Switched to Mac now my thoughts

[Ak907Freerider]

Ok so I switched to Mac a few months back after a lifetime of windows use and here is my honest take of Mac. I went with a refurb 27 inch with a 3.4 i7 1 tb 20 gb of ram, and 1 gb video. Was nice to be able to easily upgrade the ram big plus. I love the screen it is a beauty. The keyboard is pretty lame but looks nice. The magic mouse is decent but wish I went with trackpad now.

As for osx it is nicely laid out yet pretty confusing to learn. Files seem to go into the abyss and I can't find a lot of files. I hate how pictures get saved to iPhoto I don't want my pictures there it is a weak program that offers nothing good for editing. AppleCare has been hit and miss. Some employees are very helpful and knowledgable yet others get confused if it is anything not in their standard set of questions. When this happens expect to get transferred around aimlessly until you final get a employee who actually knows how osx works. Also irritating how the automated AppleCare asks for your serial number yet not once has it recognized my number, probably called 50 times. I've had final cut crash a few times, along with iMovie. So Mac is not the golden child everyone makes it out to be for reliability my windows system crashed just about as much as osx has. So pretty disappointed there.

Computer started out blazing fast but now has become much slower. Haven't added a lot to it so it isn't hard drive space issue. So do I think it is worth the huge price tag?? Yes and no. Yes for looks, ease of ram upgrade and for final cut program. No for shotty osx reliability, poor AppleCare employees well most anyways are not knowledgable, and for pretty but not very functional keyboard. Also any further upgrade like HDD is a pretty risky upgrade but knew that to begin with. So all in all if I had to purchase again I would look a lot closer at a pc option with windows 7, wish I would of looked a little harder at new pc options. I'm still not sold on osx maybe my view will change. But so far wasn't the flawless machine people talk it up to be. Yes it is nice but has its problems and the problems seem to be the same as what I had with windows. So if you are new be sure to weigh your options well because Mac isn't the machine I was hoping for. Especially for $2000.

Just my thoughts anyone else recently switch what do you think?

[kgian]

About a year and a half ago I got a base 21.5 2011 imac. I like the machine, it is silent and powerfull for my needs, but I just can't find myself using OSX for a long time. Ok, I can do my everyday stuff in OSX but when it comes to gaming which I do when I have some spare time I have to dual boot to windows.

Then why not just stay all the time in windows? I don't have any crashes with my applications either in OSX or Windows and I find their user interface is on par if not even better than OSX.

I like the looks of the imac, the screen, the thing that it is allmost silent and would buy another one, but for me OSX is not the deciding factor. If I could find a sleek AND powerfull AIO with windows I would not mind.

[NVRENUF!]

Dude the best thing you can do for your self is buy a SSD drive and install it.

My imac runs like lightening after an SSd I can't use a pc with out SSD now i feel like jumping off a cliff on slow computers.

[Ak907Freerider]

Yes forgot to mention that it is very silent!! I do like that. Iam very tempted to install windows in bootcamp myself. I don't game a lot but osx doesn't even have a word processor lol kinda sad but they want $20 for their word processor ya that's $20 closer to a copy of windows. Also my Mac didn't even come with a restore disc when I asked AppleCare about it they said I could buy a copy of osx through app store, really pay $2000 and I don't even own my copy of osx that's cute.

[justperry]

Originally Posted by kgian

If I could find a sleek AND powerfull AIO with windows I would not mind.

You have one right now.

To the OP, your brain seems to be hardwired into the windows world, let it loose.
Yes, OS X is not perfect and W7 is a stable OS but the file System is better on the Mac, much less confusing than W8, the problem is you have to rethink everything, let loose of the old.
And, you don't need to use iPhoto, you can import into other programs and disable the automatic opening of Image Capture.

And, as for the price you mention, I doubt you pay $2000 for that refurb, found the same on the Canadian store for just over $1700

[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by NVRENUF!

Dude the best thing you can do for your self is buy a SSD drive and install it.

My imac runs like lightening after an SSd I can't use a pc with out SSD now i feel like jumping off a cliff on slow computers.

Yes I want to do ssd but don't want to void warranty so holding off till more thunderport options come along for more realistic prices

[NVRENUF!]

nothing will beat doing the internal drive though.

you can change the drive on those models very easy.

even if you paid the $150 for a apple agent to change it for you and keep warranty

and $100 for a drive pretty cheap

[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by justperry

You have one right now.

To the OP, your brain seems to be hardwired into the windows world, let it loose.
Yes, OS X is not perfect and W7 is a stable OS but the file System is better on the Mac, much less confusing than W8, the problem is you have to rethink everything, let loose of the old.
And, you don't need to use iPhoto, you can import into other programs and disable the automatic opening of Image Capture.

And, as for the price you mention, I doubt you pay $2000 for that refurb, found the same on the Canadian store for just over $1700

Well was $1879 so ya shy of the $2000 mark but still was a chunk of change. Then $150 I believe for AppleCare

[justperry]

Originally Posted by Ak907Freerider

Also my Mac didn't even come with a restore disc when I asked AppleCare about it they said I could buy a copy of osx through app store, really pay $2000 and I don't even own my copy of osx that's cute.

