Best MacBook Pro alternative?

[Fishrrman]

"The Z has everything you could want in a MacbookPro refresh.
Core i5 or i7
Discrete switchable graphics (Nvidia 330M)
RAID 0 dual, triple, or quad SSDs
high res screen (1080P available)
AND
3lbs"

But it doesn't have the critical factor: the Mac OS.

When SONY offers something like that with OS X pre-installed, I'll buy it!

Not interested in Windows, no way, no how.

Having said that, at some point in the future, I _do_ expect to see SONYs, HPs, Dells, etc., complete with the Mac OS. It's not a matter of "if", but "when".

Looks like Apple is increasingly turning to "consumer entertainment products" at the expense of its "computer" products. The simple reason is that such devices offer MUCH more profit per unit, and quite possibly less developmental effort, to boot.

At some point, Apple may decide that the temptation for the billions that could be earned by offering "OS X for PC's" is too great to resist any more, and release a "generic" version of the OS. I'll go further and speculate that they _already have_ such a version in development, under wraps.

The Apple fan boys will ridicule me for saying that. But in 2005, anyone who dared suggest that Apple had a version of OS X that would run on Intel chips was laughed out of the room. And one year later, what did they come out with?

We probably won't see a generic version of OS X until after Steve Jobs no longer has influence at Apple.

And it's also getting downright easy to install OS X onto some Intel-based computers now, in any case. How many have checked out the gizmodo guide on installing Snow Leopard onto a Dell Mini 10v using a USB flashdrive? A few clicks, and it's done.

OS X installing and running seamlessly on generic Intel computers is closer than you think.

My prediction is that within five years it will be trivial and commonplace.

 

[bluetick]

Unfortunately, there are no meaningful alternatives. Yeah, one has Vaio Z and other Envys out here with better specs and value, but with one major flaw: they are not Macs. That means you're going to stick with Windows 7 and whole PC notebook philosophy, which is just completely other thing. Even if you hackintosh, it'll still be just a hackintosh, not the real thing.

 

[kasakka]

And it's also getting downright easy to install OS X onto some Intel-based computers now, in any case. How many have checked out the gizmodo guide on installing Snow Leopard onto a Dell Mini 10v using a USB flashdrive? A few clicks, and it's done.

OS X installing and running seamlessly on generic Intel computers is closer than you think.

My prediction is that within five years it will be trivial and commonplace.

The whole Hackintosh thing is hugely dependent on the hardware. For the life of me I could not get anything but kernel panics with my custom installer when trying to install 10.6 on my Abit IP35 and GTX260 PC. Another PC with Abit IP35-E and 8800GT installed without problems and is running fine, the only thing that doesn't work is sleep. With laptops, it's going to be difficult to run OSX if you want everything to work. They often have brand-specific drivers and features that simply won't work in OSX.

When comparing the Macbook Pros and PC laptops, what people often forget are the little things, like the MagSafe power adapter, multitouch trackpad, mini-Displayport with its ability to run displays up to 2560x1600 (HDMI on most laptops will only do 1920x1200), the thickness and weight of the whole laptop.

The current Macbook Pros would do everything the OP wants just fine, even 3 years from now. Unless there are heavy improvements in GPGPU usage in programs, the next MBPs will be only a bit faster and most likely this will be only truly noticeable when rendering video.

 

[neteng101]

For a user looking to switch from Windows to Mac, like myself, there current hardware is not enough to get me to pass over alternatives like the Vaio Z, Thinkpad, or Envy with more modern hardware.

Glad I switched when the opportunity presented itself - got a late '08 uMBP new at a steal when the June '09s were released. Now I'm spoiled and I don't think there's any going back... and I've had numerous ThinkPads in the past (Lenovo's butchered them up a bit, the best designed ones are still from the IBM days, T4x were great), Sony's look/feel cheap and the Envy doesn't have edge to edge glass on the 15" models and has that ugly bezel instead. And no backlit keyboard on the Envy too, plus all those ugly vents on the case.

There is no true alternative, and nothing else that will seamlessly run OSX and Windows at once either.

