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just wanted to know why you guys bought mac

laurihoefs said:
To me the question was not 'why use a mac', but rather 'why not'.

A couple of years ago I was trying to make a decision between an HP EliteBook and a Lenovo W530. My only real requirement was a high-res 15" IPS screen, and both HP and Lenovo had a suitable config available at around 2200€. At some point I decided to check what Apple had to offer, and noticed that the (then brand new) mid-2012 rMBP was available with an almost identical config as the HP and Lenovo, but came in a much slimmer and lighter package, with much better battery life, and a higher screen resolution. And even better: at the same price.

Most of the software I needed was already available for OS X, so I figured, why the heck not.

Needless to say, I've been quite pleased with the choice.
Click to expand...


HP's Ultrabook Folios are very nice from a 'fit and finish' perspective. A few of us at my office have just taken delivery of some. It's pretty nice to not have to lug brick around from my desk to conference rooms, etc a few time a day.

Ultimately, it's a matter of the windows user experience versus OS X that makes people choose Mac over Windows. I'd be remiss to not say that the windows experience has improved dramatically over the past 10 years, though I just won't give up my OS X experience in 10% of my day for the windows experience I use for the other 90%
 
chitranjan said:
I was searching over the internet why people use mac so thought I should ask those who have purchased it.
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I need a Unix machine for my work. Ok, that's not entirely true, but most modern web development toolsets are built with the assumption they're running on some form of Unix.

I ran Linux on Dell & HP laptops for a couple years and it was a nightmare. Minor OS updates would break my wifi and once left me completely unable to start a GUI. And the usual response to that is that it's really the fault of the device makers who won't release specs and I totally sympathize with Linux devs who have done amazing work with so little information. But it doesn't change the fact that I can't trust Linux for my daily work.

I use Elementary OS on my dedicated emulation box, by the way. It's a lovely distro I wouldn't mind using on a daily basis if I felt I could trust Linux again.

OSX, being based on BSD, gives me a solid Unix operating system that I can trust. Then, it puts a modern GUI on top of it. I don't mind paying a premium for good tools.
 
I got my first Mac (a white MacBook) in 2007 I believe. I was incredibly fed up with all my Windows laptops breaking and crashing all the time. Plus, I thought OS X felt better from the brief moments at the store. Since then, with the introduction of the iPad and iPhone and their integration with my Mac, I have been given no reason at all to look elsewhere. There might be some bugs here and there, but it really does just work.
 
This is my first Mac computer and I'm one that isn't very technical. I've had my Toshiba for over 7years but as of lately, it's been very slow and giving me fatal errors, always blanks out with a driver failure and battery (as to be expected) is like a dead alternator now. And now windows 7 isn't supported anymore (i don't think).

I told myself I was going to get a mac next to try it out.

The battery lasts much longer
Yosemite is my first OS X and the handoff feature is great!! I type texts w/o even knowing where my phone is in the house sometimes.
I don't have to sign in on my email accounts
Everything is seamless; messages, email, pictures, web browsing
Retina Display
App store for my computer :eek: Thats crazy to me and love it

So overall, it's a better experience thus far. There are adjustments I am slowly making as I just got this MBP 18 days ago. Theres sooo much for me to learn as I have no idea what mission control and other things are yet. So to me, it can only get better.
 
chitranjan said:
I was searching over the internet why people use mac so thought I should ask those who have purchased it.
Click to expand...

It was the best package in terms of cost x benefit in my opinion. ThikPads W and Precisions are sometimes more expensive than Macs, sometimes not really, but Macs are easier to find in retail stores, so we can test if they barely suit our needs.
 
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Jschultz said:
HP's Ultrabook Folios are very nice from a 'fit and finish' perspective. A few of us at my office have just taken delivery of some. It's pretty nice to not have to lug brick around from my desk to conference rooms, etc a few time a day.

