Apple MacBook MC207LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION)

I made this video to hopefully add a little more life to the product.

Snow Leopard adds a lot more than I thought.

This is a great computer if you want to play with pics, surf the web, mess with your music collection.

This is not the Mac if you want serious processing power of lots of inputs to create a home network.

Look to a MacBook Pro or iMac for that.

I would have given it 5 stars if it had more inputs.

This is a pricy computer already, now I have to spend more to get adaptors.

I wish it was still available in black or you could opt for the non-glaze display.

I hope you enjoy the video, I had fun making it.

I had intended to purchase my mother a Macbook for some time now. I wobbled between the several models I considered. However, Apple's late October 2009 update to the white polycarbonate MacBook made the decision much easier.

Reasons for my Decision With this update to the 13-inch white MacBook, Apple gave its entry-notebook impressive numbers. The processor a 2.26 GHZ Core 2 Duo is the same processor found in the 13-inch MacBook Pro. 2GB of memory? Same as the Pro. Nvidia 9400 Graphics, Same as the Pro. Hard drive? 250 GB, bigger than the MacBook Pro (it has 160GB only).

Yes, considering the larger hard drive, 250 versus 160, this white MacBook actually gives you a higher specification computer in some regards than the $200 more expensive MacBook Pro 13-inch. Remember this updated white MacBook also now incorporates the unibody under its polycarbonate shell. The unibody provides strength, and I must say this notebook is very solid. Furthermore, Apple has incorporated a long-life battery! The only downside is Apple must replace it, though it has a longer life cycle. In terms of performance, my mother reported to me simple usage of nearly six hours on a charge. Impressive. Blows away my older Mac notebook's battery.

Yes, this white MacBook does lack the remote control sensor, Firewire Port, and backlit keyboard that the MacBook Pro would offer, but my mother would likely not use those features and she had an affinity towards the white polycarbonate. The white does look nice, but handle and place it on surfaces very carefully as it will show light scratches easily.

The bottom of the MacBook is a bit strange. It is a rubber seal so to speak like what is found on the bottom of Airport Extreme and Apple TV. I'm not certain I like that choice by Apple. The material does pick up dirt easily. I would recommend wiping off whatever surface you are going to sit the computer on, to remove light dust, if you worry about the computer's appearance.

Overall, I was looking to find a quality Mac, for my mother. I didn't want to compromise performance, and I feel I didn't despite choosing this entry-level MacBook. Truly, with its stats, it can hardly be called entry level. My daily Mac is only slightly faster. These computers are getting faster and faster, and they impress me. Snow Leopard is great, and my mother is enjoying iPhoto and iMovie, all included with the computer.

The price to value of this MacBook is remarkable. At two hundred less than the MacBook Pro you get the same speed and memory, plus a larger hard drive. You can't argue with that. I didn't, and the MacBook has impressed.

Buy Apple MacBook MC207LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop (OLD VERSION) Now

Since Windows 95 I have been a PC user, I have been through 95, 98, 98se, millennium, xp and vista and I have had enough. I've been through 3 PC laptops in 4 years and only one of those didn't have fatal hardware failures or viruses. I used Mac's briefly in 99' and didn't understand them at all and have shunned them ever since. Finally after my last laptops motherboard started failing I decided it was time to take the leap to a Mac. The main reason I did this was because I've heard so many good things about them and I have had two iPhones and wanted to continue with Apple products. I waited for the new models to come out first before I got one because I have a habit of always wanting to get the new gizmos. Price is a little higher than what I'm used to but you get what you pay for. It was a little tough getting used to the OS right off the back, as a Windows user this is like going to a foreign country and trying to talk to someone there. I've had it for almost a 2 1/2 weeks now and so far I couldn't be happier. There are very few flaws that I have found, the edge of the laptop is too "sharp" and I get lines on my wrists but my typing teacher would yell at me anyway for that. Performance wise this thing flies! I thought about getting the Macbook pro but could not justify spending more money and getting the same/lower specs (i.e. 160gb hard-drive in the pro, 250gb in the macbook, same processor, same graphics, same RAM, same battery). I can live without the SD slot, simple USB adaptor can fix that, no need for firewire and I don't type in the dark so I can do without the backlight keyboard. At this rate I don't see myself going back to PC anytime soon!

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This is my 4th Apple laptop (PB150, White iBook, MacBookPro Alumnium). All personally owned. I've also been a user of many PC laptops for work. Our last 2 Mac Laptops have been our sole home computer when we've owned them. Getting probably 6 hours of daily average use.

I have to say that this new unibody MacBook is by far, my favorite laptop I've ever owned and used.

We've been using it for a month now with the same rate of usage. Maybe more because of the holidays.

It has some slight imperfections.

1. I wish it still had composite TV out, but when I become the last person on earth to finally upgrade to HDTV, it will be ready (3rd party HDMI/video out cables are cheap).

2. The edge of where your arms go needs to be rounded because it slightly slices into your wrists. (I haven't filed it down yet, but will...)

3. And sure, target mode in firewire would be nice. But, it's rarely needed ($15 for a shell and a disassembly gets you to the harddrive in the disasterous event your system is so fried you can't get a network hookup going).

4. An SD slot would be nice too. But, everything I have a card in is USB anyway, and I already have card readers for when I don't (or my devices connect directly anyway).

