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

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)

As a PC user for years I cannot believe it has taken me so long to get my first mac. I have had it for four months now and i am still continually impressed by it. It's simplicity to use is incredible and the operating system seems immense. Even my parents would look professional on one. I have a lot a photos and the macbook is a delight when sorting through them.

I could go on all day about how good I think the macbook is. Of course there are flaws, (although i've only read about them and not encountered any) and the cost is higher than other brand, 'better specced' laptops. But that's apple. It's a premium brand and it seems you've got to pay for it. It's an individual choice whether you think the price is worth paying and personally I do. To pay for something and then complain about missing items/ports/price seems ridiculous as you know what you're getting, what your spec is and how much it costs before you part with your cash! I'd probably just recommend better decision making.

So if you're thinking about getting a mac, do it! I can't say i know anyone personally who has bought a mac and hasn't gone on to preach how much better they are than a PC. It makes using a computer enjoyable.

On receipt of my new shiny mac i have to say that its an absolute delight. From the moment you open the box its simple clean and straight forward to start using.

I have owned various Laptops of varying brands all running some kind of microsoft software, and start to endure the long loading times and waiting, its a real bore. I decided to take the leap and move over to Mac and i can honestly say i will not look back.

Its fantastic to have all of the software pre installed, it even came with a fully charged battery, i had to install ilife09 but that took all of 2 minutes and again simple and easy to do.

To be fair though i must report one problem i have had, after about 4 weeks the Optical disc drive broke and wouldnt read discs and kept on spitting them out.
I reported the problem over the phone to apple and after some initial over the phone diagnostic checks apple promptly told me where my nearest authorised dealer was and offered to REPLACE NOT FIX!, the drive immediately.
The service was speedy and second to none,

living with the mac has been a joy, i have had no problems with software compatibility and i can connect all of my periferals no problems, i have purchased office for mac 09, but that is only because of work compatibilty, otherwise im sure that iwork would be absolutelly no probs,

all in all im chuffed and wont ever buy a windows based laptop/desktop again.

After 15 years of PC use this has been a true delight to use over the past 18 months. It's intuitive, simple and much more hard wearing than the equivalent PC. Yes it's expensive, but it's worth the cost many times over.

Highly recommended (or the latest version is at least!)

Plus you can get a student discount on Apple's website - so it then becomes reasonably affordable.