Ultimately, it's a matter of the windows user experience versus OS X that makes people choose Mac over Windows. I'd be remiss to not say that the windows experience has improved dramatically over the past 10 years, though I just won't give up my OS X experience in 10% of my day for the windows experience I use for the other 90%
Click to expand...

Right now the choice would be a bit more difficult, there are many more 13-15" Ultrabooks with very nice displays available, than there were back then. Docking stations and HPs five year next business day on-site support packs are also something I miss. AppleCare can't quite compare :rolleyes:

But on the other hand OS X was a very natural choice for someone who'd been working with Linux and FreeBSD. Felt right at home. Going back to Windows would currently be difficult, partially because of the UX, partially because I've also managed to accumulate a library of Mac-only software.

csixty4 said:
I need a Unix machine for my work. Ok, that's not entirely true, but most modern web development toolsets are built with the assumption they're running on some form of Unix.

I ran Linux on Dell & HP laptops for a couple years and it was a nightmare. Minor OS updates would break my wifi and once left me completely unable to start a GUI. And the usual response to that is that it's really the fault of the device makers who won't release specs and I totally sympathize with Linux devs who have done amazing work with so little information. But it doesn't change the fact that I can't trust Linux for my daily work.

I use Elementary OS on my dedicated emulation box, by the way. It's a lovely distro I wouldn't mind using on a daily basis if I felt I could trust Linux again.

OSX, being based on BSD, gives me a solid Unix operating system that I can trust. Then, it puts a modern GUI on top of it. I don't mind paying a premium for good tools.
Click to expand...

Ubuntu?

Had an interesting couple of years in a place that unfortunately ran Ubuntu (8.x & 9.x back then) on all of their systems. On two separate occasions random updates broke CUPS on most of the systems, a couple of other updates rendered the systems unbootable, and then some caused them to ignore the custom xorg.confs, or some other more or less vital config files, again rendering the systems unbootable.

I don't care what Canonical Inc. have accomplished since, that's one Linux distro I'm not giving a second chance, if I have a choice in the matter. Fedora and Debian have given me no headaches.
 
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I had a horrible experience with my previous dell xps 15 (2013). All kinds of software and hardware issues not to mention the mess with Windows 8. I figured why not spend a few hundred dollars more and get a Mac. I really like having good support the option to walk into a store and deal with a genius and not having to speak to someone in India or the Philippines. Very easy to use once you adjust from Windows. High resale value, good build quality and great battery life.
 
I was starting college in 2009, and my choices were a Mac or a PC running Vista. My family up to that point had only bought PCs, but I had used Macs in elementary school and a little bit in high school. I was also collecting music in iTunes to listen to on my iPod. I also tended to cause our family PCs to have problems, so my dad and I agreed that Mac was the way to go. It also helped that my best friend was an art major and was practically required to get a Mac for college as well as several of my other friends choosing to buy them for a variety of reasons including their popularity and reliability.

The MacBook Pro I got wasn't without its share of problems (a sleep/wake issue and multiple hard drive cable failures), but the fact that it still runs in 2014 is pretty amazing. Any PC I could have bought except maybe a ThinkPad would not have lasted so long. I know several of my college friends who have gone through several PC laptops. I'm on my second MacBook Pro, and I can still use the first one for light browsing and media storage.
 
Fast on and off / sleep always works
Compact design (13" MBP)
F3 (it changed my life)
Three finger swipe
Long battery life
Stable OS that rarely needs a reboot
Best trackpad...ever
Free OS upgrades

Things I don't like;
Underpowered hardware
MS Office Mac 2011 SUX
High priced hardware
 
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chitranjan said:
I was searching over the internet why people use mac so thought I should ask those who have purchased it.
Click to expand...

I have a long history with *nix systems such as Solaris, RedHat, Slackware, BSD CentOS, FreeBSD etc. so it is all natural for me to choose the Mac because it is built on *nix foundation. To me it is less prone to crash than a Windows based machine.
 
