Macbook Purchase help please.

[jamin100]

My sister wants a macbook.

She will do the following things.

1. Surf the net
2. Very basic family movies in Imovie 09 & IDVD with data imported from a HD camcorder. Although the output wont need to be HD
3. Use Iphoto for organizing her family photos

Now, she doesnt have too mush money to spend on this so I have to get it pretty right first time.

She'll be running Snow Leopard too.

She can get a used Mid 08 white macbook from someone she knows for £400 The machine looks new though!. Its a 2ghz C2D, 4GB RAM, 320GB hard drive and X3100 graphics. Would this machine do what she needs?

The next two options are a refurb unibody macbook or a refurb unibody macbook Pro 13".

She doesnt really need firewire because all her things are USB.

So what would you suggest,

 

[pharao111]

re:

i would recommend you the refurb macbook pro because it's state of the art technology you're buying and it'll last longer then a secondhand macbook. there are many advantages of the macbook pro just to name some: sd-card reader, long battery-runtime (easily 2times of the "classic" macbook), unibody (of course the last one had that too), decent graphic card..
compared with that the macbooks gma3100 is old and really slow so for video editing and hd camera input its not the best idea as well..
and since she would like to use snow leopard it does make sense to go with the newer one because it is most likely that all major software distributors will optimize their software to the combination of new macbook pro graphic-cards and snow leopard, which will improve your working quality and speed when you do video editing/cutting/and so forth.
I don't know how much she wants to spend above the 400£ but if the macbook pro is not that much pricier its definitly a better catch. By today I would invest the money to the last revision of Macbooks or even the macbook pro because of the longer usability runtime. especially since you get much better hardware then if you buy the mid2008 one with the x3100

 

[Buskape]

Get the MacBook Pro, the 9400m alone would justify it. But there are many more things like the aluminium body, 7hours battery life, faster processor, LED backlit glass screen, backlit keyboard, multi touch big sized trackpad and full support of Snow Leopard.

It will last alot longer then the 400£ whitebook (probably around 4-5 years), it will have 1 year warranty extendable with applecare to upto 3 years, and it simply looks alot better then any laptops out there on the market.

 

[jamin100]

ok, well she cant afford a pro but there are some on eBay selling for £800. where as the Unibody macbooks go for around £650.

Is there that much of a difference between the pro and the unibody to warrant the extra £150 ($350 ish)

thanks

 

[fibrizo]

ok, well she cant afford a pro but there are some on eBay selling for £800. where as the Unibody macbooks go for around £650.

Is there that much of a difference between the pro and the unibody to warrant the extra £150 ($350 ish)

thanks

Man there's a premium in the UK, (but then again I should have realized based on how fast my money went when I was there.)

Currently in the US the 2ghz Unibody Macbook 13.3 refurbished from apple is running 899.00 USD or 542 pounds

The refurbished 2.26 ghz Unibody Macbook pro 13.3 refurbished from apple is running 999.00 USD or 603 pounds.

Isn't there a refurb section for UK? or no? Remind me the next time I ever go to the UK to buy a bunch of sealed refurbished macbook pros and bring them to sell to fund my trip lol.