Laptops :: New MacBook Pro 13 Vs. Older MacBook 13?

My dear old PowerBook Firewire model is showing its age badlythough if I thought it could be fixed for a reasonable amount (and competently), I might put some money into it. I'd have to replace the CD/DVD drive and the battery (and maybe even the soldered-in battery that keeps the time, etc.), and some of the keys on the right side don't respond to the Shift. The rest of it works just fine.

That is just to show you what I am like: I keep my computers for a long, long time. Also, because I have a working G4 desktop, I don't use the laptop a lot.

1. That said, I have been considering getting a new laptop, and when the desktop fails, that (and an external monitor and maybe a keyboard) will be my main computer. I like a lot of what the new MacBook Pro 13-inch offers, but I'm put off by the fact that the battery cannot be replaced. Or can it? That is at the heart of the matter: Is it just that I would not be able to replace it myself, or that I couldn't even get it replaced by clever techs? That is, is the computer done for, once the battery goes dead?

Also, I wondered about the battery in relation to the question of someone like me, who tended to use the computer with the AC adaptor, not detached from a power supply. In such a situation, the length of battery time is irrelevant, but the replaceability of the battery is not. I might even remove the battery at such times.

So, although I really like the return of Firewire, and the SD card is nice, I don't absolutely need those things. Would I do better to get the MacBook 13 (the generation before the Pro13)? Would that ensure that I could keep my computer as long as everything else besides the battery works?

2. Perhaps a silly question but one that I think is relevant. I see that neither MacBook has an internal modem. Does that mean that when my broadband connection goes down (it does that, though very rarely), I cannot use the few hours a month of dialup that my ISP provides for such situations?

Of course, since I don't need a laptop at the present moment, I suppose I could wait until either my desktop breaks down and can't be repaired or Apple comes across with a MacBook model with a removeable battery (if that really is a great plus). For me a laptop would be an occasional convenience, not a necessity. Still, if I should want to get the earlier model (spiffed up with the maximum HD and RAM), I think I must hustle. It may not be available for long.