I was always curious how the Mac OS environment was. This was in 2008 when the white MacBooks where out. So when they came out with the unibody aluminum design I just had to grab one.
 
I love the design of the rMBP. Great user experience. Very easy to use, no clutter, great ecosystem.
I don't have to clean cookies, cache, install adware block or virus protection, in the end it saves me a lot of time and energy from hideous work and upkeep.

I am a writer, I have a large following so I need to write and do things on my laptop. A tablet or phone is not sufficient for my needs.
 
Pre-ordered my 2012 MBP because I wanted that retina display, and was fortunate enough that it was a Samsung and not one of the image retention-plagued LG ones.
 
...because i got cheesed off with Windows ....

I still use it, but only for testing purposes for mates under VM..

No frills, nothing to worry about.

I wouldn't even say Mac's are more secure, since u can stuff yup a mac quite easily.... The fact I don't need to deal with a humungous Registry that's a magnet, is enough to makes me a mac user any-day.
 
Because I've gotten sick of windows. An OS that uses registry? Windows is a DOS dinosaur. As many here, I still use it because some softwares just don't exist for Macs yet, or if they do, they suck. But overall OS-X (and even Linux) are light years ahead of Windows when it comes to security, stability, etc...
 
Why do I own a MacBook Pro? One word: elegance.

That which is elegant is stripped of all excess frippery and impediment. The computer itself is elegant and simple. There is not one button more than necessary. There are no sloppily-applied and impossible to remove stickers like on a Windows machine. (Why the hell do I need to be reminded that a Dell laptop has "Intel Inside" and is "Designed for Windows"?)

When I open the lid, I'm ready for work. MacOS X is the best operating system I've ever used, and I've used every single professional personal computer operating system from CP/M on down. It doesn't get in my way. It just works.

I work administering hundreds of Unix machines. All I need to do is open a terminal window and SSH in to any of them. In Windows? Well, first I need to find an SSH client, and then maybe a secure file transfer client, and then an XWindow client...

On my Mac, underneath that colorful candy shell there's crunchy Unix goodness. Anything I can do on a Linux box, I can do locally.

It's almost bulletproof. It's harder to get malware on an OS X machine than it is on a Windows box.

Here's where it gets almost magical. I can leave off working on a Numbers spreadsheet on my MacBook Pro and when I open Numbers on my iPhone 6, I just pick up where I left off. Ditto ditto with my iPad. Yes, it's a closed infrastructure, but it's a pretty remarkable infrastructure that lets me do what I want to do without needless fuss. Office365? Not so much.

Every now and then, my work requires me to use a Windows box. I try to be OS-agnostic - there are tools for everything, after all - but it's difficult. Part of it, I'm sure, is just that I'm so used to doing things the Apple way, which is generally the simplest, most obvious way. But Windows seems to delight in putting roadblocks in my way. I usually end up frustrated and irritable.

Apple almost never does that to me. I feel good working on a Mac. I'm more productive, more engaged, and just better at what I do.

Isn't that what computer is for?
 
The only thing i hate about Apple would be the company is areas and how they do tings in general..

More customization on Windows for, since u never need to load your mac up with someting an OS should be able to easily handle across the board for everything, not what Apple decides for their users.

That's the only issue here, apart from that.. Apple all the way..

From security perspective, this is kind of overblown in areas... Yes, Mac is UNIX based, so better, hardened security, but that's only because there is no one out there yet in mass..

To me, that's hardly equals security, since if no one attacks it, the no one attacks it... secure or not..

Plus, technically, any OS can be just as secure by not installing stuff every u don't need/want..

We usually say its better on a mac, because we can still do these things much more openly, while on Windows, you have to think....

People hate that.. They just wanna get to work..But If i had to use Windows, as a must, i'd gladly use it, knowing that i'll still stay safe..

it all starts with the user.
 
These were my reasons.

