“I reviewed the MacBook Pro earlier this year, and lately I’ve been testing the new MacBook, a handsome machine that packs a very good screen and keyboard into a fairly thin enclosure and is surprisingly inexpensive,” Walter S. Mossberg writes for The Wall Street Journal. “There’s a lot to like about the MacBook. It’s a very good choice for anyone considering a Mac and operating on a tight budget. Like the other Intel-based Macs, it can even run Windows alongside Apple’s own Mac OS X operating system.”
“Perhaps the most surprising thing about the MacBook is its price. Despite Apple’s reputation for charging more, the MacBook is actually less expensive than its closest major Windows competitor. That would be the Sony Vaio VGN-SZ240, which also has a 13.3-inch screen with the same resolution, includes a built-in camera, and is available with the same processor and the same memory and hard-disk capacity as the MacBook,” Mossberg writes. “When configured to match the major specs of the base model of the MacBook, the Sony costs $1,629, over 60% more than the MacBook’s $1,099 base price. But the MacBook is much heavier than the Sony. It weighs 5.2 pounds, 37% more than the Sony’s 3.8 pounds.”
Mossberg writes, “Like all Macs, the MacBook is vastly superior to Windows machines in terms of bundled software and security. Apple’s operating system is better designed, more stable and more modern than Windows XP. Its built-in iLife suite of multimedia software can’t be matched on Windows. And it has — so far — been attacked by only two viruses, compared with the more than 100,000 viruses and spyware programs that plague Windows. Those qualities are worth hundreds of dollars, in my view.”
“Like all Mac laptops, the MacBook lacks a right-click button, even though Apple’s own software displays right-click menus. To emulate a right click, Mac users typically must hold down the Control key while clicking the sole button. But the MacBook has a new way to do this that’s simpler: Place two fingers on the touch pad and click with a third. It works well. The MacBook also has Apple’s very cool scrolling feature, which allows you to scroll any screen by moving two fingers over the touch pad. It’s better than any Windows laptop scrolling feature I’ve seen,” Mossberg writes. “But the MacBook lacks two important hardware features that are nearly ubiquitous on Windows laptops. It has no slots for the flash memory cards used in digital cameras, smart phones and other devices. And it lacks a card slot for the adapters that can provide laptops with many add-on features, including flash memory sockets and cellphone data modems.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Another excellent review for Apple’s MacBook; this time by the world’s preeminent tech journalist who, regardless of his status, we simply must ask to identify the “two viruses” he mentions that have “attacked” Macs and the total number of users each of Mossberg’s so-called “viruses” affected. We expect more accuracy from Mossberg. His readers will think that an untold number of Mac users have “been attacked by two viruses.” That is incorrect.
In fact, back on May 11, Mossberg addressed just such questions to a concerned WSJ reader, writing, “There is no sudden security crisis on the Apple Macintosh platform. In fact, for average Mac users, there isn’t a security threat of any significance, at least not yet. It is laughable to compare the real, massive and burdensome security problems on Windows with the largely theoretical security problem on the Mac… As of today, there have been exactly two documented, successful pieces of malicious software — viruses, trojan horses, worms — that affected users of the Mac OS X operating system, since it was released in 2001. And these two failed to spread much, affecting probably a few dozen people, and doing no harm. I expect there to be a small number of additional Mac viruses this year… Security firms are saying that the discovery of these vulnerabilities in the Mac has increased sharply lately. They say that based on past patterns, this should yield a sharp increase in the number of Mac viruses in coming years. But even a ‘sharp’ increase could well mean under 50 viruses by 2008. So my advice to Mac users is that at the moment, I see no reason to buy and run security software, which is in itself costly and can degrade your computing experience… Just turn on Apple’s built-in firewall and relax. There is one exception: If you are running Windows on one of the new Intel Macs, you are just like a Windows user, and you must run Windows security programs when using Windows.”
What’s with the lumping together of “viruses, trojan horses, worms?” Does Mossberg sound a bit confused about what constitutes a “virus” to you, too? Can a piece of malicious code that affected “probably a few dozen people” really be described as “successful?” And how many of these “few dozen people,” if any, work in the labs of antivirus software peddlers?
