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Why Macbook ?

M

Macveld

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 21, 2010
6
0
hi guys,

i`m a student and i`m planning on buying a new laptop.
The problem is though that i have no idea wether to go for a mac or a PC
why?
- Pc is cheaper
- Windows 7 is a huge upgrade compared to Vista
- More people uses PC/Windows from where i`m around, i dont know any macbook users, although in the school im in everybody uses Macbook ( im on a 6 month school in Australia and i`m from Europe )
- Powerpoint way easier then keynote
- Gaming is easy
- Lot of software is made for windows and is complicated to run on a Mac

then why am i considering a macbook?
- Battery life is the main reason!
- Very smooth
- Faster
- doesnt get stuck - freezes - as often as Windows
- works longer
- good investment


So, i`m doubting so much, i love to game in weekends and i use steam for that, but the battery life and the * casual & basics of a Mac * are just so much beter !
I had a HP DV6 pavilion, got stolen, and i didnt care cause i had it for couple of months and the battery only lasted for 1.5h, look super long to boot...


Any advices?
i`ll be going to hong kong soon which makes it way cheaper to buy a laptop for me, so dont select on price, but im not looking for the best of the best :)

Thank you )

Matt
 
You're obviously going to get a lot of one-sided views here :p

Anyway, I use PowerPoint and was curious as to why you said PP is easier than KN. From what I've heard, KN blows PP away. And that said, you can use PP on a mac.

I don't see your point about things being complicated to run on a Mac. What software do you need Windows for that isn't available on a Mac?
 
Although Steam is being released soon on mac, a PC is probably the better option if your really into gaming mainly because you will see speedier hardware.

I wouldn't look too much into battery life, although the newer macs really are great.
 
Macveld said:
hi guys,

i`m a student and i`m planning on buying a new laptop.
The problem is though that i have no idea wether to go for a mac or a PC
why?
- Pc is cheaper
- Windows 7 is a huge upgrade compared to Vista
- More people uses PC/Windows from where i`m around, i dont know any macbook users, although in the school im in everybody uses Macbook ( im on a 6 month school in Australia and i`m from Europe )
- Powerpoint way easier then keynote
- Gaming is easy
- Lot of software is made for windows and is complicated to run on a Mac

then why am i considering a macbook?
- Battery life is the main reason!
- Very smooth
- Faster
- doesnt get stuck - freezes - as often as Windows
- works longer
- good investment


So, i`m doubting so much, i love to game in weekends and i use steam for that, but the battery life and the * casual & basics of a Mac * are just so much beter !
I had a HP DV6 pavilion, got stolen, and i didnt care cause i had it for couple of months and the battery only lasted for 1.5h, look super long to boot...


Any advices?
i`ll be going to hong kong soon which makes it way cheaper to buy a laptop for me, so dont select on price, but im not looking for the best of the best :)

Thank you )

Matt
Click to expand...

Hi Matt

let me take you through your pro's pc, and explain why they are not "correct"

- Pc is cheaper: In most cases, this is not correct. Yes you can get a cheaper pc, but you get what you pay for! if you go to 'any' pc vendor, and build/select a pc with the same harware as a macbook, the prize end up at about the same (just try at dell or something). Remember, of you build a pc for 600$, you get a pc for 600$!

- Windows 7 is a huge upgrade compared to Vista : It's still f'in windows! haha...okey sorry...that was childish! but yea, win 7 is better then win vista, but the software you get with a mac is so much better then what you get with any windows. If you dont belive me, read any profesional critics, they love osx.

- More people uses PC/Windows from...: thats a good point, and if you ever have problem with a pc, thres always someone to help you, but if you have problems with a mac, you cant always ask the neighbour! Allthough, I predict that if you ever buy a mac, you will see alot more of them around you (it has that effect, trust me). And if you have good computer knowledge, I bet you can figure out osx pretty fast and notice that osx is very open with other OS (read windows). Out of the box, osx lets you read almost all files-types. It even lets you edit .doc and .docx documents without any office-like software installed (thats more than you can say about windows). Its easy to share folders etc with windows on a network, and if you use iWork (instead of office for mac), you can export to windows-compatible files.

- Powerpoint way easier then keynote: I disagree! After i got keynote, I sat down for one day to learn it. And then I could make presentations I could just dream of in powerpoint. Even if you see the first ever keynote (introduced in 2003), it is way better and easier to use than powerpoint 2007 (not kidding!)

