difficult mac purchase confusion.

[Muff Bandit]

hey guys i know you get theese "which mac should i get?" quesitons all time. but my situation is a tad more complicated. i recently sold my first ever mac, macbook pro (2.2ghz). it was just heavier/ larger than i needed. and since im not planing to do any intense video editing, it was overpowered. i got $1400 (was that fair?).

the only computer i have now is a mistake impulse purchase. an alienware m15x. its way to heavy and way too large to actually use on the go. i play A LOT OF games on it and in my busy life thats a bad thing. im trying to quit pc gaming at least, and sell it. however theese days its hard to find a buyer for such a high end laptop. (cost me 3400, and people say macs are overpriced and expensive lol).

i need another laptop either way (if i sell the windows gaming laptop or not). this laptop must last me threw at least junior college. and be very easy to travel with. getting a mac because i actually prefer osx to windows for one reason. with my time spent on osx i realized there was almost no unexplainable errrors. i swear like everyday on windows i get a random error like "critical scrpit aborted erorr code 3252455245".

i would not be using this new mac for any gaming or editing. just internet , text files , email, aim, itunes. i am deciding between the blackbook and macbook air. im defintly leaning towards the MBA. but if i sell the gaming laptop (which could take months) i will be stuck with the mba as my primary computer. and i hate slower machines. thats why im also thinking of the blackbook. theese are the mac laptops i would even consider at this point.

i just cant decide which one.

option a : macbook air with super drive
obtion b: older model blackbook off amazon for 1100 (tiger, 1 gig, 2.16 c2d)
option c: new 1499 macbook black.


help me decide i want to get a little tally going. thanks and sorry for butchering the english languge.

 

[cwheatley]

since i do not really have much first-hand experience with the mba, i can't really recommend for it or against it. however, i have a 2.2ghz macbook (late 2007 revision), and i do pretty much the same things you said you will do, and it has worked wonderfully. i've never been anything but satisified, and i use it as my main computer... itunes, aim, torrents, ms office, a little bit of photoshop and a little bit of video encoding.

oh, and one of my friends just got a new blackbook. it's gorgeous. i'm actually rather jealous

but yeah, i think any of the macbooks would be great for you.

EDIT:

just saw the a/b/c options.... i'd go with the new blackbook, since it has leopard. soooo c. i wouldn't go for option b unless i absolutely had to. you could get a refurb blackbook with leopard for less than that...

 

[ajmccoll]

get a refurbished black macbook with leopard installed.

i have a blackbook currently with tiger installed, and it's a wonderful computer. the ONLY thing that would make it better would be if it had leopard on it specifically because of spaces. the screen (for me) is too small, but it will do everything you need it to do, and then some.

 

[iknowyourider]

Don't get the 2.16. That's what I have. It is hot on my lap and it is not upgradeable to 4gb ram. The newer 2.2 is good for 4gb ram. I don't know if it's any cooler running but the ram will make it easier to sell. I also "heard" that the later blackbooks smudged less (shows less fingerprints).

 

[KingYaba]

Purchase a new black Macbook with a student discount if you're in that age range.

 

[scienide09]

Refurbished direct from Apple. It will save you more than an education discount, and you'll get a practically brand new computer that has gone through better QA processes than a unit direct from the factory.

 

[bigjnyc]

owning a 3400 pc laptop and a macbook pro i take it money is not really a big object for you, so i would say the new macbook black. thats what i went with and couldnt be happier, i think it's the best combination of portability, power and value... plus it looks great.

 

[Muff Bandit]

well heres an update for ya' i just sold the alienware. so i need a computer that will last me till i get the updated imac(hopefully) somtime september. im going to the apple store today to test both out. it feels a little sad giving up pc gaming as i sold all my games with the AW but i guess its for the best. the way i see its

macbook black

pros

more power, i could use this one as main computer.
my favorite color (lol i know)
probally more durable
cheaper

cons
thicker
proball going to be updated soon
no lighted keyboard
would be pretty to stupid for me to have it with an imac, as i wont need two powerful machines
no advanced touchpad like mba

macbook air
pros

probally going to not be redesigned for a while.
lighted keyboard
newer, cooler to own.
light and thin!
very sexy looking
advanced touchpad

cons

i dont really like silver electronics
very low powered
fragile?

 

[nmorris]

Cash, money, dolla' bills.

I don't know anyone in their junior year of collage who would be able to afford a macbook pro and right after selling it put down for an alienware, while still being able to afford a new macbook afterwards. With that in mind, if you have the expendable cash, buy a brand new macbook, but consider why you want a blackbook. Being a blackbook owner, I regret my hasty decision as per the eventual shinyness of the trackpad which is somewhat annoying.