[Review] 13" Black MacBook - Santa Rosa chipset

[Chicane-UK Veteran]

Great review. Thanks for sharing.

Might want to look up how they saved Apple around the time Jobs had to come back...

Actually.. this isn't entirely true. I was reading an interesting technologists site back a few weeks ago where they discussed this item in some detail. Microsofts 'saving' payment to Apple was literally about 5% of what they actually currently had financially and in assets. Microsoft helped them a bit, absolutely - but Apple could have managed to stay afloat. The flip side of this is that Microsoft would have been stupid to do what they WERE thinking at the time, and ditch Mac Office. Just two months prior to the announcement by Bill Gates about helping Apple out, (leaked) internal memo's show that Gates was asking for GOOD reasons why he shouldn't just scrap Mac Office!

Its all quite interesting and if I can find the link, i'll share it!

[macf13nd]

OK.. here we go. Windows users are not in the stone ages. We use our operating system for a WIDE plethora of software. That said... go download the Cyrsis demo and get it to run on OS X. What about something small like.... Party Poker? Americas Army? Will that run on OS X? Battlefield 1942/Vietnam/2/2142? Can you download and use Trillian? Winamp? Enemy Territory? Do ya see where I'm going with this?

My point is, use your "game lacking" OS. I'll load XP and have fun. I LOVE my games. LOVE THEM! Now... if/when I can run ALL OF MY SOFTWARE on a Mac, I'll probably use that full time. I fear though, when that happens, so will the malware, trojans and viruses. So they'll be no point in switching anyways.....

surely bootcamp negates your post?

I've never used it and am currently running XP SP3, but from what I'm given to understand...

Edit: Most of your post actually refers to OS ten, thus the edit. However, in the fifth sentence of your final paragraph, you mention a hypothetical situation where you can run all of your software on your mac. surely this situation exists already (see above).

[jesseinsf]

I have to admit, the Macbook does look like a piece of art. An educated person would not judge a product by its looks. I do appreciate that you wrote a review on the new Macbook, though the info was quite useless for people seeking a quality product. We want to know performance ratings, reliability, and stability, as-well-as what type of person (in the sense of usability) would benefit using this product. We also want to know what you can and can not do with this product.

It will be very hard for anyone to convince me to use a Mac for the following 13 reasons:

1: No Windows Media Center

2: No DX10 graphics

3: games are almost unheard of on a Mac

4: Hardware compatibility (Though some hardware will work)

5: Single click mouse (What's up with that). you actually have to buy a double click mouse to get the right click functionality.

6: Can not custom build a Mac

7: Application compatibility

8: Can you even maximize application windows in a Mac with just one click (not a click and drag, and not a keyboard shortcut)?

9: compatibility limitations between OS platforms.

10: Mac uses the Unix core (not Linux) and not their own (come one, how old is the unix code?)

11: Administrative fuctionality and control

12: Those Communist fanboys need to start getting along with the rest of the world. To them it's not "Think Different, it's Think against!"

13: it's too trendy :)

You guys want Mac to dominate? If mac does then the hackers and virus makers will start finding an interest in Mac. Even if Mac and Windows is head-to-head in the market share, those hackers and virus makers will attack both. It will be easier to make Mac viruses, now that Mac is on the Intel Platform. Windows users know that nothing is impossible and that there is no such thing as 100% perfection. That is all I have to say.

Guys, I'm not writing stuff like this to attack, I write this stuf because it's educational to know what you know. And if I'm wrong I will be corrected. This is a Group discussion right? :)

Edited December 16, 2007 by jesseinsf

[MasterC]

OK.. here we go. Windows users are not in the stone ages. We use our operating system for a WIDE plethora of software. That said... go download the Cyrsis demo and get it to run on OS X. What about something small like.... Party Poker? Americas Army? Will that run on OS X? Battlefield 1942/Vietnam/2/2142? Can you download and use Trillian? Winamp? Enemy Territory? Do ya see where I'm going with this?

All of that can be done with either similar software, or Parallels / VMWare Fusion / Bootcamp.

