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Whitebook or Blackbook? Advice appreciated...

M

menthol moose

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 20, 2006
175
0
I think my parents might let me spend some money on a laptop, and I think that after 11 years being Windows only, it's time to switch back to Apple.

I've decided to get a Macbook, as my budget doesn't extend far enough to the MacBook Pro, but can't decide on a color. I really want the black one, but I really can't justify spending $200 more just for the extra 40GB and and the black coloring.

Can anyone point me in the right direction?
 
Well, just for the extra HD space, you could always buy an external one. As for the black color, I hear that the black shows dirt and smudge marks better.
 
As somebody who has used and owned both...

I can say it is a tie between the white and black. I right now have a blackbook (apple upgraded me from the white for having 2 faulty white cases aka discoloration) and it looks very professional. The black also looks very cool when the apple light is turned on. The matte finish also seems to be of higher quality, but it does show smudges and grease like crazy. (simple solution to that...use a mr. clean magic eraser on it and it will look good as new.)

The white one looks more like a toy, but it does look more like an apple product. No smudges, but the back of the case (where the apple is) can get scratched pretty easily. I also had discoloration on the palm rests when I had the white one, but that seems to have gone away during revs b and c.

All in all, if you are short on money, go ahead and get the white one and spend the money you saved buying upgrades in ram or hard drive speed/capacity. The black definitely looks cool, but the white one looks just fine as well.
 
menthol moose said:
but I really can't justify spending $200 more just for the extra 40GB and and the black coloring.
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Think you've answered your own question!

Personally, I prefer the black model, but you can install a bigger hard drive very cheaply, so you are definitely paying a premium for the colouring - something you're obviously hesitant to do.

Luigi239 summed up the situation nicely - but I would add, if you're going to be wistfully looking at your white MB a few months from now, thinking that you still much prefer a black one, just go ahead and get one!
 
Igantius said:
Think you've answered your own question!

Personally, I prefer the black model, but you can install a bigger hard drive very cheaply, so you are definitely paying a premium for the colouring - something you're obviously hesitant to do.

Luigi239 summed up the situation nicely - but I would add, if you're going to be wistfully looking at your white MB a few months from now, thinking that you still much prefer a black one, just go ahead and get one!
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I don't know. Seems to me it depends on how you use (handle) your laptop. I have a white macbook and my co-worker has the black one. We are both do presentations and take our systems everywhere. I've hads mine 8 months, he's had his for 6 weeks. To the casual observer his looks well used and mine looks almost new. The black shows every smudge, skin oils and finger prints. When he tries to wipe it off it just looks smeared.

Probably just his use but I prefer how the white looks and feels. Could just be personal preference.

Cheers,
 
panzer06 said:
Probably just his use but I prefer how the white looks and feels. Could just be personal preference.
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Absolutely! After all, I've read posters say the white one looks like a Fisher Price toy, whilst others have swear blind that the black one looks like a boring PC.
 
The black does look more professional. But then yes it does stain easy (from finger grease). It all comes down to your preference and if you really wanna spend 200 for the color. If you want the best of both worlds, how about a refurb black from the apple store?
 
Igantius said:
Absolutely! After all, I've read posters say the white one looks like a Fisher Price toy, whilst others have swear blind that the black one looks like a boring PC.
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There goes everyone's argument about how Macs are worth it because of the design.:rolleyes:

@menthol moose
What do you plan on using the notebook for? Will Black make it do it better? As Igantius said, I think you already answered you own question.
 
I agree. The ONLY reason I ended up with a blackbook was that I bought a refurb, and the extra $50 netted me enough gain other than color to justify it in my mind (it might have just been an extra 40GB on the HD, I can't remember now). I bought a 2.0 C2D blackbook with 120GB drive for $1049; the next option down was $999 with slightly less features.
 
I believe the matte finish on the black MacBook is similar to the finish on my cellphone (T-Mobile Dash/HTC S620). It does pick up greasy finger prints but they clean up easy. I usually just wipe it off with a microfiber cloth or my shirt. Wow, that last statement makes me look like a bum :D

Josh
 
Get the BlackBook, hands down. You will regret it once you hear stories of your friends with BlackBooks and you start to have cosmetic trouble with your WhiteBook.

BlackBooks are less prone to scratches, are less noticeable in public / susceptible to theft, and you have no yellow staining risks or issues.
 
Caitlyn said:
Get the BlackBook, hands down. You will regret it once you hear stories of your friends with BlackBooks and you start to have cosmetic trouble with your WhiteBook.

BlackBooks are less prone to scratches, are less noticeable in public / susceptible to theft, and you have no yellow staining risks or issues.
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less prone to scratches? are you kidding. scratches are more visible on anything black. every blackbook that i have seen looks all greased and smudged up after a couple of months. the keyboard and touch pad are considerably noticable. while the white does seem more like a true apple product and can tell it has been used as much as the blackbook. but it all depends on what youre looking for. you can always spend the extra 200 on an external HD rather than spending it on a blackbook. and looks wise i'd go for the white as well.
 
