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Decided on getting the first Unibody MacBook, now what?

SkippyThorson

SkippyThorson

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Jul 22, 2007
1,723
1,054
Utica, NY
So a while ago, I put up a thread about deciding between a BlackBook and Rev A MacBook Air. For a little more money, the unibody MacBook is looking more and more appealing, and I think my mind is made up.

I'm looking to get the first unibody MacBook, with the following:
  • 2.4ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
  • 2gb of Ram (or more)
  • 250gb hard drive (or more)
  • Illuminated keyboard
  • Removable battery

The features that have attracted me to this model most are the unibody (obviously:)), the illuminated keyboard, and the removable battery. For a little more than the price of a BlackBook, I think this will serve me very well.

I'm trying to be patient on eBay, but I'm an impatient person. :p I just let one go that I think I shouldn't have at $750, and that's the ideal price I'm looking to get, but the added bonus would be that I would like it to have a little warranty left. Some will still have the extended care going to at least Fall 2011.

Is there any other place besides eBay I should be looking? Sure, I could go get a refurbished MacBook Pro, but that's out of my price range. I'm a tight wad. Any suggestions for buying a good used Mac? All the ones I have I just fell into because they were readily available. The aluminum unibody MacBook is a little more rare.

Any tips, or any comments at all?
 
umm im not 100% sure but the macbook specs you are looking may not exist (again not sure if this is an older gen. model)

however the MBP has what you are looking for so :)
 
You should mention exactly which Macbook you are planning to buy, because I'm thinking your looking at the current white Macbook (it has the same specs).

Don't forget to check the refurbished online store as the computers will look/perform as new, and come with a 1-year warranty (which can be extended).
 
SkippyThorson said:
I'm looking to get the first unibody MacBook, with the following:
  • 2.4ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
  • 2gb of Ram (or more)
  • 250gb hard drive (or more)
  • Illuminated keyboard
  • Removable battery

/

The aluminum unibody MacBook is a little more rare.
Click to expand...

People saying they don't know which MacBook I'm talking about, could you read the whole comment please? This is one thing that irks me.

Could I be more specific? There are no more details I could list. Not to mention, if I've decided on a laptop with those specs, it obviously exists. :rolleyes:

Anyway, I'll look at the site that was mentioned.
 
SkippyThorson said:
People saying they don't know which MacBook I'm talking about, could you read the whole comment please? This is one thing that irks me.

Could I be more specific? There are no more details I could list. Not to mention, if I've decided on a laptop with those specs, it obviously exists. :rolleyes:

Anyway, I'll look at the site that was mentioned.
Click to expand...

you can definitely be more specific. like saying which revision you are looking at. for example, you say the first unibody macbook, this is the late 2009 revision. it came with a 2.26ghz processor. the specs you list mention a 2.4ghz processor, which is the current specs of the mid-2010 macbook.

not that it really matters if they have the item you desire and are willing to sell it to you at a price you find acceptable.
 
so is he looking for a macbook pro? i thought that only the pros offer the illuminated keyboard..
 
OK, so a 2+ year old used unibody Macbook for $750? I say why not get a BRAND NEW (or refurb from Apple) current model unibody Macbook (plastic one, sorry) for $799? I know it doesn't have the aluminum unibody or the backlit keyboard, but its NEW, not two years old. Just my opinion... take it or leave it, lol. :D
 
Not looking for a "Pro"

melchior said:
you say the first unibody macbook, this is the late 2009 revision. it came with a 2.26ghz processor. the specs you list mention a 2.4ghz processor, which is the current specs of the mid-2010 macbook.
Click to expand...

While you are sort of correct, those are the also the specs of the last MacBook in 2008, not 2009 (before the Pro moniker) that was made. There were MacBooks that were not "Pros" that were also aluminum unibodies.

The one thing about talking about MacBooks is, when you just say "MacBook", people go nuts. It's like saying you want an iPod. Ok, which iPod?

Well, when I refer to the basic MacBook, I can't call it anything else. That's what irritates me. It's not an Air, or a Pro or a Basic, etc. It's just a plain ol' MacBook. Getting that across, with Apple's naming convention, isn't easy. The only thing I didn't say is the year; 2008. I can't narrow it down any more. :p

MacbookAlum1536 said:
What he is looking at is a late 2008 Unibody 2.4 GHz MacBook CE which was the first Unibody MacBook that Apple made and was released at the Back to the Notebook event on October 14th alongside the 15in Unibody MacBook Pro and 24in Cinema Display. It was placed in the MacBook Pro category in 2009 and the Whitebook was updated.
Link: https://www.macrumors.com/2008/10/14/apple-announces-new-aluminum-macbooks/
Click to expand...