My point is, use your "game lacking" OS. I'll load XP and have fun. I LOVE my games. LOVE THEM! Now... if/when I can run ALL OF MY SOFTWARE on a Mac, I'll probably use that full time.

Too bad you can play games on a Mac, too. You can even, oh I don't know, run Windows on it and play them that way?

I fear though, when that happens, so will the malware, trojans and viruses. So they'll be no point in switching anyways.....

That will never happen, imo. OS X is too secure. To do some damage, you'd have to modify system files which needs user authentication.

Edit: To the post above - you can take number 5 off the list. I can't believe that people still try to pass off that **** as true. The Mighty Mouse has a touch sensitive top, so you can right click. The Apple notebooks let you two finger tap to right click.

[Chicane-UK Veteran]

Sigh. Another yawn inducing Windows/Mac fanboy (child) argument-a-thon.

That said... go download the Cyrsis demo and get it to run on OS X. What about something small like.... Party Poker? Americas Army? Will that run on OS X? Battlefield 1942/Vietnam/2/2142?

Um -> http://www.apple.com/games/articles/2007/09/battlefield2142/

[Bobster]

Awesome review mate, have exactly the same Macbook and absolutely love it! (Y)

[xfx]

Some people just do not realise how lucky we are, we are in a great situation where computational rivalry between companies like Microsoft, Apple and Google is only helping to improve technology at an even greater pace.

Very well said!

[BilliShere]

dude i just wanna know how easy the osx operating system is.. is it really as simple as windows? and yes macbooks especially in black look very nice.. can someone also tell me the actual use of having a glossy screen? other than it looking good?

[Echilon]

Great review. Very nice laptop!

[.Neo]

Overal I like the review, but it lacks details. Anyway, have fun with it! :)

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4: Hardware compatibility (Though some hardware will work)

Most printers, scanners, keyboards, mouses, monitors, routers, speaker sets, optical drives (both internal and external), HDDs (both internal and external), RAM cards etc. will work just fine with a Macintosh. People even managed to swap CPUs with the latest Intel models.

5: Single click mouse (What's up with that). you actually have to buy a double click mouse to get the right click functionality.

Apple released a multi-buttoned mouse over two years ago, which ships by default with every desktop Mac (except for the Mac mini). They don't even build the one-buttoned mouses anymore.

Even with an old one-buttoned mouse you can access right-click contextual menus by holding down control.

6: Can not custom build a Mac

If you want that you can buy a Mac Pro. There's plenty you can adjust before buying other Macs as well.

7: Application compatibility

Obviously Windows applications won't run on Mac OS X. But then again nor will Mac OS X applications on Windows. So far there aren't any Windows applications I truly miss on Mac OS X. Next to that I found that most applications on Mac OS X are of higher quality than the ones found on Windows (some may or may not disagree). Microsoft Office exists on Mac OS X as well, version 2008 will be released next month.

8: Can you even maximize application windows in a Mac with just one click (not a click and drag, and not a keyboard shortcut)?

Mac OS X' zoom feature simply doesn't work that way.

9: compatibility limitations between OS platforms.

I have a PC on my home network just fine. Basically all popular media formats can be exchanged without a single problem.

10: Mac uses the Unix core (not Linux) and not their own (come one, how old is the unix code?)

It's a bit silly to think the UNIX kernel used by Mac OS X remained unchanged since it's initial release. Development of the NT kernel started somewhere in the late 80s, did it stay exactly the same as well?

11: Administrative fuctionality and control

What about it?

C'mon man if you're going to draw up a list at least make it accurate. ;)

Edited December 16, 2007 by .Neo

[jesseinsf]

Overal I like the review, but it lacks details. Anyway, have fun with it! :)

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C'mon man if you're going to draw up a list at least make it accurate. ;)

About the Administrative Functionality. I was comparing with Active Directory in Windows server with Mac server.

The rest of the list was said to get more accurate info from people like yourself. Can you compare the first 3 with apple's technologies and where they are headed with it? Thanks: :)

[.Neo]

About the Administrative Functionality. I was comparing with Active Directory in Windows server with Mac server.

