I did a search and came across a thread in this same forum (from 2003!), and thought I would try to update the argument. My 24" iMac will be here within the month, and I'd like a mag to keep up with the developments. Not to replace my MacRumors.com or TUAW.com reading, but to supplement them. My ideal magazine would have good writing, a wide range of content covering hardware and software, cost, and bang-for-the-buck. I'm sure that there are options beyond MacAddict and MacWorld, so feel free to mention those as well. Thanks!
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MacAddict vs. MacWorld - preferences?
- Thread starter jessedylan
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I think you still get a free subscription to MacWorld if you buy a new Mac- every new mac I have bought in the last 10 years has given me a freebie.
I like MacWorld personally but have only had MacAddict years ago- I never used the freebie software they sent with MacAddict back then.
I like MacWorld personally but have only had MacAddict years ago- I never used the freebie software they sent with MacAddict back then.
Both
I subscribe to both and they are both worth it. I like MacLife more. There is no MacAddict any more - hasn't been for a year.
I subscribe to both and they are both worth it. I like MacLife more. There is no MacAddict any more - hasn't been for a year.
Where are you guys getting free subscriptions? I didn't get anything with my iMac when I bought it.
It comes when you register.
Well I've registered 2 Macs and have never got a free subscription. I want my free subscriptions darnit!
I recently subscribed to MacLife in place of MacFormat (a UK mag), but my faith in it has been shaken a bit by subsequently listening to their podcast -- they don't seem very bright people to me, and their extreme overuse of the word "Cool" is a real turn-off.
I guess it's not a bad magazine, but to my mind it doesn't come close to iCreate (also UK, but available by subsription in other markets). This is the mag that Apple themselves would produce -- take a look at a copy and you'll see what I mean.
I guess it's not a bad magazine, but to my mind it doesn't come close to iCreate (also UK, but available by subsription in other markets). This is the mag that Apple themselves would produce -- take a look at a copy and you'll see what I mean.
MacLife is skewed towards a hip demographic and MacWorld is aimed at the general consumer. You'll get advice about what to buy in MW (much of it outdated if one follows any Mac web sites, and too much reliance on press releases); you'll get articles about what to DO with or to your mac in ML. Many of these ML articles are too odd or time-consuming for the usual reader and require getting into the innards of your Mac; other articles are just fanciful - like the one about using an empty Pringles can and black tape to fashion a working macro lens with your DSLR. (I liked that one a lot actually.)
But if I had just one Mac magazine it would be MacLife - their recommendations are absolutely trustworthy, they love Macs, they're very knowledgable, and the to-do articles are easy to follow if you want to put the time in. MacLife helped me sync my Palm pilot via Bluetooth to my Mac with clear step by step instructions.
But if I had just one Mac magazine it would be MacLife - their recommendations are absolutely trustworthy, they love Macs, they're very knowledgable, and the to-do articles are easy to follow if you want to put the time in. MacLife helped me sync my Palm pilot via Bluetooth to my Mac with clear step by step instructions.
This could explain their, what shall we say, "laidback" approach in their podcast. The outtakes at the end are particularly worrying. It badly needs a more professional approach.
My advice -- by all means try the mag, but subscribe to the MacCast.
ICreate is by far the best mac magazine I have read. The only problem is since its a UK mag it costs $15 an issue over here in bookstores in the states. If I could afford the subscription I'd do it.
Zack
Zack
I don't subscribe to any Mac magazines, but I do occasionally buy a single issue here and there when I'm traveling and I want something to read on the plane. Generally I find that there's not much information in the magazine that interests me because I've already read it all online. If you spend a lot of time combing all the online sites like MacRumors then I think you'll probably find that much of the paper magazine content is redundant for you.
There's still some useful information -- the current issue of MacLife reviews 35 laptop bags, for example. That's the sort of feature that's a lot less likely to be available online. Still, the bulk of this issue is a "comprehensive review" of the iPhone that doesn't have a single bit of information that hasn't already been hashed and rehashed here on the forums.
There's still some useful information -- the current issue of MacLife reviews 35 laptop bags, for example. That's the sort of feature that's a lot less likely to be available online. Still, the bulk of this issue is a "comprehensive review" of the iPhone that doesn't have a single bit of information that hasn't already been hashed and rehashed here on the forums.