Ive been using mac for 5 years now and yet to find any major problems with it. In comparison with PCs, in my current Uni they have Dell desktop PCs in which, relatively slower and sometimes just happen to crash without any reasons (even the IT guy in the library cant handle it). Thats why I limit the usage of the library's PCs (I've lost my working in progress for a paper in a crash once, despite it was autosaved) and bring my mbp instead whenever I have to work in the Uni. So yes, I think its more stable than the PCs.
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Are macs more stable than PCs?
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Gee! A Mac vs Windows/PC discussion/debate! How novel! I've never, ever seen this topic discussed 4,637 times before! 
Most user experiences you read about involve problems, whether it be Mac or Windows/PC. That's because the vast majority of users aren't posting in a forum to report that they aren't having any problems. They usually only post when they need help, and it's a reasonable assumption that the source of well over half of the problems reported is the fleshy part between the keyboard and chair.
These debates are pointless, as rarely does anyone walk away with their own opinion changed. Seriously, boys and girls, just buy and use whatever hardware/software works for you and forget what the rest of the world chooses!
That'll be 2 cents, please!
Most user experiences you read about involve problems, whether it be Mac or Windows/PC. That's because the vast majority of users aren't posting in a forum to report that they aren't having any problems. They usually only post when they need help, and it's a reasonable assumption that the source of well over half of the problems reported is the fleshy part between the keyboard and chair.
These debates are pointless, as rarely does anyone walk away with their own opinion changed. Seriously, boys and girls, just buy and use whatever hardware/software works for you and forget what the rest of the world chooses!
That'll be 2 cents, please!
problems happen on all computers. no one has protection like apple care. should you encounter a problem that is a manufacturers defect apple will take care of you. search for those stories instead.
Hardware-wise: Anything is prone to failure, on PCs and Macs, and it's really luck of the draw. Temperature changes (cold to hot, hot to cold), excessive heat, power surges and moving parts are the main culprits but sometimes they can just be defective as well.
Software-wise: Both OSes are robust and stable. I run both Windows 7 and OSX and they're both excellent and run very well (I prefer Windows 7 in some aspects, OSX in others). Only difference are the people who use it. I've observed that more Windows users than Mac users have the "click anything, download anything" syndrome and their machines tend to be bogged down by all the junk they've installed.
My personal opinion on this based on the fact that support both PCs, servers and Macs is this:
XP given its age and vulnerabilities is less stable the in win7.
Win7 is very stable and I have little problem with it.
OSX 10.6 and 10.7 are both stable platforms as well, though there are a number of threads here about issues with 10.7. I have not really incurred any of those issues.
The bottom line, both PCs and Macs offer a stable platform to operate on.
XP given its age and vulnerabilities is less stable the in win7.
Win7 is very stable and I have little problem with it.
OSX 10.6 and 10.7 are both stable platforms as well, though there are a number of threads here about issues with 10.7. I have not really incurred any of those issues.
The bottom line, both PCs and Macs offer a stable platform to operate on.
I do love a good generalisation thread.
In my own generalised experience, I'd say my Macs have been far more stable, efficient and less prone to problems than certainly any PC I've had.
That said, my missus' MacBook (2011) has had it's fair share of problems.
In my own generalised experience, I'd say my Macs have been far more stable, efficient and less prone to problems than certainly any PC I've had.
That said, my missus' MacBook (2011) has had it's fair share of problems.
I wouldn't say macs are more stable than PCs running windows. Macs are prettier to look at but that won't get your work done any faster. Now the issue I have currently with my macbook using lion is sometimes this thing won't go to sleep! On the PC running windows it'll sleep then hibernate without an issue! Why is something like this happening on osx?
Stability wise I've found both osx and windows 7 to be amazingly stable. You can pretty much throw anything at windows and it will not crash! The only times I've had windows blue screen or freeze were due to bad ram in one machine and an underpowered power supply in another.
Stability wise I've found both osx and windows 7 to be amazingly stable. You can pretty much throw anything at windows and it will not crash! The only times I've had windows blue screen or freeze were due to bad ram in one machine and an underpowered power supply in another.
Windows 7 is a lot better than previous versions... but I've still run into software issues that take HOURS to resolve because of a problem with the Windows registry. Other than that STILL being a problem after all these years, they're similar, but I prefer OS X.