 

[gwsat]

Thought of getting a refurbished MBP from Apple and then treating yourself to a copy of Parallels? You can get AppleCare so the thing will be guaranteed to last you.

Other than that....the only manufacturer of PCs that I would even think of buying from is Dell. They have pretty good reliability on their Latitude line, but most of their machines are ugly as hell compared to a Mac =/.

I agree that using a virtualization program with a Macbook Pro is a good idea. I use Fusion instead of Parallels but they both allow you to run Windows apps and OS X apps simultaneously. I would add, however, that to get the most out of either Fusion or Parallels running Windows, you need a lot of RAM. Although Fusion and Windows worked on my MBP when it had only 2Gb of RAM, Windows apps ran slowly and there was considerable instability. I recently upgraded to 6Gb of RAM, though. Ever since, I have been running Fusion in Unity mode, which allows me to keep several Windows apps open on the OS X desktop and to switch between any one of them and any open OS X app instantly. It's pretty sweet.

 

[MsMerryMac]

I am a very new convert to the MBP and for me, there is no alternative. I have had 9 laptops in as many years, from a very crappy Compaq (my first laptop) to Sony... Last month I decided needed something more portable than my gaming Asus and listened to lots of advice to go with a Sony C series because so many people said it was a great alternative to a MacBook. I had that thing for 2 days before I returned it for a MacBook Pro. The Sony was built SO poorly compared to the Mac since I am not a hardcore graphic artist or gamer, the C2D processor wasn't a stopping point for me.

I thought of holding out for the refresh, but I know I won't ever use that much power so opted to buy now.

in short, there is no alternative!

 

[Tex-Twil]

Hi,
which of the VAIO 15" would you advice for gameing (but not hardcore gaming) ? I see only few 15" on the Sony site.

thx,
Tex

 

[zipa]

But it doesn't have the critical factor: the Mac OS.

OP wasn't interested in running OS X, so that's not an issue.

 

[Tex-Twil]

What do you think about this configured VAIO E:

i5-520M de 2,40 GHz avec 3 MB L2/L3 Cache
6 Go 1066MHz DDR3-SDRAM
ATI MobilityRadeon HD5650 1Go
500 Go Serial ATA (5400 t/min)
(1920 x 1080 pixels) (16:9) 39,4 cm (15,5")
979 €

It seems to be very cheap !? but still quite powerfull !

 

[neteng101]

OP wasn't interested in running OS X, so that's not an issue.

Actually OP has some Windows requirements, but indicated editing videos on a 24" iMac... which incidentally doesn't have a Core i processor either. One wonders what was being used to edit the videos - there are no Windows equals for iMovie or Final Cut, so OP would have to switch to different software to edit videos.

The processor is only really worse when it comes to rendering the final product, editing itself shouldn't be much of an issue, but a fast hard drive or external Firewire one will matter. So upgrading the internal drive to a 7200 rpm drive and/or having an external FW800 drive (possibly with RAID) will make video editing much better.

 

[laela]

OP wasn't interested in running OS X, so that's not an issue.

Yep, and Mac OS X is becoming less and less of a critical factor when it lacks basic things like TRIM support, the boot time is getting longer instead of shorter, and battery life is getting less instead of more.

With Windows 7, there's far less to worry about than ever.

Everybody else should be happy with their iPads.

 

[MadMitch89]

There is no alternative.
HP envy looks and feels cheap.
Toshiba laptops are horribly ugly.
Sony Z's assembly quality is appalling.

Remember, MacBook Pro and MacBook/MacBook Air are the only laptops which allow you to open them with one hand.

Comments like this make it difficult to be an Apple fan because of the other embarrassing fans in the base. The HP Envy is solid and the heat issues seem to have been resolved with the last update, especially compared to the my 15 inch MBP which runs as hot as an oven under load. Can't comment on Toshiba's. The previous Sony Vaio Z, which I have had and have used for over 3 years is one of the best put together laptops in the industry, with some of the best materials. The new, by all reports, exemplifies this to an even greater extent.

It is all well and good to a be a proud Apple fan, as I am, but making up rubbish about PC just because it is PC is ridiculous.