My Asus laptop Vs.Macbook and Macbook Pro?

[Sti-R]

I currently Own a Asus W3j Laptop and here are its specs:

C2Duo 2.33GHZ Merom CPU
3GB Ram 677MHZ
Ati 256MB Vram X1600 512MB Hyper Memory
7200RPM 100GB HD

I am an avid gamer and power user. How much more faster are the new Uni-body Macbook and Macbook Pro compared to my current system?

thanks,

 

[macuserx86]

If you're an avid gamer, just keep the Asus for gaming and get a white MacBook if you want a mac. Unless of course you're looking to ditch the Asus completely for a new computer, and you want that computer to be a Mac. If this is the case, you have to get a MacBook Pro to even come close to those specs. I would definitely wait to get a MBP until after the next refresh though, as it's current specs aren't that much better than your Asus's specs

 

[Hellhammer]

If you don't need it right now, wait for an update. You'll get more bang for your buck when new ones are released.

If you're serious about gaming and that's the only thing you do with your computer, sell/switch your Asus to MacBook and build yourself a custom gaming rig

 

[Sti-R]

well i travel a lot so that is why i need an laptop. keep in mind that my asus laptop is nearly 3 years old. I guess what i am looking for is a comparison between the graphic cards. how does my ATI stack up against the macbook pro? macbook?

 

[Cannedkoala]

Same Same

Hey mate,

I'm in exactly the same position as you currently with an Asus W3J, just slightly lower spec. Core Duo 2.0Ghz, x1600, 80gb hdd, 2gb Ram. I have similar desires in gaming too.

I'm keen to make the switch to mac but I'm finding it hard to justify at the moment with the current offering given the following (in Australia with edu discount + applecare):

-The Asus is 1.5-2yrs old now and at the time cost $2400AUD (1900 US)

-MacbookPro line starts at $3500 (2750 US) which is just too expensive and specs arn't significantly above the Asus.

-Macbook Alu top of line is about $2700 (2100 US) for the similar specs (notably GPU)

-White Macbook is $1800 (1400 US)

So really it's not looking like it makes sense to move to any of those given the cost and the negligible difference from what we already have. With that in mind I've been thinking of an iMac to get more bang for my buck,

-iMac 24" 2.66 base - $2500 (1950 US) - Better CPU, great screen, same GPU

-iMac 24" 2.93 w/ ATI 4850 - $3350 (2600 US) - Expensive but better CPU, great screen, much better GPU


So what I'm taking from all this, and maybe this will help you too, is that gaming on the mac is simply not feasible for a reasonable price. That's fair enough and people will tell you that straight away, so perhaps move away from the idea of intense gpu and focus on the other stuff you do. Invest in a console (like me) or scrap the mac idea and get a pc. My friend is thinking of an i7 build about $2000 (1500 US) which is sounding pretty amazing.

So with that I'm thinking of just a generally ok all around computer, and from the prices I'm leaning towards the 2.66 iMac for some quality screen and performance action, or a cheaper white Macbook for portability but the same performance as what I'm used to and try OSX. All the other options are too expensive for what they offer to me.

Problem is I want to upgrade in specs, but want to stick to laptops since I got this Asus. Realistically I'm not going to swap between them if I get an iMac because I'll tend to stick to the newer machine for everything. Decisions Decisions.

Other considerations though:
-Sell the Asus for a bit more cash to upgrade to a more powerful mac

-Wait for snow leopard announcement (6.5hours!) and maybe hear about grand central. If they announce something amazing with general processing gpu stuff then that could push to spend bigger bucks on a quality gpu

-In the same line of thought they might upgrade all their gpu's across the range to take advantage of new snow leopard features. The white macbook is cheaper and better than the entry level aluminum, so that also feels like there could be a bump there.


Hope that gives some new ideas for you. Let me know if you decide something to maybe help me out with my decision =D

 

[Cannedkoala]

From what I remember when buying the Asus, 9400M is on par to X1600

Don't know about how much better the macbook pro's are other than they are newer.

 

[fpar]

The new Macbook will have similar gaming performance to your Asus, the Macbook Pro will have more than double the gaming performance but there are far better gaming machines out there.

 

[Hellhammer]

One thing that just came to my mind. You said you travel a lot, so do you game when you travel? Or only/mostly at home? How about buying a base alu MB or white MB and PS3 or X360 for gaming? MB should satisfy your gaming needs when traveling and game console at home. Of course if "computer gaming" is the only "true" gaming mode for you, then console is not an option

 

[Spanky Deluxe]

Hey mate,

I'm in exactly the same position as you currently with an Asus W3J, just slightly lower spec. Core Duo 2.0Ghz, x1600, 80gb hdd, 2gb Ram. I have similar desires in gaming too.

