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AppleInsider’s Kasper Jade today reports that Apple has new plans for its workhorse laptop, the MacBook. This will be the first time since the product’s launch in 2006 that the company’s entry-level Mac has received a complete design update.

The MacBook is the best-selling computer in the history of the company. It introduced many of the features we take for granted in today’s high-end MacBook Pro machines. The MagSafe connector and latchless lids might be expected of Apple’s laptops these days, but they originally debuted in the diminutive MacBooks more than three years ago.

The report claims that the MacBooks were slated to be discontinued, but that at a redesign the company will “solidify them at the base of the Mac maker’s notebook offerings for the foreseeable future.”

There is no news as to what the redesigned MacBook might look like, but if Apple is to position the machine as a low-cost, entry-level device while keeping it distinct enough from its 13-inch MacBook Pro cousin, it seems unlikely it will be made using the same unibody extrusion process.

A carbon fiber composite would make sense, given this 2006 patent application filed by Apple. It describes a method for producing a carbon fiber composite used as an exterior shell for electronic devices. Of particular note is mention of a “scrim” layer designed to improve the cosmetic finish of the material.

Furthermore, there was talk last year of Apple planning to replace at least part of the MacBook Air’s aircraft-grade aluminum body — specifically, the bottom cover — with the tough-but-light carbon fiber material. While the latest updates to the Air continue to use an all-aluminum body, it is conceivable the carbon fiber plans will see the light of day in the new MacBook.

As for the refreshed internals, there’s only speculation, guided by the assumption Apple will want to position the new MacBook as an affordable (read “cheap”) machine:

Apple is expected to achieve these markdowns through largely existing tactics, such as using lower-end components and previous-generation Core 2 Duo chips and architectures from Intel Corp. Battery life should receive a boost from cutting-edge technology that recently found its way into the company’s other notebook offerings, while high-end legacy features like FireWire connectivity are likely to be sacrificed in the tradeoff.

[Apple] toyed with the prospect of throwing an Intel Atom processor into the existing white MacBook enclosure as [an] interim solution aimed at delivering a low-cost Mac portable for those consumers eying a Mac but hit hard by the recession.

Interestingly, Jade explains that this idea was dropped earlier in the year right around the time when Apple “solidified the forthcoming Newton web tablet for a first-quarter 2010 rollout”.

If Apple prices the new MacBook around the same $999 mark as the current machine — which it most probably will — what will that mean for the price of the tablet? Whatever the outcome, it sounds as though Apple has a clearly defined product/feature differentiation in mind for these devices, despite their similar price points.

It’s all just speculation, of course. But it’s nice to see that Apple is potentially breathing new life into an old and trusted friend.

How long should a Mac last? Mac360’s Alexis Kayhill posed the question recently, and it got me thinking on the topic, especially since Alexis framed her column around the experience of a co-worker who had purchased a new unibody MacBook (on her recommendation) only to have Apple upgrade the 13″ unibody to Pro status with feature enhancement and a lower price a few months later.

I’m in the same boat, having also bought a unibody MacBook last February. Alexis says her friend “got burned,” though I think that’s a bit harsh. I don’t feel “burned” at all — more like a bit disappointed that I didn’t wait four more months, but you can drive yourself nuts second-guessing such things. I love the MacBook, and am already becoming convinced that it’s going to be one of my all-time favorite Macs. I just wish it had a FireWire port, which the new 13″ MacBook Pro does have.

My target for intervals between upgrading my main workhorse systems has been three years ever since I bought my first Mac back in 1992, and I’ve done pretty well at adhering to it. That would put replacement time for my MacBook in early 2012, which seems a long way off.

The way it usually plays out for me is that the first year I revel in the greater power and storage capacity of my new machine compared with whatever it replaced. At 18 months, twinges of slight frustration and dissatisfaction start to set in, especially after upgraded models have been introduced, but I really have nothing to complain about. However, by the beginning of year three, the aging Mac is usually beginning to feel compromised in some respects, and the hunt begins, although for the last three machines I’ve managed to reach or beat the three-year replacement benchmark.

Of course it helps that I like the challenge of getting useful service out of antiquated hardware. We still have two nine year old Pismo PowerBooks in very active service, and they’re great for what we do with them — text-crunching, email, Web-surfing, and so forth — “netbooks” of a sort, I suppose.

Actually, I still have most of the Macs I’ve ever owned, and only a very few are not in working order. Our six year old iBook G3 died suddenly last winter, but had been a virtually flawless performer up to the day it completely refused to respond to the power button — presumably a terminal motherboard issue. One of my daughters is still using my old 1999 WallStreet PowerBook, and the 17″ PowerBook that served as my primary workhorse between the iBook and MacBook is still in fine fettle.

As Alexis Kayhill observes, there’s a line somewhere between the disappointment that occurs when a newer, power and feature-enhanced, and possibly cheaper revision is unveiled, especially if it’s only shortly after you buy a new Mac. But there’s also the pride you feel when your Mac still looks good and works well five years (or nine years!) after you bought it.

Macs being generally more expensive than typical Windows PCs, at least up front, it logically stands to reason that they should have longer useful lives.

How about you? How often do you usually upgrade your system, and what do you consider a reasonable service life for Macs?