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Who uses a Macbook as their only computer?

I use my late 2006 C2D MacBook as my only computer. It is upgraded to 2GB RAM and I have a 160GB HDD in it but soon will be upgrading to a 320GB. When at home, I usually have it hooked up to my HDTV via dvi-to-HDMI cable and I use an Apple wireless keyboard and Mighty Mouse. Fantastic stuff to sit on the couch and cruise the net or watch movies or whatever.

My only issue is the HDD size. I'm considering getting an iMac so I can be more "future proof" as far as RAM and hard drive size go. My MB is maxed out on the RAM, and Leopard seems to want more and more.

Either that or I will get a new MacBook and give this one to my fiance. Who knows. But, having just one great computer (and a laptop no less) is great.
 
I don't think I can trust a MacBook to be my only computer.

I also have an old HP that I own which is running beautifully and is a great gaming machine. (I don't get why people here are so eager to insult windows. My three-year-old XP machine never had any problems, but in the two weeks I've had my MacBook, I've already needed to replace a screen and the keyboard.)
 
funkybunk said:
I don't think I can trust a MacBook to be my only computer.

I also have an old HP that I own which is running beautifully and is a great gaming machine. (I don't get why people here are so eager to insult windows. My three-year-old XP machine never had any problems, but in the two weeks I've had my MacBook, I've already needed to replace a screen and the keyboard.)
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Heh, I completely agree.

I have an HP notebook that has been flawless for months now. Yet I'm on my second Mac thanks to a botched repair of the first, and the second one had issues with the case coming apart and that was replaced. I've had OS X crash on me (both Macs combined) more than Windows has ever crashed on me. So yeah.. As much as I like the design of my MacBook and OS X (when it works) theres no way I could trust it to be my only computer.
 
I haven't owned a desktop computer in more than 8 years. I only buy notebooks and usually keep only one at a time. I still have a Windows notebook, but only for a few legacy programs I don't want to reproduce on my MacBook Pro. I enjoy the portability of a notebook and have all the power I need. There's nothing I've found that I could do with a desktop that I can't also do with a notebook.
 
It is for my girlfriend and myself, she has a late 2007 and I have an early 2008.

Funny thing is, hers is actually used as a laptop and moves around a lot and has no cracks on the top or bottom case, but mine, which has come off it's desk twice since I got it is cracking all over.

Biggest waste of money ever.
 
maestrokev said:
I used a MB as my first Mac in a while, after 2 months, sold off my 2 Dells.

Few months later starting acquiring Macs ...
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LOL exactly what I did.
started with a 2.0ghz macbook, then after about 6 months I have a pro, mini, imac 17" and a second macbook!

needless to say i have a couple of old pc's lent up against a wall never to be powered up again.
 
funkybunk said:
I don't think I can trust a MacBook to be my only computer.

I also have an old HP that I own which is running beautifully and is a great gaming machine. (I don't get why people here are so eager to insult windows. My three-year-old XP machine never had any problems, but in the two weeks I've had my MacBook, I've already needed to replace a screen and the keyboard.)
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This is exactly how I feel. As much as I like my MacBook, after all the problems I had with the first one and the two replacements, I am finding it hard to trust my MacBook 100% and feel more at ease knowing I have a Windows/Linux PC/Notebook I can fall back to.

My current MacBook (replaced by Apple) has AppleCare until May 2011. How it "behaves" during that time will determine if I'll buy another Apple computer or not. I forgot to mention that I also bought a Mac mini in January only to have the sound card died on me in less that two weeks.
 
It's my only and has been for over a year now. I don't have a need for an external monitor or anything like that, but I do have a few external hard drives. The laptop's insured under Applecare until 2010, so I've got nothing to worry about with it for awhile.
 
I do, but not with an external monitor. I have no need for it, and this way, if I have to go somewhere (TDY, school, LONG work day, deployment) I can just pack it up and go, without worrying if everything on it up to date.
 
onebloodonelife said:
It's my only and has been for over a year now. I don't have a need for an external monitor or anything like that, but I do have a few external hard drives. The laptop's insured under Applecare until 2010, so I've got nothing to worry about with it for awhile.
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AppleCare is a must. Actually, I recommend extended warranty to anyone buying a notebook computer--Mac or not.

I'm really happy I bought AppleCare. What frustrated me was not AppleCare, but the fact that I had so much problem with one unit, and was without it for a fairly long time each time it was in for repairs. I work full time and study part-time (distance education classes), and therefore, cannot afford to lose too much time going back and forth for repairs. Moreover, classes don't wait for me to get my computer back from repairs. Could you imagine me e-mailing my prof: "Prof. X, could you please extend my assignment date a few more days? My computer is being repaired by Apple." :D
 
For those that got lemon MacBooks, that's just the Universe catching up on you. Up to you to make lemonade or grape juice and let the Universe figure it out. ;)

I have had Dells that work fine for four plus years, and also Dells that break five times in a year, and getting a replacement machine. Still too early to say whether my Mac will hold up well or not.
 
my macbook if MY first and only computer i have. sure, my family's had PCs since i was younger, and still has one. but i never use it anymore, just my mac.

i'd consider an imac aswell as a macbook maybe in a few years, but at the moment being a student and travelling to and from uni alot i need a laptop.
 
i switched around 2 years ago and i bought an imac and now i have a macbook. i haven't used windows since.
 
Same as most here.

