New MacBook

Another item of note over the past week was my purchase of a new MacBook for Judith.  She's been using a G4 iBook which she's had since 2005.  It's been a great machine but it's feeling its age.  Aside from the fact that the battery is mostly shot, it really bogs down on Web 2.0 sites like Facebook.  So, I've been looking at replacements.

Last week Microcenter was advertising last-generation MacBooks for $849.  The specs of the machine include a 2.0 GHz Core 2 Duo CPU, 2 GB of RAM, and a 120 GB hard disk.  Judith's primary uses of the machine involves web-based apps and some light word processing.  So, the specs of this machine should be just fine for a few years.

One very nice feature of the Intel Apple laptops is the built-in iSight webcam.  Judith's brother lives overseas and our main means of communication is Skype.  We also use Skype or iChatAV when I'm away on business.  I'd bought and installed a Macally Icecam for her iBook, but it was always flaky so she eventually stopped using it.  (Even when it worked the picture quality was rather bad.)  In contrast, the iSights pretty much just work, in my experience, and the quality is image quite good.

The iBook was issued to her by her school, so when she goes back in the Fall she'll take it back and keep it in her classroom, providing another machine for her students to use. The MacBook will stay at home.