A little advice goes a long way

Question

I'd first like to say this: I appreciate anyone's honest opinion. I know that this comes down to my own personal decision, but why I'm asking is that I'd like to hear if anyone has made this choice and has any regrets, knows where I'm coming from, or feels glad that they did. Thanks in advance!
My first year of owning a white Macbook is almost up and my hard drive is very full! I could buy a new HD and Applecare (meh), or sell this one on CL and buy a new one for about the same price, or upgrade to a MBP. I'm seriously debating moving to Macbook Pro after seeing yesterday's update, but I'm not sure if it's the right choice. Here's what is important to me: I absolutely hate having a white computer. It shows oils in bright lighting (like my living room) and I have to wash my hands before using it...every time. White is just not very practical. Obviously I could get the black Macbook, but 1. It shows fingerprints like crazy (I've seen the Blackbooks at the Apple Store and they look disgusting ) and 2. A lot of people complain of chipping and it scratching easily. Speaking of scratches, my white Macbook has been babied for the last year and it still has a lot of swirly scratches all over the case. I do really like the size of my Macbook, but to be honest, I don't really take it all over the place now that I've finished college. I also admit that I can't take staring at a 13" screen all day anymore. I play with photoshop and do a bit of multitasking, so it's either buy a Macbook and a monitor or get a 15" MBP.
I'm interested in a Macbook Pro not because I need to do extensive "Pro" work, but because it's aluminum and everyone that I know who has one doesn't have to deal with buying a soft case or worrying about scratching it. They can be semi-rough with it and it will take the abuse. I'm not hot on the fact that it's bigger, even though it's still pretty light, but I probably wouldn't need an external monitor. I really like the backlit keyboard and that it seems a bit more future proof than the Macbook, even though bigger and better is always around the corner. I've read a lot about how Leopard is possibly going to be using the GPU more than Tiger has, and feel more comfortable knowing it's there in the future. I also like the new LED display (most of the displays that I've seen previously have uneven lighting, which I hope this fixes, as well as the sparklies) and that the battery life now seems to be about equal to my Core Duo, despite the added size and GPU. I don't like the keyboard as much as the Macbook's, and I wonder how annoying the latch will be in the long term, but I'm sure I'll get used to it eventually. I also wonder how the heat situation is on the new Pro's since I heard it's gotten better, but my CoreDuo gets decently warm and it doesn't really bug me too much.
So there you have it. I'm leaning towards a MBP, and what's important to me is having a laptop that's versatile, doesn't get dirty easily and is functional for the long term. I've traded up for the last few years, but I'm so tired of it. I just want to get something that I can hold onto for a while and be happy with. I need it to be tough and portable, since I'm probably going to be moving out of the country soon for a couple months. It ***** that they don't make a 13" in aluminum, cause my problem would be solved immediately. I'm well aware that the Macbook is a much better deal and is more portable, but this seems to be the only option I have. As you can tell, I've already pretty much made up my mind, but I'd like to hear anything I might not have thought about or if any of my opinions clash with personal experience. Thanks!
-Gabe

Answer 1

Thanks for the helpful reply, Kenneth! I'll definitely look into the Speck case, whichever way I go.
"Some display issues have to do with the display and not the backlight, so don't expect 100% happiness. Ever."
Agreed. I've seen some really bad MBP's and I was hoping that they've gotten better. I've actually read a lot of threads here about how the Macbook's screen is generally better quality (at least before the update).
"There is never enough monitor. If that is a serious concern, you should get a large external monitor. 15 is just not that much bigger than 13. 23 is big!"
I totally agree. However, regarding my current situation of leaving the country and not having access to an external monitor, I think I might be better off having 15" to play with abroad.
"Beauty is not everything. If you need a separate graphics card, an expresscard slot, 4GB RAM, or FW800, get the MBP. Also, it will be faster GHz for GHz because of the cache, among other things."
Sometimes I wonder if I have OCD with keeping nice things clean...which is why I think that white might not be the best choice for me. I noticed that you have a Macbook Pro yourself. Do you feel like it's hard to keep clean, or that you have to treat it gently?
About the extra options that you mention, I'll be honest: I don't have a specific need for them. I'd like to get a FW enclosure for my external drive, but I don't currently own one. I'd also like to have a graphics card, though I don't really play computer games. I wouldn't like to rule it out for the future though...I'm going to have a lot of free time in Costa Rica. Also, the 4GB of RAM will likely be more important moving forward. I'm planning on keeping my next computer for the next 2-3 years, so I just want to make sure that I have few things to regret.
" In 2 or 3 years you can buy the MBP Extreem with a 10GHz processor, 2 TB HD, and direct output to your optic nerves for the same price, and already have the big monitor!"
Hilarious. Thanks for that.
-G