Macbook

Hi Eagle,

The concensus seems to be that it's not that much of a performance boost to get the extra 0.4 GHz. The main deciding factors should be the backlit keyboard and the larger stock HDD. And considering that you can replace the HDD yourself at a later point in time, that shouldn't be much of an issue. It seems like you'll be using the computer mostly in the daylight(?) so backlighting wouldn't be that important I guess.

2 GB RAM is more than enough for normal tasks. Depending on what you'll be doing with your computer, you should be just fine with 2 GB. Also, as with the HDD, the RAM is user replaceable. You can upgrade at any time if you choose so later (and RAM prices might just drop by then).

AppleCare is DEFINITELY worth it. After a year, Apple won't help you if anything should go wrong with your system. Some prefer to wait till their year is almost up before purchasing AppleCare (if you want to get rid of your computer before then, you won't have wasted money on AppleCare), but I say if you know you're keeping it to get it right away.

I haven't had much issues with reflections, but considering you'll be using it near a window, it might be an issue. There are some companies that make anti-glare screen protectors for the MacBook (Power Support is the only one I know of off the top of my head) so you could try and look into something like that.

Welcome to the Mac world (assuming this is your first one) and hope you have a great time with the switch! Check out the guides on MR as well as Apple's site. There are some great tutorial vids on there and a support forum for any questions you may have.

I just bought a 2.4 new MBA and love it, its really fast. I went ahead and got the applecare after hearing so many say to get it. Hopefully it'llpay for itself in the future, but of course i'd rather not have anything break.

the extra .4ghz doesn't do much
osx lep. can run on 512mb ram
apple care is worth it
the display gets bright enough so you can't see a reflection

Go for the 2.4 its well worth the extra.........

i dont personally have the funds for the .4 extra or backlit keyboard

i think i can live with the 2.0 upgrade to 4gb RAM and then also get a 7200rpm 500gb Seagate hdd whenever it comes out..

but im worried about the backlight
in the dark.. is the screen bright enough to illuminate the keyboard just enough...
since ill be out djing (very very light) at parties it will be dark..i wanna know if it will be bright enough

I think the extra .4 is well worth it. The backlit keyboard, larger hard disk and more power just makes your computer that little bit more up with it. I think that you are better off getting the better machine and foregoing the apple care in the mean time. Then if your fiscal position changes, you can get the apple care.

You can get apple care later, but you certainly can't get the backlit keyboard, or faster processor later on. The ram can be done later on, but if you want to run boot camp, definitely get the extra ram.

The screen is very glossy. The shadow cast by your body should get rid of most of the ambient light from outside (I'm trialing this at the moment). If you put the brightness right up, you can eliminate most issues with glare.