- Gaming is easy: That is true! but you can always run windows in boot camp for games (and if you read tests, macbooks are often refered to as the ultimat windows computer, because of the high quality of the harware). And lucky for you, steam is launching for mac soon :)

- Lot of software is made for windows and is complicated to run on a Mac: I havent counted, but im pretty sure that there are more releases for windows than for mac. With that said, im pretty sure that you will find whatever you need in software for mac. And often its better than windows, and because of tools like core-imaging and core-animation, programs often look better on a mac than on windows (have you noticed maybe?)

Here, I hope it helped. And remember, when you buy a macbook for 900-something dollars (you probably get student discount also), you get a sturdy peace of equipment. Not a thick, squeeky, cheap plastic ruckle, with fans that will blow you away! Even if youre just gonna run windows on it, the macbook is the best consumer-notebook in its prize class.

Hope it helped,

PerO
 
You sound like a perfect person for a PC.

You wont be happy with a Macbook doing what you do, really.

Get a really nice PC for the same money.
 
peroddmu said:
Hi Matt

let me take you through your pro's pc, and explain why they are not "correct"
Click to expand...

and the award for most unbiased advice goes to you, good sir.

Macveld said:
hi guys,

i`m a student and i`m planning on buying a new laptop.
The problem is though that i have no idea wether to go for a mac or a PC
why?
- Pc is cheaper
- Windows 7 is a huge upgrade compared to Vista
- More people uses PC/Windows from where i`m around, i dont know any macbook users, although in the school im in everybody uses Macbook ( im on a 6 month school in Australia and i`m from Europe )
- Powerpoint way easier then keynote
- Gaming is easy
- Lot of software is made for windows and is complicated to run on a Mac

then why am i considering a macbook?
- Battery life is the main reason!
- Very smooth
- Faster
- doesnt get stuck - freezes - as often as Windows
- works longer
- good investment


So, i`m doubting so much, i love to game in weekends and i use steam for that, but the battery life and the * casual & basics of a Mac * are just so much beter !
I had a HP DV6 pavilion, got stolen, and i didnt care cause i had it for couple of months and the battery only lasted for 1.5h, look super long to boot...


Any advices?
i`ll be going to hong kong soon which makes it way cheaper to buy a laptop for me, so dont select on price, but im not looking for the best of the best :)

Thank you )

Matt
Click to expand...

My vote goes to the m11x if you're choosing a windows laptop. Good battery life, blows the macbook away gaming-wise. Not as smooth though :p
 
Get a Macbook and boot camp it with Windows 7. I'm like the same type of user as you, and I figured that's what I'm best off doing. I know the Macbooks don't have as much power as a comparable PC for the same or cheaper price, but it isn't always about performance. Most people don't use all the power anyways. The graphics are a bit on weak side, but you can still game with it. You are better off with the 9400m than the x4500HD for gaming. Most PC laptops have the x4500 unless its a "gaming laptop." In my opinion, gaming laptops are ugly. They are huge, heavy, and i hate having the mouse pad being left justified rather than center. I personally love having a 1280x800 resolution on a 13'' laptop because most PC laptops have 13??x7?? (can't remember it off the top of my head). So, why not get a Macbook which is slim, powerful and offers good battery life. Not to mention you can buy a copy of OEM Windows off newegg.com for $100. Then you will also have a new PC as well.
 
Badger^2 said:
You sound like a perfect person for a PC.

You wont be happy with a Macbook doing what you do, really.

Get a really nice PC for the same money.
Click to expand...

I agree. MacBook for gaming? Only if you have enough money to buy a desktop PC.

The MacBook gets good battery life though.....maybe 5 hours in real-world use (if not gaming or watching movies while on battery).

If you can find a Windows 7 laptop with a decent graphics card, yet also a decent battery life, that would be your best bet. For the same price as a MacBook, there are probably a few options!
 
thank you for answering,

i find it so confusing, its so hard
because i read one reply and then im like, oh yeh i think ill buy a mac, and then i red the next and then i think, hmm maybe a PC anyway.

its just,
i like the Mac because its smooth, good hardware, its about quality not quantity,
but iv worked with Pc al my life, i guess its just a feeling, haha,
i dont know anything about Mac, just the basics,
i know quite alot about PC,

Maybe time for me to come out of my comfort zone .. ?
And about the gaming, its not a must, i just want to run CSS on it, for fun :)

i know Mac is a good buy! But i wonder is it worth it compared to PC :)
i need more conviction,

again want to thank you for helping me,

sincerely
Matt
 
if you are buying a Mac now...I would say it is not worth it. Wait for the update.

