Washington Post: Apple MacBook leaves iBook in the dust

20 years ago

“Apple’s new MacBook ranks as one of the company’s most anticipated laptops ever,” Rob Pegoraro reports for The Washington Post. “In general, the MacBook represents a tremendous advance over the iBook that it replaces. It starts at $1,099, $100 more than its predecessor, but is barely heavier (the review model loaned by Apple weighed 5.14 pounds) and offers a wider, brighter, glossier screen (13.3 inches across). Its most important feature lies inside, a 1.83 or 2 GHz Intel Core Duo processor.”

“Like the Intel-based iMac, Mac mini and MacBook Pro, the MacBook rips through software revised for these new processors — including the bundled Mac OS X 10.4 operating system and iLife ’06 multimedia suite, plus a growing number of third-party applications,” Pegoraro reports. “And the MacBook can run Windows itself. You can employ Microsoft’s operating system inside Mac OS X using the pre-release version of Parallels Workstation, an upcoming, $80 release from Herndon-based Parallels ( http://www.parallels.com ), or you can download Apple’s free Boot Camp software ( http://www.apple.com/bootcamp ) to add a completely separate, faster copy of Windows XP that can be booted instead of OS X each time you start the MacBook. Either way, buying the MacBook — or any other Intel-based Mac — means never having to say ‘I’m sorry, I can’t run this program on my computer.'”

“The MacBook provides only two USB ports, lacks a memory-card reader or PC Card expansion slot and even leaves out a modem. That last feature could be deal-breaker; if you ever must use dial-up, your only option is a $49 external model sold by Apple,” Pegoraro reports.

MacDailyNews Note: How is it a “deal-breaker,” when you can simply toss the $49 Apple USB modem in your backback?

Pegoraro continues, “The review unit repeatedly lost the wireless signal of an Apple AirPort Extreme WiFi access point, even while Windows laptops in the same room stayed online. MacBook users have posted similar complaints in Apple’s discussion forums. Weirdly enough, this problem didn’t emerge when I rebooted the MacBook into Windows — which suggests that Apple should be able to fix it by updating the MacBook’s software… Glitches such as the MacBook’s erratic WiFi reception and almost painfully hot surfaces undercut that appeal. Apple has taught its users to expect better, and it ought to be able to deliver as much before long.”

Full review here.

MacDailyNews Take: Surprisingly harsh, but a fair-enough review by Pegoraro. We do think the MacBook is a much better machine than the overall impression of it that Pegoraro leaves his readers – and so do most other reviewers. Please see the related articles below.

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