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Potential Mac Convert

teknikal90

teknikal90

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jan 28, 2008
3,436
2,204
Vancouver, BC
Hi,

I've been a Windows user all my life, but I am set on getting a mac (got myself an iPod, and it went from there..)
I'm soon going to university (college for you Americans..:)) and thought thats a good excuse to get one, since i will need to get myself a laptop computer anyway..
well what should i do? i saw the macbook air and wasnt impressed.no optical drive?and slow?only 1.6 ghz...i just dont see it...its not much smaller either?same area as the macbook..
my university starts quite soon...late february...i wont need to get it as soon as it starts, but i dont really want to wait too long without it...
advice?

oh and ill prolly be doing the normal uni student stuff on it.not really games..ps3 for that...just microsoft office..watching movies bla bla...lol


thanks heaps!

ps: oh and im new here lol.
 
The "normal" MacBook should be absolutely fine. The "Air" is certainly cool, but as you mentioned it is somewhat limited.

Good luck with your choice, but which ever laptop you choose you will love Macs .. :)
 
The base spec macbook will be great for you, and once you leave and start earning more money then you will buy more mac's :)
 
teknikal90 said:
Hi,
well what should i do? i saw the macbook air and wasnt impressed.no optical drive?and slow?only 1.6 ghz...i just dont see it...its not much smaller
Click to expand...
1.6Ghz isn't that bad. I mean, would you ever notice the speed difference between a 1.83Ghz MacBook and a 1.6Ghz MacBook Air? Certainly if you're doing lots of media encoding, otherwise I really doubt it. My 2.0Ghz Mini doesn't feel any faster than my 1.83Ghz MacBook. The more likely scenario would be that a lack of memory would start slowing things down, but since the MBA comes with 2GB, it's unlikely that that would be a problem, at least not for a couple of years.

Anyway, like what others have said, a MacBook would be perfect. Maybe save 60-70 quid (or more sometimes) and get a refurb?
 
yeah i was eyeing the macbook..prolly getting the 2.2 ghz version.
but do you think theres any chance of an update soon?like its still plastic, not metal like the rest of the apple computers?any chance of it getting the metal body?
 
teknikal90 said:
by the way, i heard the macbook's palm rests are really dodgy?true?
Click to expand...
What do you mean by dodgy? After a year of use, there is only very slight discolouration, but that's all.

Who knows if the MacBook will receive an update soon. It is rumoured that both the MBP and MB will eventually have trackpads similar to the one found on the MBA. So I guess that the MBP and MB will receive updates this year. Personally, I doubt that there will be any more announcements made before WWDC '08, and that's not even been scheduled yet.
 
get the mac i converted 2 weeks ago i just cant get off my mac. my biger more powerful vista hasnt been in over a week
 
I'd toss in another vote for the MacBook. Sounds like it'll do just what you need it to.

Also, since you're coming here for advice you may not be aware: Apple offers an education discount to students. Check with your local Apple store or reseller to see what kind of savings you'll get. If neither are local, then the online Apple store should offer it as well. It all depends on where you go to school.
 
A couple of other things:

- don't buy RAM from Apple, buy it elsewhere and have it installed or install yourself (it's simple, I've done it on mac mini, the hardest mac to do it ;) ).
- the HDD in macbooks is usually too small to store a lot of movies - again you can install a 200gb+ 7.2krpm seagate or other bigger/better disk for little additional cost and without voiding warranty (as long as you don't break anything in the process).
 
weedy said:
A couple of other things:

- don't buy RAM from Apple, buy it elsewhere and have it installed or install yourself (it's simple, I've done it on mac mini, the hardest mac to do it ;) ).
- the HDD in macbooks is usually too small to store a lot of movies - again you can install a 200gb+ 7.2krpm seagate or other bigger/better disk for little additional cost and without voiding warranty (as long as you don't break anything in the process).
Click to expand...

<off topic>

I'm sure replacing the HD does void the warranty. I'm told by a friend who is undergoing the Apple hardware engineer training course that they use lots of sneaky tricks (like weird screw heads, and measuring exactly how tightly the screws are tightened) so they know if any one has been inside the case where they shouldn't have been.