Thank you. Thank you so much.

shyam09 said:
so is he looking for a macbook pro? i thought that only the pros offer the illuminated keyboard..
Click to expand...

Nope. As stated, I know what I'm looking for, because I've been hunting for the right one for a month. There was one "MacBook" with an illuminated keyboard.

js81 said:
OK, so a 2+ year old used unibody Macbook for $750? I say why not get a BRAND NEW (or refurb from Apple) current model unibody Macbook (plastic one, sorry) for $799? I know it doesn't have the aluminum unibody or the backlit keyboard, but its NEW, not two years old. Just my opinion... take it or leave it, lol. :D
Click to expand...

Your opinion is one I've considered a lot, but the basic white MacBook leaves a lot out for me. The main big features (that I could never change) are not there. (Illuminated keyboard, aluminum, easily accessible battery.)

While it's new, I wouldn't be happy with it. By that logic, I play a similar trick on my friends.

If you're spending $750 on an old MacBook, get a new white one?
If you're spending $800 on a new white one, why not upgrade to a Pro?
If you're spending $1,199 on a MacBook Pro, why not get a bigger screen?

Before you know it, I'm buying a $26,000 Mac Pro with 4 cinema displays and 16TB of storage. The upgrading (price and product) have to stop somewhere. :p Unfortunately.
 
I paid $1099 for a refurbished one in June 2009, the week after it was discontinued. As far as I'm concerned, it was the best MacBook ever produced since it was basically a MacBook Pro, only missing Firewire. It still serves me well for recording and editing video of my class lectures, running CAD software in Windows under Parallels, and doing Photoshop and Aperture processing on vacations.
 
SkippyThorson said:
So a while ago, I put up a thread about deciding between a BlackBook and Rev A MacBook Air. For a little more money, the unibody MacBook is looking more and more appealing, and I think my mind is made up.

I'm looking to get the first unibody MacBook, with the following:
  • 2.4ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
  • 2gb of Ram (or more)
  • 250gb hard drive (or more)
  • Illuminated keyboard
  • Removable battery

The features that have attracted me to this model most are the unibody (obviously:)), the illuminated keyboard, and the removable battery. For a little more than the price of a BlackBook, I think this will serve me very well.

I'm trying to be patient on eBay, but I'm an impatient person. :p I just let one go that I think I shouldn't have at $750, and that's the ideal price I'm looking to get, but the added bonus would be that I would like it to have a little warranty left. Some will still have the extended care going to at least Fall 2011.

Is there any other place besides eBay I should be looking? Sure, I could go get a refurbished MacBook Pro, but that's out of my price range. I'm a tight wad. Any suggestions for buying a good used Mac? All the ones I have I just fell into because they were readily available. The aluminum unibody MacBook is a little more rare.

Any tips, or any comments at all?
Click to expand...

Save your money and buy a refurbished Macbook Pro.

The LCD on the unibody Macbooks were absolutely terrible. (I would know, I had the highend alu unibody, same one you are going to buy).. search for the history on the forums of the complaints and screen comparisons.

Otherwise, the machine is a good computer. You might not think the LCD matters that much - but after the first week of "OMG I HAVE A MACBOOK ITS THE BEST THING EVER!" you will realize "Holy **** this screen sucks" and want to sell it.
 
troy14 said:
Save your money and buy a refurbished Macbook Pro.

The LCD on the unibody Macbooks were absolutely terrible. (I would know, I had the highend alu unibody, same one you are going to buy).. search for the history on the forums of the complaints and screen comparisons.

Otherwise, the machine is a good computer. You might not think the LCD matters that much - but after the first week of "OMG I HAVE A MACBOOK ITS THE BEST THING EVER!" you will realize "Holy **** this screen sucks" and want to sell it.
Click to expand...

It depends. There were some that were bad and there were some that were decent. Luckily I got one of the nicer ones.

I love that mine is before it was a pro, it's less dime a dozen. However, it wouldn't be a bad idea to grab an original 13" pro with the 2.26 processor. Only downside is that it doesn't have the easy access battery that you want.
 
Last edited:
troy14 said:
Save your money and buy a refurbished Macbook Pro.

The LCD on the unibody Macbooks were absolutely terrible. (I would know, I had the highend alu unibody, same one you are going to buy).. search for the history on the forums of the complaints and screen comparisons.

