New models

[Marc4]

Hi all,

First post, first Mac - well it's going to be, once I figure out what to buy

To give you a bit of background, I'm a business professional working at a VoIP startup and still do some technical work - although not nearly what I used to in the early days.
My activities mostly involve project planning, so lots of Outlook, Excel, Word, some PowerPoint, and occasionally FTP/SSH/etc. Not massive amounts of power-hungry apps, to summarize. I do travel around 30% of the time, so a heavy 17" MBP is out of the question for me.

Now, I've been reading a lot about MacBook models and played with them all - the base model, the Air, the Pro, and I've narrowed it down to the base and the Air as even the 15" MBP seems overkill for me.
All was well, and I was about to pick one, until I heard that the current MB/MBP models were due for a fairly significant refresh in the near-term (possible WWDC in June, but I'm not holding my breath).

My question to you all is: do you foresee a significant update to the MB line that is worth waiting a few months for, or would you go for a current or refurbished model?
Mind you, I'm not in a rush - but my T41 is driving me nuts (although still on XP SP2) and I'm itching to switch to Leopard...

Also, another question I couldn't get enough background on is: will the MBA's hard drives get a decent SATA interface so that SSD is actually worth the investment?

Thanks in advance for your insight.
-Marc

 

[flopticalcube]

The next major advance comes from Intel in June when it releases its new mobile platform called Montevina. When the MacBook gets Montevina-based components is anyones guess but I would say not until August or September.

 

[wannabe07]

There have been some murmurs that a design change is in store for the MacBooks sometime this summer, in addition to the switch to Montevina: https://www.macrumors.com/2008/04/07/apple-notebooks-to-see-major-design-changes/

A lot of people think that if a big change is going to happen, it will be announced at the WWDC conference in June. So, if you're not in a big hurry, you might wait until then to see if anything materializes. If not, the current line is excellent. Good luck!

 

[CWallace]

We could see a new form factor in June, as wannabe07 noted. Montevina is just a mild improvement to Penryn.

The real "sea change" will be in when Nehalem ships, but I honestly don't expect to see that in a MacBook (Pro) / iMac until mid-2009 or so.

 

[Marc4]

Thanks guys, but do you really think Apple will introduce new hardware at WWDC, which is an event geare d for software developers?

 

[Thetics]

If you're not in a hurry, wait till the WWDC. If you can afford it, buy a macbook now, refurb, used, or new, whichever you prefer. and enjoy, and when the new one comes out, buy the new one. Plus, it will give you time to get more familiar with the platform.... lol.. God im such a bad influence.

 

[fuzzielitlpanda]

I'm really looking forward to seeing what a new macbook would look like. Things I would love to have:

-Thinner profile and lighter weight
-Ambient light
-LED back-lit display

Those are the only things I really care about.

 

[Tallest Skil]

Thanks guys, but do you really think Apple will introduce new hardware at WWDC, which is an event geare d for software developers?

Ask the original Mac Pro.

 

[MacNut]

They will most likely upgrade the pro machines at WWDC. If they redo the case design beware that the first generations have been known to have issues. Personally I don't see anything wrong with the current design and would argue that buying now won't hurt.

 

[GUILTIE]

They will most likely upgrade the pro machines at WWDC. If they redo the case design beware that the first generations have been known to have issues. Personally I don't see anything wrong with the current design and would argue that buying now won't hurt.

You don't see anything wrong? I don't actually have a MacBook (yet), but there's more posts on the Macbook forum about cracking than any other topic. Looks like something must be wrong...

 

[MacNut]

My 4 year old Powerbook is in that same case and has no problems. Don't expect to see any low end machines updated at WWDC, just the Pro's.

 

[nidserz]

Well I have been contemplating this for the last 4 months well i have finally decided to go ahead with the macbook as soon as exams are done (April 22).

i came to my conclusion by thinking... if and if they do announce the new macbook design in June, who knows when it will be available. It may take a few months to get a hand on one and it will be a new product so there may be mistakes. I figured to get mine early, get used to it, and enjoy the macbook (i actually like the current look). A year later I could sell the macbook as it will most likely have a good resale value and pick up a new one if need be (drastically better and improved without any issues). Also not sure when the new chips will be introduced in the macbook so if there is a case re-design doesn't include the new chips there is another thing to think about.

You can wait till June then decide but I figured if I keep waiting I will just be waiting for more.

Anyways good luck and I can't wait -- 1 week!

 

[Marc4]

Doesn't Apple always announce the date availability of new products it introduces at keynotes?
Also, besides the iPhone which had to go through FCC approval, don't they always ship within a couple of weeks of being announced (if not "shipping... today!" as Stevo loves to say)?