The rest of the list was said to get more accurate info from people like yourself. Can you compare the first 3 with apple's technologies and where they are headed with it? Thanks: :)

For Media Center there's Front Row 2. DirectX on Mac OS X obviously will never happen as it's being developed by Microsoft. There are more and more games being released for Mac OS X, and EA puts in quite some effort to port over many of it's titles.

Most of this information is available on the Mac OS X website.

[InternalStorm]

I dislike the fingerprints the blackbook gets. I mean, seriously, they crop up almost right away and you have to scrub to get them off, really annoying. Other than that, it's a great laptop but would have done better with a built in SD card slot.

[Quillz]

I dislike the fingerprints the blackbook gets. I mean, seriously, they crop up almost right away and you have to scrub to get them off, really annoying. Other than that, it's a great laptop but would have done better with a built in SD card slot.

There's always the Invisible Shield. Although, I do think Apple bundles a small micro-fiber cloth with the MacBooks now, and honestly, it's just fingerprints. You can always wipe them away, the same can't be said of the hairline scratches the white casing seems to pick up.

[Martyn]

Thank you for all the nice comments everyone, I am glad so many of you enjoyed reading my review :)

I have to admit, the Macbook does look like a piece of art. An educated person would not judge a product by its looks. I do appreciate that you wrote a review on the new Macbook, though the info was quite useless for people seeking a quality product. We want to know performance ratings, reliability, and stability, as-well-as what type of person (in the sense of usability) would benefit using this product. We also want to know what you can and can not do with this product.

Well the information might of been useless to you, but to other people it might of been useful. I did not write the review to sell MacBook's to other people, I just thought I would write about my MacBook and my feelings for it through the eyes of me. I looked at benchmarks and the lark a lot more when I built my gaming PC in the summer, but for my MacBook I just wanted it for its beautiful simplicity and how it suited my student needs in particular. My blog is simply my opinions and feelings about things that interest me, and I wrote the review for my blogging audience but mainly for myself, and not for my awesome Neowinian friends but I thought I would share it regardless. I have wrote a few reviews for Neowin in the past, and they focused more on the technical aspect, but for my MacBook review I just wanted more freedom and to take a more technical approach.

I dislike the fingerprints the blackbook gets. I mean, seriously, they crop up almost right away and you have to scrub to get them off, really annoying. Other than that, it's a great laptop but would have done better with a built in SD card slot.

That is one of the small qualms I have with my MacBook, it does pick up fingermarks relatively easily. To be honest though, it does not really bother me that much, I tend to clean the screen of my MacBook with the included cloth and I also whipe the casing down at the same time. It only takes a few seconds, no biggie.

[1759]

For Media Center there's Front Row 2. DirectX on Mac OS X obviously will never happen as it's being developed by Microsoft. There are more and more games being released for Mac OS X, and EA puts in quite some effort to port over many of it's titles.

Most of this information is available on the Mac OS X website.

EA is using another company to port its games, and frankly, EA is one of the laziest game devs - year after, they either make lazy rehashes of the previous, or very buggy games at that. Macs don't do games, until Apple releases a desktop that can take the same video cards as a PC (or EFI becomes mainstream in PC's), you won't get hardcore or moderate gamers to switch.

There are some programs I wish were on the Mac that I found better on Windows, most of which are image viewers, like FastStone or Picasa (I really don't understand the hype with most iLife apps, most are sort of lame or bloated for what they are). iWorks '08 is OK, but I much prefer Office 2007, and I hope 2008 is just as good (I really think if the UI used in 2007 was designed by Apple, Mac fanatics would trip over themselves, but since it's "M$"...)

Leopard is pretty good, but the upgrade went horribly - a clean install later, it's fine. Macs usually work, but they aren't perfect by any stretch, I firmly believe Apple's QC has gone, way, way downhill the past couple of years (the problems with condensation and cheap LCDs on the new iMacs, wonky keyboards on the MB and MBP make me laugh). And the "Mighty" mouse is one of the worst mice I've ever used (wired and Bluetooth).

Overall, OSX does have some real benefits to Windows, and I do like the BSD/UNIX certification, as I'm also wishing to learn PERL/AWK script, and do Java programming on my Mini, and it does have the benefit of better vendor support than Linux.

