Need reasons why I need a MacBook Pro...

[ThirtyThr33]

Take it from me dude, I'm the computer guy at the library at my college and a huuuge reason to get a Mac is time machine. I can't tell you how many times a student has plopped their laptop in front of me saying "omahgawd my pc just deleted the paper I've been working on for 7 hours!"

You'll thank me later. Lol

 

[marc11]

Maybe your mom is trying to teach you a lesson about managing wants and needs.

What you NEED is often far different from what you WANT. Learning this now, will help you tremendously in the future. Not just in computers, but in almost everything in life. Keeping up with your wants is often the road to financial disaster.

That is not to say you should always sacrifice and never be happy, but clearly planning and managing your wants and needs, especially a new college student who may not have unlimited cash to burn, is important. Having $1200 burning a hole in your pocket and wanting a MBP may be to your mom a impulse buy, you should demonstrate you seriously researched Apple vs other brands, and discuss like an adult why you want a MBP.

If you wish to take the adult road, the line "ask for forgiveness later" is just a juvenile attitude and you should act like the young adult you are. If you really can justify the MBP, then do so, objectively and rationally. If you cannot, then honestly, there is no reason to buy it other than impulse and serving that little burning feeling you have. Feed that feeling once, and you feed it forever!!! lol.

Frankly, I think you can justify a MBP over that PC she found on a lot of fronts, since it isn't just about specs. With a little research you can find the justifications and also you should take a look at the refurb store, maybe find a refurb unit even cheaper.

There is nothing wrong with taking parents advice and guidance, after all we got this far in life, and helped our kids become what they are, maybe we know some things

 

[marc11]

Take it from me dude, I'm the computer guy at the library at my college and a huuuge reason to get a Mac is time machine. I can't tell you how many times a student has plopped their laptop in front of me saying "omahgawd my pc just deleted the paper I've been working on for 7 hours!"

You'll thank me later. Lol

+1 but it is that dude who is an ass for not setting automatic save or hitting save every few minutes. I know when I was in school it was automatic for me to just click save every few minutes. Also, at the end of each research or writing session, before I shut my PC down I would make a copy of the document and stick it on a USB stick, just for peace of mind. Never lost an important paper.

 

[palpatine]

Take it from me dude, I'm the computer guy at the library at my college and a huuuge reason to get a Mac is time machine. I can't tell you how many times a student has plopped their laptop in front of me saying "omahgawd my pc just deleted the paper I've been working on for 7 hours!"

You'll thank me later. Lol

i love time machine. don't get me wrong. but, it's not a very persuasive reason to buy the mac.

sugarsync does a similar thing (backing up ) in the cloud. so do other backup programs for windows (either the backup feature in windows or the software in the external hdd). of course, you have to use them, though (including time machine), and most people don't.

as the previous poster said, it is the student's fault for being so shockingly careless about their own work.

 

[ThirtyThr33]

Well obviously it's not the "only" reason to buy a Mac, but keep in mind Mac has a lot more buy factors included. And yes I'm sure there a lot of alternative programs on windows. I'm just trying to promote a beautiful product and windows isn't really famous for it's stability. I know that has nothing to do with saving docs but I feel it's a good computer to start college with, and if u need windows you can easily dual boot.

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

I don't think you can buy MS office with that $100 (correct me if I am wrong) and so you will have to cough up that $100 anyway. A free antivirus will work just as well. Apple sells the 13 inch base model for $1249 (student discount $1149). Me personally, I would not buy that printer, I would not buy an inkjet printer. The Epson Stylus (the $99) printer which would be free with the printer discount will end up costing you much more than a simple colour laser printer. 4 ink cartridges changed every 3 months @ $15 a cartridge costs a ton ($180). You might not have to change them that often but still. I have the Epson Artisan printer and it is the worst printer I have ever had, slow (like 1 minute to start or turn off), buggy as hell, can't print anything half the time. It uses like 5% of the ink cartridge to print a full page picture (the page is noticeably heavier 2 grams in, 5-7 grams out). But its a good deal. If you already have a printer then you obviously do not need to buy one should you take a windows pc.

