much wear and tear as the floor models did, but it was quite apparent that the case scratching would be much more apparent on the White (it was missing a foot so the bottom of the case had gotten fairly scuffed up) and discoloration due to dirt/grease getting in those scratches seemed to show up more. With the Black, a few good buffs with my shirt sleeve quickly eliminated fingerprints and the clean matte finish was quickly restored.

My only beef right now is that up here north of the border, it costs more to post-upgrade the RAM to 2GB which means I have to put up with the several day delay on a BTO model. If anything, I wish I could downgrade the drive to an 80GB and wait for pricing to come down this year on the 160GB+ drives.

[fruntbut]

Me too, I'm so excited! I order the same as you, and it should be here tomorrow. Ordered it from B&H to save on tax. I really prefer the black one's appearance and feel, but just couldn't justify the extra cost. Besides, I think Apple is going to quit charging extra for black in the future. If that happens I'll just sell it and "upgrade". I agonized for weeks over which mac to get, which configuration and where to buy it... finally I just had to make a decision.

I've already bought a 160gb drive to swap out with the stock one. It was only $140 from Newegg. I'm going to give the 1gb of RAM a chance before upgrading it.

[walkerjs]

This is what's great about living 25 miles away from an Apple store. I walked in, grabbed a blackshirt, pointed at the mid-tier on a chart and said "please get me one of those, and throw in the AppleCare." 25 minutes later and I'm unpacking my new toy!

My wife thinks I'm insane with this thing, but going from a 1.25Ghz PPC Mini to this is like getting a....well, I'm not gonna say what I originally thought

[C.A.T.S. CEO]

Welcome to the world of MacBooks

[dixeyk]

I ordered mine from the bookstore at my college (its actually ordered online and delivered to the bookstore). I am close enough to a Mac store that I could walk in and get the same education price but I wanted 2gb RAM and if you buy it from the Mac store they charge for 2 1gb chips (it cimes standard with 2 512mb chips) if you buy online you don't get dinged for the RAM upgrade (saves about $150).

I got it yesterday and my only diappointment is that it has stuck pixel in the far upper left corner right next to the black mask above the blue apple (there is always something). Fortunately it is not particularly noticeable so I won't bother kicking up a fuss. Its not in the part of the screen that counts. I'll give it a massage and see if I can get rid of it, but I forget its there. It doesn't seem tot be permanently stuck it just seems to be out of synch sometimes with the rest of the screen.

Performance wise, it is a real pleasure to use. Its fast, the screen is very sharp and contrasty and the keyboard is big improvement over the ibook. I have a new base station on the way so I'll report back on the new faster wifi. Performance on Final Cut Express HD is great and Photoshop is very useable. In fact it is quite fast. It launches pretty slowly, ut once it is launched its pretty zippy.

About the only thing I plan to change is putting a larger HD in it. Its chesper to do it after the fact and the HD install (unlike the ibook) is easily done by the user.

All in all I am VERY pleased with it.

Kevin

[walkerjs]

Also I have to mention that this multiple monitor thing the Macbook is capable of is a very cool feature. The screen is good as it is, but I have a 21" CRT that I was using with the Mini, and it's great to not only still be able to use it, but to use it as an enhancement on the widescreen LCD. Currently I have it set so it's like a 19" vertical monitor with the external stacked over the LCD. If there's one thing I love more than speed, it's screen real estate.

[C.A.T.S. CEO]

Originally Posted by walkerjs 

Also I have to mention that this multiple monitor thing the Macbook is capable of is a very cool feature. The screen is good as it is, but I have a 21" CRT that I was using with the Mini, and it's great to not only still be able to use it, but to use it as an enhancement on the widescreen LCD. Currently I have it set so it's like a 19" vertical monitor with the external stacked over the LCD. If there's one thing I love more than speed, it's screen real estate.

Amen bother (13 +20)

[dixeyk]

Yeah, I agree that driving an external monitor is a big step up from the ibook. When I get some more dough together I may pop for a 20" Dell Ultrasharp LCD. We have a Cinema Display at the lab I work at and several Ultrasharps and while I think the Cinema Display is nicer its not so much nicer that I can over look how much cheaper the Dell is. That would make that stuck pixel less of a distrction as well.

