Macbook Battery Life

[Parasitic]

So for those of you with a Macbook, can the battery life really last 6 hours?
I'm in the market of a new laptop, and can get a 13.3" 2GHz Macbook for $1099 ($200 off Apple pricing) through the university.

I intend to run Windows XP on it. And Yes, I've considered getting a PC first but the Macbook seems decently built and doesn't weigh a ton.

Edit:

A similarly configured Dell E1405 will run $989, but doesn't have a webcam or remote at a 14" widescreen.

A similarly configured Lenovo Thinkpad R60e will run $1070 with a 15" screen and no additional cool stuff.

 

[Oil]

Originally posted by: Parasitic
So for those of you with a Macbook, can the battery life really last 6 hours?
I'm in the market of a new laptop, and can get a 13.3" 2GHz Macbook for $1099 ($200 off Apple pricing) through the university.

I intend to run Windows XP on it. And Yes, I've considered getting a PC first but the Macbook seems decently built and doesn't weigh a ton.

Edit:

A similarly configured Dell E1405 will run $989, but doesn't have a webcam or remote at a 14" widescreen.

A similarly configured Lenovo Thinkpad R60e will run $1070 with a 15" screen and no additional cool stuff.

I can get around 4 hours on OS X, XP is considerably less (2 1/2 hours max). I would recommend a Windows laptop if you intend to use only XP

Edit: Here is a nice Asus laptop with Windows that would fit your needs for less money. Has a webcam, weighs about the same as a Macbook, 14", 2 year warranty.
Downsides are that it has Vista Premium instead of XP, and a slower clocked Core Duo, but it does cost quite a bit less than a Macbook

 

[TheStu]

Im in about the same boat as OSx86, get from 3.5-4 hours in OS X, but much less in Windows.

 

[Gibson486]

is the web cam and remote really that important? you also have to remember that if you buy the mac, you will get that 1 button touch pad. most of the "cool" stuff on laptops get unused.

 

[Oil]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
is the web cam and remote really that important? you also have to remember that if you buy the mac, you will get that 1 button touch pad. most of the "cool" stuff on laptops get unused.

I have to admit that I rarely use the webcam and remote but the touch pad is my favorite thing about the Macbook. Even though it was 1 button, I don't even use that. 1 finger tap on the touchpad for left click, 2 finger tap for right click. I find it much easier and faster than separate buttons

 

[TheStu]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
is the web cam and remote really that important? you also have to remember that if you buy the mac, you will get that 1 button touch pad. most of the "cool" stuff on laptops get unused.

I use the remote when I am at home to control my music, but the webcam, not so much. As for the touchpad, I too seldom use the button, and instead just tap on the trackpad, but you also have to remember that especially for it's class (12-14 screens) the touchpad is huge! Seriously, if you have an ipod, turn it sideways and that is roughly the size of the touchpad on the macbook.

 

[SOSTrooper]

I also get about 4 hours max under MacOSX, but only 2.5 hours on Windows. While running Windows, i notice the CPU gets much hotter than it is in MacOSX, which is probably why the battery doesnt last long. I recommend putting the Macbook on a flat surface while in use, it'll get extremely hot if you place it on your bed or a cloth chair that cannot dissipate heat.

I really don't like the track pad on the Macbook, which is why I strictly use an external bluetooth mouse. Plus many people encounter the problem with sluggish track pad after 10 minutes of use in Windows; the pointer becomes difficult to control and jumps all over the screen. After about 2 minutes of that it'll go back to normal.

I think with your high expectations of the Macbook, you'll be in for a surprise. The compatibility and stability are not 100%, there are bugs here and there. I guess the major problem is heat; the bottom of the laptop can get so hot that you cannot touch it or it'll burn your hand. Of course, if you live in a rather cold area, then ambient air can cool it down better.

 

[Parasitic]

I don't really need the webcam or the remote, but it seems like the Macbook is nicely built while some friends of mine with the Dell seem to generate complaints.
Personally I wouldn't mind getting another HP (have a Compaq now) but the sale price on the Macbook makes the competition a bit more interesting.

 

[RichieZ]

i'm getting one as an upgrade to my old G4 Powerbook, $999 for the 2ghz core 2 duo (gf goes to UCSD)!

 

[Parasitic]

Originally posted by: RichieZ
i'm getting one as an upgrade to my old G4 Powerbook, $999 for the 2ghz core 2 duo (gf goes to UCSD)!

Berkeley sucks.

 

[Ruptga]

If I remember right, HP's dv9000t has a built-in webcam and mic, although I don't know about the remote or what screen sizes they offer.

 

[Parasitic]

Originally posted by: ADDAvenger
If I remember right, HP's dv9000t has a built-in webcam and mic, although I don't know about the remote or what screen sizes they offer.

I'm looking at laptops with a screen of at most 14" in size, preferably widescreen.
I don't really need the webcam or mic but it's nice to have.

 

[cw42]

Lenovo T60 14" widescreen should be comin out next month... *crosses fingers*

 

[RichieZ]

Originally posted by: Parasitic

Originally posted by: RichieZ
i'm getting one as an upgrade to my old G4 Powerbook, $999 for the 2ghz core 2 duo (gf goes to UCSD)!

Berkeley sucks.

Yes it does, do you have Berkeley vision yet? j/k

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: Parasitic

Originally posted by: ADDAvenger
If I remember right, HP's dv9000t has a built-in webcam and mic, although I don't know about the remote or what screen sizes they offer.

I'm looking at laptops with a screen of at most 14" in size, preferably widescreen.
I don't really need the webcam or mic but it's nice to have.

HP DV2000T :thumbsup:

 

[RichieZ]

Just got my macbook, dunno about battery life but it should be pretty good. Runs cooler than my old G4 and the battery is bigger, something like 5500mah vs 4400.

 

[origami]

I have a Macbook (the white 13.3 inch, 2 GB RAM, 1.8GHz core duo) and I don't think it ever ran for over 5 hours.... I watched a less than 3 hour DVD on it one time and it barely lasted for 3 hours.

 

[TheStu]

Origami, you are talking about watching a movie, which is not exactly a battery friendly operation. The 6 hour quote is with no wireless on, the brightness turned down, and you doing incredibly non-intensive stuff (solitaire, or typing a document) in a non-PPC app.

 

[gus6464]

Originally posted by: origami
I have a Macbook (the white 13.3 inch, 2 GB RAM, 1.8GHz core duo) and I don't think it ever ran for over 5 hours.... I watched a less than 3 hour DVD on it one time and it barely lasted for 3 hours.

3 hours watching a movie is very good battery life btw. That equates to around 5 hours doing work related things like typing a document and most likely surfing the web with wireless. I have squeezed almost 5 hours before just web surfing with the wireless turned on. Just make sure you have bluetooth turned off if you dont need it as that wastes power. But 5 hours battery life on a 6cell battery which is what the macbooks come with is very good indeed. The other day I got around 3.5 hours of battery life while using xcode and running an instance of xp home on vmware fusion with word and excel 2007 open.

I wish apple would make a 9 cell battery for macbooks.

 

[origami]

oh Thanks, I didn't know about that!

 

[Fraggable]

With web browsing and maybe iPhoto and Adium running, and mail in the background, I get 3.5 normally. That's with full screen brightness, so I guess in theory you could get almost 5 with wireless off and low brightness. I'll have to try it sometime.

 

[ubercaffeinated]

is that with the core 2 duo version? i can't get more than 3 hrs with the 1.83 ghz core duo. still good at full everything on, but it's not 3.5 hours.

 

[Fraggable]

Mine is the core duo T2300.