I went to my local Apple store today to decide on a machine. I was looking at the MacBooks and 15.4" MacBook Pros. The black MacBook caught my eye right off the bat. Very cool machine! Matte black, well-built, way cool keys. I actually really like the keys and my wife said she liked them better than any other laptop keyboard she had tried. The MacBook Pro's keyboard was very different compared to the MacBook's. I really prefer the MacBook keys. MacBook wins here.
Heat - The display models were warm on the bottom and cool on the wristrests. On the contrary, every single 15.4" MacBook I touched was HOT on the bottom (I played with 4 or 5 display models). The wrist areas were quite warm as well. That immediately ruled them out the Pro models for me. I could tolerate a MacBook on my lap with jeans, but no way on the Pros. MacBook wins again here.
Weight - The MacBooks were suprisingly heavy for their size. Not heavy in a bad way, but if they dropped a pound or even half a pound it would have made them a lot nicer. The MacBook Pros are roughly the same weight (5.6 pounds compared to the MacBook's 5.2 pounds). The Pros actually felt a bit lighter because the weight was distributed over a greater area. Personally, I'm coming from a 7.5 pound 15.4" Gateway lapbrick and the Pro weight felt wonderful comparatively. I can definately live with the MacBook weight, however. MacBook Pro wins this one though, since it's less than half a pound lighter.
Size - Ah, finally a thin & powerful 15.4" laptop! Too bad it's twice as hot as my 2ghz Athlon 64 notebook! I really, really liked the MacBook Pro's thin size and low weight, but it's just too dang hot! The MacBook is actually like .08 of an inch thicker, which you would think would make it seem like a fatty compared to the Pro, but I really liked the dimensions of it. It's comfortable enough to carry around and not so thin you feel like you're going to break it. It really felt like the right size for the machine. Small & cute, the way it should be. It's a draw here, both the MacBook and MacBook Pro have nice dimensions.
Color - Silver, white, or black? From past experience, I like silver and black. The white iBooks I had seen got dirty very quickly and didn't look all that cool in white compared to the silver 12" PowerBooks. As a tip, the rep at the Apple store said he used Cholorox wipes on his white iBook to keep it clean. Nice to know! The silver on the MacBook Pro didn't strike me as very cool. A little on the industrial side. Put it next to a microwave or a blender and it'd fit right in. I didn't like it as much as I thought I would. Moving on to the MacBooks, the black was hot. Wow I liked it, a lot! I also liked the white more than I thought it would. The black is a matte while the exterior of the white MacBook is shiny. The deal breaker was that the white MacBook's wrist rest and inside area weren't glossy white, they were matte. I didn't like that. The black MacBook, however, just looked fantastic all around. The black looks great with the new keyboard design. Black MacBook wins here.
Screen - I really had my hopes up for the MacBook Pro's screen, but I was somewhat disappointed. Yes, the screen was brighter, but the viewing angle wasn't that great. AND the screen didn't tilt all the way back! My Gateway's screen can got 180-degrees from closed to fully open, I didn't like that limit. I'm not sure if the older Apple laptops has that limitation or not. The hinge on the bottom was a bit weird, but not was weird as it was on the older models. The glossy screen on the MacBook looked much better than the non-glossy screen on the MacBook Pro in my opinion, but the colors were a bit more washed out. I have a colorimeter tho (Gretag Eye-One), so no worries. Also, the thick border around the MacBook's screens in the pictures bugged me, but it actually looks great in person. I was very suprised about that. The inch-thick border was a turn-off for me when I first saw pictures of it, but it's much different in person. It goes very well with the design and with the screen quality. MacBook wins here.
Lid Latch - The magnetic lid is super-cool. The MacBook Pro has a thin button that you push in to release the lid, which I didn't like that much. It seems easier to use than the previous-generation laptops, though. With the MacBook, all you had to do was lift up the lid by giving it some pressure. The MacBook had the perfect magnetic strength to not pop open easily but not be too hard to open. MacBook definately wins here, in my book.
I really liked the magnetic power connector (MagSafe?). I'm a tad bummed out that the MacBook doesn't have an ExpressCard slot, but no biggie. I was hoping to jump back on EVDO eventually (i.e. wireless anywhere), but I'm sure they'll make USB adapters eventually. Oh, and I also played with the 17" MacBook. The thing is a monster! Way too big for me. If you needed it, it would be a good machine - thin, not too heavy, powerful - but it was simply too big for me. The 15.4" MacBook Pro was just not right for me, mainly because it was too HOT. I could fry an egg on that thing if I wanted to. The MacBook was a little toasty, but it was only on the bottom on the rear. The Pro was an oven compared to it. The 17" MacBook Pro was warmer than the MacBook but not nearly as hot as the 15.4". The white MacBook was neat, but again, I didn't like the matte white interior.
