White MacBook Gets Bigger HDD, Faster CPU, RAM

By Jane McEntegart
published

Apple has quietly updated the specs for the white MacBook, making the machine faster than the entry-level, unibody MacBook.

When the new MacBooks came out, the white MacBook’s price was dropped to $999. Those itching for a Mac and willing to compromise a little here and there on specs could bag themselves the cheapest Apple laptop on offer.

Today Apple upgraded the lower-end white MacBook with a faster processor, faster RAM and more space. The $999 Apple notebook now comes with 160 GB hard drive, a 2.13 GHz processor and 2 GB of 800 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, improving on the previous specs of a 120 GB HDD, 2 GB of 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM and a 2 GHz processor.

Unibody users still have the advantage of a nicer, stronger, lighter design, DDR3 and the ability to go from HDD to SSD. The upgrade to the white MacBook fuels speculation that Apple will soon update the unibody MacBooks. Surely they can’t leave the entry-level unibody MacBook and its 2 GHz processor alone for long?

Jane McEntegart
40 Comments Comment from the forums
  • the_one111
    But guess what!?! The apple tax is STILL THERE.

    Who knew..?
    Reply
  • teeth_03
    double the RAM and HDD and it just might be worth it
    Reply
  • cracklint
    Wow my brother-in-law bought a compaq at wally world at a pre-black friday sale with almost identical specs for $299. It can still be picked up for $399 on sale, and every other day for $499. Yay, go Mac!
    Reply
  • chaosgs
    Not even shitting you, my specs are 90% the same except i have a 250 GB hard Drive. I how ever paid $450 for this gateway laptop. Hey Apple Where did that other $550 go to? For $550 you dont give better faster specs or even a $550 case to go with it, so why should i buy your product when the competition is cheaper with the same specs?
    Reply
  • duckmanx88
    I'm writing a paper on this(advertising) so maybe you guys can help me. besides specs, the apple tax obviously goes towards promoting its OS. so whats the difference between XP/Vista/linux's interface(OS) that an "average user" will notice?
    Reply
  • wkcar
    This is the only computer in Apple's line-up that comes at a good price. If I go to HP's website for instance and customize a 13.3 inch laptop with the P7450 processor (2.13 @1066 fsb), N-wireless/bluetooth, and their pathetic attempt at video card (105M=9200), compared to the 9400 GS that the macbook has you're at a price of $1028, slightly higher than Apple's $999. I didn't really check around but others might have the same specs for less.
    Apple just started their back to school special today, which includes up to a free ipod touch after rebate, in addition to their $50 discount, which brings the laptop's price to $730...which is a pretty good bang for the buck. As for the RAM/Hard drive, you have to be a complete moron to upgrade that through the company...upgrading to 8 GB of RAM on your own will cost you the same whether the laptop has 2 GB or 4 GB from the factory.
    I'm not a fan of the apple lifestyle they force on people but If i was in the market for a 13 inch laptop i would seriously consider getting this one and using windows as my primary OS.
    Reply
  • pender21
    I think Ubuntu 9.04 Gnome has the best interface of all because it combines User friendly features from both OS giants. From OSX, it has the dock and from Windows it has the Start Menu and taskbar.

    As for OSX, it works well for Media production such as image, video and audio editing because there is a vast abundance of hardware that integrates with OSX exclusive and non exclusive software.

    Out of the box, the software supplied by Apple (like iLife) is pretty good. With windows, the creative software seems like an afterthought and it is very unclear from the interface, what can and can't be done with a barebone Windows installation.

    It is also very easy to install Windows in OSX (as a separate OS or as a VM) and boot camp installs the necessary drivers required so all you need then is external device drivers for printers and such).

    Also, with OSX (for most computers), it has integrated peripherals that work great out of the box, which is an appeal for non savvy users who just want to use the computer to consume and share information rather than worrying about driver support (which probably was the backbreaker for Vista, as well as the hardware requirements).

    Also, OSX is built using a modified BSD (Unix) kernel, which has stood the test of time on stability and security with adeqaute performance. Windows is still plagued by security wholes (requires Antivirus and malware protection) and stability issues (not so common now but was still an issue in the XP and pre-NT infancy days).

    For $1000, it is an affordable system for young people like students who are in the media production industry and will likely last them the full term of their undergraduate study and then some). With Windows it is hit and miss and battery life varies greatly (and 15.4" is large to lug around school all day). $1000 for a 13.3" laptop is not terrible, plus it has a decent GPU.

    If you don't want to spend $1000 for a Macbook then don't, but others who have used Macs and need OSX, the $1000 price point is fair. RAM is very cheap to upgrade yourself (4GB for $45 or less).
    Reply
  • hallic7
    Simply put: MacBook sucks.... your wallet!!! XD

    Well the computer at that price also sucks itself!!!

    LOL!!!
    Reply
  • warezme
    Nobody needs OSX..., FAIL!, and $1,000 for that is not worth justifying with a novel, double FAIL!.
    Reply
  • tomm09
    Still overpriced, but even the spec doubles, why would anyone uses retarded Mac OS.
    Reply