On that machine it can automatically download a FREE copy of the OS if you start up in Recovery.
Might even be possible to download it free from App store although I am not aware of it.

[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by NVRENUF!

nothing will beat doing the internal drive though.

you can change the drive on those models very easy.

even if you paid the $150 for a apple agent to change it for you and keep warranty

and $100 for a drive pretty cheap

Huh?!?! I called apple and asked if that was a option was told if it would void the warranty even if it was a apple rep doing the swap. Guess like I said I got the not knowledgable AppleCare rep on that phone call

[justperry]

Originally Posted by Ak907Freerider

Huh?!?! I called apple and asked if that was a option was told if it would void the warranty even if it was a apple rep doing the swap. Guess like I said I got the not knowledgable AppleCare rep on that phone call

An SSD will make it much speedier, and if it needs repair, restore the internals as before and Apple won't know!!

[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by justperry

On that machine it can automatically download a FREE copy of the OS if you start up in Recovery.
Might even be possible to download it free from App store although I am not aware of it.

Well was wanting a copy to do a external ssd drive for my boot drive but got turned off when was told to buy a copy from app store. Am I crazy for wanting a good ol back up disc of my os ? Maybe I'm just old school but always had one for all my comps and it has come in handy more than once.

[2ndchancephones]

To the OP...I totally understand your issues. I was a lifetime Windows user until I bought my MBP. Yes, files are a little different but you will get used to that. Just have some patience.

I'll never go back to Windows now that I have used Apple.

[simsaladimbamba]

Originally Posted by Ak907Freerider

Well was wanting a copy to do a external ssd drive for my boot drive but got turned off when was told to buy a copy from app store. Am I crazy for wanting a good ol back up disc of my os ? Maybe I'm just old school but always had one for all my comps and it has come in handy more than once.

No Mac coming with Mac OS X 10.7 Lion or OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion has physical restore media included.

OS X: About OS X Recovery

If you want to make a bootable installation medium, you can follow these steps:

• Lion DiskMaker

• Create bootable installation medium for Mac OS X 10.7 Lion
• Create bootable installation medium for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion

[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by simsaladimbamba

No Mac coming with Mac OS X 10.7 Lion or OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion has physical restore media included. And you also do not have to buy Lion again:

OS X: About OS X Recovery
OS X Recovery Disk Assistant

Hmmm are you one of the smart apple reps? When is your shift because no one else at apple knew how to do this pretty sad

[WrrN]

Originally Posted by Ak907Freerider

Ok so I switched to Mac a few months back after ...

Thanks for your honest review. I switched to a Mac in '06, having been a Windows boy when Windows was just a glint in the eye of DOS.

I agree that OSX is not perfect; how can anything be perfect. I also found it a challenge to transition to OSX, but I must say, now when I have to get on a client's Win machine, I feel lost and even irked by it's GUI. I've been converted and really enjoy working in OSX, and I mean 'work' as in using it to make a living.

Like someone else said, give it some time, loosen up to it, and search for those tweaks you want to make but haven't figured out how yet. Here's one I couldn't live without: http://www.clipmenu.com It's free and worth donating to.

[comatory]

1. You dont have to use iPhoto, you can just have a huge photo folder and manage it yourself (the windows way, yay!)

2. The copy of operating system will download for FREE in recovery mode.

3. Tell me about decent word processor on Windows platform for $20? From what I see there's only Microsoft Office which costs way more. Oh, you can get OpenOffice on OS X as well. For free (just like on PC).

4. There is something wrong with your iMac if it is running slow. You have plenty of RAM and fast CPU. You wouldn't have done any "tweaks" to your Mac, have you? Macs don't like that (avoid MacKeeper and such).

5. There must be something wrong with your harddrive or that person between the chair and the Mac. Files don't go into Abyss, unless you mean trash bin when deleting them. Note that some folders and files are natively hidden but they're supposed to be. Maybe you're saving stuff to iCloud in save dialog? Also, if you open Finder and switch to see all your files, you can sort the files by creation date and see their location. Learn to use Finder and shortcuts, it doesn't work like Windows Explorer - you'll be glad you did.

6. Why complain about keyboard? It's great keyboard but if it doesn't fit you, just plug in regular PC keyboard.

But do you want to know another great thing about Macs? You can sell the for pretty good price, even used. So maybe selling it for 60-70 percent of the original price seems like a good choice for you. For that money, you can buy a very nice PC box - seems like you'll be happier with it.
Or just bootcamp Windows and use just that. Best of both worlds.

[WrrN]

Originally Posted by Ak907Freerider

Hmmm are you one of the smart apple reps? When is your shift because no one else at apple knew how to do this pretty sad

Huh, I thought MacRumors was the official Apple support. You mean there's a smarter support option?

