UPDATE: The old chargers should fit into the new macbooks. You CAN replace the memory yourself. This MacWorld article has loads of details.
Just looked at Apple’s new macbooks, and… OMG! Shiny! Want!
The question is; which one? I’ve always considered the blackbook a pointless waste of money, and even the macbook pro was a disdainful extravagance; far too unwieldy and far too expensive.
However, with these models, I’m not so sure. So, which one should I get? It’s a tossup between the cheaper new 13″ and the cheaper new 15″. I doubt I’m the only one with a decision to make, so I’ll list the differences here. + is an advantage for the 13″, – is an advantage for the 15″ and ± is a mixed blessing or simply the same, but not something you might know.
- cheap 13″ has no keyboard lighting.
- 13.3″ vs 15″ and 1280×800 v 1440×900 pixels
- 2.0Ghz instead of 2.4Ghz.
- 160GB vs. 250GB harddisk (You can buy a laptop 250GB for €60,-)
- The new 13″ has no firewire anymore. The 15″ still has one.
- Only the 15″ has an expresscard slot.
- The 15″ has better speakers.
± Both have an invisible sleep light (invisible when it’s off) – like the old iBooks.
± Both have a new trackpad with the MacBook Air/iPhone’s multitouch features, and both are made of a new material (polished glass – no really), which is also a button; the entire trackpad physically moves down and clicks mechanically when you press down on it. Because ther’s no dedicated button, they are larger.
± Both have a side-to-side access panel on the back taking up almost half the notebook which locks in place with a lever. RAM and HDD are user-serviceable, and the battery is stored in this compartment as well. The iBook had a really bad battery locking system, the macbook’s was a bit better, and the old MBP didn’t have a user-serviceable HDD bay, so much improvement across the board. (I can’t find a note anyplace that the RAM is user-serviceable, but I’d be very surprised if it wasn’t. EDIT: It looks like it really isn’t replaceable, which means you need to shell out 140 euros to upgrade to 4GB, and you need to decide when you buy it. Eugh!)
± 15″ now have the same battery life as the 13″ (5 hours for both), probably because the 15″ has a redundant crappy GPU which is used when you aren’t doing anything intensive and running off of battery power.
± The 15″ has a better GPU, but, compared to a standard macbook, you won’t notice the difference; its incomparable to what plastic macbooks have.
± All new macbook screens are glossy, unfortunately.
± You need to buy 2×2GB SO-DIMM (about €50,-) and install it yourself, either way.
± Assuming you can claim VAT/BTW back, no real price difference between Europe and the US.
± Both are equally thin; slightly tinner than plastic macbooks.
± Both use a new display plug so you need to rebuy your VGA/DVI adapters, though this new one is a standard and royalty/patent free. I’m not sure if the charger is the same. The actual charger that ships with it seems different, but I can’t tell from the images if the magsafe plug on the notebooks themselves are different.
+ ex VAT/BTW, you save €505,-
+ The 13.3″ is 450 grams lighter.
+ The 13.3″ is 32.5×22.7 cm – the same size as the old (but thinner). The 15″ is 36.4×24.9 cm; 23% more surface area (and bigger than the old MBP 15″ by 4%)!
+ The 13.3″ powerpack needs 60W, the 15″ needs 85W. Apparently most outlets in trains and planes don’t give more than 80W, so you can either use the machine or charge the battery, but not both, for the 15″. The powerbook is probably larger (I can’t find a definitive answer, but the old MBP charger was larger than the MB’s).
I haven’t found any pictures of the bottom; I really disliked the battery locking mechanism on the old iBook, and a few pictures I’ve seen sort of suggest that you slide the battery into the side, instead of into the bottom. I assume the memory and harddisk are still user servicable, which means there needs to be a way to remove the bottom part of the casing.
Netbooks and iPhones/gPhones are making the portability factor somewhat less important; for short trips you no longer need your macbook, and the set of advantages for the 15″ are rather sizable. I’m edging towards shelling out the extra 500 euros for it. How about you?