Almighty MacBook Pro (or not?). Help?

[andreibutilca]

Greetings everyone,

For a long time now, I've been the definite Microsoft fan, rejecting everything non-Windows. I own a Dell Vostro 1700 laptop, which is (and has forever been) pure trash, had problems with it ever since 2008, when I bought it - unstable as hell.

Then, I got really interested in Apple's products (my friend got an iMac), and decided to 'risk it all' and get an iPhone 4S. Dude. Best buy I've ever made. Period. This thing worked like a charm, did its job each and every time, flawlessly. I really felt attracted to Apple's philosophy of doing things, flawless and clean.

Now, my dilemma is fairly simple: I want to replace the pesky Dell with a Macbook Pro, probably 15", but I'm waiting for the imminent 2012 refresh. If I declare myself a super-satisfied iPhone owner, will a Macbook Pro keep up to the praise, or just fall flat when compared to the 'cheaper' PCs in the competition?
I'm not a gamer, not even a 'hardcore' computer guy, I only want my gadgets to be as stable as possible, to do their job real fast (not really interested in the numbers, just the what-you-get experience), automatic (so I don't need to manually search for countless driver and definition updates etc.), easy to use (intuitive) and to require as little maintenance as possible.
I study international business in University and I'm very passionate about home entertainment (except for gaming), if this helps.

Awaiting your opinions on this, as a Mac is kind of expensive and I want to be cautious before buying one.

Thanks!

 

[PAPO]

if the most important things to you are the "what you get experience" "ease of use" and minimal maintenance, why have you been using a PC all this time

the only issue you might have is getting used to doing things different to what you are used to

 

[andreibutilca]

Because a PC was all I could afford for the time being. But given the fact that a Mac became a possibility now, I wanted to clearly state what I'm looking for.

I have also stated that I have forever been a Microsoft fan, rejecting all else. You can never know if something is better if you reject it from the start, right?

Sounds fair?

 

[macbook pro i5]

Because a PC was all I could afford for the time being. But given the fact that a Mac became a possibility now, I wanted to clearly state what I'm looking for.

I have also stated that I have forever been a Microsoft fan, rejecting all else. You can never know if something is better if you reject it from the start, right?

Sounds fair?

Dude,15" MacBook Pro FTW,but for the work you suggested you might be better of with a MacBook Air!

 

[andreibutilca]

Dude,15" MacBook Pro FTW,but for the work you suggested you might be better of with a MacBook Air!

Seems legit, but most of the info I checked on the Air suggest it overheats in even the lightest of processes and it's only recommended for really lightweight things. I will prolly want to do heavier stuff with it, like edit a movie once in a while. I might have a false impression about Macbooks and all, but hey, that's why I'm here, and that's why you guys can help me clarify.

 

[macbook pro i5]

Seems legit, but most of the info I checked on the Air suggest it overheats in even the lightest of processes and it's only recommended for really lightweight things. I will prolly want to do heavier stuff with it, like edit a movie once in a while. I might have a false impression about Macbooks and all, but hey, that's why I'm here, and that's why you guys can help me clarify.

Well to explain this better lets take an I.T lesson

The airs don't "overheat" they simply heat up overheating means poetantial damage can be done to the processer for that osx has a built in utility that will automatically turn of the computer,Not the air may FEEL hotter then other laptops it really isn't because it's made out of aluminum,which is a conductor

I'm sure other windows PC's would feel hotter to if they were made out of aliminium
Ok finnally if you are not playing any games and only want to do light video editing then get the 13" MBA because 11" is to small.


Just my 0.02

 

[andreibutilca]

Thanks for taking the time to post complete infos.

I'm not that geeky about computers, I can say I know a thing or two about the 'depths' of Windows, but since I got the iPhone, I really feel like switching my I.T life to Apple.
I am tempted to get the Air, as it comes with an SSD preinstalled (would have opted for a SSD in the Pro as well, but costs would have been pretty high).

So, your final recommandation for my needs? Air?

 

[jamin00]

Best thing I done was getting a MBP a few weeks back. Always wanted one and after using the iPhone's for ages and iPads it was bound to happen soon that I went out and got one.

I'm not a hardcore comp guy or gamer but want things to work well, clean and simple. These tick all those boxes and more. Hooked on mine big style but can't stop buying stuff for it. Its a drug addiction lol


For the first couple of days it can be a little frustrating after being a windows user for such a long time but after a short while you start to get the hang of it and it all just flows and clicks. My needs seem the same as yours but I wanted the 15" for its size, prob get a 17" new one but don't get the Apple RAM or SSD as it too much, can be had for loads less elsewhere. I just got 8GB Ram Crucial stuff for £33

Go and get one ASAP, sod waiting for the newer one as this is rapid and what not as it is

 

[andreibutilca]

Thanks. I think I will get the Air after all, has the SSD, costs less, 13" should be enough. I can't really spend 2000 EUR on a laptop, that's for certain, I want to move a step further from what I have, but not all my savings

 

[Dangerous Theory]

Unless that portability and light weight is paramount to you, perhaps consider the MBP 13 instead. You'll get more for your money, and external SSD upgrades are becoming very cheap.

 

[andreibutilca]

I don't really need it to be super lightweight and portable. I can sacrifice a little bit of portability for better performance. I'm confused again

 

[macbook pro i5]

Unless that portability and light weight is paramount to you, perhaps consider the MBP 13 instead. You'll get more for your money, and external SSD upgrades are becoming very cheap.

But as he stated he isn't much of an I.T guy so he won't
exactly(correct me if I'm wrong OP) be able to upgrade the HDD get the air for your needs and it's cheaper.