IMO..Macs are really expensive in the low range for the hardware you get...the higher range of Macs offer better value for money (after the update of course).

I am basing my opinion after comparing Sony with Apple. If you have a look at Vaio Z (which comes with a much better GPU, processor, SSD), it costs 2K (very much in the range of MBPs). The build quality, thin chassis, the gorgeous screen and the config jack up the price...both in the case of Sony and Apple. After the update, I am assuming that Apple will match the specs and keep prices the same (or even reduce a bit)

Warranty wise, it is a no brainer that Apple rips you off with Apple Care. Warranties for PCs are usually cheaper or include accidental coverage. Of course, there are people here who will say that Apple provides good customer service and its counterparts (Dell,HP) do not. A quick google search might also tell you the same. But remember that Dell/HP sell more computers than Apple and hence there is a higher probability of customers not happy with he service provided by these companies. Anyway, a quick search on this forum will also tell you that Apple geniuses are by no means angels (sometimes)

Coming to the OS, I have to say that OSX is much better than Win 7. Win 7 is good but it is not OSX. But you did make a very important point that most people around you use Macs....In such a scenario, it might be better for you to use Win 7. This will ensure that you can communicate' with the Win users without any hassle. Win 7 on my brother's Dell XPS works flawlessly and has not crashed/froze once...despite the fact that he does pretty intensive development on it...So MAYBE, Win 7 has improved for the good and if you are for it, Win 7 on a Mac might cut out for you.

Most people I know use Macs for a reason and that is creative work is so much more natural on a Mac. If you are in the creative field of music/films, working on a Mac will feel very natural. Hence the reason why most people are ready to pay the premiums associated with a Mac. You also get an added advantage of not having any virus on the Internet for your Mac (till date)

But if you are into plain document processing, mail etc...Win 7 makes more sense. Win 7 is more than capable of handling this and you must know that Microsoft Office is the standard productivity tool for most corporates/business schools today (Office 2008 for Mac is not as accomplished as its Win counterparts).

At this point, if you are still not convinced about either, then I suspect you have already succumbed to Apple's shiny, beautiful toys! Go ahead and buy that Mac...If the case arises, you can run Windows on it anyway...:)

All the best with your purchase....If you are not ready to wait for the update, you can also look at the refurbished store for some good deals.

Peace.
 
I agree with some of the responses here. Specifically the gaming responses; if you want to game, get a PC, or Windows laptop.

Don't get hung up on the whole "PC/Laptop X has better specs than the MB/MBP, and it's cheaper, so it's better" rant. 9 out of 10 people using the latest/greatest chipsets will never, EVER utilize them to their fullest potential. They all think they will, but rarely ever do.

Also, you need to look at the life span of the unit you're buying. Most Mac's will outlast their PC counterpoints 2 fold, and sometimes longer, depending on their use. If you're doing some average web browsing, email, word processing, etc. and mid-level photo/video stuff, a decent MB/MBP will last you a good 4 years easily. And at the end of that 4 years, it'll actually be worth something, and you can sell it. I've had a white MB with 4GB of RAM, and 160GB, and use it daily as my work system, and support IT systems for a living. It's 3 years old, and hasn't had a single slow down, or re-install of anything. I checked online, and it's still worth $700 +/-, so I could easily sell it, and buy a new one for the difference, and get another 3 plus years out of a new one, or more...

Don't chase the latest/greatest. Get what you need, and be happy. The minute you buy it, even a PC/Laptop, it'll be outdated within 6 months. Like I said, most folks don't need as much power as they think they do...

My 2 Cents
 
hi thanks !
yeh well, you did kinda make me like win7 better again, haha
lets just say that i love how PCs look, not all ofcourse, i like the M11x but its really fat, or is it just me? - Mac only has 4 kinds, kinda boring. Then i like Windows 7 better than OSX, although OSX looks really good.

i just really lost faith in PC, hardware wise, i had a laptop whiche lasted 4 houres and after 4 months only 1.5 houres and my other desktop just died after 2 years in use: Not very good experience since :)

but i think if you guys could advice me a really good, steady, long battery life yet powerfull laptop, that doesnt go over 850 euro`s, then yes, i think i`ll go for Win7, if not i`ll buy a Mac and use Win7 on the Mac ;) which is very tempting too !
 