Also note that microsoft is giving away a free Xbox to those who buy a $699 windows pc. This can be sold for $150-180. I live in Canada and at the future shop they are selling hp laptops for $599 with the free xbox (get around this buy selling the $799 laptop with a $200 discount).

Also note that the OP said that he can get the pc for $600-700.

So it would look like this

Windows pc ($600-800) + MS office ($100) + printer (optional if he needs- $100) - xbox ($200 [store price]) + antivirus (OPTIONAL [ ~30-80]) = $500-880.

Mac ($1149) + MS office ($100) - printer ($100) - gift card ($100) =$1049

Difference is quite large.

No he can't buy MS Office through the MAS, but he can buy iWork, which worked just fine for me in all of the papers I had to write in college. That makes the difference $500 - $880 vs $900. (The base 13" is $1200, $1100 after edu discount, then take out $100 for the app store gift card and $100 for the printer). Now obviously this would depend on if he is getting the PC at the lower or upper end of that price, and if he can make do with iWork instead of MS Office (perhaps we will see Office in the MAS in the future too??)

No doubt PC's are cheaper, but if you can use promos and discounts to your advantage, you may be able to make the difference in price more minuscule.

And as far as the printer goes, you can get any printer at the apple store or on their website, and if it costs over $100, you are just stuck paying the differences. Here is a page on apples site with some of their printers offered in this rebate... http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/campaigns/printer_promo

And as far as ink goes, most students are not printing out pictures or full color pages, just typically essays and papers that need to be turned in so you really only use a lot of black ink.

 

[ratzzo]

It is a matter of preference, I won't come here to say that that i7 your mom found is going to be worse than the MBP.

Just say that you prefer the way Mac handles files, seamless OS-hardware integration, warranty, quality of use, powerful specs together with portability...

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

The only thing I ever tell her about computers it to look for i7 cause it is like the best processor around.

Just because a processor is branded as i7, really means nothing without knowing which model it is. For example, last years Arrandale processors are still branded as Core i3, i5, and i7, but they are not based on SNB architecture. Also, even with the new SNB processors, not all i7's are the same. The high end 13" model has a dual core i7, while the 15" and 17" models come with quad core i7's, and there are 3 different i7 processors to choose from on those models, so you can't just say get an i7, it's the best because there are a LOT of processors branded as i7, and there are significant differences depending on which model they actually are.

 

[taedouni]

If you want to work for Apple then you should buy a Macbook Pro vs buying a PC. The point being so you can use xcode (which can only run on an intel based Mac). Good luck man, I'm currently a senior majoring in Aerospace Engineering but if I could go back i'd have chosen to major in Computer Engineering.

 

[dusk007]

Most kids that do not or only sort of pay with their own money often sound like they just want a mac because it is apparently cool in some parts of the world. When you just ask for reasons why you need a mac you sound like one of them, since if you had any real reasons shouldn't you know about them.

I bought mine because of some spec reasons maybe some might help you in your arguments.

I wanted a >14" (13" doesn't work for me) notebook with a good screen, good battery life and a GPU that allowed me to occasionally play some games. Money was only a secondary thing for me.
There are great Windows Notebooks that offer better build quality, better screens, much better battery life and much more powerful GPUs. Yet the well built notebooks like Latitude and Elitebooks have usually poor screens (recently there is one fairly cheap exception in the Elitebook line, there are often really expensive exceptions) but they still lack decent graphics. Acer Timeline offer equal battery life, good GPUs, thing design, but they used to have poor keyboards and bad screens. I wouldn't pay for one of the 95% notebooks on the market with those 150:1 contrast 1366x768 panels.
Dell and its XPS line is the only line really close to the allround decent notebook but they used to be quite bad back when I ordered my 15" MBP and I couldn't get a matte screen.
OSX wasn't really a reason for me to switch but I liked getting a Unix OS and Linux always was so poor in battery life. Thus OSX wasn't too bad. I was surprised about pretty good Apple versions/alternatives of programs yet other stuff especially that comes from Apple is quite poor, unless I am forced to use it I cannot complain though which is true only for the most part unfortunately.

