Home > Consumer Reviews > MacBook 13.3" 2.0GHz/2GB/160GB/GeForce 9400M/SuperDrive

Excellent,can play most recent games.installed XP w/o any integrity problem.All drivers were supplied by Manufacturer

Firstly I need to get this out in the open, I am a PC head, I have a high end PC for games and a Laptop for Work, I was gradually being forced away from my home PC by the kids and didn't want to use the work laptop for surfing as it was a work laptop and didn't want to be reminded of work every time I switched it on in the evening or at the weekend.

So I had some choices to make, Another Laptop, a Netbook or a Macbook.

Issues with a Netbook were too limited and generally to small.
Issues with a Laptop, no real upgrade path and too much like work

I went with the Macbook, didn't need high end but didn't want low spec either, I appreciate the upgrade option was limited once bought but have just upgraded to 4gb memory for under £60 to give it a bit of a boost. all the other options didn't really matter as I didn't need them.

Other advantages were the ilife software, it looked good and the iphoto face set up seemed like a good challenge and would work as a diversion from life/work. Amazon delivered nice and quick, and set up was a doddle, I imported all my photo's and I tunes in under 2 hours from first switch on and have been playing quite happily since.

Now the big questions,

Q, Am I a Mac/Pc hater
A, No, never had a problem with XP/Vista or Mac that wasn't resolvable and they all work

Q, Am I just attempting to justify the cost
A, No, but would probably would have had to if I had gone to a pro or a faster processor

Q, Would I recommend it
A, Depends on what you want, if you want it for music, photo's, surfing and general play Yes. heavy games play, probably not. For video editing or high end graphics go bigger on processor and screen, get a pro.

Q, Am I an Apple convert
A, No, but it is a welcome addition to my home network.

Lastly and most importantly I have to apply the ultimate gadget test to this, if I dropped it and it broke, would I buy a replacement or look again for something better?

I would absolutely buy another same spec, job done.

Hope it helps.

Just upgraded to Mac from PC. Used to have a Mac 1999-2002, but then used Windows XP for the last six years.

Overall, this is a great little computer. Yes, it is overpriced for what it delivers. But I agree with the other reviewer, this is more like a small BMW. If you want the same 'specs' for less money, go and buy a Vauxhall (ie Dell).

Pros:
- Love the aluminum casing, just great
- The trackpad is pure genius, best I have ever used
- The keyboard is the best I have ever used, too. Simply amazing
- The screen is very bright. It is a reflective screen (not a problem for me), but the quality is just great.
- Overall, it has all the connectors that I need and the are all well placed. I can easily access memory and the hard drive for later upgrades, good stuff. Be aware that this model does not have a Fire Wire port, nor does it have any opening for external cards (I don't need either of these)
- Mac OS 10.5 is a very nice operating system. The Time Machine backup is pure genius. It obviously has a few little things that are broken (like the zoom button - I won't bore you with the details) but this is all very minor stuff
- Best of all: Mac OS X fully supports the right mouse button. Big improvement over Mac OS 9

Cons:
- Pricey
- No Delete button, Control button is not in the bottom left hand corner (why?!)
- It is missing the backlit keys that its larger brother brother has

Overall, I am very pleased with this computer. In hindsight, I should have bought the slightly more expensive model as that has backlit keys. BUT: Come on Steve Jobs, this computer is expensive enough, clearly you should have been able to give us the nicer keys, too?

My score: 4 out of 5 (a cheaper version with backlit keys would have gotten a 5 out of 5)

I received my Macbook four days ago, and it has been a pleasure to set up and use. It's expensive but you get what you pay for. Particularly impressive is the operating system and bundled software - intuitive and easy to use. The system is fast, battery life good, build solid, screen spectacular, looks stunning and takes less than a minute from turning on to browsing the web. My other half was sceptical of paying this much for a laptop but is now completely won over.

1. The listing is incorrect. The 'cheap', £949 version hasn't got back-lit keyboard. I just received mine :(
2. Nor it has firewire, an Apple development. Should I throw my Mini-DV camcorder away or my external hard drive? Or should I just delete iMovie? Who wants fun, when you can install MS Windows XP?!
3. Er... actually, there is a global economic meltdown, Mr Jobs... You cannot be serious asking more for not a lot more (or even less, see above)!
4. The screen makes me blind. It is extremely glossy and positioning can be awkward, especially outside or indoors with the lights on. Anywhere else should be fine! BUT: the LED screen is good with colour and kind to the battery!
5. Is it the aluminium case or the fairly average specs, but the wifi is not better than my late-2006 C2D 'Crackbook', lacking the 'n' technology. By the way, that MacBook was also 2GHz, 2GB, with Superdrive for a lot less! Two years ago!
6. No remote control? Again, two years ago...
7. The hard drive is now more accessible, as it was with the battery and the memory. It is fairly future-proof as it's DIY-friendly.
8. No DVI port, (nor VGA), just a 'Mini Display Port'. Apperantly, sophisticated, but the adapter will cost you dear!
9. Welcome the upgraded processor! From 2.1 GHz to... wait... 2(!) GHz! To be fair to Apple, the DDR3 RAM and the faster front-side bus means that it is slightly faster in reality.
10. The videocard - although, still integrated - is a huge improvement. Maybe not for Call of Duty 4, but even Age of Empires III run well on my white one with a far inferior card. The new one should be OK with Doom 3.
11. The appearance is a tricky matter. The laptop looks like a 3-4 years old one from Sony or Fujitsu-Siemens (my girlfriend just ordered a Pro on the same ground), but it has upmarket feel. It is also very solidly built with very pleasant surfaces, thankfully to the new manufacturing process.
12. The sound volume has been improved. BBC iPlayer is a good test ground for it, now I can actually hear Dimbleby!
13. It is lighter, than the old one, but not a lot (around 10%), so do not confuse it with the MacBook Air!
14. The trackpad is so good, I would find it hard to downgrade from this one. You can set up double-tapping, left and right click, if you want, so do not be put off by the new arrangement.
15. And finally, this computer ships with the most reliable, fastest, most visually pleasing OS on the (mainstream) market. So you know, why Apple UK wants so much from your pocket. There is no Sony Vaio running OS X, sorry!

In summary, this is a nice computer and does what most consumers would want from it, without great problems. However, the one, sporting 2.4 GHz is not much more expensive. In fact, the extra features on that one make the premium worth paying. THE PROBLEM IS THE STARTING PRICE! AT £949, THIS COMPUTER IS BADLY OVERPRICED and I hope that Apple won't get away with it this time. I didn't want a MacBook Pro Mini - I only need a new MacBook and I don't see, why I should pay such premium. After all, the new manufacturing process will reduce costs for Apple and the video card might be an overkill in an entry-level machine. Thank you for reading and I hope that this list helped you making a better decision.