I'm keen to make the switch to mac but I'm finding it hard to justify at the moment with the current offering given the following (in Australia with edu discount + applecare):

-The Asus is 1.5-2yrs old now and at the time cost $2400AUD (1900 US)

-MacbookPro line starts at $3500 (2750 US) which is just too expensive and specs arn't significantly above the Asus.

-Macbook Alu top of line is about $2700 (2100 US) for the similar specs (notably GPU)

-White Macbook is $1800 (1400 US)

So really it's not looking like it makes sense to move to any of those given the cost and the negligible difference from what we already have. With that in mind I've been thinking of an iMac to get more bang for my buck,

-iMac 24" 2.66 base - $2500 (1950 US) - Better CPU, great screen, same GPU

-iMac 24" 2.93 w/ ATI 4850 - $3350 (2600 US) - Expensive but better CPU, great screen, much better GPU


So what I'm taking from all this, and maybe this will help you too, is that gaming on the mac is simply not feasible for a reasonable price. That's fair enough and people will tell you that straight away, so perhaps move away from the idea of intense gpu and focus on the other stuff you do. Invest in a console (like me) or scrap the mac idea and get a pc. My friend is thinking of an i7 build about $2000 (1500 US) which is sounding pretty amazing.

So with that I'm thinking of just a generally ok all around computer, and from the prices I'm leaning towards the 2.66 iMac for some quality screen and performance action, or a cheaper white Macbook for portability but the same performance as what I'm used to and try OSX. All the other options are too expensive for what they offer to me.

Problem is I want to upgrade in specs, but want to stick to laptops since I got this Asus. Realistically I'm not going to swap between them if I get an iMac because I'll tend to stick to the newer machine for everything. Decisions Decisions.

Other considerations though:
-Sell the Asus for a bit more cash to upgrade to a more powerful mac

-Wait for snow leopard announcement (6.5hours!) and maybe hear about grand central. If they announce something amazing with general processing gpu stuff then that could push to spend bigger bucks on a quality gpu

-In the same line of thought they might upgrade all their gpu's across the range to take advantage of new snow leopard features. The white macbook is cheaper and better than the entry level aluminum, so that also feels like there could be a bump there.


Hope that gives some new ideas for you. Let me know if you decide something to maybe help me out with my decision =D

If you can find a way to get a MacBook Pro then it sounds like that'd be your best option. While I realise the higher price is putting you off, one thing PC switchers always seem to forget is that Macs have a typically higher resale cost than PCs. I.e. buy a PC laptop for the same cost as MacBook Pro and in three years it'll be worth a lot less. Hell, even faulty ones command a significant premium. A few months ago I sold a MacBook for £400. It cost something like £1099 when new in 2006. That's not bad depreciation for computer hardware over nearly 3 years. If you get an educational discount on your original purchase then even better.

 

[js81]

Do you plan on buying new games for your Mac or using your Windows ones? Because if you're primarily after gaming and you'll still be using your Windows games, why waste your money on a Mac? As much as I'd love to recommend a Mac to everyone, if you're not really going to use it (Mac OS), save your money. Or, as others have suggested, if you're simply Mac-curious, get a cheap one (used, refurb, base white Macbook, etc.). If you'll be spending most of your time in Windows, there is no need to pay the so-called "Apple tax" at all.

 

[aznguyen316]

Do you plan on buying new games for your Mac or using your Windows ones? Because if you're primarily after gaming and you'll still be using your Windows games, why waste your money on a Mac? As much as I'd love to recommend a Mac to everyone, if you're not really going to use it (Mac OS), save your money. Or, as others have suggested, if you're simply Mac-curious, get a cheap one (used, refurb, base white Macbook, etc.). If you'll be spending most of your time in Windows, there is no need to pay the so-called "Apple tax" at all.

I game a lot on my current MB and thinking about getting a MBP to get a better graphics card. I LOVE LOVE OSX though and that's what's keeping me w/ a Mac and I use bootcamp to game, but do a lot of other things besides game - such as productivity etc and OSX suits me. I've been contemplating on getting a gaming laptop (I want/need a laptop to game on so please no desktop rig arguments). So I keep telling myself to opt for a MBP w/ 9600m to game on but I keep thinking I could save some money and get a nice asus gaming laptop but will sorely miss OSX. sigh decisions decisions.