Apple MacBook review

The first Apple notebook with an Intel processor was the MacBook Pro, but with prices starting at £1,399 it was beyond many people's budget. Apple has now released the MacBook, so you can get an Intel-powered Mac for as little as £749 including VAT.

This black MacBook is a top-of-the-range model with an Intel Core Duo T2500 processor and an 80GB hard disk, although you can upgrade the hard disk further if desired. Surprisingly, an identically specified white MacBook costs around £90 less, so you're paying a hefty premium for the matt black finish.

We installed Windows on the notebook and ran our standard set of tests, which showed similar performance to an identically specified Windows PC. However, it could benefit from an upgrade to 1GB of RAM before it takes on any really tough tasks, which will cost an extra £70 on top of the listed price.

All MacBook models have 13" widescreen displays with a native resolution of 1,280x800. This is the same resolution as 15.4" Windows notebooks, making the screen look cramped. Whites were bright and backlighting is consistent. The greyscale test showed banding in darker areas, while colours were recreated accurately. Overall, it's similar in quality to the best Windows notebook displays.

The keyboard is unusual, with gaps between individual keys. It works fine and we found typing easy. Action was great, with good feedback and enough travel. The Return and cursor keys were too small for our fingers, though. Below the keyboard is the widest touch pad we've ever seen, at almost 11cm diagonally across. It's accurate, but the single large button lacks feedback.

The chassis is compact and solid, so much so that we thought the notebook seemed heavier than its actual weight of 2.4kg. Its battery lasted just over four hours in our light-usage test, so it's good for use on the go. There's no built-in modem, though, and an Apple USB one costs £35 including VAT.

All the ports are on the left-hand side. There are only two USB2 ports, along with a full-sized FireWire 400 port. There's no standard D-sub or DVI output. Instead, you must buy a Mini-DVI-to-DVI or VGA adaptor for £15. The right side is plain apart from the stylish slot-loading DVD writer. Memory card readers are standard on Windows notebooks, but there isn't one here. The charger and power input are excellently designed, as the lead is held in magnetically, so it detaches easily if yanked or tripped over.

The new MacBook range is similar in price to the best-designed Windows notebooks. It's a beautiful system but the lack of certain basic features, such as a memory card reader and modem, are a little disappointing and keep the MacBook from receiving top marks.