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Late 2008 MacBook

S

shurcooL

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Oct 12, 2007
Messages
1,126
I'm dedicating this post to the 13-inch Aluminum Unibody MacBook that was released on October 14, 2008. I happen to have one, and I wanna share my love for it. :D

screenshot20120303at653.png


To understand why I think this model is so special, you have to consider the history for a minute.

Basically, this model was a significant improvement over the previous generation of MacBooks. However, the future models of 13-inch MBPs remained largely unchanged until a much delayed introduction of Core i7 CPUs. Even then, the GPU performance stayed largely unimproved.

Here are some improvements that the Late 2008 model offered:
-Aluminum unibody enclosure, identical to today's 13-inch MBP
-Whole-pad-as-a-button glass multitouch touchpad, identical to today's 13-inch MBP
-Dedicated Nvidia 9400M graphics; Early 2008 MB had crappy integrated Intel GMA
-Mini DisplayPort that supports up to 2560x1600; Early 2008 had Mini-DVI that can do up to 1920x1200
-Backlit keyboard on the 2.4 GHz model

I find it almost ridiculous how all future releases of 13-inch MBPs were hardly any different from this model, until the release of Core i7 CPUs in 13-inch MBPs on April 13, 2010.

The 9400M GPU is really quite good, as the later 320M is barely faster, and the Intel 3000 is also in the same general range of performance.

One downside of this model is that you can't do audio-out via its Mini DisplayPort (via an HDMI adapter, for example) - they added this later. Also, the battery life is around 4 hours, rather than 7 in the later/current models.

I wonder if the first model of the next redesign of MacBook Pros will be equally impressive and long-lasting.

Oh, and I've placed an Intel SSD in my MB, so it rocks that much more. :D
 
I also have one of these MacBooks! And I love it. I have 8GB of RAM and a regular HDD and it's a fantastic little notebook. I use it for classes and such, the only thing I would change would be the battery life. Oh well!
 
I have the mid-2009 with upgraded RAM and SSD, and it's still just a phenomenal machine. Made it through 3 years of back and forth to law-school without a problem.
 
I have almost exactly the same machine at work. My GF has the one with the 320M. I have been a lifelong Mac hater until they invented the Aluminum Unibody MBP. A few years later, I got the 2011 15" MBP. SSDs are still too expensive, I need at least 500 GB.

Oh boi, here we go...
 
Use the same model for my portable computing, really haven't feel the need to replace it, little trooper.

Waiting to see how the Ivy Bridge Airs and MBPs pan out though.
 
I love my late 2008 Macbook. I havent felt the need to replace it after upgrading it with 8gb/intel ssd/optibay with 750gb hd(love having 2 hard drives in it, who uses optical stuff anyway). Ive had to replace the battery once. I love this thing, running vms and doing all my mobile computing easily.

 
Nice, you even have a backlit keyboard on yours.

The optibay thing is a great idea. I don't use the optical media in my laptops, and have not in the last 3+ years. My next MacBook will definitely be optical-drive-less.

You've basically pimped out your MB as far as it'll go. ;D Literally, there's nothing more you can do to it lol.
 
SSD on this little machine makes a world of difference, Id say the speed of this system rivals my sisters 2011 13" MBP with i7. However I am jealous of the battery life the new systems have.
 
Got this model soon after release as well. My battery only lasts 2-2.5 hours now with 400+ cycles. Have a Intel 320 160gb SSD in it and it's fast enough for everything I do. Is it worth it to replace my battery for about 2 more hours of battery life?
 
It's up to you. With a new battery, you'll have around 4 hours of typical use time.

Or you could wait until the next MacBook update and get a new model. Maybe they'll get Retina displays. But maybe not quite yet. Consider the latest iPad needed to up its battery from 25 Watt hour to 42.5 Watt hour just to maintain the same 10 hour battery life.
 
I have this same machine. Upgraded it to 8GB of ram and Lion about a year ago. Thinking of adding an SSD to it.

Are any of you running Mountain Lion on it? How does it perform with that OS?
 
I had significant decrease in battery life with ML. It seems to be a YMMV type of situation but I left SL on there because it's one of the best OSes I've ever used.
 
danbanger said:
Got this model soon after release as well. My battery only lasts 2-2.5 hours now with 400+ cycles. Have a Intel 320 160gb SSD in it and it's fast enough for everything I do. Is it worth it to replace my battery for about 2 more hours of battery life?
Click to expand...
get coconut battery to check the health of your battery
 
Same machine here. I was already content with it before I upgraded to an SSD - now I wonder how anybody is gonna manage to get money out of me for a laptop again.
 
Centauri said:
Same machine here. I was already content with it before I upgraded to an SSD - now I wonder how anybody is gonna manage to get money out of me for a laptop again.
Click to expand...

Check out an rMBP. They are great!
 
I plan on getting a 13" retina display when they become available.

and the 2008 is certainly venerable but the 320 is a far better gpu if someone is interested in gaming. it's even arguably better than the HD3000 that is in current mbp's.

That said, my ultimate favorite macbook is the last white book. The 2010 has the 320 and a white unibody with full glass trackpad. The only thing missing is the backlit keys but the polycarbonate body is much more resistant to damage than my '11 MBP has been :( (and I consider the white polycarbonate Apple iconic)
 
Arguably? There's no question, the 320 kicks the HD3000 in the teeth. Hell, the 9400m runs par.
 
Where is the 9400m in that mix? Because I don't see one bench of it on that entire page. Though mentions of it do show in the form of page tags, which have it in the same 'Low-end' section as the 3000 - corroborating my point.
 
shoota said:
I had significant decrease in battery life with ML. It seems to be a YMMV type of situation but I left SL on there because it's one of the best OSes I've ever used.
Click to expand...

Mountain Lion 10.8.1 is supposed to address the battery issue so might be worth it to check it out again.
 
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Those are great machines - still very usable to this day. Upgradeable to 8GB! The screen is a little bit of a letdown compared to the Air.

The main problem with those is the SATA controller (thanks to the nForce chipset) is goofy. Some drives don't negotiate the full 3.0GBs and people have problems with some SSD's causing the system to beachball. But even at 1.5GBs speeds the SSD is a big improvement over a spinning HD.
 
MrDudeMan said:
I don't understand the point of this thread.
Click to expand...
I'm a geek, I like to discuss various computer topics. In this one, I wanted to point out what a significant leap the Late 2008 MacBook was over the previous generation.

Its design remained current until the late 2012 release of 13" rMBP.

Its specs remained competitive until Core i5/i7 debut in 13" MBPs of early 2011. The video performance is still competitive even compared to today's 13" rMBP. The trackpad and keyboard design (including keyboard backlight) are still current. It runs 10.8.2 and likely 10.9 too.

Can you say the same about the early 2008 MacBook with Intel GMA X3100 graphics, non-unibody design and non-multitouch trackpad with a separate button and 10.7 limit? No, you cannot and hence I made this thread.

In summary, I wanted to highlight the massive leap from this:

imagepof.jpg


To this:

imagekus.jpg


I find it praise-worthy given that they are half a year apart. Until the introduction of the Retina MacBook Pros, there haven't been many other similar leaps in the last 4 years.
 
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This was indeed the sweet spot for the Macbook Pro at the time. I have a 2.4 model which I upgraded to 8GB of ram and an SSD. Pretty much does everything I need it to do. No need really for an upgrade anytime soon.
 
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