But there are some things I do miss about Vista - it's easier to customize IMO, there are more programs that you can pick and choose from, plus, you install and run about any piece of hardware, and install Windows without jumping through hoops on hardware bought from newegg.

However, the problem I have with Apple, as an agnostic OS user, is Jobs/Apple's failure to produce a real desktop tower, and the cult of Mac, some Mac users will just bend over for anything from Apple, or but up with software/hardware bugs that get other OEMs roasted over and nasty letters written to. I really do like have choices in my hardware selection, my Mini is mainly a compromise of a number of factors.

My Mac is a Mini (1.83 GHz C2D, 1 GB (soon to be 2), basic model that I got a couple of weeks ago, to play around with and co-exist on my Windows home network. And it has impressed me in that regard as well, I can use RDC without problems and Samba works great when connecting to my Windows shares. And I have installed Hamachi, so I can grab my Mini and remotely access my Vista desktop from a friend's house.

OSX is really great, but so is Vista/XP too IMO.

[Xtreme $niper]

I've had a Macbook since the first batch of them, and I've enjoyed it through good times and bad. One thing I will point out though is that the Macbook has a far superior trackpad than any windows laptop I have ever tried.

The Macbook's trackpad is wider, more sensitive, and the acceleration seems to be spot on. I love using this trackpad, and I absolutely despise any Windows laptop trackpad I have ever tried (various brands include Toshiba, IBM/Lenovo, HP, and Dell).

That's my little input there. I'm sure they could be at least slightly better if they just make them a little bigger. Who's idea was it to make a square trackpad? *sigh*

[RAID 0]

People saying running boot camp negates my post, to you I say... Where's your logic? Why would I pay extra just to run XP or Vista on a Mac? From benchmarks I've seen, a Mac does not even come close to hitting the FPS that a custom build can hit, for less money. "BUY A MAC.... so you can run Windows!!!!" Stupid.

You still can't load all the games and software a Windows computer can run.... unless you load Windows. :rolleyes:

[MasterC]

People saying running boot camp negates my post, to you I say... Where's your logic? Why would I pay extra just to run XP or Vista on a Mac? From benchmarks I've seen, a Mac does not even come close to hitting the FPS that a custom build can hit, for less money. "BUY A MAC.... so you can run Windows!!!!" Stupid.

Bootcamp is free, so where's your logic? The newer Macs with Nvidia 8600 cards are DirectX 10 capable, so you can run games in Windows perfectly fine. And your statement about low FPS on a Mac is just plain stupid. The only difference is software, not hardware.

You still can't load all the games and software a Windows computer can run.... unless you load Windows. :rolleyes:

Which is why there's the option to do so. Can you run OS X programs on your PC l? Didn't think so ;)

[inStereo]

Nice review mate, i have to admit that they do look rather lovely and the OSX operating system is different and refreshing to use when you have been using windows for so long.

I don't think i am sold on macs just yet, personally i think Apple are too up their own a*se , when they released those Mac Vs. PC ads it annoyed me because they portrayed that they where superior to windows pcs which they aren't, they are just different, there is nothing wrong with being different, it gives the consumer a wider choice which is good isn't it? Why can't they go for that angle? I guess it annoys Steve Jobs that Microsoft have such a big share in Apple that he had to show his feelings a little.

Anyways nice review and i hope to see more entertaining reading from you in the future! Good job!

[Colin-uk Veteran]

Thread Cleaned

[Cloud Constructors]

does the13" Black MacBook - Santa Rosa chipset have an optical port to connect to the home threatre? or a HDMI port for HDTV?

[giga Veteran]

does the13" Black MacBook - Santa Rosa chipset have an optical port to connect to the home threatre? or a HDMI port for HDTV?

Optical out and DVI/VGA out.

[Cloud Constructors]

awesome, I don't know many laptops that have an optical port. Also can you run Windows Vista at the same time?

[Quillz]

awesome, I don't know many laptops that have an optical port. Also can you run Windows Vista at the same time?

You can run Windows Vista via Boot Camp, or virtualize it via Parallels Desktop and/or VMware Fusion.