June 8, 2009 10:36 AM PDT

13-inch MacBook joins Pro family, Air gets updated

Apple's entire laptop line gets revamped.

(Credit: CNET)

Not to be left out, the MacBook's been updated too, and it's no longer just a MacBook. Following in the wake of the 15-inch MacBook Pro updates, the 13-inchers will also be called MacBook Pros (because as Phil Schiller noted onstage, "At what point isn't this just a MacBook Pro?") The mid-range unibody aluminum laptops launched last October now have upgraded color screens, SD card slots, FireWire 800 ports, and backlit keyboards across the board. Prices start at $1,199, $100 less than before for the low-end aluminum MacBook, for an upgraded 2.26 GHz Core 2 Duo with 2 GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M graphics, and a 160 GB HDD. $1,499 gets you a 2.53 GHz Core 2 Duo, 4 GB of DDR3, and a 250 GB hard drive. RAM can now be expanded up to 8 GB, and hard drives can be upgraded up to 500 GB.

They will also have non-removable 7-hour batteries. This makes the entire Apple laptop line a family of sealed-in batteries, except for the lowest-end white MacBook, whose specs were bumped last week.

Also updated, to some applause, was the MacBook Air, upgrading the processor speed to 2.14 GHz and lowering the price range, now $1,499 to $1,799. That's required in light of CULV Windows laptops that are emerging at very competitive price points. It's available in two configurations: $1,199 for a 1.86 GHz Core 2 Duo, 2 GB DDR3 RAM, GeForce 9400M graphics, and 120 GB HDD, or $1,799 with a 2.13 GHz Core 2 Duo and 128 GB SSD. For the SSD model, the cost is $700 less than before.

Scott Stein, a New York Jets fan and CNET senior associate editor, has written about tech, entertainment, video games, and viral culture for outlets including Laptop, Wired, Maxim, Esquire Online, Asylum, and Men's Journal. He also appears on the Digital City podcast. In his spare time, you might see him performing improv in New York City (when he's not being a dad).