Otherwise, the machine is a good computer. You might not think the LCD matters that much - but after the first week of "OMG I HAVE A MACBOOK ITS THE BEST THING EVER!" you will realize "Holy **** this screen sucks" and want to sell it.
Click to expand...

Realllyyyyy... Can you give a quick blurb about what the issue was? Was the screen just a low resolution or was it actually prone to damage? I hadn't heard about that.

If it was just a low quality screen, the only screens I ever use are a 1024x768 12" iBook and 15" iMac G4, and whatever resolution the 17" G4 was. I'm not a stickler for HD-like anything.

The 13" Pro that's next in line is another one I've been looking at. I COULD deal with the sealed battery, but the closest Apple store is an hour away, and I wouldn't want to go without my laptop if it has to be sent in or something when it comes time for the battery to be swapped. At least I'd still have my main computer here should I have a user-removable battery.

Perdification said:
Just don't get the Rev A MBA. It seriously can't do a single thing.
Click to expand...

Yeah, trust me, I got off that high. I need my laptop to function. :p

I'll have to look into cowboom. Never heard of them either. Thanks!
 
Last edited:
troy14 said:
The LCD on the unibody Macbooks were absolutely terrible. (I would know, I had the highend alu unibody, same one you are going to buy).. search for the history on the forums of the complaints and screen comparisons.
Click to expand...

The 13" MacBook Pros do have a much better display, but I can't tell a difference (other than the glass) between my Aluminum MacBook and a year older white MacBook we also have. At any rate they are all TN displays and will never be great.
 
i know you are looking for the old original macbook (the first unibody one).. and i know you've played out the logic and all.
but here is a great deal:
microcenter.com (only if you have one nearby) is having the MBP for $999 and thats like the lowest it has gotten i believe (and this is the current gen too)

so if you are interested yay! if not..i'll do a little more research later on today :)

EDIT: THIS IS A BRAND NEW MODEL ( the lowest for a brand new model.. no open box, etc)
 
talmy said:
The 13" MacBook Pros do have a much better display, but I can't tell a difference (other than the glass) between my Aluminum MacBook and a year older white MacBook we also have. At any rate they are all TN displays and will never be great.
Click to expand...

That's what I figured. I've gotten the opportunity to get my hands on almost every laptop Apple's had after the iBooks except the new Air, and sure, they've gotten clearer since then, but as far as the glass screens go, they all look just as nice to me. Like I said, I'm used to 1024x768, and I find that nice enough. :)

shyam09 said:
i know you are looking for the old original macbook (the first unibody one).. and i know you've played out the logic and all.
but here is a great deal:
microcenter.com (only if you have one nearby) is having the MBP for $999 and thats like the lowest it has gotten i believe (and this is the current gen too)

so if you are interested yay! if not..i'll do a little more research later on today :)

EDIT: THIS IS A BRAND NEW MODEL ( the lowest for a brand new model.. no open box, etc)
Click to expand...

Hmm. You know, the more I think about it, I really want this laptop, but another question weighs heavy. Should I just wait until the end of next Summer, get a MacBook Pro at $1,199?

It would go like this:
$1,199 MacBook Pro ____________________ ~ Total: $1,199 :eek:
$249 AppleCare ________________________ + Total: $1,448 :mad:
$200 iPod Touch that I'd sell ______________ - Total: $1,248 :(
$100 HP Printer I'd also sell _______________ - Total: $1,148 :eek:
$100 education Rebate (Finishing College) ___ - Total: $1,048 :)

So, I figure it out like this. If I can get 25% off the total price ($750) I'd buy now, and get a laptop from 2008 potentially with a year of AppleCare left, and maybe some extra accessories.
If I can't, I'd just suck it up, pay 1/4 more than what I want, and get the latest available next Summer.
 
I would just go the microcenter route. Maybe even head down to Delaware or some other state that has no sales tax and be done with it.

Buying with the education discount and free ipod and printer is a great idea. However everyone sells them, so you don't get as much for them.
 
I thought about that. The fact that everyone sells them. I figured I'll take my chances though. At least I have a chance at getting something back.
 
I saw this month in the Apple store online Refurbs of the 1st Unibody. Me personally, If I was going to drop that much money, I need piece of mind. Meaning I want the full warrantee plus option of Apple Care. I purchased mine a year ago, and surprisingly Apple still sells them for $1499.


If you get a job over the holiday, it pays for itself. Then use it to make money. Then you make a profit.
 
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