Honestly, I find that it depends on what I am doing. I use OS X Lion and Windows 7 on a daily basis.
Sometimes (rarely) my Windows 7 machine's display drivers freeze up and recover about 5 seconds later.
With my Macbook though, I've been having kernel panics left and right anytime I try to boot in 32 bit mode.
Sometimes (rarely) my Windows 7 machine's display drivers freeze up and recover about 5 seconds later.
With my Macbook though, I've been having kernel panics left and right anytime I try to boot in 32 bit mode.
When you come to the hospital don't be surprised to see sick people. That's what you see on forums. To gauge any meaningful information is silly because out of the millions that buy these devices the majority do not log onto forums to say, "Everything is fine".
Some people stay and becomes nurses or doctors.
Apple controls both the hardware and software, therefore they control the drivers. The majority of instability issues in windows are caused by wonky hardware drivers, especially the graphics card. Windows carries a lot of legacy code due to their insistence on supporting old software and hardware. OSX is built on a variant of unix and is inherently better designed, but it's not perfect. Nothing made by humans is.
I think the real question ITT is: "Is Unix with the Mac shell over it more stable than Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Linux, Ubuntu?"
Well, as mentioned, it depends what kind of hardware you're running it on. Possibly a Toaster Oven if you're running Unix (seriously, it runs on anything.)
I agree that Apple historically is very good at building their hardware and software as a package deal, and that's what the platform is all about. To me, it's always seemed better integrated than PCs. Although PCs are by and large designed to run Windows, there are so many hardware variations out there that Windows doesn't always work well with the hardware.
Case in point: The HDMI port and volume buttons on my GF's HP laptop suddenly stopped working after a software update 3 months ago. We've tried reinstalling drivers, running the troubleshooting program, and even a system restore. No dice. The Samsung TV that she used to use as a monitor no longer recognizes her computer when the HDMI cable is plugged in, but the pin connector works fine. We've had two friends try to solve the problem, an IT technician and an IBM security analyst. Both were unsuccessful. The Graphics Card tests fine, it seems to be a driver issue.
You're not likely to see problems like this on a Mac, because the software is designed specifically for the hardware they sell.
As far as freezes and crashes go, I can remember having to force restart my Macbook Pro maybe two or 3 times in the past 2 years, usually due to the Steam client acting up because it needs a patch, or a web browser spazzing out because I have 100 tabs open.
YMMV, and the hardware you're running it on is going to make a big difference, but I find Mac OS far more stable than Win 7 in general use.
Well, as mentioned, it depends what kind of hardware you're running it on. Possibly a Toaster Oven if you're running Unix (seriously, it runs on anything.)
I agree that Apple historically is very good at building their hardware and software as a package deal, and that's what the platform is all about. To me, it's always seemed better integrated than PCs. Although PCs are by and large designed to run Windows, there are so many hardware variations out there that Windows doesn't always work well with the hardware.
Case in point: The HDMI port and volume buttons on my GF's HP laptop suddenly stopped working after a software update 3 months ago. We've tried reinstalling drivers, running the troubleshooting program, and even a system restore. No dice. The Samsung TV that she used to use as a monitor no longer recognizes her computer when the HDMI cable is plugged in, but the pin connector works fine. We've had two friends try to solve the problem, an IT technician and an IBM security analyst. Both were unsuccessful. The Graphics Card tests fine, it seems to be a driver issue.
You're not likely to see problems like this on a Mac, because the software is designed specifically for the hardware they sell.
As far as freezes and crashes go, I can remember having to force restart my Macbook Pro maybe two or 3 times in the past 2 years, usually due to the Steam client acting up because it needs a patch, or a web browser spazzing out because I have 100 tabs open.
YMMV, and the hardware you're running it on is going to make a big difference, but I find Mac OS far more stable than Win 7 in general use.
In my opinion its not comparing two thing the same
Windows are more known for virus' which give the less stable feel, Macs are not known for any if many virus so that gives a different amount of issues which gives it a more stable feel
Windows are more known for virus' which give the less stable feel, Macs are not known for any if many virus so that gives a different amount of issues which gives it a more stable feel
I wonder what the scintific term for that syndrom is. It definitely deserves a Wikipedia article.
