Got my self a MacBook… [Archive]

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alphaod

Feb 16, 2009, 07:47 PM

So I finally moved from a piece of shhh…

Yeah I never posted one of these, but I figured I'd do that now that I just bought a polycarbonate MacBook today. What can I say; I love this machine; it's pretty fast and it does what I need!

iknowyourider

Feb 16, 2009, 08:09 PM

:eek:Why didn't you do a simple MRoogle search? You already posted this a dozen times! Just Kidding.

Did you get the new 2.0?

claimed4all

Feb 16, 2009, 08:12 PM

Polycarbonate Rules!!!

You made a wise choice.

alphaod

Feb 16, 2009, 09:24 PM

Did you get the new 2.0?

Yeah; I was wanting to get a Mac mini for a while; then I said why bother; then I looked at the Marketplace and ebay for good deals; I couldn't justify spending $700 for a used machine. So I closed my eyes…

No seriously; yeah I needed a compact "desktop" so this is what I got. I didn't have a monitor for a Mac mini anyways. I'll probably give it to my mother when the PowerBook I gave her to learn with breaks.

This computer is kicking ass. And it's got Firewire. :D

claimed4all

Feb 16, 2009, 09:27 PM

This computer is kicking ass. And it's got Firewire. :D

Never thought firewire was a big deal, until I started using it for External Drives, it makes a world of difference speed wise, I see why there was an outcry for removing it.

alphaod

Feb 16, 2009, 09:57 PM

Never thought firewire was a big deal, until I started using it for External Drives, it makes a world of difference speed wise, I see why there was an outcry for removing it.

Had Apple kept Firewire in the aluminium MacBook, I may have considered it.

kabunaru

Feb 16, 2009, 10:06 PM

Good choice. Good job on the purchase.

Bob Loblaw

Feb 17, 2009, 08:33 AM

I just got my polycarbonate MacBook on Friday. My very first Mac! And now, of course, I'm completely addicted. I'm at work right now on my Windows XP office computer and I am miserable. I wish we had iMacs here.

GfulDedFan

Feb 17, 2009, 09:34 AM

I have the 1,1 Core Duo and wanting to upgrade to the new 2.0 NVidia equipped one but I just can't justify the purchase yet because mine runs so well and still has AppleCare. If it were to have some sort of accident though........:cool:

Congrats on yours and enjoy!

tubbymac

Feb 17, 2009, 09:37 AM

Grats on the purchase. The updated plasticbook with the nvidia card is probably Apple's most reasonably priced computer yet.

QCassidy352

Feb 17, 2009, 10:51 AM

alphaod

Feb 17, 2009, 01:20 PM

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5H11 Safari/525.20)

If only the white MacBook had the new trackpad it would be perfect.

Then it really wouldn't be worth $300 for just the unibody.

Now have a few gripes about this computer after using it for a full day:
1) Keyboard feels mushy and cheap; I was complaining about the chiclet keys before because these keys felt cheap; then they put it on the unibody machines and I thought I was wrong—now I'm sure these keys just suck.
2) Trackpad button is kind of unresponsive; don't care about multitouch since I've never used it in the first place; I like keyboard shortcuts.
3) View angles on the screen as just abysmal.
4) Edges are pretty sharp; people complained and I thought it was just people being silly and all; I don't even rest my wrist on the edges, but sometimes brushing against it hurts.

And then a few more issues probably just with this computer:
4) Battery doesn't sit flush; it's sticks out by about 1mm on the side where the coin-slot is.
5) Lid is definitely not even straight; forget the complaints about the lid sticking up on one side; this whole thing is shifted to the right my about 2mm—that's pretty bad I can feel the sharp edges when the computer is closed.

What I like:
1) Terrific battery life; I never knew the battery could last this long.
2) Powerful yet, modest; can take to class and around and people don't even look at me anymore; I like that.
3) Plays anything and everything I've thrown at it so far.
4) Very quiet, runs cools, and no funky noises.
5) I can finally use the computer lying down on the bed with the computer angled up!
6) It's ready for Open CL.
7) It's got Firewire!

Somethings I can't really complain about:
1) Comes with a good amount of RAM for most people; 2GB is enough for almost anything. I've had a few times I've needed more than 2GB, but just a few, so I don't see the need to upgrade. Maybe if the opportunity arises, I may buy more RAM.
2) I don't know how good or bad the stock HDD was because the first thing I did was swap out the HDD for a 250GB model I had lying around.
3) AC adapter is the same size as the 85W adapter and there are no markings that indicate the wattage on the adapter; now I have to check to make sure I bring the right adapter around.
4) I now have to spend like $200 on adapters: miniDisplayPort to VGA, to DVI, to DVI dual-link; miniDVI to VGA, to DVI; Firetruck this shhh.