By the end of 2005, there were 114,000 known viruses for PCs. In March 2006 alone, there were 850 new threats detected against Windows. Zero for Mac. While no computer connected to the Internet will ever be 100% immune from attack, Mac OS X has helped the Mac keep its clean bill of health with a superior UNIX foundation and security features that go above and beyond the norm for PCs. When you get a Mac, only your enthusiasm is contagious. Learn more here: 114,000 viruses? Not on a Mac.
As for the lack of an ExpressCard/34 slot: if you need one, get a MacBook Pro. That’s one of the major ways that Apple differentiates their consumer portables from their professional models. As for media readers, get a USB reader (MacBook Pro owners can slide a media reader into their ExpressCard/34 slot) or, better yet, use a newer digital camera that connects directly to USB. Apple doesn’t suffer old tech gladly. And, lastly, regarding the weight differential between the lighter Sony that Mossberg mentions and the MacBook, you’ll have to weigh for yourself whether the $530 you save to have the world’s best consumer notebook that can also run Mac OS X and Windows natively is worth the extra 1.4 lb.
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Gartner: Boot Camp won’t expose Mac OS X to Windows viruses or worms – April 13, 2006
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MDN,
Mossberg is wrong only if you get fussy about your terms – and he should know better. But there were two bits of malware that hit the Mac, and a couple of folks who should have known better got bitten. Saying “two viruses” uses fewer column inches than saying “a worm and a trojan”.
well, technically, trojan is really not virus. it’s more closed to worm, malware. so what Mossberg said is correct.
MDN is correct to expect Mossberg to be more accurate. This kind of sloppiness is exactly why I get questions about nonexistent Mac viruses from those contemplating a switch from Windows to Mac.
Mossberg should know better and MDN is right to call him on it.
Mac OS X has zero viruses to date.
With Boot Camp loaded I can easily run any hundreds of thousands of viruses, trojans, worms, and other pieces of malware, spyware, and adware.
More Points!
Some folks are thrilled to pay a few hundred dollars to cut the weight of their notebook by a third – they haul it everywhere and need it to snuggle into their corporate briefcase without stretching their arm too much on trip to the customer’s HQ.
Ask George Ou or CERN … OS X has more theoretical security flaws than any version of Windows – and more of them are rated “critical” and many of those have been “known” for longer than many Windows flaws. Of course, having a firewall on by default and requiring that an Admin approve any installs both tend to make exploits based on those flaws less likely to actually get anywhere.
You really need to try to be less picky when a respected voice like Walt Mossberg’s says nice things about things you care about from such a prestigious pulpit as the WSJ – a forum attended by the guys who make corporate decisions.
I can handle most of the MDN take, but this sentence
“As for the lack of an ExpressCard/34 slot: if you need one, get a MacBook Pro.”
is just plain dumb.
I couldn’t believe how much of a deal Walt made about the missing media card place. What percentage of regular shmoes need a slot for their media card? I am a grad student studying biology and physics, and I have never needed anything that the macbook does not promise. (except for a dedicated graphics card for 3d games. Oh well, games aren’t worth another 500 bucks for the mbp)
Great review and yet Apple´s stock is off nearly 40% this year….
If the 2 viruses are not really viruses, how many of the 114,000 viruses are also not really viruses?
I don’t know the difference between viruses, trojan horses, and worms either, and I think alot of us are using the terms interchangably. Still, it’s nice to worry about none of the above, whatever the proper term is.
I certainly don’t want my MacBook littered with media card reader slots, all but one or two of which I’d ever actually use ! They give media card readers away in cereal packets these days – and I can choose the one that I actually need.
Same goes for ExpressCard slots – the only time I have ever needed a card slot was back in the days of my Powerbook 1200, when I used it for some archaic device called a ‘modem’. Go figure.
MDN takes are always better when they are succinct and to the point. Shouldve stopped at the first paragraph.
I do not like laptops that have everything on them – the floppy disk drive on wintel laptops have finally gone away –
The macbook is going to be Big Seller – talk about Bang for the Buck!
What so ever .. Even when Mac had 10 known virus against 120 000 for Windhose, the difference is loud and clear !
I consider it a mistake to include flash memory slots on a computer. The physical formats for flash memory change over time and that means that your laptop will have slots that become obsolete. On my Linux based tower box, I have lots of USB ports and a firewire port. I have a thumb sized SD flash card holder which accepts SD card flash memory and has a standard USB connector, which I use to input camera data. Do the physical interface conversion to standard USB off of the computer to avoid obsolescence. Apple did it right on the MacBook IMHO.