Kevin

[Voch]

I'm driving my company's Dell 2001FP 20" LCD display right now over DVI from my MacBook and it runs wonderfully. I occasionally use the MacBook's LCD to watch DVDs and stuff while I work. The LCD also pivots so I can play rotated Donkey Kong in SDLMAME.

Voch

[frdmfghtr]

Originally Posted by dixeyk 

I got it yesterday and my only diappointment is that it has stuck pixel in the far upper left corner right next to the black mask above the blue apple (there is always something). Fortunately it is not particularly noticeable so I won't bother kicking up a fuss. Its not in the part of the screen that counts. I'll give it a massage and see if I can get rid of it, but I forget its there. It doesn't seem tot be permanently stuck it just seems to be out of synch sometimes with the rest of the screen.

I have a stuck pixel too...how do you "massage" it?

[dixeyk]

I found the pixel massage info on this page:

http://www.jscreenfix.com/

I tried their Java based solution but it didn't work. Massaging it didn't work either (although it does seem to be flickering now and again like it is trying to unstick). They mention on the website that massaging is a last resort that can also make things worse. I didn't have any luck massaging...maybe someone for whom it worked could give you any "techniques" they might have picked up in the process.

Kevin

[frdmfghtr]

I may try it out, if the single stuck pixel annoys me enough (which it realy doesn't)

And am I alone in thinking that giving my computer a massage is just a tad...creepy??

[walkerjs]

Originally Posted by frdmfghtr 

I may try it out, if the single stuck pixel annoys me enough (which it realy doesn't)

And am I alone in thinking that giving my computer a massage is just a tad...creepy??

Oh, I don't know, in the few days I've had my Macbook I like enough to give it a massage even without it having any stuck pixels.

[StickClicks]

I love posts like this, especially when they are fallowed up with pictures and such. Stuff like this is really helping my decision making process much easier. Congrats on the new computer, dixeyk, I can't wait to see some pictures!!!

[dixeyk]

I'll post pictures and full report over the weekend.

My capsule review

...the Macbook is a wonderful laptop and a huge improvement over the ibook. In fact having been a powerbook owner as well I think the macbook is ahuge improvement over the powerbook too. It is superb combination of speed, size and features. I don't see where the additional feature set of the Macbook Pro would be worth it for me. The bit of concern that many people seem to have about the Macbook (the integrated graphics) as not been a factor in my work and I do quite a lot of Photoshop, Final Cut as well as the standard productivity stuff. Even running apps in emulation under Rosetta hasn't been an issue.

My only caveat...get the maximum RAM and biggest HD you can afford.

More later.

Kevin

[legacyb4]

Grr, my order still hasn't shipped... all I asked for was the 2GB upgrade too!

[gorgesailor]

Thanks a lot for your posting Kevin! I am in the pre-buy boat right now (see my thread on x-plane), and I believe that the benefits of costs, size, and durability of the smaller MB as opposed to the MBPro are leading my decision past the benefits of dedicated graphics, slightly larger HD, and firewire 800.

Personally, I am looking at running a 24 inch Dell LCD, and a 500Gb external HD to compliment the MB, so I am going with the baseline 80 Gb HD to save on cost and increased RAM to 2 gigs. With the $900 that I will save on not going the Pro route, I can pick up both of these peripheral items.

So thanks for your posts - I am looking forward to hearing more about your discoveries and confirmed decisions on your MB!

Cheers,

GSailor

[dixeyk]

I have a 200mb external FW drive (that I probably need to clean off) for my Macbook and it works great. I also got the 80gb intenal to save some cash (I needed a new macro lens for my DSLR). I moved both he iPhoto and iTunes libraries to the external drive to save spce on the intenal HD. Just have to remember to hook up the external drive when I synch the ipod up. I agree that the price/performance ratio between the Macbook and the Macbook Pro is so close that its hard to justify the jump. For me the dedicated graphics card wasn't going to effect me in any significant way (in fact, I have been surprised at how little I have noticed it). The Macbook plays back video beautifully (HD included).

BTW, I dont see that missing FW800 is a real problem for most users. Last year I worked doing video editing for the university (usually commencement ceremonies and the like) and I didn't see any situation where the FW400 drives were inadequate to the task (and we had both FW400 and FW800 drives hooked up to dual G5 towers).

I don't know if that has gotten any coverage but I REALLY like the new keyboard on the Macbook. NIce feel!

