Review: Apple MacBook notebook computer

With two exceptions, Apple has always made excellent portable computers.

Ignoring the Apple Portable (over 10kg) and the 5300 (some caught fire), Apple’s laptops have been examples of how to design and build a notebook computer.

With the switch to Intel Core Duo processors, it’s now possible to run Windows on these computers as well as the Mac operating system - albeit with the experimental Apple Boot Camp software.

The MacBook replaces the iBook, Apple’s line of relatively cheap notebook computers aimed at consumers and, and the Apple PowerBook, which catered to professional users who value portability over power.

There aren't any seams on the outside of the MacBook, apart from where the battery slots into the bottom. Even the little rubber feet are pushed through from the inside of the case, so they don’t come unstuck and fall off.

All of the Macbook's ports are on the left hand side of the computer. We were also impressed with the power cord, which sticks to the computer with a magnet.

This sounds daft, until you realise that quite a lot of notebook computers are written off because the power cord has been tripped over or yanked out, destroying the socket in the laptop that it plugs into.

The MacBook’s screen is glossy - Apple always used matte screens in the past, which didn’t reflect ceiling lights, but always looked a little dull. The glossy screen shows off blacks and whites well, but fluorescent lighting also splashes off the screen - we’re undecided as to whether this is a better deal.

The keyboard is pretty odd-looking, with keys mounted individually in the case, but in use is very comfortable. The trackpad is of the same relative proportions as the screen, and dragging two fingers across it instead of one allows you to scroll up, down and sideways.

The two Intel processors – either 1.83GHz or 2GHz - make the MacBook romp along with either Mac OS X or Windows XP running.

Bear in mind that if you want to run Windows, you’ll have to buy a copy of Windows XP with Service Pack 2 and download Apple Boot Camp.

Boot Camp is by no means finished yet, and it you’re thinking of buying this to run Windows, we’d suggest waiting until Boot Camp comes out of Beta and into production.

We tested the black MacBook  – it comes in both traditional glossy white and a lovely, velvety matte black finish. The black coating is reserved for the most MacBook. However, apart from the colour all you get, for an extra £130, is a 20Gb hard disk, which isn't really worth it, unless you’re completely seduced by the colour.

Our test unit was also supplied with 2Gb of memory, instead of the basic set-up of 1Gb; we can’t speak for how fast a 1Gb MacBook would operate, although we’ve happily run an old PowerBook on less that half that memory for years.

The graphics card is integrated, so the 13.3in screen will rely on the Intel Core Duo processor we mentioned earlier. This makes the MacBook a bad choice for gaming or high definition video editing, but an excellent choice for pretty much any other task.
It also comes with the excellent iLife and Front Row software and has a built-in iSight webcam. Depending on the model chose, the MacBook can come with a multi-format DVD-writer and up to 120Gb of hard disk space. There's also built-in wireless networking.

In short, we think the new Apple MacBook is smashing. It has great looks, power and battery life (up to six hours). It can run both Windows and Mac OS - truly the best of both worlds.

You can hear more from Ben on the new MacBook on the PCW Product of Week podcast.

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