More people should install the software Brain 2.0 on OSI Layer 8.
For me it really depends i used to have a macbook where I only reinstalled the os twice in the last 4years (still have the machine but only for emergency) and for my current mbp i am on install number 2 in the last 8 months, sometimes ones gets lucky sometimes doesn't, i can't comment on windows experience as i am happy to admit to live in a windows free environment.
Last time I have BSOD on my PC was when I heavily overclock that isn't stable.
And last time I have Kernel Panic on my MBP was yesterday night when I tried to shut it down....
Macs are more stable? From my Lion experience, NO WAY....
But Snow leopard is neck to neck with my Win 7 so far....
And last time I have Kernel Panic on my MBP was yesterday night when I tried to shut it down....
Macs are more stable? From my Lion experience, NO WAY....
But Snow leopard is neck to neck with my Win 7 so far....
I wonder what the scintific term for that syndrom is. It definitely deserves a Wikipedia article.
More people should install the software Brain 2.0 on OSI Layer 8.
I think the scientific term for it is "I only spent 300 and change on this cheap-ass Acer notebook with ****** specs so I don't care what happens to it"-itis. I guess when one forks out thousands of dollars on a computer, one tends to be more careful with it.
Of course there are always exceptions to that rule. I've seen some macs that run poorly for the same reasons mentioned previously.... You know, the ones that have about a million icons on their menu bar.
And hardware issues exist on macs too. Just scout the Apple Support Communities and you'll find plenty of threads of dead logic boards, dead drives, non-working dvd drives, kps and so on.
In the end, almost 90% of computer problems, Windows and Mac, are user error. Also, the more knowledgeable you are about computers, the more money you're willing to invest in one and take care of that investment as well. And the more money you can afford to spend, the more likely you end up buying a mac. So mac users -> spend more money -> want to protect their investment -> learning to use a computer properly. Most who buy PCs tend to buy junk and treat it as such. After learning how to open a browser and check their email, they don't wanna bother learning anything else.
Which explains why the notion of "Macs have less problems than PCs". I think it's more a question of economics than anything else.
I pretty much leave the desktop (a PC) running every day, all day (owned it for 5 years, previous one for 10 years) and never had it crash on me. I don't even have an anti-virus on it because I know what I download. And even when I install a legitimate program, I still go through the installer step-by-step to ensure it doesn't come "bundled" with some "helpful" crapware and such. Also reduce start-up programs to a minimum. (ironically, iTunes is evil about this, everytime you upgrade it it insists on re-adding startup items I've removed)
No degradation of performance since day one and never had a single crash either. Runs just as good as it did when I first bought it. Boots in less than 30 seconds, shuts down in 5 and everything runs fast.
Same can be said for my MBP although it's more a secondary computer for me so I don't nearly use it as much as the desktop.
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Last time I have BSOD on my PC was when I heavily overclock that isn't stable.
And last time I have Kernel Panic on my MBP was yesterday night when I tried to shut it down....
Macs are more stable? From my Lion experience, NO WAY....
But Snow leopard is neck to neck with my Win 7 so far....
Out of curiosity, are you running Lion on an original MBP or a UMBP? Newer Mac OS versions seem to be optimized for new systems, the same way Windows is. If you're running an older Windows machine, for example, you're better off running XP than trying to load up Windows 7.
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Running both at home and office, I can say my Mac's have had more issues then my PC's, namely stuff like Safari/Chrome/FF crashing out of nowhere like crazy or getting frozen beach ball etc, I've reinstalled os/x on one MBP pry like 5 times this past year. I've honestly never really had a problem with pc's/windows in like 10+ years, I had an HP laptop crap out on me after 4 years of very hard use and no trouble but the drive was still fine and I still have it as a spare external drive lol. When it comes to home/business use, I love Windows and custom PC setups, especially when building a badass home theater/media machine. But for laptops, I love my MBPs even with the issues they've had, I love the solid feel of the aluminum build, most of the "aluminum" windows laptops are more like skinned and still have plastic bottoms or sides.
