With its late 2009 refresh of the 13-inch, entry-level Macbook refresh, Apple will deliver an economical, spruced-up option to its MacBook Pro line of aluminum notebooks. The notebook will be given a unibody case, like the Macbook Pro, as well as the glass trackpad.

Though with a slightly larger and heavier polycarbonate body than its more expensive Pro counterpart, the upgraded MacBook will also boast an environmentally-friendly design and a much improved display, and will be more on the lines of other Apple notebooks.

While the single-piece construction of the upgraded MacBook will give the notebook an overall rigidity and reduce its weight marginally, the notebook will not be completely seamless, and the upgrade options for CPU and RAM will also be fairly limited.

The upcoming version of the MacBook features LED backlit display; NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics chip; 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo processor; 2GB of fast DDR3 RAM; and 250GB, 5400 rpm hard drive that can be upgraded to a 320GB or 500GB disk.

Even with a notable lack of some features - like FireWire, backlit keyboard, SD card reader, external battery level indicator, and IR receiver - the upgraded entry-level MacBook, which will retain its current cost of $999, will be a highly 'compelling buy' for those prudent customers who desire a capable machine with enhanced features, at an affordable price!