Apple MacBook user reviews (Core 2 Duo 2GHz, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M)

Pros Solid aluminum design, fantastic screen, keyboard, and trackpad, excellent graphics performance, great hardware-software integration.

Cons Lack of firewire. Not too much of an issue but it would be nice to have the port there.

Summary This is bot my first Mac and my first laptop after twelve years of using a desktop PC, and I must say, so far, I'm extremely impressed and satisfied with my purchase.

The screen is absolutely fantastic. People have been saying that it's too reflective. This much is true, but only when it's off. When it's on, it's vibrant and clear, and the cleaning cloth included in the box makes it really easy to keep it smudge-free.

The trackpad is the crown jewel of this laptop, and it has lived up to my expectations in every way. The texture is smooth and friction-free, just perfect for gestures and clicking. The whole-trackpad-is-the-button design is also very good, but takes some time to get used to.

The keyboard is very easy to get used to, and coming from a previous die-hard desktop user, that's saying a lot. I'm used to pillowy, cushy keyboard, and making the transition to the more tactile, shallow design of the MacBook was a breeze.

Although this isn't something new to the new MacBook, having the iSight camera and microphone built in is really great, coming from a previous PC user. I'm used to having to set up drivers and make sure the microphone is in the right port and all that tedious stuff instead of just opening the box of the Mac to find the great camera and very high-quality microphone set up, built-in, and ready to use.

The new aluminum unibody design makes the whole thing feel much more sturdy, well put-together, and streamlined when compared to the old MacBook. It combines sharp, clean, elegant lines with a feeling of stability and balance that really gives the laptop a level of finesse and beauty never seen before on any computer.

Good job, Apple for another great computer, I really love it.

Pros Attractive, BLAZING FAST, Bright screen, Great performance....Operating system makes Vista seem like windows 98' MINI MAC PRO

Cons My first one out of the box had a few pixels burnt out. (took it back) Beside that ZERO issues.

Summary WOW.... I was really hesitant to convert over to mac. I have used PC' for many years, actually was very comfortable with all windows machines. I actually own a computer repair service, and picked up a mac to learn the machine. All I have to say is BYE BYE PC ,,,, hello mac!!!! I will be getting my wife and daughter a new mac within the next few months. I love how easy everything has been and the learning curve has been incredibly simple. I recommend anyone to looking for a new laptop to start here.... Basically a shrunken down mac book pro, I do advise going to your local electronic store to purchase a memory upgrade to 4gig's. This will ensure a machine to brag about!

I love the new style vs. the older white one!

BOTTOM LINE

if you are looking for a new laptop, spend a few hundred more and start here....MINI MACBOOK PRO!

Pros the best things about this computer are the trackpad, the screen, the keyboard, and the speed.

Cons the only bad part that i could find was the iphoto editing.

Summary This is an excellent computer. I am a student, and it is great for school work and for recreational things as well. The screen is super glossy which i find a plus. i do not think that it is too glossy nor is it hard to see. the screen in bright easy to read, i cant say enough good things. The keyboard is pretty flat and easy to type on, more so than with an IBM think-pad i think. Of course the main bonus about this is the huge trackpad. Some people may think that this will get old quickly or become annoying, but i think the opposite. It is so easy and efficient to use, its hard for me to use other computers now! once your fingers get used to just dragging and flipping and tapping it will be like digit heaven! the only bad thing is that i cant figure out how to zoom and rotate the pictures in my library like on the commercials yet...but all in good time. didn't really need a firewire so that was not something that brought it down. this is my first mac and i will probably never go back to being a PC!

Pros - GREAT OS
- Lightning fast
- Light-weight, sturdy unibody design
- Attractive design
- Dashboard
- Incredible screen
- Great trackpad
- Good battery life
- Keyboard is excellent
- Magsafe adapter
- Excellent iSight Camera
- Boot camp available

Cons - Glossy screen quite reflective
- Screen is fingerprint prone
- No FireWire
- Small amount of game functionality
- Battery not as good as advertised
- Distant longing for physical trackpad button
- Multi-touch gestures not entirely spot-on

Summary The new Macbook. It's incredible. With faults. That's all I'm going to say for my introduction. Read on.

Physical Specs

The product physically is very sturdy, thanks to the unibody construction. Normally the chassis would normally consist of various small parts. So instead of taking a small piece of aluminum and adding more aluminum, Apple has taking a big piece of aluminum and subtracted from it. Thus creating a sturdy, yet light laptop. I have heard that the aluminum interferes with internet connectivity issues. I do have to say, unfortunately, it is true. I put the Macbook and my old PC laptop side by side, and the PC was able to pick up better frequency and more networks.

Now for the multi-touch trackpad. It is made from glass, but it feels like there is a covering on it that doesn't nearly have the friction of glass. Clicking and moving the cursor is very easy and enjoyable, with the very large surface. Right-clicking can be done with by clicking with two fingers or by clicking one of the bottom corners after being manually set. It should also be noted that only the bottom 3/4 of the trackpad is clickable.

The multi-touch gestures are fun to use, but are truly unneeded gimmicks that could be done easier with a click.
I'll just go through the gestures now.

There are 2 finger gestures:
The first is scrolling with using two fingers by swiping your fingers vertically or horizontally depending on the page.
Secondly you can rotate a picture using two fingers apart and rotating.
The third gesture is holding the control button and scrolling vertically to zoom in on a page.

And there is one 3-finger gesture:
Swipe with three fingers to navigate. You can do this to go forward or back on a page, or changing a picture.

Lastly there are 4-finger gestures:
Swiping vertically upwards allows you to clear everything off your desktop.
Swiping vertically down launches Expose.
Swiping horizontally in any direction lets you change and view your running applications, which can also be done with command+tab.

On the bottom of the MacBook there is a panel that allows for easy access to your battery and hard drive. This will be handy to many people.

The keyboard is just like the Air, with the spaces between the keys. This creates a very nice typing experience, and are backlit if you purchase the 2.4GHz model.

A major letdown by Apple is the omission of a FireWire port. This is very disappointing to many people, but doesn't affect me at all. Nowadays the average users don't use FireWire too much. Although I do see this as a major problem for professional applications.

There is also a battery life indicator on the side of the base that glows green to show the rounded percentage of your battery.

Software and Performance

Of course the MacBook has the great Mac OS X Leopard software.
It is very fast, and has good security.

The battery life is advertised to have 5 hours of battery life, but Apple obviously means not being connected to the Internet, and having no applications running. You'll probably get about 4 and a half hours with Safari and other apps running. Unless you have a lot of apps on like me, then you'll maybe have 3 and a half to 4 hours.

With the NVidia graphics card, the screen looks pretty good, as do games. I do have to admit, though, the new MacBook Pro screen looks better, especially with blacks. Still, games really pop on the gorgeous glossy screen, unless you are in a bright area. The glossy screen of course attracts bad glares and many noticeable fingerprints. Still, if you are indoors or someplace with low light, the glossy screen is perfect. I mostly use it inside, so I wouldn't trade the beautiful glossy screen. Although for those coffee-shop typing folks, this could be a deal-breaker.

Other than these things, Mac OS X is the same, really.

Conclusion

If you have purchased a MacBook anytime soon, then I would not suggest you purchase this one. Most of the differences are the physical attributes, and the software is pretty much the same.

If you are new to Macs like me, then I would DEFINITELY suggest this phenomenal notebook computer. Of course it does have it's faults, truly I have never used such a simple, enjoyable computer.