I needed a workstation level laptop.

I wanted something relatively thin that could get good battery life but also offered strong CPU and GPU options.

I like the UI.

I wanted to use Logic for music production.

I was super close to buying a Lenovo T540p but then I was offered this laptop for an exceedingly low price although it needed a Logic Board replacement. I had used Macs for a number of years before however, and so it was an easy transition back into it as well.
 
The surface 2 pro never came to korea. Though i loved my samsung notebook's style it broke multiple times thus raising the price to macbook range.

osx has full right click support.

multitasking was finally comparable to windows

all other manufacturers were pumping out gimped windows machines.

Macs are modestly to considerably cheaper to similarly specd and built machines here in korea. A retina class windows machine like the ativ book 9 was 200 bucks more tha the entry level rmbp.

the ativ book q got axed for patent reasons.

the rmbp was on its second cheaper and more stable iteration. It was the laptop of the future whereas the rest of the OEMs were and still are transitioning.
 
One reason really

The great form factor, the fantastic screen, the stable and easy to use software, integration with my phone and ipad is fantastic. All this adds up to a computer that is just a pleasure to use, my productivity and computer use has gone up immeasurably since I swapped to macs. Being apleasure to use id far more important than any sort of complicated functionality.
 
I've used Windows, Linux and finally bought a MacBook Pro (mid 2009) and Logic Pro on the same day. Never looked back, love my setup now.
I updated to Yosemite (Released version) and the MacBook Pro is running fine.
 
chabig said:
In terms of stability and security Microsoft has made great improvements. But not it terms of usability. I could come up with a long list of Windows UI annoyances. Here are some of my top peeves:

1. Can't rename a file while open
2. Can't move a file while open
3. Moving a file breaks all shortcuts to that file
4. Can't scroll a window without bringing it forward
5. There is nothing like Exposé or Mission Control
6. Text renders horribly and the entire visual experience isn't very refined
7. The overall system and MS apps are extraordinarily modal
8. All actions seem to require inordinate amounts of clicking because drag and drop isn't supported very well
9. The registry!
10. Windows inside windows!
11. Native pdf printing not supported
12. Documents don't always print like they appear on screen
13. Printing dialogs are extraordinarily clumsy
14. No Quicklook
15. Drive letters
16. Scrolling isn't smooth

It's little stuff, but it adds up to frustration for me.
Click to expand...

5. Look at Windows TP
6. Windows 7 and later renders text fine
7. That is because apps use their own UI rather than using Windows' UI style.
8. Click and drag works fine for me.
9. What about it?
10. ?
11. Yes. Look @ Windows 8.
12. They do for me.
13. Provides a lot of flexibility, thus the complications.
14. Yes there is.
15. Makes accessing drives a lot easier.
16. Oh yes it is.

I get the idea that the last Windows you tried was Windows XP?
 
Like many others in the reply to this post, I moved off Windows to Mac at a time when Windows was just not getting it done for me. I suspect many of the issues I was having (this was back in '07/'08) are probably addressed in the Windows world. However, once you are on a Mac, your own personal work experience is changed forever.

Let me ask the opposite question: Why are you considering staying on Windows? Your answer is likely not going to convince any mac user to switch off OSX. That is telling in my book... most Windows users seriously consider moving to Mac, but hardly any Mac users ever consider moving to Windows.... hmmmm....
 
I suspect many of the comparisons to Windows PC's are based on entry and mid level PC's.

I have a 2013 Dell XPS-15 (9530), and it is very decent machine. The track pad is decent, but no where as good as a MBP.

The 9530 spec'ed similar to a rMBP actually costs more.

I've always wanted a MBP, and from playing with them in the stores, they are very smooth to work on; albeit, I haven't tried out Yosemite yet.

The overall quality of a MBP just looks impressive.

I will be getting a rMBP sometime next year when Broadwell or Skylake, and Office for Mac comes out.

Thank you
 
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