late 2008 macbook or early 2008 macbook pro?

Amazon has the last generation macbook pro for $1649. Thats around what the new unibody Macbook (2.4Ghz) will cost me.

I'm leaning towards the Early 2008 Macbook Pro right now. Any reasons why I should/shouldn't get it will be appreciated.

Pros:
* Larger screen and resolution. Matte screen.
* Cheaper aftermarket RAM ($21 on crucial.com)
* Discrete Graphics
* DVI output (DVI-VGA cable included)

Cons:
* Unibody design is better (but the old design is really classy too)
* No iLife09 (will probably get this in the new box set format when Snow Leopard comes out)
* DDR2 memory
* Older Processor

What you gonna do with it?. Portabilty is THAT an issue?

Go with the pro imo.

Plus you get a Firewire port.

I will carry it to work everyday but I'm at my desk all the time.
The difference in weight between the two isn't much - 5 pounds vs 5.5 pounds. Both are much lighter than my current Toshiba Satellite notebook.

The machine will primarily be used for productivity apps and VNC to my work terminal. I don't have a TV so I watch movies/hulu on the laptop.

saved up few hundred more and buy the new MacBook pro, the unibody is great.

I think that the Early 2008 MacBook Pro would be the best choice.
The new Aluminum MacBook Pro wouldnt really be worth the extra few hundred dollars when all you are really paying for is a new Aluminum Uni-Body and the New Video Chipsets, and Faster Ram-DDR3

Based on what you are going to be using the MacBook for, I do suggest the Early '08 because your not doing too much graphic intensive stuff. If I had the option to trade my Aluminum MacBook for the early '08 MacBook Pro, I would do it in a heart-beat because I really miss firewire and I do need a larger screen.
I really hope that I could have helped.

I don't entirely like the redesign of the new MacBooks. It's not bad, but it's not that great either. I'd go for the MBP as well. That's the machine I have, the base line and it's brilliant.

I would go with the MacBook Pro. It will give you better overall performance thanks to the larger amount of RAM you can purchase with the same money and the discrete graphics. Plus, if you decide to install Windows through Boot Camp, you won't have to deal with the issues it has with the new trackpad. The difference in the CPU is negligible. Only go with the new MacBook if the touted greenness is a huge selling point for you.

finally bought the macbook pro (early 2008). totally worth it. the screen on the pro is much better than on the macbook.