Recommending a mac

[bcburrows]

All the guys in my department use mac - all of which are the macbook pro range - every one is pretty happy with them. However a friend of mine, one of the juniors at work has just asked what would I recommend - he is thinking either top speck sony vaio with windows 7 or MBP snow leopard.

To be honest I have struggled now to recommend the MBP. I have sort of felt that my powerbook and my first version MBP were both pretty good, well ahead of the rest of the competition, but with the uMBP I can't help but feel that with the increasing popularity of mac - iPod, iPhone, Macs being in loadsof films / TV shows that apple have now dumbed down their range in order to ship more units.

Looking at the costs and the good reviews windows 7 has, I really (for the first time) do not think I can recommend a Mac (talking about laptops only)....

Anyone else felt this?

Sorry I do realise it is a sort of nothing post, but I guess it reflects that I am less impressed now with the MBP line up considering the cost and the competition.......

[crazycat]

The reason so many people are excited about Windows 7 is that Vista, well how should i put this?... sucked. I had my share of problems with Vista, and it was not a real step up from XP. Snow Leopard has no new features but instead improves the speed of Leopard, hence the name and price.

Windows 7 is an improvement over Vista, that was needed. I could not see how you would improve Leopard to be honest, everything i need and use works great for me. Windows 7 is getting and better and closer to OS X but it is not there yet.

Here is what you can pick from:

- OS X Snow Leopard $25

or

- Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Upgrade $120
- Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Upgrade $120
- Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate Upgrade $220
- Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium $ 120
- Microsoft Windows 7 Professional $300
- Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate $320

Dumbed down? i think its less complicated.

[ziggyonice]

Originally Posted by crazycat

The reason so many people are excited about Windows 7 is that Vista, well how should i put this?... sucked.\

Agreed. Snow Leopard has a lot of momentum behind it, but of course, so did Leopard -- because it was a very good OS. That's why Apple's keeping the "Leopard" name in there.

Simply put, the MBP is still going to be a better value, and it always have been. The unibodies work great and I think you'd be very happy with the purchase.

[eawmp1]

Having been an Apple user since the old Apple ][ days, and having used every incarnation of Windows (including Widows 7 RC), I can see how you might say that with Windows 7 the Mac "gap" has narrowed. Hiwever, the tight integration between the hardware and software makes the difference. Even in Windows 7, setting up peripherals, establishing networks, etc. invollved EFFORT. With Leopard/SL, "it just works." I am happier in settings I have to use Windows now that 7 is availble. However, I still go home to my Mac home.

[emptyCup]

Originally Posted by bcburrows

Looking at the costs and the good reviews windows 7 has, I really (for the first time) do not think I can recommend a Mac (talking about laptops only)....

If you are going to recommend a machine you should use it. Not on your Mac, of course. The Windows world considers Macs to be unGodly expensive. Get yourself a typical $600 PC and use Windows 7 on it for a month. Let us know how it goes. Best wishes.

[cmwade77]

I use Windows 7 at work and yes, it is a lot better than Vista; however, give me my Mac any day, Windows 7 can't compare really, it is closer to OS X, but it's definitely not the same.

I would strongly advise that he purchase a Mac, especially since that's what most of the people there are using.

[bcburrows]

As you can see from my signature I have a uMBP 2.66 - with expresscard slot, and removal battery........

However When I compared my old macs to other peoples computers - mine looked better but more importantly worked better and faster......

I have now noticed my uMBP is not quite the fasted kid in town and has more issues regarding programs suddenly suspending and having to be restarted....

Don't get me wrong I do still love my mac, but when asked today to think about similar priced machines vaio and mac (not a ridiculous comparison between a $600 machine and a $2000 - there is no point in doing that) I wonder if the mac still justifies it, especially now there is hackintosh!!!

[crazycat]

Originally Posted by bcburrows

Don't get me wrong I do still love my mac, but when asked today to think about similar priced machines vaio and mac (not a ridiculous comparison between a $600 machine and a $2000 - there is no point in doing that) I wonder if the mac still justifies it, especially now there is hackintosh!!!

I see your point but you have to understand that Apple dose not sell cheap laptops and desktops like other manufacturers do. If you look at the cheapest laptop its around $1,000, i am sure you can get a PC laptop for half that but dont expect it to run as well as a Mac.

I love my Mac because i dont havr to worry about clicking links, i dont have to worry about reinstalling the software every 6 months, i dont have to worry about defraging the hard drive and i dont have to worry about 20 warnings poping up every day. I have a PC desktop for gaming and i love it but i cant replace my Mac with a PC for daily work.