Go to www.apple.com and visit the store. You can see the specs for the MacBook and the MacBookPro. The MacBookPro is slightly faster, has an aluminum case. For me the deciding factor was that the video card in the MacBookPro could power the 32 inch Cinema Display. I do photos and wanted a huge display to edit my photos. I migrated from an iBook. Other than the photos, I'd do a MacBook. The old iBooks were supposed to be studier (because they were primarily for school use, I suppose) than the MacBooks. I suppose the MacBooks are the same--a little sturdier, but I don't know.