Apple Macbook 13" One Year review

 I haven't owned an Apple product since I was a kid.  Back then it was the Apple IIc.  The floppy drive was integrated into a small portable case that even had a handle on it.   Once I hit college then it was PC's all the way until last year. 

I didn't understand why some people I worked with were religious about their Macs.   They were willing to pay more to have a Microsoft free computing experience.  I think this group is more like those that drive a Hybrid.  It really won't save them money, but they are doing it for the environment.  If they really were then they should bike to work.

So I decided to see what the fuse was about and I had some extra cash at the time to find out.  The buying experience wasn't horrible.  Of course I got the push to upgrade.  I opted to pass on everything except the extra apple care warranty.  I wasn't sure about the quality.  Later I ended up having to upgrade the memory and operating system.

The operating system took a little getting used to.  OS X is what is on it now.  There was no quick way to get to anything.  I had one of the company Mac leaders give me some pointers.  He installed some software that helps me switch between windows easier.  Sometimes a pain because the feature is activated by moving the mouse pointer to the corners of the screen  where the close icon is.  He also helped me create some shortcuts to the most used programs.  The rest of the programs are all nicely hidden inside the finder.

Installing programs is a bit different also.  Some manual intervention is required.    I installed Microsoft Office for Mac so I could work with other people in the company on PC's.  It is a little stripped down on the features, but allowed me to open my coworkers spreadsheets and documents.  I also need to remote into servers using Microsoft desktop remote software.  For the first year it was in Beta it seamed to work okay.  The released version gives me more options which came out a few months ago.

The hardware is very slick.  Nice looking all white case with an Apple logo that lights up when the computer is on.  The touchpad is nice and large.  The keys are the perfect size.  Even the sound is a lot better than a New Dell I recently reviewed.  The magnetic connection on the power supply is very nice.  I just have to put the connection close and it pops into place with magnets.  Even when the kids push on the top that would have broken any other connector, it just pops out of place.

I see only 2 things bad.  Heat and case design.  This laptop does get hot, so using it on your lap isn't good.  The case has some good hinges and the design of the lid still allows for a heat flow even when the lid is open.  The Dell Studio 13 lid covers 90% of the heat flow.  The other is the pad on the lid.  I am not sure what it is for, but it broke my case as you can see in the pictures below.  I don't know if anyone else has run into the problem.

The bottom line, it is a nice laptop that the family has enjoyed, but I don't think I will ever buy another one, unless they drop the prices.  I do love my iPhone and will keep it forever.