Anyways, I love this machine otherwise and I'll probably keep it; well until my mother asks why I have 4 computers and then I'll have to give this one to her. :rolleyes:

uiop.

Feb 17, 2009, 02:16 PM

Congratz on the purchase. I can agree with the mushy keyboard feel...I used my sister's MacBook for a day and was surprised. I think as a whole, the computer is built cheaper than the MacBook Pro, rightfully so.

2) Powerful yet, modest; can take to class and around and people don't even look at me anymore; I like that.

Wait...so people looked at you because you had a MBP? Interesting. I wish it worked that way where I live. ;)

JamesGorman

Feb 17, 2009, 03:09 PM

GfulDedFan

Feb 17, 2009, 03:13 PM

3) AC adapter is the same size as the 85W adapter and there are no markings that indicate the wattage on the adapter; now I have to check to make sure I bring the right adapter around.

In the case of using the 85W with your MacBook, you're fine. It's just the other way... don't use the 65W with your MBP.

mknawabi

Feb 17, 2009, 03:14 PM

Is polycarbonate the new euphemism for plastic? ;)

JamesGorman

Feb 17, 2009, 03:17 PM

Is polycarbonate the new euphemism for plastic? ;)

I just like to sound smart:p

alphaod

Feb 17, 2009, 03:23 PM

Wait...so people looked at you because you had a MBP? Interesting. I wish it worked that way where I live. ;)

It's even worse when I travel; people give you that look.

Is polycarbonate the new euphemism for plastic? ;)

Polycarbonate is a specific type of plastic.

kabunaru

Feb 17, 2009, 03:25 PM

7) It's got Firewire!

For $300 less. :eek: How surprising! :D

Just had to put that there.

JamesGorman

Feb 17, 2009, 03:25 PM

excuse my stupid question lol, but what type of look are you all talking about?

mknawabi

Feb 17, 2009, 03:27 PM

Polycarbonate is a specific type of plastic.

I knew that... And your point is? ;)

dL.

Feb 17, 2009, 03:28 PM

Never thought firewire was a big deal, until I started using it for External Drives, it makes a world of difference speed wise, I see why there was an outcry for removing it.

Is Firewire really that much faster than USB 2.0? I thought the bottleneck of most external hard drive isn't in the transfer rate of the port itself but rather the rpm of the hard drive.

dL

dL.

Feb 17, 2009, 03:29 PM

congrats on the purchase. The mush feeling of the keyboard is exactly why i opted for the alu macbook, I just thought the build quality was much better than the polycarbonate whitebook, but hey, whatever you like. congrats again on buying the mac:)

I strongly agree. I'm just waiting for some alu Macbook refresh then I'm jumping on the alu boat. I don't care about FW as I've never used one myself.

dL

JamesGorman

Feb 17, 2009, 03:30 PM

Is Firewire really that much faster than USB 2.0? I thought the bottleneck of most external hard drive isn't in the transfer rate of the port itself but rather the rpm of the hard drive.

dL

I dont believe it is a whole whack faster, but i think it has more to do with the sustained transfer rates. USB fluctuates a lot more than firewire would.

alphaod

Feb 17, 2009, 05:29 PM

I knew that... And your point is? ;)

Just stating the facts; not sure if you knew or not; I can't detect sarcasm in your questions.

JamesGorman

Feb 17, 2009, 07:58 PM

I strongly agree. I'm just waiting for some alu Macbook refresh then I'm jumping on the alu boat. I don't care about FW as I've never used one myself.

dL

honestly id go by the macbook now, theres no telling how long itll be for updates since its pretty new, and the computers themselves are great right now. Out of all the problems ive read about on here i have not experienced one. I had to have my HDD replaced but i think that might have been my fault partly lol. But other than that these machines are great, and i advise against waiting.

alphaod

Feb 18, 2009, 12:26 AM

The waiting game is a game you can't win. Something better is always coming.

zorahk

Feb 18, 2009, 12:34 AM

I agree that the whitebook has a crap keyboard.

I used to use one for a few months. I then bought the MBP in my sig, which has a very nice keyboard. It's still chicklet, but the keys have a nice springy feel which is kinda like my old logitech keyboard (G-15). Very tactile. I would pay 2500bucks just for this keyboard if I had to do it all over again. So nice to type on.

alphaod

Feb 18, 2009, 12:48 AM