Thanks for the advice, everyone. I'm sort of leaning towards the Blackbook, but I'm going to ask around on a few more places before I buy it.

Also, has anyone heard any rumors about when the Macbooks would be updated to Santa Rosa? I've specifically been interested in the new Intel GMA X3100; it's supposed to be better for playing videos, and I would probably be watching some movies on it.
 
turnstylez18 said:
get a black refurb...thats what i did
Click to expand...

I did that as well, but I looked at it this way:

White 2.0 C2D 80GB Hard drive 1GB RAM for $1149
or
Black 2.0 C2D 120 GB Hard drive 1GB RAM for $1189.

I got the black one because for a few bucks extra I got a larger hard drive. The black was just a plus.

As far as smudging goes it is not that big of an issue. It does get smudges on it but only if your hands are not clean or dry. And it does wipe off really easy. I just use water and a micro fibre cloth. Looks as good as new after that.
 
menthol moose said:
Thanks for the advice, everyone. I'm sort of leaning towards the Blackbook, but I'm going to ask around on a few more places before I buy it.

Also, has anyone heard any rumors about when the Macbooks would be updated to Santa Rosa? I've specifically been interested in the new Intel GMA X3100; it's supposed to be better for playing videos, and I would probably be watching some movies on it.
Click to expand...

Ehh...prolly wouldn't hurt to wait for santa rosa, but then again I have a Rev A macbook, and it can play HD video just fine. I don't think that it would make that much more of a difference.
 
I vote for black. If I hadn't gone with the mbp, black would have been my choice. It just looks so much better.
 
It depends on your personality.

If you want to go to the dark side or you want to feel the force, if you wanna go with ying or you wanna go with yang...:D
 
Get the Blackbook. I have one, and I'm really glad I didn't get the white one.

About the prints/smudge marks:
I'm real anal about most things, including smudge marks, but I really don't cae about them on my Macbook. It just seems pointless to me to frantically clean my computer all the time. I have cleaned it once since May, and it wasn't that dirty. If you get a Neoprene case, when you put the Macbook in there, it does wipe most of the outer smudges off.
 
Igantius said:
...whilst others have swear blind that the black one looks like a boring PC.
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ericbeezy said:
while the white does seem more like a true apple product...
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These comments are fantastic.

I can't be the only person who remembers what color every single Apple laptop pre-iBook/PowerBook G4 were. You know, like the PowerBook G3s.

Black. Or something close enough to black.


My 2 cents: get whatever you want. I love my blackbook. Smudges aren't as big of a problem as the whole having a white laptop issue (and after 2 iBooks, i am SICK of them) is to me. Cheaper than a paintjob. My favorite not-color too. And on the subject of smudging...you've clearly never had pencil/ink on a white laptop if you think the black one looks worse. The general dirt buildup on my iBook made me clean it off every once in a while, while I almost never do that with my blackbook, even with the smudging that you can't really see unless you're anal.
 
janey said:
These comments are fantastic.

I can't be the only person who remembers what color every single Apple laptop pre-iBook/PowerBook G4 were. You know, like the PowerBook G3s.
Click to expand...

Thanks for not picking me up for my bad grammar! :p

Curiously enough, both of those opinions were expressed here in the MacRumors forum and by more than one poster - just one of those things don't have the time and energy to argure argue against....
 
My second choice to my MBP was a BlackBook.

I love the black finish - it is modern looking; I find white really sketchy and kiddy like. Black looks cool and seems more professional too.

However, from working experience, I have never sold a Blackbook to a girl, they've always said "black is ugly" and gone with the white.

Get the white and you're a girl!
 
Kilamite said:
My second choice to my MBP was a BlackBook.
Click to expand...

And so was mine, as so many other people have said here... and I'm very pleased with my MBP, but if I had to choose again out of the MB's it would be the Blackbook, the contrast between the apple logo & white key letters/label on bezel looks so amazing.

I can't add much to the above comments, though my view is that the grease on the Black MB, though difficult to remove, is not permanent as are the small scratches you get on the white casing.

Good luck with your decision ;)
 
Kilamite said:
My second choice to my MBP was a BlackBook.

I love the black finish - it is modern looking; I find white really sketchy and kiddy like. Black looks cool and seems more professional too.

However, from working experience, I have never sold a Blackbook to a girl, they've always said "black is ugly" and gone with the white.

Get the white and you're a girl!
Click to expand...

hey now! I'm a girl, and I never even considered the white. Didn't like the glossy finish, never have. It was black or MBP for me.
 
feelthefire said:
hey now! I'm a girl, and I never even considered the white. Didn't like the glossy finish, never have. It was black or MBP for me.
Click to expand...
I am a girl too and wanted a BB but didn't have the extra cash. But if I could have gotten black for the same price would have in a heart beat!
 
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