Mac laptop family album

Dan Ackerman, Senior Editor October 29, 2009

Editor's Note: We've updated this post to include the fall 2009 version of Apple's white MacBook.

With systems sometimes changing names, others changing specs, or sometimes both, it can be a little confusing to get a clear picture of the current MacBook family.

First is Apple's basic white plastic MacBook, and the last one left to carry the standalone MacBook name. It's always been a good deal for under $1,000, and the newest version adds the Pro's large touchpad, LED display, and unibody construction (but still no SD card slot).

Previously known as the MacBook, the basic 13-inch aluminum unibody laptop has been promoted to the "Pro" series, and with good cause--the line between these and the 15-inch Pro models has been very thin since they moved to the all-metal construction and added GeForce 9400M graphics.

More importantly, the 13-inch unibody systems have regained their FireWire ports, and have added (drum roll, please...) an SD card slot. We've been bugging Apple for years to add this basic feature, and digital photographers everywhere are no doubt celebrating.

The standard 15-inch MacBook Pro remains largely unchanged. The ExpressCard slot is being replaced with an SD card slot, also featured on the new 13-inch Pro. It also has the same non-removable battery, which promises up to 7 hours of use. The least expensive Pro has the same GeForce 9400 integrated graphics as the 13-inch models, and the 2.66GHz and 2.8GHz versions add an additional GeForce 9600M GPU--but that's no different from the existing 15-inch Pro lineup.

If you're looking for the new SD card slot, be warned, the 17-inch MacBook Pro is keeping the ExpressCard, and won't be adding an SD card support. The new 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU, however, is available as a $300 add-on.

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