aqua33 :
chulex67 :
No the newer Macbook are not build the same way the old ones did, also, theres not such thing as longevity laptops. What are you looking to do with the Laptop, how much time do you want to keep it, Do you Have A Screen Size in mind?.
The Easiest solution for your family member would be to get another macbook.
well hardware being outdated is not a problem, the only they changed was the battery and adapter over the course of those 6 years, since they only used it for office suite and web browsing, 14", preferably 13.3", 3-4 years would be nice though until their school is over.
You should probably have a good talk with your kid, im just guessing its your kid because he or she its still on school, he or she only use office and web browsing so its not like they need a High End Gaming Laptop, and he or she has been using Mac OS for a long time, changing them back to Windows is probably gonna be a Pain. My Suggestion is to get another Macbook, Or maybe he or she wants a windows laptop and maybe she wants it to be pink, or he wants it to be black. There are many things like how it looks, to how much it weights that are important for the user.
In any case i suggest this laptop for an everyday use in office and web browsing, the mouse pad on the laptop has the same hand gestures that you use on MAC OS http
/www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834127999,
and please do not choose a Macbook air, i have 2 of them, My nephew trow his toy to the screen while he was watching a cartoon, he was 2 years old, and the screen broke, Replacing the screen was 600usd. The Second Mackbook air, the Internal Psu started failing like what happens with cellphones something like this:
http/linuxmanr4.com/wp-content/gallery/bateria-de-blackberry-hinchada/bateria-de-blackberry-hinchada-01.jpg
And it deformed all the Aluminium case, i send it to get fixed but the damage it made to the aluminium case was irreparable. and i have something like this :
http/img.gawkerassets.com/img/18ml57aphva2jjpg/ku-medium.jpg
not so bad like the picture, but i cant close the laptop.