Kevin

[gorgesailor]

Actually, that's another note that I'm really not impressed with on the MBPro - the keyboard. Firstly, big deal if it lights up, but secondly and more noticeably, the actual keys are incredibly cheap looking. The slanted side profile of the keys versus the MB's vertical block style keys feel as though they're going to snap off at any second!

I was in again to check them out this morning, and I actually caught my sleeve on the corner of the spacebar on the Pro and nearly tore it right off the computer! Therefore durability-wise, I would have to say that the MB looked like a better option.

For the longest time, I've been on the fence due the prospect that I would be using X-Plane on the laptop. After receiveing a personal response from the X-Plane tech department, I found out that the Pro is the only one of the two that can handle the graphics involved.

In thinking more and more about it, I've come to the conclusion that I'm going to keep my existing Dell tower case and Microsoft Flight Sim 2004 just for the purpose of running a flight simulator (plus, the girlfriend will still be using the Dell anyways for her own purposes now). So, I wouldn't be totally rid (unfortunately) of the PC anyways.

Thanks Kevin for your input on the FW400, as well as the info on external HD's.

Now my only venture after putting down the dough for a new white MB will now be finding a white 24" LCD.... does one exist? ahahahaa, there's always gotta be a quest for something you may never find!!

Cheers,

GSailor

[C.A.T.S. CEO]

Originally Posted by gorgesailor 

Now my only venture after putting down the dough for a new white MB will now be finding a white 24" LCD.... does one exist? ahahahaa, there's always gotta be a quest for something you may never find!!

Cheers,

GSailor

dell has one

[brokenjago]

So does Gateway.

[walkerjs]

Originally Posted by gorgesailor 

Now my only venture after putting down the dough for a new white MB will now be finding a white 24" LCD.... does one exist? ahahahaa, there's always gotta be a quest for something you may never find!!

Cheers,

GSailor

You know, I always though that a) Macs were too expensive and b) it's funny that people feel compelled to color match the accesories to fit their Mac.

Today, I have a white Macbook, white iPod video, and (while aftermarket) white headphones. I convinced my wife to buy a Macbook so today I came home with one that happens to be: black. And it matches her monitor, keyboard, black iPod video, and black Nano (though that was originally mine.)

Darn you Apple! You've made me into what I once shunned!

Well, actually I have a black wireless keyboard/mouse but that doesn't go out into public.

(BTW She loves it. I had to shut up about it and go play with my Macbook so she could explore in peace.)

[tomcr]

Do any of you have problems keeping your white macbooks clean? I'm thinking about picking up a white one myself pretty soon. I saw pics of of the early ones all dirty from basic use.

[gorgesailor]

They've fixed that problem apparently by changing the type of plastic that they're made of. I was in the same wonderment though, and I think I'll still get some Marware for it just in case...

[gorgesailor]

CATS CEO,

Would you happen to know the model number of the Dell 24" White monitor you mentioned? I'm having trouble finding it on their site.

Thanks,

GS

[C.A.T.S. CEO]

Originally Posted by gorgesailor 

CATS CEO,

Would you happen to know the model number of the Dell 24" White monitor you mentioned? I'm having trouble finding it on their site.

Thanks,

GS

Sorry, I didn't fully read your post. I thought you were looking for a 24" monitor and the color didn't matter.

[dixeyk]

I don't know that I would go so far as to color coordinate my equipment (althought I might consider a white monitor, I'd have to see it though. The Dell's look pretty chep in black and I'm afraid that white might just aggravate the problem). Anyway, I went with a black ipod so I've already botched the coordination .

As far as keeping the white macbook clean...I have had an original ibook SE (the toilet seat) that is mostly white, a G4 ibook that was a more cream color and now the macbook and I have never found them to get particularly dirty. I am not particulalrly fanatical about dirt either...I try not to spil stuff on them but otherwise its pretty normal use. I believe that computers are tools and designed to be used so I don't mind if they look worn...THEY ARE WORN.

Finally, I agree with Gsailor, I don't especially like the keyboard on the MBP. IMHO the keyboard felt kinda cheap considering the price of the machine. I prefer the macbook keyboard. In fact it reminds me a lot of the keyboard on the original ibook which I thought was one of the best keyboards I had ever used on a laptop.

As I promised I will be uploading images (later this evening).

Kevin