Others say...

"MacBook"
Extremely happy with the transition from PC to Mac. Mac has done a great job here.

"All Doubts Blown Away"
What a remarkable little machine this is.

Let me start off by saying that I did my due diligence on this product. I read every review I could get my hands on. I trawled forums, review centres and video sites.

And, probably like many of you reading this review, I had some major doubts: would it smudge too much? Are the edges really that sharp? Would the 13.3" screen be too small? Would the transition from PC to Mac be a steep learning curve?

I am delighted to report that all my doubts were blown away within the first 24 hours.

Yep, it smudges. When you first pull it out of the box you'll have an immediate kinship with all those who complained about it. But really, I couldn't care less about it. I don't actually have to look at the smudges as I work on the Macbook, and they are easily wiped away with a cloth if you are fashion-conscious. It is worth noting that it is a fair price to pay for a very robust, leathery, sexy-looking shell.

I cannot complain regarding the so-called "sharp edges". I'm a man with fairly long reach, I spend hours upon hours writing on my Macbook, and I have not had a single problem with my wrists.

My greatest worry was over the screen size. I have always used 15.4" screens with my laptops, and I was quite terrified that I'd find the 13.3" screen too small. I was wrong. Profoundly wrong. I actually enjoy this size much better than my old 15.4" laptops, which now feel big and heavy and cumbersome in comparison.

What you will notice immediately is that the keyboard and trackpad are very big and inviting, and the screen is so crisp and clear that you feel right at home. And although the Macbook IS heavier than you would think, I ultimately find that its smaller size is much, much better all-round.

And the PC to Mac conversion could not have been easier.

I booted it up and it was ready to go. I spent hours playing with all the new toys at my disposal, and I have to say I never knew that computing could be this much fun. I know that there is a lot of hoo-ha over a Macbook's price in comparison to cheaper PCs, but what you quickly realise is that you are really paying the extra for the software...and for a few hundred dollars extra, you are getting a bargain.

Examples. Photo Booth is an enormous amount of fun. The in-built webcam (with a very decent resolution) focuses on your face and gives you a 3-2-1 countdown before snapping with a flash. Before you take the photo you can easily select different styles you want the photo taken in, such as sepia, black and white, or even a kind of Warhol-ic mesh of colours. Just great fun, especially for families and couples, or individuals looking to track their daily weight loss as a visual record!

You can also use the webcam to make short films of yourself (what you choose to do with that is entirely up to you!) and, of course, for having vis-a-vis chats on a whole multitude of instant messaging clients (including the excellent in-built iChat feature, which is easy to set up with any AOL or Google Talk account).

It has a wonderful dictionary that looks up words in a fraction of a millisecond, It has a little tool that enables you to take snapshots of portions of your desktop (or the entire desktop). And then the iLife suite is just superb. Never has it been easier to publish a really professional looking website, or to quickly edit a movie, or put together a lovely photo album. I'm not a music junkie, but Garage Band is universally accepted as being brilliant for budding musicians.

Then there is the Finder tool at the top right of the screen. Just type in a few letters and BINGO, you can instantly find anything you want to, whether it's an application or a document. Magic!

Trust me, I am just skimming the surface when it comes to Mac's software suite. Heck, even I am still discovering new tools every day. It truly is a wonderful machine, giving you a really premium experience without any requirement of technical expertise. Compare that to your average PC laptop which comes bundled with a bunch of third-rate software that you never, ever use. The Macbook, in sharp contrast, practically seduces you into trying out all of its cool features.

Oh, and this thing is FAST. Blazing fast. I can run a gazillion programs and it handles it with ease. To date I have suffered no heat on the Macbook, and noise is a thing of the past (this thing is like a ninja in slippers).

And with the ability to run Windows software if I absolutely have to thanks to the Boot Camp feature, I cannot think of a single reason to dislike this puppy.

I think that's what they call a "rave". Congratulations, Apple! Now I FINALLY understand the hype.



"I love Macbook"
I love my Macbook and its features. I definitely suggest this Macbook to my friend. It's a good laptop for entertainment.

Pros: Stylish look, good to watch movies, nice keyboard, fast processing.

Cons: Missing MS office features. In-built Speakers are low (Need to buy external speakers).

Overall it is a good product. Worth for its cost. Thanks to Apple & Amazon.

"Great Laptop for students"
Compared to the IBook (G4 processor) that was discontinued in September '07, this is the better one. The screen is bright, the camera is a nice touch and the Intel processor (Core2Duo) is fast. It's a nice alternative to the very expensive laptops and desktops if all you are doing is surfing the net and using Microsoft Office. The hard drive is a good size because many own flash drives. I say good because to most people, 120GB isn't all that much. I love the software update feature which seeks out updates for all your software as well as the operating system and security updates. When you are connected to the internet, the Software updater bounces on your dock and all you have to do is click on it and it shows what updates it had found. A nice touch!

It is probably a good idea not to use this as a gaming machine even though it's a dual core C2D. The graphics card is integrated so you're limited as to what you can play.

The casing is fragile and there were known battery issues with this model (my school that I work at has over 600 of this particular model). A battery update can solve this issue but if it persists, Applecare needs to be called. We had several laptops that had battery issues and changing batteries solved all of the issues. The battery issue was that the battery wasn't charging when you plug in the AC cord. If you get an "X" on your battery icon and you have the AC plug plugged into the laptop, then you have the battery issue. You check the updates to see if the battery update is there and if not, then Apple needs to be contacted. Sometimes these laptops run a little hot. The ventilation is aimed "northward" but depending on the way the screen is tilted you might inadvertently have the hot air move upwards and it then seems like the area were the function keys begin to get hot.

A minor inconvenience is the integrated keyboard. If you have heavy fingers or some keys accidently snap off, you can't simply take off the keyboard like you can with the IBook's keyboard.

All and all, this is a nice laptop for work, school, and minor playing. The price is right as I don't trust the $300 laptops (not including the netbooks).

"Hey, it's a Mac"
I've been using Apple products since 1990, so in a lot of ways I've grown up with Apple. My first box was a IIsi. It had 1 meg of ram on the mother board and a 100 meg HD. I've since had many Macs, as well as Apple displays, iPods, and other fun stuff from Apple. (iLife is very cool). This is an excellent laptop, and since I've traded my career in graphic design for one as a writer, it was a no brainer to stick with Apple.