White or Black MacBook

Hi all. After a period of lurking, I've decided to purchase a MacBook. I am going to go with the 2 GHz, and would like to upgrade to 2 GB of RAM. I do not care one way or the other about 80 v 120 GB HD, but am wondering on actual user experience with black v white MacBooks. I hate to pay the premium for the black, but at the Apple Store today, the white looked really worn and dirty, almost gray. Any thoughts from users with one color or the other?

Also, would you order through Apple online to get the 2GB RAM upgrade or do it yourself? If it makes a difference, I am a federal government employee and will get a discount (6%) by ordering through Apple as compared to another retailer.

Thanks in advance!
Mark

My Macbook is white, my wife's is black. They are both very nice. The white occasionally gets a little discoloration on the wrist pads if I'm using the internal keyboard, but that's cleaned easily with an optical cloth. The black gets some shiny spots on frequently used keys but it too is easily cleaned.

The Apple logo on the black is quite striking when illuminated. The reason I got the black for her was that it matched her iPod :black:

It's really a personal preference. The only main difference is that the white Macbook is glossy whereas the black is matte (which unfortunately means the black one is a fingerprint magnet).

I have a black Macbook because I like the matte look over the glossy. Plus, black is just so much cooler than white :black:

here is a thread already talking about the "black vs white macbook"

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=54528&highlight=black+white+macbook

My white Macbook has not been cleaned in the 3 months i've had it. Not due to laziness though - it just still looks so good, no marks at all.

I have the white and love it. My buddy has the black one and loves it. Mine gets finger prints on it but it is very easily cleaned. The contrast of the apple logo on the black macbook looks real good. The black book hates greasy hands though.
I like my buddies black book but I'll stick with my white one.

BTW I use the my car wax on the macbook and it looks like a mirror. Seriously.

I have the white MacBook and I think it looks really sharp. I haven't had any problems with fingerprints or discoloration, and I use it all day, everyday. Plus, if price is important at all, I do not think the black is worth the extra money if you don't need the extra HD space. (I am using the difference in price to buy an external HD to use for Time Machine when Leopard comes out).
I am not positive about this, but I think if you want to upgrade the RAM to 2 GB you have to have 2 x 1 GB RAM sticks, and the installed RAM that come standard in the MacBook will be 2 x 512 MB sticks. You would have to buy two new sticks - so it's probably better to upgrade the RAM through Apple. (Somebody correct me if I am wrong on that)

MWolverine said:

I am not positive about this, but I think if you want to upgrade the RAM to 2 GB you have to have 2 x 1 GB RAM sticks, and the installed RAM that come standard in the MacBook will be 2 x 512 MB sticks. You would have to buy two new sticks - so it's probably better to upgrade the RAM through Apple. (Somebody correct me if I am wrong on that)

Click to expand...

Correct on the fact that it comes stock with 2x512MB sticks, both of which you will have to replace to get 2GB of RAM in a Macbook.

However, as for it being better to get the upgrade from Apple, that would be incorrect. Despite having to swap both sticks, it is still cheaper to buy it from a third-party vendor and installing it yourself. This is mainly why many members here recommend that if you're set on 2GB to get 512MB of RAM and then upgrade as then you will be saving money from the start.

I wish that they did brushed aluminum, I think they look much better.

Chris

I've never thought about using car wax on my computer!

I think it was in mac addict that I saw this, but I'm not positive - the hd is like a $50 upgrade, that you pay $200 for - your extra $150 is nothing but a premium for the color. Granted, it's fun when computers are pretty, but I don't think that a color is worth that. Use the extra $$ for RAM.

If they were both the same price, I would probably choose the black.

But I did not think it was worth the extra, so I went for the white and bought 2Gb of RAM instead.

Hi, I have a question and don't want to start a new thread to ask it.

I want to buy a MacBook for college. I love the White, but I'm hesitant to buy it because of how easily it scratches. I would put it in some sort of sleeve before carrying it anywhere, but I'd really prefer to not need a case otherwise. It's probably inevitable it'll get scratched, and since I like my things "perfect," I'm scared this will be an issue!

If I go for the black one, will I be able to just slip it in a sleeve before putting it in my bag and not worry about scratches? I know they attract grease, but to me, scratches are a bigger problem than grease since they're permanent!

Any insight would be appreciated! Thanks in advance!

the black is ill.