Apple discontinues the white MacBook

Apple on Wednesday confirmed that it has discontinued the entry-level, white polycarbonate MacBook, making the new, $999 11-inch Macbook Air the least expensive in the family.

The white MacBook has already been removed from Apple's product page, but if you're feeling nostalgic for the white plastic chassis, you can always buy a refurbished, year-old white MacBook for $849.

Although Apple has been using polycarbonate plastic—marketed as a tough plastic used in bulletproof glass—since the dawn of the iBook, Apple dyed it white for its first MacBook in 2006. But with the launch of the MacBook Pros in an aluminum unibody, rumors surfaced that Apple would discontinue the white polycarbonate MacBook, especially when the 13-inch model went Pro.

Instead, Apple re-invented the white polycarbonate shell with the popular unibody found in the 13-inch MacBook from October 2009. However, Apple hasn't updated the white MacBook since May 2010.

News of its discontinuation would not have been a surprise if not for a 9to5Mac report last week, which said Apple would launch an upgraded white MacBook in addition to the Airs announced today.

Apple probably didn't make a big deal out of the white MacBook discontinuation because it didn't want to steal the thunder (pun unintended) from today's announcement of the MacBook Air 13-inch and 11-inch models. The refresh adds high-speed Thunderbolt technology first sighted in MacBook Pros in February, Mac OS X Lion, and Sandy Bridge architecture.

The Air 11-inch starts at 64GB and tops at 128GB, while the Air 13-inch keeps it at 128GB and 256GB. And surprisingly, the FaceTime Webcams aren't HD or the type that captures 720p video.

Apple also announced a refresh of its Mac mini line, which also adds Lion, Intel's Sandy Bridge platform, and Thunderbolt connectivity.

This article, written by Sara Yin, originally appeared on PCMag.com and is republished on Gear Live with the permission of Ziff Davis, Inc.