October 20, 2009 9:46 AM
by Charles Jade
MacBook Gets New Display, Trackpad, and Built-in Battery for Old Price
Today Apple announced the release of an updated MacBook and Apple Senior VP Phil Schiller says it best in a press release for the new Macbook.
"The new MacBook includes many of the great features found on the innovative MacBook Pro, such as an LED-backlit display, glass Multi-Touch trackpad and built-in long-life battery."
The new MacBook remains priced at $999, which will disappoint some hoping Apple would compete more aggressively with netbooks. However, the new MacBook does not disappoint on specifications or build quality. Featuring a unibody, polycarbonate enclosure with magnetic latch, the new MacBook weighs in at 4.7 lbs, down from 5.0 pounds, and is 1.08 inches thick. The LED-backlit display is the same as used on the MacBook Pros. Apple is claiming the built-in battery will last up to seven hours.
As for specifications, the new MacBook has a 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM, a 250GB hard drive, and integrated graphics with the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M. The two DIMM slots support up to 4GB RAM, available for another $100 from Apple. A 320GB or 500GB hard drive is optional, $50 and $150 extra, respectively.
About the only thing missing, besides a price drop, would be the SD card slot included across the MacBook Pro lineup. Nonetheless, even at twice the price of the best netbook, the new MacBook is easily more than twice as fast with double the battery life, and is many times more aesthetically pleasing.
