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Apple anything

L

Lord Egregious

macrumors member
Original poster
I've always admire Apple products and OS X but where I live no one and I mean no one has anything that Apple except iPods. So its hard for me to jump head first into a new computer with an unknown operating system. Also the stark price difference has kept me back.

My main problem now is that I have two computers a HP dv5t 15" with a 9600GT, 2.53Ghz. I also have a 9" acer aspire one. I'll be at home in 2 months and then there for another 4 while I finish junior college and then I'll be headed to a new college. I need to have a laptop because I'm always traveling around. I'm not using my laptop in tight space where a small screen is really necessary, just travel around.

Now my first thought was a Macbook Pro 15" because of my love for TF2 which is gonna require the 9600GT and also because I use my laptop a lot of a desk so the extra inches can be helpful. Also I'm scared to dip below a 2.4 ghz processor since I'm using a 2.53 right now. If I do this then I have to sell both of my current laptops for sure.

I've considered the new mac mini. It is the cheapest option to get a machine with mac osx and I already have a 20" monitor. But then I have a laptop that is more powerful than my desktop.

Basically I'm confused about how to get into macs without leaving me underpowered or having too many computers. I check the used market a lot but it seems like you can't get a good enough deal to make it worthwhile.
 
Just go for it and then you will be the Mac pioneer in your area, where is that? Maybe some months after using your Mac you can sell it there and get an updated new model when they come out.
 
Your laptop is more powerful than the MacBook Pro. You'd be spending an awful lot of money.

A few years ago I'd have said definitely go for it. But Windows is so good now and Mac OS X is on what looks like a downward spiral. I'm just not confident it would be worth it.

Plus, can you really cope with a reboot to play your games?
 
Yeah, it's not worth spending $2000 in this economy for prestige. Especially when you're not even getting a worthy upgrade. If you really want to be "hip", wait til Microsoft releases Windows 7 and upgrade on day 1. You'll be the only person in your area with Windows 7 too 😉
 
Its not to be trendy or anything its just its hard to jump in when the only time i get with them in person is at a Best Buy. I just read a review for the new Mac Mini that somehow made the first page on digg and they seemed impressed. I think you guys are right about the plunge it would take in this economy to get a macbook pro. I may just sell my aspire one and get the mini.
 
install OSx86 on your HP? it seems pretty compatible (at least the gfx, which usually is a big problem)

if you don't know what i'm talking about, then google! but don't ask around here.
 
neiltc13 said:
Your laptop is more powerful than the MacBook Pro. You'd be spending an awful lot of money.

A few years ago I'd have said definitely go for it. But Windows is so good now and Mac OS X is on what looks like a downward spiral. I'm just not confident it would be worth it.

Plus, can you really cope with a reboot to play your games?
Click to expand...

You seem to have little to no confidence in Apple as of late... why are you hanging around the forums if you don't like the product?
Personally, my hardware and mac OS 10.5 have been working quite well; I see no legitimate reason to believe Apple is on a downward spiral.

As for the actual thread discussion... It seems like you have a fairly decent set up right now 😎. The way I see it your PCs will serve you well for years to come; Windows 7 looks decent and you're hardware doesn't sound too shabby. If you really want a mac stick it out and wait until Snow Leopard comes out later this year before you trade in your PCs. Also, that may be around the time of the "Back to School" promotion and you will be able to score a free ipod out of the deal... providing Apple runs the promotion this year.
 
kindablue09 said:
You seem to have little to no confidence in Apple as of late... why are you hanging around the forums if you don't like the product?
Personally, my hardware and mac OS 10.5 have been working quite well; I see no legitimate reason to believe Apple is on a downward spiral.
Click to expand...

Well, in my opinion the new MacBooks, iMacs, Cinema Displays and suchlike look hideous. They're not cut from the same cloth as the beautiful original MacBook and white iMac that convinced me to switch.

Leopard is more stable now than it was at launch (when it was absolutely horrible for program crashes and lock ups) but it's still way behind the stability Tiger had. Apple has had a good amount of time, but I still have issues with Leopard. Maybe Snow Leopard will help Apple to recover.
 
neiltc13 said:
Well, in my opinion the new MacBooks, iMacs, Cinema Displays and suchlike look hideous. They're not cut from the same cloth as the beautiful original MacBook and white iMac that convinced me to switch.
Click to expand...

I totally agree with you on that one - I love my White MacBook!

And to the OP, you got a great laptop already and a nice small netbook.
Get the Mini if you need MacOS.
 
Yeah after seeing all these great thoughts I've decided to hold off on a Apple laptop and if I do anything it will be a Mini. Thanks.
 
Or try the best of both worlds and get a netbook that you can hackintosh. If you don't like it, convert it back to xp.

You can also try a last gen 12" g4 ibook/powerbook if you want to get a taste of the os with a portable form factor. They're not a powerhouses, but they're performance is on par or a tad better than the intel atom processor, and they're just fine for basic tasks.

I've done both, hackintosh wind and lenovo idea pad, and gone back to the 12" powerbook as a secondary/tertiary machine. The hackbook airs were usable, but the powerbook is luxurious by comparison.
 
neiltc13 said:
Well, in my opinion the new MacBooks, iMacs, Cinema Displays and suchlike look hideous. They're not cut from the same cloth as the beautiful original MacBook and white iMac that convinced me to switch.

Leopard is more stable now than it was at launch (when it was absolutely horrible for program crashes and lock ups) but it's still way behind the stability Tiger had. Apple has had a good amount of time, but I still have issues with Leopard. Maybe Snow Leopard will help Apple to recover.
Click to expand...


