The MacBooks arrive

Well, everyone knew they were coming. Though I was forced to cast my lot with the non-Intel machines when my iBook died over the Xmas holidays, my original plan had been to hold out for the next generation of machines (though am super happy with the 12" G4 Powerbook and consider it the best laptop I've ever owned bar none).

I still find the 15" screens of the new Powerbooks cavernous and slightly offputting for someone like me used to natty little portable machines you can throw in your backpack when you hop on a plane. However, the die is now cast and I'll have to upgrade at some point to one or the other. On the surface though, the MacBook looks like a hell of a lot more bang for the buck. Upgrading it to 2GB of RAM, the 2GHz Intel Core Duo, built in iSight and its greater battery life and even the 13" widescreen do make it seem like a very solid choice for myself once I pass on the G4 (don't get too happy yet little brother... ;-) ). Since I don't do high end video or photo editing and don't play any games that would require high end graphics, it does seem like a pretty easy choice.

Anyhow, comparison charts for the feature differences are here. I'd be interested in peoples' opinions who have tried both, particularly those people who do more of the sort of admin, itinerant tech, management and programming work I do (though I did notice the MacBook Pros are only a shade heavier than the MacBooks and have though a couple of times the last week that some more screen real estate would have been really useful).

And, before you ask... yes, black.

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