</off topic>
 
big_malk said:
<off topic>

I'm sure replacing the HD does void the warranty. I'm told by a friend who is undergoing the Apple hardware engineer training course that they use lots of sneaky tricks (like weird screw heads, and measuring exactly how tightly the screws are tightened) so they know if any one has been inside the case where they shouldn't have been.

</off topic>
Click to expand...

Hah. They only knock your warranty if you damage something in the process of changing out your RAM or HDD.
 
If you don't mind me asking, which country are you in?

In the UK, we have a HE (Higher Education) store which gives discounts over and above the standard education discounts.

The only requirement is you have to be on your institutions network to access it.

It may be worth waiting for the first week of term (where its unlikely you'll need a computer anyway) and then buying to get maximum savings. You'll appreciate the extra cash, even it just goes towards a printer.
 
Yeah, the harddrive in the regular Macbook IS a user serviceable part officially. As you only have to remove as much as you do to get the ram out really, it slides right out.

The macbook pro - not so much, although as long as you don't damage it they probably won't say anything... but the macbook is definitely user serviceable as far as harddrive goes. :)

I LOVE my new macbook, and that's coming from a macbook pro (which i also loved)
 
David G. said:
Hah. They only knock your warranty if you damage something in the process of changing out your RAM or HDD.
Click to expand...

Well, if you have to return it because something inside goes wrong, and they know you've been playing about inside... isn't that the perfect excuse to say no, you must have broken it yourself? Not that I think that would be fair, but business is business.

elppa said:
If you don't mind me asking, which country are you in?

In the UK, we have a HE (Higher Education) store which gives discounts over and above the standard education discounts.

The only requirement is you have to be on your institutions network to access it.

It may be worth waiting for the first week of term (where its unlikely you'll need a computer anyway) and then buying to get maximum savings. You'll appreciate the extra cash, even it just goes towards a printer.
Click to expand...

I bought a MacBook Pro with student discount, and I haggled a bit and got a 'free' printer (after a mail rebate which would have required me to cut up the MBP box, which I didn't want to do) and Apple care very cheap when I bought MS office student edition.

Only certain universities/college have access to the Apple store through the network, it doesn't work for me anyway at the campus I go to.
 
elppa said:
If you don't mind me asking, which country are you in?

In the UK, we have a HE (Higher Education) store which gives discounts over and above the standard education discounts.

The only requirement is you have to be on your institutions network to access it.

It may be worth waiting for the first week of term (where its unlikely you'll need a computer anyway) and then buying to get maximum savings. You'll appreciate the extra cash, even it just goes towards a printer.
Click to expand...

I'm with Elppa on this and I would add that you can use your discount to bump up to a base spec MacBook Pro and get the aluminium finish you like as well as a higher spec machine that will last you longer.
 
big_malk said:
<off topic>

I'm sure replacing the HD does void the warranty. I'm told by a friend who is undergoing the Apple hardware engineer training course that they use lots of sneaky tricks (like weird screw heads, and measuring exactly how tightly the screws are tightened) so they know if any one has been inside the case where they shouldn't have been.

</off topic>
Click to expand...

And I'm pretty sure you're just trying to be smartass. :rolleyes:

Changing interior parts is officially allowed by Apple as long as you don't damage anything else in the process.
They have pretty clear standard what amounts to damage and less well tightened screws certainly isn't in that list.

As I already mentioned, I have opened my Mac Mini and installed new RAM and HDD. If you had checked out Mac Mini upgrade manuals you'd know opening it damages the casing quite a lot, opposite to any other mac.
I did open it and was pretty scared my warranty would be void as I bended some of the metal parts, however the warranty is still in effect - I specially took it to the local premium reseller and they opened it and said aok.
 
whoa...heaps of replies...thanks!!!

im from australia, and yeah i just went to the apple store and my uni is listed :)

looks like i will get the macbook..ill go for the 160gb option..that should be sufficient..and ill buy the ram elsewhere?how much do i need?and anyone know a good website to buy it from?that ships to australia, fast and reliably too...lol

thanks guys for the help.
 
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