I hate the white look of yesteryear. The Macbooks turned yellow and the imac wasnt sleek looking I think the alum is so much better.
 
gan6660 said:
I hate the white look of yesteryear. The Macbooks turned yellow and the imac wasnt sleek looking I think the alum is so much better.
Click to expand...
Having owned the White MacBook, the 1st Gen MBP and now the Unibody MacBook Pro and Aluminum iMac.

I have to say, the new Aluminum + Glass phase Apple is in, is absolutely stunning.

The old plastic looks dated, and the 1st gen MBP reeks of old PPC design.

Trust me, just give it sometime. People will end up realizing it looks good.
 
I've never thought that Leopard was unstable. I mean my eMac has been on since Feb 23rd without issue on 10.5.4

My Mini hasn't been restarted after initial setup in a week. Now I know that's not that long, but I can't let my Vista or Xp box do that. Memory holes will eventually cause it to die.

I don't have a lot of experience with Tiger, but to me, Apple is still bounds ahead of M$ in that arena.

As to the OP. After I got my Mini, I discovered that there are a lot of Netbooks that can run OS X. I just put OSx86 on my Lenovo S10 and so far so good. Now I'm looking in to how to put My legit copy on it. Just a thought. You can put it on an Aspire One.
 
txnoob said:
I've never thought that Leopard was unstable. I mean my eMac has been on since Feb 23rd without issue on 10.5.4

My Mini hasn't been restarted after initial setup in a week. Now I know that's not that long, but I can't let my Vista or Xp box do that. Memory holes will eventually cause it to die.

I don't have a lot of experience with Tiger, but to me, Apple is still bounds ahead of M$ in that arena.

As to the OP. After I got my Mini, I discovered that there are a lot of Netbooks that can run OS X. I just put OSx86 on my Lenovo S10 and so far so good. Now I'm looking in to how to put My legit copy on it. Just a thought. You can put it on an Aspire One.
Click to expand...

There's a way to do that on the s10lenovo forums site. It involves hooking up an external dvd drive to your ideapad and using an efi bootloader as well. What color is yours?
 
clyde2801 said:
There's a way to do that on the s10lenovo forums site. It involves hooking up an external dvd drive to your ideapad and using an efi bootloader as well. What color is yours?
Click to expand...

Mine is black. I used the WindOSx86.iso and put it on a 4GB flash drive. GREAT video on you tube walked through the whole process. The only thing that doesn't work is Ethernet.
 
airjuggernaut said:
Having owned the White MacBook, the 1st Gen MBP and now the Unibody MacBook Pro and Aluminum iMac.

I have to say, the new Aluminum + Glass phase Apple is in, is absolutely stunning.

The old plastic looks dated, and the 1st gen MBP reeks of old PPC design.

Trust me, just give it sometime. People will end up realizing it looks good.
Click to expand...

The aluminium and glass is great, but there is no reason whatsoever for there to be black plastic anywhere on the machines. That could easily be silver on the keyboard, silver around the displays and silver on the hinge.

I cannot believe someone can possibly say that the appearance (not the build quality or materials) of the machines is better. They moved from considered, harmonising shades to ugly, outlandish contrast.
 
neiltc13 said:
The aluminium and glass is great, but there is no reason whatsoever for there to be black plastic anywhere on the machines. That could easily be silver on the keyboard, silver around the displays and silver on the hinge.

I cannot believe someone can possibly say that the appearance (not the build quality or materials) of the machines is better. They moved from considered, harmonising shades to ugly, outlandish contrast.
Click to expand...


I hated the look of the silver keyboard on the original mbp and black and silver go great together. How many computer companies do you know that have the keyboard the same color as the computer?
 
neiltc13 said:
The aluminium and glass is great, but there is no reason whatsoever for there to be black plastic anywhere on the machines. That could easily be silver on the keyboard, silver around the displays and silver on the hinge.

I cannot believe someone can possibly say that the appearance (not the build quality or materials) of the machines is better. They moved from considered, harmonising shades to ugly, outlandish contrast.
Click to expand...
Hard to fathom different tastes, eh?

I think they look incredibly nicer. The contrast just makes the computer pop, it looks great.
 
I thought the white polycarbonate made it look toy-like. The knew setup makes it look like a sophisticated serious business machine.
 
txnoob said:
Mine is black. I used the WindOSx86.iso and put it on a 4GB flash drive. GREAT video on you tube walked through the whole process. The only thing that doesn't work is Ethernet.
Click to expand...

Ditto. Check the s10 lenovo forum for the way to install a legitimate version of 10.5 on yours. Supposedly, if you use the efi bootloader method, you need not fear numbered updates like you do with the other methods. Last I checked, nobody has wired ethernet working on their machines-yet.
 
clyde2801 said:
Ditto. Check the s10 lenovo forum for the way to install a legitimate version of 10.5 on yours. Supposedly, if you use the efi bootloader method, you need not fear numbered updates like you do with the other methods. Last I checked, nobody has wired ethernet working on their machines-yet.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it took 3 days to get it right for me. A few careless mistakes where the video went a little fast. I'm just deciding if I'm going to keep it on here before I put my OS X on it. Another thing too is if you download any of the Airport updates after the 10.5.6 update, you'll have to run the wifi fix again. I figured that out last night. I also found that moving the dock to the right side of the screen gives me considerably more working space, and only issues with a few site on having to pan left/right.
 
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