Buying advice - MB vs MBP?

Hi there!
I think about switching to Mac. I'm going to USA next week and I would like to buy Macbook or Macbook Pro. I have a budget to buy a new MBP but I don't know if it's the best decission. I'm a college student (but unfortunately from Czech Republic - the discounts aren't for me) and it's very important for me to have a long battery life. New MBPs look sexy with their great graphics but I'm not hardcore gamer but sometimes (5 hours a week) I'd like to play some games (heroes5 for example - new starcraft looks sexy too but I don't know when it will be released). I'm living 5/7 days off home where I have my PC desktop. So what's my trouble. Should I sell my desktop (c2d 1,86, x1650pro) and buy a new MBP or should I buy older less expensive generation with x1600 (but I'm affraid of battery life there). Or should I save my money and buy new (or older more expensive refurbished BLACK MB? Looks the most sexy for me.. ) with Apple Care (I don't know if it's necessary - MBs are good quality notebooks) and keep my desktop for gaming?
I will apreciate every opinion!

 

I am in a similar situation. I am too a student and would like to purchase a mb or mbp. MB would be the best choice for carrying it all the time since it's more durable in terms of casing and problems but then I'd me missing out a lot by going with the mb instead of mbp for about $500 less. I am in a comparative mode these days going back and forth in choosing one or the other.

1. MBP 2.2ghz ($2199.99 CDN)
2. MB White 2.16 +2gigs ($1680 CDN)

 

The MBP is now the best bang for the buck if you ask me. It has fast processors, LED screen, great graphics, and standard 2GB of RAM and DVD burners. Spec a similar MB with no GPU and you'll be looking at a pretty hefty price tag anyway. But the MB has size on its size, especially if you want to take it to class and sit it on a small desk or tray like in auditoriums. Also keep in mind that if you do want to game on a Mac and sell your desktop, you'll have to buy a copy of Windows as well, so make sure to account for that in your budget.

 

So, I haven't decided yet and I've started thinking about D630 and T61 vs Apple too. I bought Windows Vista last month and I haven't installed it yet.. so this isn't my case.. I think MBPs have a greater value now so between them MBP is the winner! But refurbished MBs can change the situation a little. The next point is in mobility. MB is a smaller but the weight difference is a little one. Only 0,3 pounds. Battery life will be similar between them I think but PC laptops like D630 has much more bigger battery life. But MacOS is the big difference in battle of Apple vs PC laptops. It will be veery very hard decission, all of them are so great laptops!!

 

i agree that mbp is very looking really sexy now that it has led back light and awesome gpu. Not to mention kick ass battery life!! If i buy one i would use the ADC discount instead of the education discount since even after adding on the membership fees it is still 100 dollars less than the education price + u get free OS discs every month or so

 

I was in the exact same boat! In the end I decided to go with apple, and the refurb macbook won over the macbook pro.

 

The ADC discount looks GREAT! But I don't know if I can use it. I'm a university student but I study in the Czech Republic. I'm going to pass the next three months in the USA - there's much less expensive hardware and I'm going to buy a laptop there. I hope I'll find any other discount..

 

The ADC Student membership doesn't include the software seeds that the $500 ADC Select membership does. You don't get any free OS stuff, etc.

With the free iPod Nano promotion, the regular education price is a better deal (since the $199 iPod could be sold at close to full price to basically give you a further $199 off the price in addition to the $200 student discount).

 

In the USA, get to an Apple store and try out both. Specs aside, it might come down to personal preference. I liked the MacBook better, don't need the MBP's 3D graphic power, and is a perfect size for portability. That said, software is an important requirement. Do you need Windows software? What software do you need for university?

Check out Circus Ponies' Notebook. Some have found it ideal for university:

http://www.circusponies.com/store/index.php?main_page=education&sub=learning

 

Apple finally has some good separation between the two now. The MBP is clearly a more powerful machine. However, you have to decide if you need that extra power, and if you are willing to sacrifice size and battery for it. For you, I think the MBP would be better since it sounds like you game a fair amount.

 

I necessarily need Windows because of some programs for my studies (for example SAS). The most time I'm using notebook for Internet, Word/Excel and some adjustments in Photoshop. But sometimes I use it for programming and video edit. I think that MB is the best choice for this, isn't it? But sometimes I have a mood for a little gaming. But I can choose some older titles I think. MBP is probably too much powerful for me. I will probably not sell my desktop and the Macbook will will great. I don't know if 3yrs applecare is neccesary (can I buy Applecare a little longer within the 1yr warranty?). And I don't know if refurbished mbs are better value (I worry about batttery life there). I'm going to find answers for this..

 

Note that the refurbished machines have the same warranty as new ones; I'm not sure what they do with batteries, but I'm pretty sure they wouldn't sell you a refurb laptop with a drained battery with no lifespan left. I think part of the refurb process would probably be to replace the battery if it needed to be.

Note that not all refurbs are "used" machines. In some cases, sometimes it will be something as simple as someone who got a machine and, say, a cable wasn't in the box. They return it to the store and Apple gives them a new box, and the old one has to become a refurb.

 

Thank you a lot.. it sounds great