5. It's more expensive than Windows laptops. But, at under $1000 ($850 if you're smart with rebates and deals) the MacBook makes buying a Mac almost equivalent to a nicer Windows laptop. Almost. Well, it's at least not embarrassing to admit anymore.

But, that's it with the negatives.

It's slim and sleek. The unibody means no flex when I hold the corner with one hand (RIP 2.5 year old G3 iBook with graphic chip recall). The plastic means no permanent deformation when I drop it from 4 feet (RIP 2.5 year old MacBookPro with a slow overheating death near the corner I dropped it on.) The battery life is impressive. (RIP every PC laptop I've ever used within 6 months.)

The white keys mean keyboard lighting is not such a big deal. The glossy screen is not really that glossy. The screen is bright and sparkly. The processor is speedy. (I run Windows on it just fine.)

The 250 gig HD is big enough (I'd need a few terrabytes to hold all my media anyway.) 250G is enough to simply expose the low end MacBook Pro for what it is Apple's cynical attempt to milk money out of folks.

The mousepad is just wonderful. Takes a day or two to get used to not having a "button", but it's simply wonderful after that. Two fingers for a right mouse click and for scrolling. I zoom in and out of dual browsing sessions with the pinch like I never expected to do. And it's CENTERED in front of the screen. I don't know what Windows design idiots decided to stop centering their mousepads and keyboards and to give them tiny recessed buttons, but I refuse to personally purchase a lopsided laptop where you have to flop 4 inches off one leg just to type and where your thumb is rigidly fixed to an ergonmically challened button. The keyboard is equally well designed and easy on the fingers for this touch typist.

And, 2 of my Apple pet peeves have been fixed: the latchless lid is perfectly designed, and, there's no feet to get rubbed off the bottom anymore.

Oh, and it's light. Not MacBook Air light. But, surprisingly light and thin. I carry a 17" Windows machine for work. Yet, the 13" screen rarely feels restrictive. And, its performance blows away the MacBook Air. Try running full screen video off of YouTube on a MacBook Air. It can't do it. This MacBook has the juice to display without stuttering.

Plus, importing the old data from my old MacBookPro was seamless. Import and done. Just a few apps that needed to be upgraded for 64 bit and Snow Leopard. No crap on the desktop to remove like a new Windows computer. No annoying security messages. No virus worries. Basically, ZERO "Windows" worries. (Yes, I've got XP running on VM ware fusion and Vista on Boot Camp for certain games. So, I know of what I speak... Yes, I'm a masochist.)

And finally, it's MacOSX. I'm the kind of guy that has people coming to me for tech help at work, asking for recommendations "for a new PC cause their old one has a virus". They need help reinstalling windows. They have driver issues. They have reps from foreign countries advising to "recover" their systems (which means wiping the entire Harddrive). They have trojans running wild. They are always confused and frustrated. The only ones who don't have problems are the ones who are too scared to do anything with their computers. Or, who are technically savvy enough to navigate the waters. Who like the complication.

The annoying things people have come to accept from Windows computing astound me. As a daily user of both OS's for decades, I always breathe a small sigh of relief when I get back to my Mac.

MacOSX is wonderful. It rarely frustrates. (Just scan down the list of Amazon's laptop best sellers, and see the average stars for Mac machines vs. Windows machines. Clearly, there is a difference in quality and ease of use that justifies the difference in cost.)

So, this review is much longer than I intended. But, after reading the initial reviews a month ago -of Mac zealots who hadn't purchased one who were whining about "no firewire" -of clean freaks who worried about microscopic scratches (barely a blemish on ours in this household with 3 cats, a dog, and 3 and 6 year old kids), I just had to put my 2 cents in. This is, in my opinion, the best laptop Apple has released.

Why? Because it is inexpensive (for a Mac) and does everything you need it to do.

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Pros:

Unibody enclosure

Same battery as the MacBook Pro

Same graphics and processor (low end) of 13" MBP

Glass multi-touch trackpad

250GB Hard Drive (bigger than entry level MBP)

DDR3 RAM

LED Backlit Display

SuperDrive

New AC Adapter (I just like it better. Basically the same as a MB Air's)

Snow Leopard

Price

Cons:

No backlit keyboard

Bezel around the display isn't as "refined" and the edge to edge glass on the MBP

No Firewire. Isn't that big for current products as most things are going USB, but legacy items and high transfer rates of Firewire 800 or sustained throughput of 400 would have been nice.

Battery is non-removable. Again, could be a big deal for some.

"Non-slip" bottom is rather slippery and tends to gather crud easily, but then again, it's easy to wipe clean

While I would surely say that the new case is more pro than con (looks better, doesn't get dirty as easily, fingerprints rub right off) that high gloss is rather easy to scratch.

Finally, this is more neutral than con, I would have liked to have seen a $50 price drop, putting this machine for students and educators, who make up a sizable chunk of Apple's target demographic, at $899. With everything that has changed on this machine, I can see why it didn't happen.

Overall, I would say that this is an very solid machine. For those looking for the "best overall value" in the notebook line, I say that it would be a toss up for me between this guy and the 2.53 MBP. For most users, this is more than enough machine and would be my pick for them. With the overall features, value, and redesigned exterior (and interior), this is really a great machine.