Some Mac fans have bemoaned the fact that Apple -- which released the MacBook last month -- took a page from the Windows world, where black laptops with shiny, reflective screens have been de rigueur for years now. (They even started a petition pledging to buy a MacBook if Apple will offer it with a matte screen.) Others are tickled with the changes.

More about the black-is-cool meme in a minute.

The bigger debating point about Apple's latest laptop centers on its screen. I was first captivated by glassy-looking LCD screens when they appeared on store shelves a few years back, and I bought a Sony Vaio last fall in large part for the high-resolution screen and vibrant X-Brite technology.

So when Apple offered me a top-of-the-line black MacBook for review purposes last week, I jumped at the chance to eyeball its take on screen sheen. Price of admission if you're buying: $1,499, although the MacBook lineup (in white only) starts at $1,099.

The new widescreen LCD is but one of numerous changes to Apple's consumer laptops, which replace the old G4-based iBooks with a truly modern portable. There's a totally new widescreen form factor, a new keyboard, wicked fast Intel Core Duo processors (at speeds of either 1.83 GHz or 2 GHz), an integrated Web cam, wider TrackPad and a slew of under-the-hood changes.