I just purchased my first Mac and I am worried whether I did the right thing or not. I'm a returning college student on my own dime. I'm trying to stretch my dollar in a smart way.

I went back and forth over whether to buy a refurbished MacBook Pro or the new MacBook Pro.

I found a refurbished 15" MacBook Pro for $1,449. 2.53 Ghz, 4GB RAM, 320 GM Hard drive. 512 MB Video. As I understand it, this is the same aluminum MacBook Pro that was introduced back in the Fall. Obviously, it does not have the new 8 hour battery or the SD card slot. (I did purchase a Belkin Expresscard adapter for the laptop for 39.00). This price is $1,000 off what the previous new price was and I am buying it through Apple.com. Am I wrong to think it is the same thing as the current model, but I have the ability to replace the battery?

Did I do the right thing? Should I have bought the new MacBook Pro instead? I don't even have it yet. They are shipping it. I would have asked you sooner, but I just stumbled on this site.