Looking at the new Macbooks with a 9400M...few questions...

So I am looking at Purchasing one of the new 9400 M Macbooks...I have a few questions if i may. My uses are..

World of warcraft (ONLY game that will be played)
Internet usage
Movie watching


1. Is the Aluminum Version REALLY worth the extra 300$ Over the Polycarbonate?

2. Since the 9400M is technically intergrated Is the DDR3 ram in the Aluminum version going to make THAT big a difference on world of warcraft?

3. I hear the CPU is located right under the WSAD keys on the ALuminum model, and this creates big heat problems while using games since your hand covers the area?

4. Your experience with Apple reliability? All i have ever owned is ASUS and Dell and Toshiba...Dell and ASUS were flawless with Toshiba needing to be sent in for service 4 times inside of a year.

5. How durable is the Polycarbonate?

 

I think the aluminum is worth it for the 9400m graphics and for the LED display which is a lot better than the one is the polycarbonate macbook. Apple laptops are very reliable and the ones that have problems can be replaced hassle free. The cpu heating problems does not sound right to me and probably not a widespread issue if true.

 

1) In a word, no. If you want to have a laptop that will last a little longer, then you should at least consider. The multitouch trackpad is cool, and the LED display is nice, but there are no $300 features.

2) Integrated or not, DDR3 makes for an almost undetectable performance increase. You'll appreciate it more if you get 4GB of DDR2 vs 2GB DDR3 (unless we're talking desktop systems, where 1600mhz DDR3 is quite nice).

3)The CPU overheating shouldn't be a problem at all. Never heard of it.

4) Apple has reliability "fluctuations". The iBook series was very well built. However, with the plastic Macbooks, several of my friends have one, and they've experienced all sorts of crap going out. You name it: optical drive, display hinge, hard drive, casing cracks, display, bluetooth. In most cases though, it was repaired quickly and hassle free.

5) Schools use them. Needless to say, they're pretty durable. I've never really seen more than cosmetic scratches.

 

The plastic MacBook has the 9400m. If you spend $25 and upgrade to a 160GB HDD you are paying $275 for DDR3 ram (2GB vs 2GB), the aluminum body, and the LED display. You do, however, LOSE the firewire port on the aluminum model.

From a performance standpoint there is absolutely no reason to pick the aluminum model over the plastic model but who are we kidding design is a major influence in purchasing an Apple product.

1. No, reasons above.

2. No. You will not ever notice that you have the DDR3 ram unless you do memory benchmarks.

3. Haven't heard of this problem but seeing as I don't own an aluminum MacBook I couldn't confirm or deny this.

4. Average to above average. Girlfriend had to have her display replaced within two weeks because of dead pixels, had the display replaced again 15 months later, had a failed battery, cracked case at the front, yellowed hand rest, and had to have the fan replaced back in January of this year. For every story like this there are 15 people who never once had a problem so don't let my personal experience lead you to believe Apple makes crap products.

Most people won't ever have a problem but I don't buy into the fact that Apple has better quality control than most companies. I've had the same good and bad experiences with Apple as I have had with IBM/Lenovo and Dell. Would suggest Applecare on whatever you buy. I purchased it for my MBP.

5. No idea. Neither the polycarbonate or the aluminum would fare well when they were dropped. The aluminum will fare MUCH better in day to day use and abuse though.

 

Multitouch pad is the only one that I conern when looking at Mac laptop ^^! So pick up the Aluminum. It's worth when u don't need firewire port !

 

Go for the Alu Macbook. When the difference is only a few hundred bucks just go for the better model, otherwise you might regret your purchase later on. The difference in build quality is huge, I compared the Alu Macbook to a plastic on the other day and the plastic one creaked, bent and you saw ripples on the screen if you pushed a little on the back. Not good.

Also, I really can't imagine using a laptop without the multi-touch features anymore, they are great and makes it a lot more fun to use if you don't have a mouse with you.

The screen is also much much brighter.

The HD is slightly bigger and the DDR3 does make a small difference, but as people said it probably won't be noticeable in day to day use. According to Notebookreview the difference in performance is somewhere around 15%. (I think so anyway, check the White Macbook review.)

As for temperatures, no problems here. This thing is whisper quiet and runs very cool. It idles around 40-42 degrees, and stays around 50-52 when surfing the net and whatnot. It gets MUCH warmer in Windows tho.

 

The polycarbonate Macbook has the multi-touch feature. It just doesn't give you as much real estate space on the trackpad because the clicker is still there. Just wanted to clarify that.

I think the only real thing the Alu Macbook has going for it is the better screen and build quality. The HD can be upgraded, the jump to DDR3 isn't really so noticeable, and the temperature isn't the problem as it used to be. However, if these things are important to you, then it may be worth it. You will probably want to check them out in the store first, though, at your local Best Buy or Apple Store (if you have one). If you have the option to see a product before you purchase it, it is obvious that you would want to.

 

I will second this suggestion. It's the best way to figure out if something really is what you want. Nothing compares to hands-on comparisons.

 

the old trackpads in the current White Macbook, and older macbooks and older macbook Pros are not the same Multitouch as the current. About the max you can do on the old ones is 2 finger right clicks, and 2 finger scrolls. The newer ones are true Mutitouch glass trackpads using iPhone/iTouch tech, and you can do stuff with 1, 2 3 or 4 fingers (i love 4 finger expose)... and the whole thing is a big button which i really love. I'd definitely pad an extra $275 or more for the Aluminum model... though i already have a Macbook Pro... so I don't need it

 

I think you should consider the differences in CPU aswell, depending on what your budget is etc, it could be relevant.

The 13" white and "base" unibody(2.0GHz) models use Core2Duo P7350, the 3rd version, unibody 2.4GHz with backlit keyboard, runs P8600.

Comparison:
http://optimitza.cat/news/2008/09/1...00-t9400-t9300-p8600-p8400-t8300-t8100-p7350/

Personally Im picking up the 2.4GHz unibody in 2 days or so, due to more cpu performance and the keyboard.