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JUST UPDATED (5/18/10) MACBOOK 13" vs. Macbook Pro 13"?

C

chuckflip53

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 18, 2010
132
0
So Apple JUST updated its website a few hours ago with the new Macbook 13" - the white polycarbonate notebook now has a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, the same NVidia 320M graphics card as the 13" Macbook Pro and the only main component different is that the regular Macbook has 2GB of RAM (whereas the Macbook Pro 13" has 4GB standard).

At $999, the UPDATED Macbook is $200 cheaper than the Macbook Pro with only the design of the laptop and the amount of RAM differing between the two (though to upgrade the Macbook up to 4GB of RAM would only cost $100)

My questions are these:
1. What type of screen does the Macbook have? Is it glossy or Matte? Also is the gamut of the Macbook inferior to the color gamut of the Macbook Pro?
2. How are the iSight cameras on the Macbook Vs. Macbook Pro?


I am looking to buy a new laptop from Apple for college and now that Apple has released its revamped Macbook, it looks so much more enticing with its lower price but almost-equal internal specs so the only thing limiting my purchase is the hardware specs which I have not yet verified. Thanks to all for your responses!
 
1. Both have glossy. I've seen them (the old MacBook) in store and couldn't see any difference

2. I'm 99% it's the exactly same camera in both, so no difference

Bear in mind that MacBook Pro has FireWire 800, SD card slot and backlighted keyboard
 
hi
to answer your question:

1) Glossy for both. Only Matte is available for 15" inch and 17". For 15" inch, the matte screen will bump it's resolution up from the standard 1440x900 to 1680 by 1050. A weird option there, but welcoming nonetheless

2) No difference in resolution.

To answer your buying question, it boils down to: do you want backlit keyboard? What can you spend those extra $200 bucks on? (Could be a better SSD harddrive if you get the macbook)
Weight. Plastic is a lot lighter than Aluminum.

Ultimately, that $200 justifies everything.
I would suggest a Macbook as it offers everything inside the same as a Macbook Pro (Except for the Ram), and carrying a lighter macbook is better for college.

I would know as I carried my 15" MBP around me, and it was heavy.

PLUS
Back-to-school deals come around June. You should wait a bit longer too.... Free ipod!!!!!
 
Dreamer2go said:
Weight. Plastic is a lot lighter than Aluminum.

Ultimately, that $200 justifies everything.
I would suggest a Macbook as it offers everything inside the same as a Macbook Pro (Except for the Ram), and carrying a lighter macbook is better for college
Click to expand...

13" MBP (aluminum, 4.5 pounds) is actually lighter than MacBook (4.7 pounds)... Just to correct you so OP won't get wrong info :cool:
 
rockstarjoe said:
I think you meant 2010 in your title... not sure if you can edit that though.
Click to expand...

Click
edit.gif
-> "Go Advanced"

Not that it really even matters though
 
I would just like to point out that there is a $150 price difference between the Macbook and the Macbook Pro when considering the education discount. So, like many other posts said, for the extra $150, you will be getting:

- 4gb of RAM (~$90 upgrade)
- Option of upgrading from 4gb max RAM to 8gb max RAM
- Illuminated backlight keyboard
- SD Card Slot
- FireWire 800 port
- Aluminum unibody enclosure
- Slightly smaller dimensions and weight
- The "Macbook Pro" sign (+ prestige of owning a MBP?)

Personally, I will bite the bullet and get the Macbook Pro 13in base when the Back to School Promotion comes back (free iPod touch and printer).

Hope this helps! :D
 
here in NL the difference between the two (with a MB RAM upgrade to 4gb) is just €70. to me it is a no brainer between the two, the MBP offers a lot of added value for that small amount.

I cannot believe they made it €100 more expensive is that silent update today. i thought with those specs it would get €100 cheaper at least.

I really cannot see *anyone* buing that plastic MB at such a small discount to the MBP13. looking at it now they could just as well can the MB13 and rebrand the current MBP13 to MB13 so they leave the MBP15 and MBP17 as the only real pros in the family.

S.
 
stefan1975 said:
here in NL the difference between the two (with a MB RAM upgrade to 4gb) is just €70. to me it is a no brainer between the two, the MBP offers a lot of added value for that small amount.

I cannot believe they made it €100 more expensive is that silent update today. i thought with those specs it would get €100 cheaper at least.

I really cannot see *anyone* buing that plastic MB at such a small discount to the MBP13. looking at it now they could just as well can the MB13 and rebrand the current MBP13 to MB13 so they leave the MBP15 and MBP17 as the only real pros in the family.

S.
Click to expand...

WOW! I didn't know Apple raised that € price! Why can't Apple offer fair price for Europeans?!?! I'm happy that my sis got her MacBook for 800€ a month ago because these new ones would have been just more expensive
 
Hellhammer said:
WOW! I didn't know Apple raised that € price! Why can't Apple offer fair price for Europeans?!?! I'm happy that my sis got her MacBook for 800€ a month ago because these new ones would have been just more expensive
Click to expand...

this morning the MB was €899. the "new" model is €999. with 2gb extra ram at €90 that makes it €1089. The base MBP13 is €1149. Plus it supports 8gb ram where the MB maxes out at 4gb.

if anyone buys the white MB with looking at this way i really really wouldn't understand, especially since the CPU, HDD RPM and resolution are almost identical to last years model.

it hardly is a upgrade at all (apart from the GPU which is decent if still using DDR3 RAM), but not sure if that is worth €100.
 
