white 2ghz macbook?

i'm looking to replace my current 15.4 inch dell inspiron 5150 with a white 2ghz macbook. i can spend as much as $2000, but i'm trying to stay under.

let's see, i: write A LOT, edit photos surf the internet, and pirate music. i'm very much into open source software, though, so i feel compatability won't be much of a problem. mostly i need a computer that will serve as a decent media center--i listen to tons of music and watch a lot of movies. and, though i have a relatively nice widescreen 17 inch lcd monitor, i like the idea of being able to watch stuff on the go.

i have a relatively large collection of mp3s. i try to stay under 60 gigs, but that's larger than my current laptop hd, and i'd like to have all my music on my computer. in general i need to manipulate a lot of files. i have well over 150 gigs of random stuff. i have an external hd, but i'd like to become less dependent on it.

in regard to the change from windows to mac--i am excited to get into the Mac OS, though i have little experience with it. i like the overall design of the macbook (in theory, i've yet to get my hands on one). one of the things i hate most about my computer is its lack of portability. when i first got it two years ago, i thought it was the lightest thing in the world. now i'm loathe to move it from my desk. i think i can deal with five pounds (it's not the weight of my current computer that bothers me, so much as the bulk--it's turned into a desktop replacement which is NOT what i want). i also despise my computer's low battery life. it started at getting just under 3:00 hours, and now it can barely hit the 2:00hr mark.

so i want to get a 2ghz white macbook, with 512mb of RAM, and a 120 gig hd (and applecare, of course). i plan on updating the RAM to 2 gigs with this. all of this is under an education discount, so with my new RAM it should all come up to a little under $1800.

concerns. i know ALL ABOUT the different defects that have come up. but people seem to have relatively little difficulty getting replacements. my concerns are as follow:

1. i'm going to be a student in new york city. i'm assuming this means i'll need lot's of portability. i've heard lot's of complaining about the macbook not being the ultra portable that the mac-line needs, but i realize that the really vocal computer experts are insanely finicky. is 5.2 lbs a lot?
2. is the case the equivalent of a white ipod? i.e. equally scratchable? how difficult is it to maintain its aesthetic?
3. to anyone with a macbook, does it run too hot for a bit of lap-usage? my dell can get sort of warm, but it's never really bothered me. as long as i'm not in physical pain, i don't mind a bit of discomfort.
4. is 120 gigs too much? i've been warned against getting hard drives that are too huge. will its presence make my computer much heavier or shorten the battery life?
5. will this get through 4 years of college without crapping out on me, or turning into a complete piece of junk in comparison to all the shiny new toys sure to come out in the interim? (i know that last part is a stupid question.)

oh, and i hear there are some changes coming from intel this summer--but i have no idea what the specifics mean. should i wait until the fall to get my computer, or am i not likely to notice a difference even if there is one?

that's all. sorry for the...umm...verbosity.

 

Might want to move this to the Apple forum.

 

a trip down to the local apple store will solve all your questions.

 

there isn't one for miiiiiiiiles.

 

1) The weight is ok, I have a similarly weighted ASUS m2n, it is ok for portability but I would like something under 2kg. So it depends on your back...the up side is that the power adaptor for the mac is quite small and light in comparison to pc ones.

2) Cant comment but will refer you to the yellow problem a few have reported.

3) From what I have heard on batteries isnt too bad, but on a/c maybe not.
the easy solution is to pick up a 10 laptop cooler, sit it in between you and you laptop. problems solved

4) You can never have too much space, as far as I know there is not a great deal of battery loss going up in Gb's... rpm's yes maybe. Although i would lean towards the 100gb just for price/gb.

5) No laptop will get u thru 4-5 years without starting to look and perform like an old granny. At least with the mac it maybe still has a chance of looking 'cool'.

Intel is releasing the core2duo in mid late august. This is meant to offer approx 20% more performace for the same power consumption. It is likely to make its way into at least mbp's before Xmas, but there is nothing solid on this, if you can wait wait for job's to make his big annoucement in August!
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The 13.3" size is great, and the weight is okay for a 14", but the macbook is pretty heavy for its size. You'll probably notice it more in a shoulder bag than a backpack.

I think the upgrades from 100-120 gig HDD and the upgrade from 1.83-2.0 ghz have pretty high cost-to-value ratios. $1800 for a macbook is a lot of money for a basic email and web browsing machine. For that price you could get a MBP ($1649 for a newone at macmall, $1599 for a refurb'd one from apple) I would suggest you get one of those $949 machines (don't buy from apple unless you want to pay sales tax), upgrade the memory to 1gig, and keep the change to buy a new macbook/ibook in two years.

Also, make sure to try the keyboard before you buy. It's got a really different feel and its not for everyone.

 

1. This one always gets me, seriously its 5 pounds, it's not that much I actually have a macbook here and 5 pounds is pretty light to me, but than again I don't sit on my butt all the time and not do some form of physical activity, its fine and a great machines, I feel its pretty thin and good weight for its size. I've always been a believer that weight tells you about the quality of the hardware, I mean isn't that the most important thing ?

2. My macbook is white, I haven't found it to be easily scratchable in the slightest yet, but I also have InvisibleShield installed on mine, so can't really help you answer that one. Indeed the laptop looks beautiful.

3. if your wearing pants or shorts that cover the part of the leg you put the laptop on, its gonna get pretty warm, but a simple adjusting of your position fixes it imo. Its just a passive form of heat release. Too many people whine about this. I'm not saying you are though.

4. I have yet to actually find a 120GB SATA HDD anywhere, not even newegg has it. If you know of one tell me. the bigger the drive it might mean it has more plates and adds very minimal weight, again but deal about weight, I don't believe heat is affected that much.

5. Hey, you said your planning on getting applecare, well if you do thats 4 years of warranty you got, and thats what you need for college. (they start the applecare protection after your complimentary warranty, so after 90 days of phone, your phone part of APP starts, and same for the hardware part) Mac is a great peice of hardware, as long as you are reasonable with the software you put on it and not be excessive in putting stuff on it where the macbook only meets the minimum requirement you'll be fine, but in all seriousness it'll be fine as long as you take care of it.

My macbook is simply wonderful and its probably the best laptop I had yet. Oh and yes do get more memory, you'll be very glad you did, Im still waiting for my 2x1Gb sticks.

cheers

 

Incorrect. The Applecare Protection Plan extends warranty from 1 year to 3, and the 90 day phone support to 3 years. So in essence, from the day you buy the computer is still what counts - if you get the APP it will end 3 years after the date of purchase on the computer. You don't add anything together, APP means 3 years from date of purchase, period. If you don't buy it you have 90 days phone support and 1 year warranty complimentary.