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Aluminum Unibody MacBook Q&A @ EveryMac.com
With the "Aluminum Unibody" MacBook Q&A you can get answers to all of your questions about the non-Pro "Late 2008" MacBook models that are milled from a single piece of aluminum. Questions range from "How do you upgrade the RAM in the 'Unibody' MacBook? How much RAM of what type does it support?" to "What is the 'Unibody' MacBook battery life in 'real-world' tests?" and include everything in between.
Please note that the Aluminum Unibody MacBook models were introduced on October 14, 2008 and discontinued on June 8, 2009.
For answers about the original white or black polycarbonate MacBook (shipped from May 16, 2006 to October 20, 2009), refer to the White & Black MacBook Q&A. For the aluminum 13-Inch "Unibody" MacBook Pro (starting June 8, 2009), see the "Unibody" MacBook Pro Q&A. For the white polycarbonate 13-Inch "Unibody" MacBook (starting October 20, 2009), see the White Unibody MacBook Q&A.
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The answers to some of these questions may no longer be up-to-date. Please refer to the date published, updated, or revised.
Most Frequently Asked Aluminum Unibody MacBook Q&As:
How do you upgrade the RAM in the "Unibody" MacBook? How much RAM of what type does it support?
What is the "Unibody" MacBook battery life in "real-world" tests?
How do you upgrade the hard drive in the "Unibody" MacBook?
How much faster is the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor in the "Unibody" MacBook models compared to the Intel GMA X3100 and GMA 950 in earlier models? Is gaming performance improved?
What are the differences between the "Unibody" 13-Inch MacBook and 15-Inch MacBook Pro models?
How is the "Unibody" MacBook created from one piece of aluminum?
What are the differences between the "Late 2008/Unibody" MacBook models and the "Early 2008/Penryn" MacBook notebooks that they replaced?
What is "Mini DisplayPort"? Is it an industry-standard? How is it different from or better than Mini-DVI and Micro-DVI?
What are the differences between the "Unibody" MacBook models?
How does the "Multi-Touch" trackpad on the "Unibody" MacBook and MacBook Pro work? How does it feel?
Software Compatibility Q&As:
What version of MacOS X is pre-installed on the "Unibody" MacBook?
Can the "Unibody" MacBook run MacOS 9/Classic applications?
Can the "Unibody" MacBook run Windows?
Can the "Unibody" MacBook run Linux?
Comparison & Performance Q&As:
What are the differences between the "Unibody" MacBook models?
What are the differences between the "Unibody" 13-Inch MacBook and 15-Inch MacBook Pro models?
What are the differences between the "Late 2008/Unibody" MacBook models and the "Early 2008/Penryn" MacBook notebooks that they replaced?
How much faster is the "Unibody" MacBook compared to the "Early 2008 Penryn" MacBook Core 2 Duo?
How much faster is the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor in the "Unibody" MacBook models compared to the Intel GMA X3100 and GMA 950 in earlier models? Is gaming performance improved?
How much faster are the "Unibody" 15-Inch MacBook Pro models than the "non-Pro" models?
Battery, Power, & Function Q&As:
What is the "Unibody" MacBook battery life in "real-world" tests?
How does the MagSafe power connector on the MacBook models work?
How is the MagSafe power connector designed to not cause data loss?
How does the "Multi-Touch" trackpad on the "Unibody" MacBook and MacBook Pro work? How does it feel?
Expansion Q&As:
Does the "Unibody" MacBook have expansion slots?
Can you upgrade the processor in the "Unibody" MacBook?
How do you upgrade the RAM in the "Unibody" MacBook? How much RAM of what type does it support?
How do you upgrade the hard drive in the "Unibody" MacBook?
Is it possible to add a second internal hard drive or SSD to a "Unibody" MacBook? If so, how?
What are the capabilities of the optical drive provided by the "Unibody" MacBook models?
Video Q&As:
What type of video processor is provided by the "Unibody" MacBook models? Is it upgradable?
How much faster is the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor in the "Unibody" MacBook models compared to the Intel GMA X3100 and GMA 950 in earlier models? Is gaming performance improved?
Does the "Unibody" MacBook support dual displays? What is the maximum resolution for an external display?
Are there any adapters or "hacks" that make it possible to connect a second external display to a MacBook, MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air model?
What is "Mini DisplayPort"? Is it an industry-standard? How is it different from or better than Mini-DVI and Micro-DVI?
File Transfer, Networking, & Communication Q&As:
How can I transfer all my files from my old Mac to my "Unibody" MacBook without using Firewire?
What ports are provided by the "Unibody" MacBook? Why does Apple not support Firewire?
What is "Mini DisplayPort"? Is it an industry-standard? How is it different from or better than Mini-DVI and Micro-DVI?
Does the "Unibody" MacBook support 802.11n?
What is 802.11n? How is it different from 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11a?
Design, Configuration, & Purchasing Q&As:
Who designed the "Unibody" MacBook?
How is the "Unibody" MacBook created from one piece of aluminum?
Where can I buy a "Unibody" MacBook?
What were the default configurations? What custom configurations were available?
What are the "pros and cons" of the "Unibody" MacBook? Is it right for my needs?
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