MBP>MB for these reasons:
MB only supports 4GB RAM
MPB supports up to 8GB RAM
MBP has FireWire800 and SD slot
MBP has backlit keyboard
MBP is aluminum and slighty smaller in dimensions and looks better so...
MBP > MB :D
 
I do feel like the MB and the MBP 13" are nearly the same now too, in spite of the little bells and whistles that you guys have been listing. I am hoping that this means a REAL update to the MBP 13" is in the works. Core i3/i5 processor would be nice.
 
monkey52892 said:
I would just like to point out that there is a $150 price difference between the Macbook and the Macbook Pro when considering the education discount. So, like many other posts said, for the extra $150, you will be getting:

- 4gb of RAM (~$90 upgrade)
- Option of upgrading from 4gb max RAM to 8gb max RAM
- Illuminated backlight keyboard
- SD Card Slot
- FireWire 800 port
- Aluminum unibody enclosure
- Slightly smaller dimensions and weight
- The "Macbook Pro" sign (+ prestige of owning a MBP?)

Personally, I will bite the bullet and get the Macbook Pro 13in base when the Back to School Promotion comes back (free iPod touch and printer).

Hope this helps! :D
Click to expand...

you do make a valid point (as did others in this thread) - does Apple offer that iPod Touch promotion every year?

EDIT: so it turns out, after applying a student discount and adding RAM onto the Macbook (to make it 4GB), the final price for the regular Macbook is $1039 while the Macbook Pro is $1099. However, with these configurations, the Macbook Pro still has the added Firewire port, SD card slot, superior color gamut? (I still haven't clarified this) and of course, its aluminum unibody design which I personally feel to be much more durable than the white polycarbonate chasis of the Macbook.
 
HimeNoHogosha said:
I do feel like the MB and the MBP 13" are nearly the same now too, in spite of the little bells and whistles that you guys have been listing. I am hoping that this means a REAL update to the MBP 13" is in the works. Core i3/i5 processor would be nice.
Click to expand...

not until the next refresh of course. late 2010 / spring 2011. then apple wont get C2D's anymore and will have to figure out an arrandale / amd update. i fear this year we will just see C2D/320M updates for the Mb/Mac/MBA
 
stefan1975 said:
not until the next refresh of course. late 2010 / spring 2011. then apple wont get C2D's anymore and will have to figure out an arrandale / amd update. i fear this year we will just see C2D/320M updates for the Mb/Mac/MBA
Click to expand...

Even though Intel will stop production of C2Ds, it doesn't mean that they won't be available anymore. I'm sure Intel has plenty of warehouses full of C2Ds. Anyway, Sandy Bridge is coming early 2011 and what I've read, it'll be a great bump from Nehalem, providing noticeably better performance.
 
with sandy coming Q1 2011 (if there are no slips) i really dont think apple would use them for their mid2011 MBP lineup yet, even the fall 2011 refresh would seem quite early to me, seeing as how long it would take apple to switch to arrandale.

And when they do i would wager they would switch the 15 and 17 to sandy first and keep the MBP13 a generation behind just like they did this time. So without knowing anything about it at all i would not expect to see Sandy in the MBP13 before 2012.

I would rather expect them to switch to the i5_ULV next round.
 
stefan1975 said:
with sandy coming Q1 2011 (if there are no slips) i really dont think apple would use them for their mid2011 MBP lineup yet, even the fall 2011 refresh would seem quite early to me, seeing as how long it would take apple to switch to arrandale.

And when they do i would wager they would switch the 15 and 17 to sandy first and keep the MBP13 a generation behind just like they did this time. So without knowing anything about it at all i would not expect to see Sandy in the MBP13 before 2012.

I would rather expect them to switch to the i5_ULV next round.
Click to expand...

Why wouldn't Apple use them :confused: It's nonsense to "update" if the update includes old chips. 15" and 17" will definitely get Sandy Bridge when they get updated. There was no update after Arrandale was released and I think one of the reasons was that Apple had to develop GPU auto-switching so that's why it took so long time.

13" didn't get Arrandale due heat and cost but Sandy Bridge will be 20W for dual core and 45W for quad core (that's what we know atm), so dual core is perfectly suitable for 13" as well.

BTW, the i5 ULV is 1.06GHz chip :p
 
well unless apple gets sandy early and they avoid making another rev-a troubled kind off model i would expect them not earlier then the late 2011 upgrade. perhaps if they want to implement them with a unibody redesign simultaniously not even before early 2012.

And probably SJ will tell us how well a low end arrandale would perform in an MBP13 and that it is allwell and that they couldn't fit a sandy in the MBP because it was the third wednesday of septober and the usb3 port power drainadge wouldn't allow it or stuff like that and deliver us with arrandale because that will make them more $$ at that time.

The profit margin on iX will surely be higher by the time sandy arrives and MBP's aren't about the latest and greatest specs for a while now. which is fine for most by the way.
 
What people don't realise, is that i5 ULV is weaker than the C2D present in the Macbook's now, but too many people just see a new name and think 'ohhh power.'
 
I can't believe that Apple kept the price where it is and still has only 2GB of RAM standard. They need to drop the price by $100 and include 4GB of RAM to make it more competitive with PC offerings.
 
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