In conclusion, I will be getting a black MacBook. It's got the looks, the power, and the portability down cold. It won't fry my legs, hands, wrists, or wallet for that matter. I look forward to selling my last PC and completing my switch later this month! (although I will still be using XP via Boot Camp)
Heat - The display models were warm on the bottom and cool on the wristrests. On the contrary, every single 15.4" MacBook I touched was HOT on the bottom (I played with 4 or 5 display models). The wrist areas were quite warm as well. That immediately ruled them out the Pro models for me. I could tolerate a MacBook on my lap with jeans, but no way on the Pros. MacBook wins again here.
Weight - The MacBooks were suprisingly heavy for their size. Not heavy in a bad way, but if they dropped a pound or even half a pound it would have made them a lot nicer. The MacBook Pros are roughly the same weight (5.6 pounds compared to the MacBook's 5.2 pounds). The Pros actually felt a bit lighter because the weight was distributed over a greater area. Personally, I'm coming from a 7.5 pound 15.4" Gateway lapbrick and the Pro weight felt wonderful comparatively. I can definately live with the MacBook weight, however. MacBook Pro wins this one though, since it's less than half a pound lighter.
Size - Ah, finally a thin & powerful 15.4" laptop! Too bad it's twice as hot as my 2ghz Athlon 64 notebook! I really, really liked the MacBook Pro's thin size and low weight, but it's just too dang hot! The MacBook is actually like .08 of an inch thicker, which you would think would make it seem like a fatty compared to the Pro, but I really liked the dimensions of it. It's comfortable enough to carry around and not so thin you feel like you're going to break it. It really felt like the right size for the machine. Small & cute, the way it should be. It's a draw here, both the MacBook and MacBook Pro have nice dimensions.
Color - Silver, white, or black? From past experience, I like silver and black. The white iBooks I had seen got dirty very quickly and didn't look all that cool in white compared to the silver 12" PowerBooks. As a tip, the rep at the Apple store said he used Cholorox wipes on his white iBook to keep it clean. Nice to know! The silver on the MacBook Pro didn't strike me as very cool. A little on the industrial side. Put it next to a microwave or a blender and it'd fit right in. I didn't like it as much as I thought I would. Moving on to the MacBooks, the black was hot. Wow I liked it, a lot! I also liked the white more than I thought it would. The black is a matte while the exterior of the white MacBook is shiny. The deal breaker was that the white MacBook's wrist rest and inside area weren't glossy white, they were matte. I didn't like that. The black MacBook, however, just looked fantastic all around. The black looks great with the new keyboard design. Black MacBook wins here.
Screen - I really had my hopes up for the MacBook Pro's screen, but I was somewhat disappointed. Yes, the screen was brighter, but the viewing angle wasn't that great. AND the screen didn't tilt all the way back! My Gateway's screen can got 180-degrees from closed to fully open, I didn't like that limit. I'm not sure if the older Apple laptops has that limitation or not. The hinge on the bottom was a bit weird, but not was weird as it was on the older models. The glossy screen on the MacBook looked much better than the non-glossy screen on the MacBook Pro in my opinion, but the colors were a bit more washed out. I have a colorimeter tho (Gretag Eye-One), so no worries. Also, the thick border around the MacBook's screens in the pictures bugged me, but it actually looks great in person. I was very suprised about that. The inch-thick border was a turn-off for me when I first saw pictures of it, but it's much different in person. It goes very well with the design and with the screen quality. MacBook wins here.
Lid Latch - The magnetic lid is super-cool. The MacBook Pro has a thin button that you push in to release the lid, which I didn't like that much. It seems easier to use than the previous-generation laptops, though. With the MacBook, all you had to do was lift up the lid by giving it some pressure. The MacBook had the perfect magnetic strength to not pop open easily but not be too hard to open. MacBook definately wins here, in my book.
I really liked the magnetic power connector (MagSafe?). I'm a tad bummed out that the MacBook doesn't have an ExpressCard slot, but no biggie. I was hoping to jump back on EVDO eventually (i.e. wireless anywhere), but I'm sure they'll make USB adapters eventually. Oh, and I also played with the 17" MacBook. The thing is a monster! Way too big for me. If you needed it, it would be a good machine - thin, not too heavy, powerful - but it was simply too big for me. The 15.4" MacBook Pro was just not right for me, mainly because it was too HOT. I could fry an egg on that thing if I wanted to. The MacBook was a little toasty, but it was only on the bottom on the rear. The Pro was an oven compared to it. The 17" MacBook Pro was warmer than the MacBook but not nearly as hot as the 15.4". The white MacBook was neat, but again, I didn't like the matte white interior.
In conclusion, I will be getting a black MacBook. It's got the looks, the power, and the portability down cold. It won't fry my legs, hands, wrists, or wallet for that matter. I look forward to selling my last PC and completing my switch later this month! (although I will still be using XP via Boot Camp)