 

[sn]

hmm... my mum's a bit of a 'mum' so i managed to ******** her quite easily about needing a mac more than i did. not that it was her buying it for me but she still worries about me wasting my money! sounds like your mum is pretty on it with computers though so that might be a bit harder. i7 would mean about as much to my mum as good music (i.e. not much).

and i just ended up telling you all about me and my mum. oops. well, maybe go with the 'macs are good for creative stuff' approach and emphasise any creative needs you might have? i dunno, it's tricky and this wasn't as helpful as i thought it was going to be when i started writing.

good luck though, i've been in your boat before!

 

[cirus]

No he can't buy MS Office through the MAS, but he can buy iWork, which worked just fine for me in all of the papers I had to write in college. That makes the difference $500 - $880 vs $900. (The base 13" is $1200, $1100 after edu discount, then take out $100 for the app store gift card and $100 for the printer). Now obviously this would depend on if he is getting the PC at the lower or upper end of that price, and if he can make do with iWork instead of MS Office (perhaps we will see Office in the MAS in the future too??)

No doubt PC's are cheaper, but if you can use promos and discounts to your advantage, you may be able to make the difference in price more minuscule.

And as far as the printer goes, you can get any printer at the apple store or on their website, and if it costs over $100, you are just stuck paying the differences. Here is a page on apples site with some of their printers offered in this rebate... http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/campaigns/printer_promo

And as far as ink goes, most students are not printing out pictures or full color pages, just typically essays and papers that need to be turned in so you really only use a lot of black ink.

Never checked it out but the Epson NX420 is $100 from apple and only $80 from best buy. http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product...spx?path=6ec8441ed75a658c934f2d2ab5b2c0fcen02

And lol Hp model b210a is $90 from best buy and $150 from apple. Hp model 8500A plus is $400 from apple and $350 from bestbuy (currently there is a sale on and the price is $250). You would lose $50 buying the printer through apple.
http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product...spx?path=e6cfc6217c2f5be094110e711281fb88en02 This may add +$80 to -$50 of benefits for the printer discount.

iwork costs $71 with the student discount (you forgot that he had to buy this). Office 2010 costs $90 with the student discount http://www.microsoft.com/student/office/en-ca/default.aspx Very similar except office is more compatable.

So including all of this

Windows pc ($600-800) + MS office ($90) + printer (optional if he needs- -$50 to $80 [these discounts happen all the time so we can't forget them] this value is from what you would get from apple) - xbox ($170-$200 [resale price / store price]) + antivirus (OPTIONAL [ ~30-80]) = $470-880. $500 is a steal with a $800 pc and office (discounts allow retailers to bypass the $699 threshold that MS set).

Mac ($1149) [including student discount] + MS office ($100) its $10 extra for mac see the link or iwork ($71) - printer ($80- negative $50) - gift card ($100) =$1040-1199.

The mac store giftcard is only good if it is something you use. Otherwise it can be sold for probably $80-90. This is assuming that apple lets you, apple may require that the giftcard be deposited into your account and so you may not be able to sell it.

 

[2hvy4grvty]

MBPs are not meant to go toe to toe with CONSUMER line PCs. Compare the prices with another professional line of Windows notebooks (Elitebooks, Latitude, Thinkpads) and get back to me about pricing. Once you can accept this fact, the pricing thing becomes a bit more acceptable.

If you want spec for spec, then you want gaming. No one buys a Macbook with the sheer intent of playing games on it. But the fact that you're going with the 13 inch means you aren't an avid gamer, so it's really a question of WHY would you need an i7, discrete, etc etc in the first place?

 

[cirus]

MBPs are not meant to go toe to toe with CONSUMER line PCs. Compare the prices with another professional line of Windows notebooks (Elitebooks, Latitude, Thinkpads) and get back to me about pricing.

But neither are they business class. They fall somewhere in between.

 

[2hvy4grvty]

But neither are they business class. They fall somewhere in between.

Luckily, their pricing falls somewhere in between as well.

The specs of a high end 15 MBP is pushing $3000 for most business notebook setups.

And they look a hell of a lot better.