[simsaladimbamba]

Originally Posted by Ak907Freerider

Hmmm are you one of the smart apple reps? When is your shift because no one else at apple knew how to do this pretty sad

Really? That is sad. And no, I am not working for Apple.

Btw, Mac OS X 10.7 Lion was not Apple's best hour regarding their Mac OS X line, that is why many people upgraded to OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion or reverted to Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, if it was possible, which it is with most 2011 Macs except the 2011 MacBook Air. I for example always reverted back to Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard after testing Mac OS X 10.7 Lionor OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, but that is because I am using Mac OS X longer than the iPhone is out there, thus the iOS stuff is not really for me and the taking away of proper Spaces and Exposé is another point for me not liking new OS X versions.

[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by WrrN

Thanks for your honest review. I switched to a Mac in '06, having been a Windows boy when Windows was just a glint in the eye of DOS.

I agree that OSX is not perfect; how can anything be perfect. I also found it a challenge to transition to OSX, but I must say, now when I have to get on a client's Win machine, I feel lost and even irked by it's GUI. I've been converted and really enjoy working in OSX, and I mean 'work' as in using it to make a living.

Like someone else said, give it some time, loosen up to it, and search for those tweaks you want to make but haven't figured out how yet. Here's one I couldn't live without: http://www.clipmenu.com It's free and worth donating to.

I'm trying no turning back now wife would kill me if I sold the new computer plus the endless mocking since she doesn't see any reason for a Mac. She loves her android phone been trying for years to convince her that iPhone is better lol nothing has worked. Anyhow I think osx would be a lot smoother of a switch if AppleCare knew how to use osx I would say 1 out of 10 calls I get a question solved. Rest of the time I get told what I'm trying to do can't be done, only to figure it out on my own that I find it can be done. But this would be after a hour of cursing lol. For example just had a simple one, adding a picture to a iMovie file. Got told it wouldn't work because the project was a theme project. Even had the rep use the software that puts him in control of my computer still couldn't figure it out. Call took a hour with no luck. I gave up and ended the call and got looking more, duh use the camara button ta da added a picture. Just been issues like that that have made for a poor switch.

Nothing major just frustrating when the "genius" people can't even figure out simple tasks

[simsaladimbamba]

In the future, just do not call Apple for such "simple" problems, just look on the www and a very good www search engine of your choice or here to find the answers to your question. Apple Care is more for hardware problems than software problems, at least that is how I understand those frackers.

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Maybe have a look at Advanced Search or MRoogle to find lots of answers to many, many, many questions:

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[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by simsaladimbamba

In the future, just do not call Apple for such "simple" problems, just look on the www and a very good www search engine of your choice or here to find the answers to your question. Apple Care is more for hardware problems than software problems, at least that is how I understand those frackers.

____________________________________________________________

Maybe have a look at Advanced Search or MRoogle to find lots of answers to many, many, many questions:

Image

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Ya but if they can't even do a simple task add a pic, get a copy of osx etc do I really want them trouble shooting hardware seems like most of them barely found their way to work without getting lost. This forum has been more helpful then AppleCare would ever be. They should take off the AppleCare box where it says technical support and just put a link to here

[WrrN]

Originally Posted by Ak907Freerider

I'm trying no turning back now wife would kill me if I ...

I hear you. I was Android too until a few years ago. My wife is cursing the new iPad I just bought her because she can't put it down. It's the first iPad in our family and I must say, what a handy tool to have around the house.

As for iPhoto ... phah, I don't bother with it. Prefer Bridge and Lightroom, but that's just my needs.

[Ak907Freerider]

Originally Posted by WrrN

I hear you. I was Android too until a few years ago. My wife is cursing the new iPad I just bought her because she can't put it down. It's the first iPad in our family and I must say, what a handy tool to have around the house.

As for iPhoto ... phah, I don't bother with it. Prefer Bridge and Lightroom, but that's just my needs.

True they nailed it with the iPad I love mine. I use it more than the iMac now due to having no support with help, less I search forums YouTube etc for help which gets old fast. iPad I pick it up turn it on everything works no problems, iMac yes it works if you can figure out how. Just wasn't the easy machine I was hoping for after using iPhone iPad etc. I knew it would be a bit more detailed but it is confusing. Just my view

One funny example I just got the iMac and was so proud made a video in iMovie thought it was so cool. My dad came over to see the new comp and I showed him the video told him how long it took to do he laughed and showed me the video he did on his iPad took him way less time due to ease of iPad layout where videos go etc. Was pretty embarrassing I'm a bit faster now but was just sad.

[simsaladimbamba]

Then learn more about Mac OS X:

To learn more about Mac OS X: Helpful Information for Any Mac User by GGJstudios

And for performance issues, you might want to check this: Performance Tips For Mac OS X


PS: Also consider, that your way of thinking might not be suited by Mac OS X, which sometimes happens, thus the OS is harder to learn.
For me, Mac OS X is easy, but probably due to my way of thinking. I can navigate Windows as well, but it is not suited for my brain and probably never was.