----------

I don't really need it to be super lightweight and portable. I can sacrifice a little bit of portability for better performance. I'm confused again

With your work flow the only thing that is gonna improve your computer performance is the SSD and the air comes with one built in.
The lightweight and thinnes is just a plus

 

[rpmor]

But as he stated he isn't much of an I.T guy so he won't
exactly(correct me if I'm wrong OP) be able to upgrade the HDD get the air for your needs and it's cheaper.

he could always ask someone to do it and one also has to ask if maybe he might need an optical bay...

 

[macbook pro i5]

he could always ask someone to do it and one also has to ask if maybe he might need an optical bay...

But he never stated he needed one! The air is perfect for him,For me it isn't I need the MBP's power but he certainly doesn't,OP just end it and buy an air already

 

[puke]

I'd say go for the 15" if you got the cash for it. It's always nice to have a bit more power then you need so you CAN change your behaviour and have the room for change.

 

[andreibutilca]

Ok, so 13MBA. But I think I should get it next autumn, after this summer's Macbook refresh. Rumors say they might put a retina display in them. I want that.

----------

I'd say go for the 15" if you got the cash for it. It's always nice to have a bit more power then you need so you CAN change your behaviour and have the room for change.

Not really looking to spend all my savings on a Mac. The Air's price is fair and the SSD is really a must have. Also the other specs look at least decent.

 

[macbook pro i5]

Ok, so 13MBA. But I think I should get it next autumn, after this summer's Macbook refresh. Rumors say they might put a retina display in them. I want that.

----------



Not really looking to spend all my savings on a Mac. The Air's price is fair and the SSD is really a must have. Also the other specs look at least decent.

Yes you should wait for the update

 

[andreibutilca]

An optical bay can be excluded altogether if I have an alternative platform for reinstalling the OS, if the need arises. Not quite sure how Apple ships the OS, with their Macs. If it's on an USB or something, I can easily live w/o the optical bay.

----------

So?

 

[hallux]

The OS is reinstalled using Internet Recovery, or can be "burned" to a flash drive for local installation (faster).

 

[andreibutilca]

That answered my question, thank you very much.

 

[Ccrew]

A stone tablet and a couple of chisels would be better than a Vostro, so a Mac is a quantum leap!

I dunno about the Air recommend though. It's a nice computer for what it is, which is light and portable. It's not a power user's computer. It has it's place in the computing ecosystem for sure, but more for the person that needs the portability and is willing to sacrifice power and upgradeability. I look at computers as having a 3 year lifespan, at 3 you're going to be wanting out of a MBA quickly yet with a MBP you can certainly stretch it.

It comes down to your needing to really soul search what you need a computer for. If your usage is essentially using a laptop as a light up typewriter; web, documents, email, etc then the Air will do what you need. If two years from now you see yourself needing more than the 4gb of memory that the Air comes with (many need that *now*) or having to upgrade the drive, then the Air isn't for you. What you see is what you get with the Air.
As an example I'm running a 15" Pro with 16gb of memory and a SSD in order to run some of the applications I need. I'm solidly out of the Air's market space.

No one can tell what you need it for but you, and I suggest some soul searching to determine for sure what your full needs are before plunking down what I consider to be more than pocket change for a computer that you'll have to live with for a bit.

 

[andreibutilca]

Appreciated.

The thing is, I've never experienced a Mac before, so I'm still leaning on owners' impressions to guide me through.

I own a pretty decent desktop rig: i7 920, 3GB RAM, 8800GT @ 512MB, OCZ Vertex 2 SSD 60GB, running W7 Ultimate. The most hardcore thing I ever did with it was some random gaming (played Crysis 2 on very high @ 1920x1080 i.e. just to try it out; it ran fine), but as I stated before, I am NOT a gamer, so rolling out gaming from the "What I want my Macbook to do list" is perfectly fine.

As in the problems I had with the Vostro, I definitely want a clean & smooth machine, on which I don't need to worry about drivers and viruses and the registry getting corrupted and BSODs and weird errors popping up, lock ups and system faults. I really want it to be super stable and rock solid.

As for activities, I will mainly stick to the usual: browsing, YouTube (basically everything else browser-related), watching some 1080p movies (locally), music (and some casual DJ-ing), documents for University, Photoshop, printing and probably some lightweight video edit once or twice. Oh yeah, and probably some HTML, if I ever want to resume my learning sessions.

Good enough?

----------

I am kind of looking to get rid of the "advanced user maintenance" Windows requires.

 

[Itzamna]

I've been a windows user for almost 2 decades, and 1 year ago i decided that enough was enough and bought my first apple product. A Macbook Pro 17''...

Well, was the best thing i ever did, electronics related!

It's a wonderful machine, very very very stable, with high quality, gorgeous screen, high performance, great small details, and the OS X is f-r-e-a-k-i-n-g amazing.

I trully advise you to get one if you can afford it! It trumps windows PC's for miles!

 

[NewbieCanada]

If your editing will include re-encoding video and you're not particularly patient, you'll want a MBP. Other than that, the Air is fine for your needs.

However, since you're waiting until autumn, all bets are off as to what model will best suit your needs and budget.

As for the Windows -> Mac transition, you'll be fine and will be pleased with it.

The one concern I have is the DJing. I don't know anything about it, or what apps are involved. Do the tools you use exist on the Mac platform? If not, are the equivalents suitable for your needs?

 

[bozz2006]

If portability isn't a high priority for you, you may be better off saving some cash and getting a 13" MacBook Pro.