Win 7 has been awesome and smooth, and I too greatly preferred os/x vs Lion and all it's crashes and glitches. I think like someone else mentioned above, a lot of PC users just don't care or really take care of the machine etc, some for example only use free avs programs and still rarely use them, let alone they don't hold a candle to say Kaspersky which I've run for years on windows machine, they never defrag once in awhile although Win 7 seems to be fine w/o doing so, among other common sense maintenance task that should be done.
Whereas Apple owners for the most part I think are more careful in general and meticulous with their machines.
Win 7 has been awesome and smooth, and I too greatly preferred os/x vs Lion and all it's crashes and glitches. I think like someone else mentioned above, a lot of PC users just don't care or really take care of the machine etc, some for example only use free avs programs and still rarely use them, let alone they don't hold a candle to say Kaspersky which I've run for years on windows machine, they never defrag once in awhile although Win 7 seems to be fine w/o doing so, among other common sense maintenance task that should be done.
Whereas Apple owners for the most part I think are more careful in general and meticulous with their machines.
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I wonder what the scintific term for that syndrom is. It definitely deserves a Wikipedia article.
More people should install the software Brain 2.0 on OSI Layer 8.
I've noticed acute CADA (click anything, download anything) in a lot of Windows users, too. Which is funny, because I remember hearing Apple being compared to Fischer-Price, and Windows machines as "Real Computers."
It does make you wonder if there's a reason people who prefer PCs seem to have an instant click reaction to "100 VIRUSES FOUND ON YOUR MACHINE, CLICK HERE TO REMOVE THEM NOW!!" messages.
...Sorry. Knee-jerk reaction after years of hearing about how much my OS/hardware company sucks.
I have yet to have any problems with my Macs but have had a lot of them on my PCs. But that doesn't mean that Macs are more stable than PCs. It just means I've gotten lucky.
I don't believe that there is a big difference. You can get a Mac with problems just like you can get a PC with problems.
I don't believe that there is a big difference. You can get a Mac with problems just like you can get a PC with problems.
DO NOT! shut it down while it's booting up!
I learned it the hard way 3 times
the HFS+ system gets corrupt, and cannot be repaired!
but in windows it is totally fine shutting it down while it's booting up
HFS+ actually has a lot of issues. I think Apple tried to develop a replacement in the past.
Safari on Windows is less stable than Safari on the Mac.
Windows 2K and XP (the only ones I use) have been solid, as have been every OS 10.x.2 or later. Problem is I've had to deal with more new Apple OSes than Microsoft OSes because Apple basically forces you to go to the latest.
My experience with the hardware has been similar, and my experiences with Apple support and Dell support have been considerably different, however I'd call neither superior to the other. (I'd fix my Dells myself, and they would send me the parts via express, which Apple doesn't do, so at least for me Dell was more convenient and faster.)
Windows 2K and XP (the only ones I use) have been solid, as have been every OS 10.x.2 or later. Problem is I've had to deal with more new Apple OSes than Microsoft OSes because Apple basically forces you to go to the latest.
My experience with the hardware has been similar, and my experiences with Apple support and Dell support have been considerably different, however I'd call neither superior to the other. (I'd fix my Dells myself, and they would send me the parts via express, which Apple doesn't do, so at least for me Dell was more convenient and faster.)
In my personal experience ( too many years with DOS / Windows - ( I started off with MSDOS 1.1 and went up to Win NT4 / Win2K / Win XP), about 7-8 years with Macs.......
Macs do seems to be much much more stable than MS Windows machines.
FWIW: I have a working background in Windows ( MCSE Win NT4 / Win2K )
In my 7+ years I have owned several Macs .... Powerbook G4 / Mac Pro G5 / G5 iMac / Intel iMac / Macbook / Macbook Pro.
Only one of them, the 24" Intel iMac needed to go in for repair of its own doing.
One Macbook had to go in due to operator induced damage. ( Liquid Spill )
Any forum you go to whether it's this one or F150online.com you will always read about the bad things happening. Thats what forums are for, for people to complain and then find solutions to their problems.
I think Macs are more stable but there is such thing as a bad apple. My first MacBook Pro was an epic fail! I exchanged it for a new one after 3 weeks because I had several issues. With that said the support is what makes me keep coming back to Apple. The support you will get with Apple products is far superior from PC support.