Done with MacBooks - Any good Windows replacement?

[gooseta]

Guys, I don't think you are thinking straight if you are considering a windows alternative, because of the price of the MBP...

Sure if the new MBP does not fit your usage, is really underpowered for the kind of work you are realistically going to do , lacks the ports you need, I understand if you are looking for an alternative.

But, it seems like many people here are simply emotional about the price hike, because they compare it spec by spec to windows laptops..

Think about all the other cost such as needing an anti virus scanner, time of dealing with viruses when it fails, re-installing windows once every 1-2 years, cleaning up all the ad and spyware that comes with almost everything you install...

I have both Windows and Mac machines, and have had for the last 6 years. I've never had any security/virus/malware/adware issues on either side. I've never re-installed any OS in my life. If you're needing an anti-virus scanner on top of os x/windows there's some serious issues there.

 

[hiddenmarkov]

Think about all the other cost such as needing an anti virus scanner, time of dealing with viruses when it fails, re-installing windows once every 1-2 years, cleaning up all the ad and spyware that comes with almost everything you install...

How much do you value your time and nerves? How much would you pay not to have to deal with that stuff every year?

On top of that...

You are aware your free apple upgrades every year are basically a reinstall....right? it even overwrites your small startup partition internally (the one you'd use for a clean new build that is started locally and finished with dl's from apple). especially on builds with massive changes.


Apples edge here is no registry. However when bored and on an older install open up the hidden library folder then application support files within. the remnants of many applications uninstalled long ago will be here. harmless usually beyond killing drive space. take away is mac os' clean uninstalls can be anything but.

Virus and such put off with prudent web surfing and such. I surf on windows as I do mac os and gui Linux.

 

[Smoothie]

My Surface Pro 4 with 8 gigs RAM and the i5 CPU is NOT a fast computer. It's all the time hanging and not accepting my typing or clicks for 5-10 seconds while it does... whatever it's doing. When it's running fast, it's fast, but even using it briefly I routinely get frustrated by slowness. By contrast, our 12" MacBook (original version) is legitimately not intended to be fast, but it FEELS *much* faster than the SP4 in routine usage.

I originally got it because I wasn't loving the 12" MacBook, and the low-resolution screens on the Airs weren't working for me, and I needed a proper computer, not an iPad.

The SP4 is soooooooo close to being a really excellent computer, but the weird lags in what SHOULD be a fast computer, along with the truly awful touchpad (which is supposedly a VAST improvement over prior Surface touchpads?) make it surprisingly unpleasant to use.

Something must be wrong with your SP4 because I have the same model and it's very fast and responsive. And I find the trackpad to be just fine. When I bought it at launch last year, the trackpad was poor, but Microsoft updated the firmware within a month and it completely fixed the trackpad.

 

[masands]

I have the Razer Blade 2016 with the GTX1060. Unless you are looking for a light gaming laptop, stay away from it.

For everyday use, the battery is atrocious. I get like 3-4h of light usage. I've also hit temperatures of 90C while gaming.

Waiting for the Gigabyte Aero 14 will be a better option.

 

[symphara]

What? Porsches are flat-6 engines... not that the analogy totally works here anyways

Only the 911s - the Boxster for example had a boxer-6 engine (4 cyl turbo now, since the 718), and the Macan/Panamera/Cayenne have V6 and V8 engines.

@OP I had a Thinkpad before, and I quite liked it. It was a solid machine. I'm in a similar bind of being quite underwhelmed with the specs/ports/price of the new Macbooks, and I'd be looking at the Lenovo range too.

I can't believe that Apple removed even the wire guides on the power brick, on top of removing the Magsafe. These little details were what made a Macbook worth having, not "force touch" and other largely useless gimmicks.

 

[kasakka]

I can't believe that Apple removed even the wire guides on the power brick, on top of removing the Magsafe. These little details were what made a Macbook worth having, not "force touch" and other largely useless gimmicks.

You mean the little tabs that fold up and where you can wrap the cable? That was my favorite feature of the Apple power brick, it's such a clever way to make it take little space without fear of the cable unraveling or tangling.

 

[symphara]

You mean the little tabs that fold up and where you can wrap the cable? That was my favorite feature of the Apple power brick, it's such a clever way to make it take little space without fear of the cable unraveling or tangling.

That's exactly what I was talking about. I've seen a hands-on with a new power brick and the reviewer showed this very clearly. The little pop-out plastic tabs/wire guides are gone now. I guess the little plastic thing on the power wire, used to clip the end of the wire for neat storing has been also courageously removed.

 

[adww12321]

The problem in the Windows camp is that, if you want the decent laptops, they're not cheap either.
If I go for a Windows laptop vs Mac, I know I'm going to sacrifice:
- the trackpad (all Windows users I've encountered always bring an external mouse. I have never used a mouse since I switch to Mac laptops)

Windows laptops have historically had garbage trackpads, the OEMs who made them (Synaptics, ALPS, etc) were shipping low-priced junk with terrible drivers.

MS finally brought the drivers in-house (the "Precision Touchpad driver") and any laptop that supports the driver has a very mac-like feel, including gestures.

Again, this is another example of PCs catching up to the Mac. It is happening, slowly but surely. Which is why I think many of us are disappointed with Apple's new direction for their pro machines, focusing on thinness and removing connectivity options, while at the same time raising the price. It doesn't seem logical in the face of improved and increasingly intense competition.

 

[pika2000]

Windows laptops have historically had garbage trackpads, the OEMs who made them (Synaptics, ALPS, etc) were shipping low-priced junk with terrible drivers.

MS finally brought the drivers in-house (the "Precision Touchpad driver") and any laptop that supports the driver has a very mac-like feel, including gestures.

Again, this is another example of PCs catching up to the Mac. It is happening, slowly but surely. Which is why I think many of us are disappointed with Apple's new direction for their pro machines, focusing on thinness and removing connectivity options, while at the same time raising the price. It doesn't seem logical in the face of improved and increasingly intense competition.

The number of OEMs using the precision touchpad driver is very small, and those that do do not use it on all their lineups. Even those that do still have problems (just ask Dell XPS 13 users). Heck, I have the Surface Pro 4, and its trackpad, although better than the crap other OEMs use, is not even close to Apple's. I stopped using mouse on Macs and even used the magic trackpad on my iMac. When I use the Surface Pro 4, I have to use a mouse to be productive.

 

[adww12321]

The number of OEMs using the precision touchpad driver is very small, and those that do do not use it on all their lineups. Even those that do still have problems (just ask Dell XPS 13 users). Heck, I have the Surface Pro 4, and its trackpad, although better than the crap other OEMs use, is not even close to Apple's. I stopped using mouse on Macs and even used the magic trackpad on my iMac. When I use the Surface Pro 4, I have to use a mouse to be productive.

I have in front of me an ASUS i5 pile of junk with a touchpad that makes me want to throw it across the room every time I use it, and a Dell XPS 15 with the Precision Touchpad. The two are light-years apart in functionality. The XPS feels more like my MBP than it does like any older Windows machine. And MS is continuing to improve the driver.

Which is the point -- the competition is catching up, and Apple is giving us answers to questions that no one asked, like the Touchbar and excessive thinness at the expense of functionality.