The last MacBook standing.
Apple’s lowest-end laptop occupies a special place in the Mac spectrum. As of WWDC 2009, it’s the last MacBook standing in the lineup–all the other Apple notebooks are now MacBook Pros. The MacBook (we can call it “the” MacBook, now) also is the last to retain the polycarbonate white plastic glossy casing that once defined a whole line of machines.
While the MacBook’s more pedestrian appearance may not catch the eye as much as the unibody aluminum MacBook Pros, don’t be fooled by its throwback looks–inside, Apple’s done a good job of keeping the components on par with its more expensive brothers. In fact, the white MacBook has very comparable specs to the lowest-end 13-inch MacBook Pro. Its 2.13 GHz Core 2 Duo processor is close to the MacBook Pro’s standard 2.26 GHz one, and the Nvidia 9400M graphics processor is the same one that’s in the MacBook unibody 13-inchers, so the gaming and media capabilities are comparable.
Depending on your specific needs, for $999, you’re getting a real bargain with the last MacBook. You can either approach this as “for $200 more I can get a MacBook Pro,” or “I can get something nearly as good as a MacBook Pro and save $200.” The latter perspective, however, requires you to be willing to skip some of the Pro-level features.
The MacBook comes with two USB 2.0 ports, a mini-DVI port, a FireWire 400 port, and both a headphone and mic jack. The 160GB hard drive can be upgraded to a maximum of 500GB when ordering, a first for a MacBook. The polycarbonate body, as always, feels sturdy and well built, if thicker than the aluminum versions, and the pleasingly minimalist glossy plastic exterior and matte white interior might be more prone to picking up scratches and staining.
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