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If you have just purchased a new macbook or macbook pro, and are looking to get the most of it, here are some items to consider. If the guide is helpful to you, please click "Yes", because the more "Yes" hits it gets, the more it can help others. :
1. Protective bags. Belkin makes some great top loading bags, for people who want quick access to their laptop. Also consider Incase's neoprene sleeve for a nice small and slim protector. Timbuk2 also has some bags that may suit your lifestyle better.
2. Wireless mouse & keyboard. Apples new slim wireless keyboard makes a great choice, as well as the wireless mighty mouse.
3. External display. Being a Apple man, I have to recommend the Apple Cinema displays, which offer crisp picture, and a beautiful design. Also I hear LGs 24" 2407WFP is a really good external monitor as well, for a little bit less.
4. External Hard drive. Make sure you backup your precious information with an external hard drive, especially now that Leopard has come out, you can use Time Machine to go back to all your files. Western Digital offers a great variety of portable and standard hard drives for a reasonable price. My dealings with WD have been positive thus far. They are quick and easy to set up, just plug it in, and are built well.
5. Wrist guards and keyboard protectors. Marware makes a great protection pack, which provides a nice wrist guard to prevent wear and tear on the area in front of your keyboard, and also includes a cloth that drapes over your keyboard, to prevent oils from going onto the screen(I haven't had a problem with this yet, but its included with the wristguard). iSkin makes a rubber like keyboard protector to protect from dust and other particles. I prefer not using this as it makes the keys a little harder to press, and also doesn't have the smooth feel the keyboard normally has. Also, there are trackpad protectors which are available. I prefer not to use these, because they make the trackpad slower and harder to use, but they might be useful to some.
6 Extra RAM!!! Apple overcharges on their ram, so get some off of eBay for a muccch lower price. Try to get OEM ram that apple uses, because they are generally higher quality. Samsung and Hynix generally manufacture ram for apple. Crucial offers guaranteed compatible RAM for Macs. They have a system scanner as well to let non-tech people know exactly how much and what kind of RAM they can use.
7. Apple Care. Before your 1 year limited warranty is up, its a good idea to invet in further protection. For a fraction of the price apple charges, you can purchase apple care off of ebay. Make sure it is compatible with your current macbook, and model. 8. I just recently got this. I got a VGA to VGA male to male connector, to plug into my DVI to VGA adapter that comes with Macbook Pros, and hooks up to the other end of my plasma TV where it has a VGA connector. I have to say its AWESOME! Great picture quality, especially for viewing photos and playing games. You can also hook your LCD tv to it as well(make sure you check what outputs you have...you can also get an HDMI connector instead of VGA)
I personally recommend making your entire house wireless, for complete freedom. I use apples wireless N extreme base station. That way I can move my laptop anywhere around the house.
I hope that I have helped you in making the ultimate apple macbook setup. Please hit "Yes" if this has been helpful. Thanks! *Thanks to Aggiemac85 for the contribution regarding Crucial RAM*
1. Protective bags. Belkin makes some great top loading bags, for people who want quick access to their laptop. Also consider Incase's neoprene sleeve for a nice small and slim protector. Timbuk2 also has some bags that may suit your lifestyle better.
2. Wireless mouse & keyboard. Apples new slim wireless keyboard makes a great choice, as well as the wireless mighty mouse.
3. External display. Being a Apple man, I have to recommend the Apple Cinema displays, which offer crisp picture, and a beautiful design. Also I hear LGs 24" 2407WFP is a really good external monitor as well, for a little bit less.
4. External Hard drive. Make sure you backup your precious information with an external hard drive, especially now that Leopard has come out, you can use Time Machine to go back to all your files. Western Digital offers a great variety of portable and standard hard drives for a reasonable price. My dealings with WD have been positive thus far. They are quick and easy to set up, just plug it in, and are built well.
5. Wrist guards and keyboard protectors. Marware makes a great protection pack, which provides a nice wrist guard to prevent wear and tear on the area in front of your keyboard, and also includes a cloth that drapes over your keyboard, to prevent oils from going onto the screen(I haven't had a problem with this yet, but its included with the wristguard). iSkin makes a rubber like keyboard protector to protect from dust and other particles. I prefer not using this as it makes the keys a little harder to press, and also doesn't have the smooth feel the keyboard normally has. Also, there are trackpad protectors which are available. I prefer not to use these, because they make the trackpad slower and harder to use, but they might be useful to some.
6 Extra RAM!!! Apple overcharges on their ram, so get some off of eBay for a muccch lower price. Try to get OEM ram that apple uses, because they are generally higher quality. Samsung and Hynix generally manufacture ram for apple. Crucial offers guaranteed compatible RAM for Macs. They have a system scanner as well to let non-tech people know exactly how much and what kind of RAM they can use.
7. Apple Care. Before your 1 year limited warranty is up, its a good idea to invet in further protection. For a fraction of the price apple charges, you can purchase apple care off of ebay. Make sure it is compatible with your current macbook, and model. 8. I just recently got this. I got a VGA to VGA male to male connector, to plug into my DVI to VGA adapter that comes with Macbook Pros, and hooks up to the other end of my plasma TV where it has a VGA connector. I have to say its AWESOME! Great picture quality, especially for viewing photos and playing games. You can also hook your LCD tv to it as well(make sure you check what outputs you have...you can also get an HDMI connector instead of VGA)
I personally recommend making your entire house wireless, for complete freedom. I use apples wireless N extreme base station. That way I can move my laptop anywhere around the house.
I hope that I have helped you in making the ultimate apple macbook setup. Please hit "Yes" if this has been helpful. Thanks! *Thanks to Aggiemac85 for the contribution regarding Crucial RAM*
Guide created: 27/10/07 (updated 01/05/12)
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