Question for the Mac people

My wife and i are finally going to ditch our old PC which has served us well for the past 6 or 7 years and we've decided to buy a Mac. I know some people are really into the Mac vs. PC thing, but we've already made our decision to switch to Mac.

The decision I'm trying to make right now is should I buy the mac Book or the Mac Book Pro?

My wife does some photo manipulation and we would like to be able to watch movies and such, but we're only playing with photos using Photoshop elements. Also, I don't play complicated computer games. About the only thing I play is online poker and Civilization every once in a while.

My biggest concern is that because we like to hold on to our computers for at least 5+ years, I want to ensure that as the internet and other basic software progresses, I want the computer to function well. For example, when we bought our current computer back in 2002, we bought a computer in the upper end of mid-range. It has worked out great for us up until the last year or so and is now to the point that it takes 10 minutes just to log on to the internet and pages on some more complicated sites take forever to load. But we got at least 5 years of solid performance before it started to slip. I'd like to get the same or better from a Mac without breaking the bank.

What are your thoughts in the Mac Book vs. Mac Book Pro decision? The price difference between the two models we are looking at is about $600.

Jay,

Since you have made the decision to go with the Mac platform, check out this website.

http://guides.macrumors.com/Buying_a_MacBook_versus_MacBook_Pro

The Macs can run in windows mode so you will have the familiar landscape to play on ..

Rich

Thanks for that link! It confirmed my suspicion that if I buy a high end Mac Book I would save about $600 or $700 over a mid-range Mac Book Pro and not sacrifice any significant level of performance for what I do. I would just get a smaller screen and no Firewire port. Hmmm, now to convince the wife!   

Buy if for her for Christmas!!

WAF points and a new toy!!

Rich

On the other hand, that Firewire port is just what you need if you want to let your new Mac migrate files from an old one automatically. Plus, it's a good option for a variety of peripherals. Since you don't have the good fortune to be migrating from a Mac, it's not as significant but still a definite loss.
  The main thing I've always found made me satisfied with any computer is a good BIG monitor. While I made my living in the computer racket from 1959 on, I resisted having one in my house. When I finally gave in and bought my first one for home use in 1989, I got a Mac with two monitors - a small color monitor with a RasterOps card, and a 21-inch two-page B&W monitor for page layout. They could be used individually or simultaneously; even back then Mac would treat two monitors as if they were one. That first Mac is long gone, but I've still got those monitors and still use them occasionally on the oldest machine in my arsenal. Current choice is an iMac with 24-inch monitor - and now I'm satisfied. Don't settle for a smaller screen than you really want. Mac OS won't clutter up your desktop the way Windows does, but that big screen sure makes a difference in sheer enjoyment of use and in allowing you to keep all the various additional windows open in Photoshop, Illustrator, or Quark XPress.