For all practical uses, my Macbook is my only computer. I have an old WinPC desktop that still works (albeitly slowly), but I only use it for like one game (not because my Macbook can't play it, but because it's Windows only). So, I do everything on my Macbook, from music creation/editing to just surfing the web. I love it :)
 
I'm going off to school in the fall and my Mac will be my only PC up there. I'm busy getting stuff in line for it right now, bigger HDD, black InCase shell, 2.1 speaker setup.

The driving force behind my decision was the fact that I've had my macbook as my primary computing machine for the last 3 weeks and have really, really enjoyed using it. Its just great. I also have to get all straight A's so my XP machine will be at my parents house so I don't waste all my time gaming, but I will have my 360 with me.
 
I think your setup would have more than enough computation power for your need. The only thing missing is a fast GPU. If you are not doing a lot of gaming or 3D rendering or so, it doesn't matter.

The main concern would be whether you feel comfortable with the keyboard, trackpad and the smaller LCD (as compared to the larger monitor a desktop usually comes with). So try to play with it in a shop and decide whether you are ok with these. For me, I am very happy with the keyboard and the trackpad. I bought a wireless mighty mice for my wife, but for myself, I rather go with the trackpad.

So to summarize, if you are not doing graphic intensive stuffs, and feel good with the form factor, then you are good to go.

One more thing to consider is, you should get a additional storage for backing up your data. Be it an external HD, NAS or may be a time machine.

Good luck.

wil.
 
My first mac was my CD 2GHz Macbook and sold my pc 4 days later. It's been my only machine since. Not a hiccup with it so far. I'd like an excuse to upgrade, but it just won't give me one!
 
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I use my SR MacBook as my only computer. I haven't set up with a bt keyboard, wired mouse, FW hard drive, and 20" apple cinema. It's a really nice and flexible setup, and the only thing I'm missing out on is graphics power (but I knew that when I got a macbook). There's no reason a macbook can't be your only computer and a desktop replacement!
 
My Macbook is my only computer as well. I've been tempted to build a windows Desktop PC for games, but my Xbox360 has been keeping me occupied so far (that may change when Starcraft 2 and Diablo 3 come out, lol).

At home, I set it up with my 22" LCD and external keyboard so I don't miss having a desktop at all. This macbook has been rock-solid for me :).
 
ataboc said:
I bought by 2.2 SR macbook in November. After learning OSX i'm really happy with it. I put 4 gigs and a 320 gig HD. OSX likes 4 gigs! My wife also liked it so i bought her a refurb in Feburary.

I'm in the Navy and on deployment. When I return in October, I'm planning to give our desktop PC to our inlaws to replace their 6 year old relic. I want to buy a 24" monitor and use my Macbook as my primary computer. I don't do too many heavy tasks. Mostly websurfing and managing a big music and picture library. Light room is the only program that makes the macbook's fan turn on. I plan to use a usb hub so i can use two external HDs and a keyboard and mouse.

I'm just wondering if anyone else runs a setup like this, basically a portable mac mini. Does anyone miss having a PC ever? I have VMware with XP so if i ever need windows there i go!

So convince me to give away my PC!
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I did exactly this for a year with my last macbook. And forced it to do some heavy CS3 work, etc, to boot. It should be great for that. The only reason I got rid of mine is that I didn't want to spend the money applecare with the rumors of a new form factor coming up (I have a mini as well to use in the meantime).
 
iMac for home, so my wife/son have one. I use a 2.2 MB for work, and everything else. Gave our 3 year old DELL to our father in-law. I had no use for it...boat anchor.

I'm the opposite of a couple of other posters on here; I'll never trust a Windblows machine again...ever!
 
tmelvin said:
iMac for home, so my wife/son have one. I use a 2.2 MB for work, and everything else. Gave our 3 year old DELL to our father in-law. I had no use for it...boat anchor.

I'm the opposite of a couple of other posters on here; I'll never trust a Windblows machine again...ever!
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"Windblows"? Come on, let's try to be adults here :rolleyes: Windows is more capable than OS X (let me know when OS X can take advantage of GPUs for video playback like Windows, okay?).

Some of us will never trust a Mac as our sole computer because of build quality issues and OS X being more unstable than Windows on average. My MacBook that cost $1406 after taxes is built worse than the HP I have that was roughly $1,000 after taxes. Oh, it has a DVD writer and dedicated graphics and twice as much memory as the entry level MacBook too!

After all of the experiences I've had with OS X freezing on my own Mac (while Windows is solid as a rock on it) as well as other Macs, I can't trust OS X to do anything "serious" because you never know if it will simply lock up and all of your work will be gone.

With a MacBook, you have to worry too much about the case falling apart, cracking, discoloring. You have to worry about the DVD drive failing.

With a MacBook Pro you have to worry about the case bending and warping, denting, getting too hot. And, again, the DVD drive failing.

It seems Apple's build quality peaked just before the white iBook was introduced several years ago. It's been plummeting ever since.

OS X's instability combined with the build quality of the products makes a Mac nothing more than a decent secondary computer.
 
I use a MacBook as my only machine and it's not even Santa Rosa. I'm working on a Core Duo 2GHz machine with 2GB of RAM. It runs Leopard perfectly, handles Photoshop well, and lots of other intensive apps most stereotypically would think that the "low end" MacBook can't handle. It's a great machine and using it as a main machine shouldn't be a problem at all.
 
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