Beautiful but not cheap
Pros:
Attractive and tough all-aluminum body
Good specs and features
Great 13.3" size
Cons:
On paper, overpriced
The Bottom Line:
Go look at one in a store. You'll know if it's what you want. There's no direct comparison with other laptops.
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
My computer history -
Personal: IBM PCjr, IBM PC Portable, Mac LC, Mac IIfx, PowerMac 8100, whitebox Pentium II, whitebox Pentium 4, 2.16GHz black MacBook, now this 2.4GHz aluminum MacBook
Work: mostly Windows PCs, currently a Dell D630 laptop that I mainly use in a dual-monitor docking station setup. Previously, D610 and before that D600.
I say that to give an idea where I'm coming from.
This MacBook is clearly the nicest, coolest, most powerful and most beautiful of the laptops I've used in an admittedly limited sample (two MacBooks, three Dells).
Compared with the Dells: it is notably less bulky, although not much if any lighter. The aluminum case feels very solid and luxurious; the Dells have nice plastic cases. The glossy screen is gorgeous; the Dells have matte screens, which may actually be more practical in many situations, but are not as vivid. The Dells have perfectly good keyboards, but the MacBook keyboard is better.
Compared with the black MacBook: I don't notice a difference in size or weight. Both feel quality. The aluminum one feels a bit more quality simply because it's aluminum. I haven't mastered the new trackpad yet, but think it has more potential. Performance specs are a bit better, but I haven't observed a serious difference (nor would I expect to have - I don't use it for heavy-duting gaming or CPU hogs like video rendering). I am looking forward to having 4GB of RAM available for Parallels and Vista; the black MacBook I had was limited to 2GB, though I think that limit was removed in a slightly newer version than mine.
My suggestion for the right laptop for you. If you are:
looking for a bargain
a gamer
happy with Windows
then I'd get a Dell or HP.
value great design
happy with Windows
then I'd get a Thinkpad or Sony
a gamer
not price-sensitive
happy with Windows
then I'd consider AlienWare
price-sensitive
prefer Macs
then I'd get a white MacBook
not price-sensitive
prefer Macs
prefer compact size over power
then I'd get an aluminum MacBook
not price-sensitive
prefer Macs
prefer power over compact size
then I'd get a MacBook Pro
