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13" entry model obsolete in your opinion?

Is SD card, FW800, aluminum body and backlit KB worth $100?

  • Yes

    Votes: 111 87.4%

  • No

    Votes: 16 12.6%
  • Total voters
    127
Josias

Josias

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Mar 10, 2006
1,908
1
If you upgrade the new MacBook to 4GB Ram ($100), it has a price tag of $1099.

The only differences between that machine and the low-end 13" MBP is:
SD Card Slot
FireWire 800
Aluminum unibody
Backlit keyboard

Is that worth $100 in your opinion?

I personally think it is, but I use the SD slot every day, and I'm a sucker for the aluminum case :D
 
Totally worth it.

IMO the design (including the backlit keyboard) of the MBP is much cooler.

Definitely worth 100$!
 
SD-card slot: Even if you use a it a lot, a USB reader will do fine IMO
Unibody: Yea it's cool but functionally, it is no better than the plastic, if you drop it, both materials won't do much
FW800: Do you use it? I would have paid money to have this feature a year ago because I rely on it a lot but it's a dying standard now
Backlit keyboard: I don't think it's worth much but if you need it, you need it.

I don't think the 13" macbook is obsolete, the 13" macbook pro is but if you like the aluminium, I think you've answered your own question.:)
 
I use a USB card reader for SD cards, and I never used FireWire. The white plastic design is more aesthetically pleasing to me, but to each their own. The blacklit keyboard on my unibody macbook pro is really useful, but it depends on how you use your laptop. Maybe the fact that you're asking this here means they're not worth the money to you.
 
No, I don't think the MacBook Pro 13 will be obsolete. Instead, I think what Apple is doing is splitting it's most popular Mac into 3 distinct categories. You have the regular MacBook, MacBook Pro for those who want a little more premium, and the MacBook Air for those who want ultra-portability.

I bought the MacBook Pro 13 over the MacBook simply because of the aluminum unibody. That alone is worth the extra $100 to me. But I would not buy the MacBook Pro 15 or 17 just to get the aluminum casing. So I think Apple is being smart here and differentiating its best-selling product to garner more sales.

As for the other features, the SD card slot and the backlit keyboard are convenient features that I do enjoy. I don't use Firewire though so it means nothing to me.
 
I'm a bit surprised by this latest MB update. The most surprising issue is the price. ??? All I can imagine is that Apple is positioning this MB for a price reduction in the near future. i.e. MB SALE......... come and get em!

I'm NOT big on the Apple hate stuff that gets posted (everywhere) but it's stuff like this does make one wonder if their marketing dept hasn't gone rouge.
 
I think many of you misunderstood me. I'm not buying a new Mac, since I have an MBP already. This is just a poll to garner opinions (as stated in the thread title). I also thought it was pretty obvious, since I wrote in my OP that I use the SD card slot every day ;)

From what I remember, the forums weren't spammed with "help me decide what to buy" threads 3 years ago.

johnnymg said:
I'm a bit surprised by this latest MB update. The most surprising issue is the price. ??? All I can imagine is that Apple is positioning this MB for a price reduction in the near future. i.e. MB SALE......... come and get em!

I'm NOT big on the Apple hate stuff that gets posted (everywhere) but it's stuff like this does make one wonder if their marketing dept hasn't gone rouge.
Click to expand...

Not exactly sure what you mean. Did you expect Apple to lower the MacBook's price?

(It's rogue, not rouge. Rouge=makeup.)
 
the aluminum unibody is easily worth the $100 difference. Its more robust, will outlast the soft, easily scratch-able plastic Apple uses, and does not have the easy-to-scuff rubber base.

Then the backlight keyboard seals the deal.
 
It just depends on your taste, really. Some people just don't like aluminum.

After seeing an Al Macbook protected by a plastic shell case + padded bag get horribly mangled when a door hit the bag (not particularly hard either), I'm finding myself rethinking the utility of aluminum. I think the polycarbonate would have just cracked and the shell is likely a lot cheaper to replace.

I'm assuming you mean $100 because 4GB of RAM would account for the other $100?
 
I went with the 2010 13" MBP which is now my primary portable and great for couch sitting or traveling. For other tasks, I have other computers.

The MacBook could do the job, but the backlit keyboard seals the deal for me.
 
I think the extra £150 (as it is in the UK) buys you a better mac* (MBP13 vs MB13). The new Macbook does need a vast price reduction though.

*despite me not liking the glass display - though at this price point Apple does not offer any options.
 
If you buy the MBP from the education store, the difference between the base MBP and the MB with 4GB RAM is just $60.00. You can get the base MBP for $1099.00 and the MB with 4GB RAM for $1039.00 at the education store.
 
The aluminum body and backlit keyboard are THE REASONS why I bought this computer. The size is AMAZING and the materials feel rock solid, which actually kind of makes the regular MacBook obsolete in my opinion...
 
Btw, you don't have to be a student in order to buy from the online education store. I just entered the name of my alma mater in the school prompt and did not have to enter any more information and was taken to the education store.
 
FW800 is not popular but until these things have e-sata or USB3.0 it's vital to me.
 
I say yes. Cause I really like the backlit keyboard and after having a white macbook that cracked on the palms (and a little on the back as well), I really don't want another macbook that cracks for no reason.

I saw some one say the metal one is more fragile cause if you drop it you dent it and the white one just gets cracks. I'll take the one that will stay together long as you care for it over the one that the casing will crack even if you take care of it.

And the firewire I like for having an extra port (for me it wouldn't matter if it was firewire or USB, what matters is it is an extra port. When I plug my macbook in to a keyboard to use as a desktop as well as the backup hard drive which can be USB or fire wire, I like having the extra port free to plug in my iphone without having to unplug something).
 
Josias said:
If you upgrade the new MacBook to 4GB Ram ($100), it has a price tag of $1099.
Click to expand...

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't the entry level MacBook 999, and isn't that a $200 difference, and if that is the case does that change the outcome of this poll?


Edit: never mind just read the upgrade the ram comment. Ingore or delete please. Sorry
 
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