 

[Ijustfarted]

Take your money and walk out the door to get your macbook. If she tries to stop you give her quick jab, right hook, and as she staffers a jumping full bodybody uppercut to finish her off. Than throw her body in a volcano.

Enjoy your new macbook bro!

 

[beangibbs]

Take it from me-get what you want.
If it's your money, you should be able to buy whatever you want.

Same thing happened to me when I graduated high school 3 years ago. I was told my aunt was buying me a laptop.
I looked at the Macs, knowing I was going into graphic design...knowing that the art department used Macs exclusively...and that it would be the best tool for the job.
I was told I didn't need that MacBook Pro. Did my aunt know anything about design, or industry standards, much less care about my opinion in the matter? No. Thus, for the better part of two years, I was stuck with a POS laptop.
I ditched it, gave it to a friend in need, and I use my iPad...at least until I can get a decent Mac. And you know what? I wouldn't go back to using any Windows computer over even something as simple as the iPad. That's how much I value the Apple experience.

Yes, she is your mom, and you should respect her, but if it's your money, she has no say. Get the MacBook Pro.

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

iwork costs $71 with the student discount (you forgot that he had to buy this). Office 2010 costs $90 with the student discount http://www.microsoft.com/student/office/en-ca/default.aspx Very similar except office is more compatable.

So including all of this

Windows pc ($600-800) + MS office ($90) + printer (optional if he needs- -$50 to $80 [these discounts happen all the time so we can't forget them] this value is from what you would get from apple) - xbox ($170-$200 [resale price / store price]) + antivirus (OPTIONAL [ ~30-80]) = $470-880. $500 is a steal with a $800 pc and office (discounts allow retailers to bypass the $699 threshold that MS set).

Mac ($1149) [including student discount] + MS office ($100) its $10 extra for mac see the link or iwork ($71) - printer ($80- negative $50) - gift card ($100) =$1040-1199.

The mac store giftcard is only good if it is something you use. Otherwise it can be sold for probably $80-90. This is assuming that apple lets you, apple may require that the giftcard be deposited into your account and so you may not be able to sell it.

he can buy iWork from the mac app store with the gift card. If you take office/iWork out of the equation for the mac, you are then a little closer to the high end price of the PC, that's all I was trying to say. Likewise, obviously if you can get the lower end of the PC price spectrum, you are going to save a lot of money going with the PC. Like I said, it really depends on what price you are getting the PC for, which is why I said the OP needs to determine the specs and price of everything he will need for both situations and decide if the price difference is worth it. (he mostly needs to see if the PC is going to cost $600 or $800) It also may help him sway his mom into buying the mac if she sees that there is less of a cost difference than she may have initially thought.

Also, the MBP costs $1100 after student discount, not $1150 like you stated. $1100-$100 gift card -$100 printer is $900

 

[t0rr3s]

So many reasons given here.
Come on lad, grow a pair and buy it. There'll be time to talk later eh.

 

[tombubi]

I think it will be nice to take your mom to an Apple shop and let her feel herself the quality of MBP. Get a clerk to explain her how MBP is differentiated from a PC. Maybe that will make your job a lot easier.

 

[alphaod]

Respectfully tell your mother you're going to buy the Mac because you consider it the proper reward for yourself after getting into college; it's a decision you should be allowed to make; don't say Windows sucks or something like that because that would sound like you're whining and really have no reasonable decision making skills.

 

[AMacbook]

The MBP certainly will be more portable and you won't have to keep the charger around with you at all times. Don't know how the 310m compares with HD3000. (Guessing it's better)

 

[ormie]

I'm for the MacBook but it'll depend on what your mum can afford, or, if your paying then it's your choose as you are the one that's going to use it. Take her down to an apple store and let her see one.

 

[di1in]

I think he's already got his - check out his sig

 

[thejadedmonkey]

I can only laugh, you didn't even convince me that you need a mac. You can get the Adobe suite, a PC laptop, for less. You just seem to think that Final Cut and Motion are the best tools for the job. As far as I can tell, the MBP is only better than a PC when you compare battery life... So how do you plan on convincing me that you want a mac?