Thinking of getting an macbook

HQvhs

I am thinking of getting a macbook after christmas
(http://store.apple.com/Apple/WebObjects/irlstore.woa/6794043/wo/rh7h3bHgcHQk2JOdMIYE06QiL0L/2.?p=0)
I am wondering should I wait for leopard or is it worth it? Also, will there be any major upgrades to the macbook in the near future I should wait for?
If anyone has any other tips on it as this is my first mac.

Thanks

Sad Professor

Macbooks were only updated in November and Leopard probably won't arrive till late Spring. Macworld SF is mid-January, decide then.

Urban Weigl

The MacBook was just updated to Intel's new Core 2 Duo, so it probably won't see a major update for another few months. My advice is always if you want it now, get it now.

But if you don't really need it at the moment, and don't mind waiting a couple of months, feel free to do so, because there will always be something better around the corner.

HQvhs

Thanks for the replies. i'm going to wait for macowrld. Would a macbook be able to handle basic image editing? illustrations not photos. And would it be able to handle basic film editiing with iMovie?

Urban Weigl

Yes, though I'd recommend upgrading to at least 1 GB of memory, 2 GB if you can afford it. You don't have to buy that from Apple, you can buy your own third party memory off Komplett or wherever and stick it in.

I say that because while the upgrade to 1 GB is competitive at the Apple store, Apple charges a premium for the 2 GB upgrade.

Sad Professor

On the subject of RAM, a little warning: the Macbook only has two RAM slots and Apple will use up both of them. So if you get the low-end model with 512MB then Apple will install 2 x 256MB chips, or you get 1GB then Apple installs 2 x 512MB. Either way you will have no room to upgrade without removing one of the pre-installed chips.

Apple have made it so you have to get the RAM pre-installed from them unless you want to remove (and sell their RAM) and replace it with cheaper stuff from Crucial or Komplett. If you're are going to be playing around with photos/videos you'll probably need more than 1GB.

xebec

Sad Professor wrote:

On the subject of RAM, a little warning: the Macbook only has two RAM slots and Apple will use up both of them. ... Either way you will have no room to upgrade without removing one of the pre-installed chips.

Because of the dual core processor the macbook works best with two equal amounts of RAM, hence Apple using both. If you intend to upgrade at all you should upgrade both slots.

HQvhs

thanks. I was going to go for at least 1gb anyway. what about the fact that its an integrated graphics card rather than a seperate one such as in the macboom pro? will that make much of a difference?

Sad Professor

HQvhs wrote:

thanks. I was going to go for at least 1gb anyway. what about the fact that its an integrated graphics card rather than a seperate one such as in the macboom pro? will that make much of a difference?

I'd imagine it would be fine for most things. Might not be much good for games though.

HQvhs

I was told in the apple shop in town today that it mightn't work too well with editing software though?