I think Walt is right about PCMCIA ExpressCard slots. Differentiation between professional and consumer models is great but to do so with a device that even a $499 Dell has is idiotic.
We’re not talking about the 3.5″ floppy here, the PCMCIA card slot is extremely useful still, and if Jobs weren’t to include it, then the ExpressCard should be added to replace it. Don’t just leave MacBook users out in the rain on this one.
Once upon a time, Walt Mossberg used to bash Macs as often as not.
Now he only occasionally criticizes Macs. This last couple years he loves them.
Why the “mysterious” change of heart, Walt? Did Apple’s check to you or the WSJ get big enough?
Cause I’ll tell you this, Macs haven’t gotten that much better in the last few years, and Windows sure hasn’t gotten worse unless you count viruses which (not being a Mac freak) I don’t count.
As wireless broadband rolls out, the PCMCIA ExpressCard slots become less and less optional.
As for weight, can Walt say “MacBook Thin”? I thought so. And, how much would one of these with NAND and no HD weigh? How about no optical drive?
“But the MacBook is much heavier than the Sony. It weighs 5.2 pounds, 37% more than the Sony’s 3.8 pounds.”
Uh-oh, 5.2 pounds. Don’t know if I can lift it – that’s pretty heavy.
“Great review and yet Apple´s stock is off nearly 40% this year….”
The broader market is to blame, not what Apple is doing.
Oil over 73$ per barell
Inflation fears
higher interest rates
The world doesn’t revolve around Apple and Apple is not immune from what happens in the rest of the world.
The WJS is biased
What undergroud bunker have you been living in the past few years?
“Cause I’ll tell you this, Macs haven’t gotten that much better in the last few years, and Windows sure hasn’t gotten worse”
You’re either a moron or MS’s check to you is quite large.
Addressing the weight issue. If the specs are the same and the Vaio is that much lighter, then it has to mean that the case is much cheaper and flimsier, unless Sony has some incredible new form of plastic that noone has ever heard about. The old ibooks have from the beginning been for the student consumer types that throw these things around in their backpacks, etc. The extra durability to me is worth the extra weight.
Considering the Macbook runs both OS’s, it is a no brainer which one anyone with a brain should choose. As reported today, consider that the new Dell is thicker than the 17′ Macbook Pro even after the screen is open. Sony wins on thinness and lightness, but at a durability cost. To me, notebooks are much less disposable than desktops and the Mac wins yet again. I am running Final Cut Studio on my new 13″ Macbook in best peformance mode without any out of the norm heat issues. My only complaints are that I need an expensive second battery and I lost 512 ram in order to install a gig of ram. Anyone want to purchase two 256’s cheap?
What’s with the lumping together of “viruses, trojan horses, worms?
A trojan horse is in the virus family, so it is technically correct to consider a trojan horse a virus..
Below is a link to various “Trojan horse” definitions available on the web. Many of these definitions consider a trojan horse to be a virus, while some do not..
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr;=&client=safari&rls=en-us&defl=en&q=define:Trojan+Horse&sa=X&oi=glossary_definition&ct=title
Honestly, weight and card-slot are big issues for some users, and there’s no reason that MDN can’t acknowledge that without sounding rabid. By giving in to your raving compulsion to bash _anything_ negative said about Macs, no matter how accurate, you drastically diminish the impact of your takes.
Your seen to want your takes to make an impact on people considering a switch to the Mac. But if I were such a person and I read a couple of your rants such as this take, I’d go off looking for a more balanced site.
I am not saying you should praise that other OS or the hardware it runs on, God forbid. I am saying that Apple products aren’t perfect, and your credibility would rise if you were a touch more objective about them.
WSJ biased? I don’t think so, at least not when it comes to technology. When you have a POS product,and you get called out on it, don’t blame the messenger, blame the message.
Oh, almost forgot, for ten bucks you can buy an external USB multiple type media card reader, just like you can buy a floppy or a modem if you need one. Apple is smart not to include such unneccessaries in their form factor when you can buy the latest and greatest external one if you were to need it.
A Trojan is a type of virus which normally requires a user to perform some action before the payload can be activated.
Source: Webster Dictionary 2005 Student Edition – (hardcover format)