I'm more of PC guy and it just happened that I got handed a Mac and I'm working with it everyday now. Honestly after you get passed the discovery period of OSX, it just becomes another computer. I can now seamlessly go from OSX to Win 7 and I don't really favor any of the two since I don't have any issues with either. I still think I can get things done faster in Windows though.

If I was to buy a Mac it would be only one of the cheapest ones, the Macbook Pro 15 and 17 are too overpriced in my opinion... it's true they keep their value a lot better though, but since I consider myself computer literate I would feel totally ripped off paying so much for the hardware. I find it difficult to justify spending so much, when you can get a good quality Windows PC with a core i5 for so cheap now. Maybe after the upgrade the Macbook Pros will regain some of their real world value.

Honestly if you are studying, I think you have better things to do than learn a new OS. OSX takes time to get used to and at the beginning you will be lost. It will take time to get really comfy with it if you have been using Windows for years. You will have to discover new ways of handling files and new software.
 
alright, so

can anyone tell me when this update of Mac will be ?
i stil dont know which one to pick tho
 
Macveld said:
alright, so

can anyone tell me when this update of Mac will be ?
Click to expand...

unfortunately don't know

but if you came across this information, please pass it on. I have been waiting for a new MBP for the last 4 months

Anyway, as one previous poster told, both mac and windows are good in their own respect. I use a mac at home for all my entertainment stuff, but as soon as i enter my office, it is all windows. MS office itself is a good enough reason to stick with windows as the mac ones i find pretty damn slow and limited.
 
Remember that when buying a mac you are paying not only for a quality build laptop, but also a great OS. OSX is much more stable than windows
 
Macveld said:
hi thanks !
yeh well, you did kinda make me like win7 better again, haha
lets just say that i love how PCs look, not all of course, i like the M11x but its really fat, or is it just me? - Mac only has 4 kinds, kinda boring. Then i like Windows 7 better than OSX, although OSX looks really good.

i just really lost faith in PC, hardware wise, i had a laptop which lasted 4 hours and after 4 months only 1.5 hours and my other desktop just died after 2 years in use: Not very good experience since :)

but i think if you guys could advice me a really good, steady, long battery life yet powerful laptop, that doesn't go over 850 euro`s, then yes, i think i`ll go for Win7, if not i`ll buy a Mac and use Win7 on the Mac ;) which is very tempting too !
Click to expand...

i am going to totally admit in full that this will sound biased, and it probably will be, but this is literally all of personal experience. and being a comp sci major, i thought i would need to have a PC for the programming languages but now i still rather just boot camp them.

first off, not to sound like a harpy, but if your at a university you honestly shouldn't spend any time playing games. that's lame as hell, no offense, and you wont do as well in school, but if you must, i still wouldnt go with a pc i bought a gaming pc monster 2 years ago and its already dead, laptops just cant handle the heat that the thing generates, i had external fans and everything. there is alot of problems with the structure of gaming pc's that only seem minor until they work against you

gaming aside if your at a university then having a mac is by far the better choice, PC battery life is 3-5 hours tops(with the specs that your looking for), not lasting that long of course(basically idle) so realistically lasting 1-2 hours, you cant even sit through a class with the thing dying. also mac books idle feature is extremely good, you shut the lid all your work is still there and it wastes barely any battery life, when you close the lid on a PC, even the ones that boast about there battery life, your work dies with your battery dying, and they don't idle the same way, you idle on a mac for like 2 hours maybe 3% battery life is lost, and a PC the whole battery life is gone, start it up 10%, its tragic really.

weight is also a factor, the largest mac book is like 6 or 7lbs, which is on the heavy side, a gaming laptop will be around 8-11lbs, that's going with a decent size screen. the case of a mac is very sturdy and nothing really ever breaks on the uni body, but a pc gets damage very quickly when moving around, the plastic pulls apart, lids get scratched to hell, alot to thing about when being on the go.

next PC track pads suck, you will need to buy or lug around a mouse with you every step of the way to not be constantly frustrated, macs track pad is sleek, it works like magic, only if you play games you might need one,so keep one in your dorm, but when your on the go its not a necessity.

now operating system, for school i was so frustrated with Vista i wiped it and ran unbuntu, this met my needs and really was a great OS for school, except that hardware and ubuntu don't like each other, there's always a compatibility issue, but all in all i really don't see the appeal in windows, i have a win7 laptop right now and i don't see much change, other than being able to drag your windows to re size, it barely runs faster, Win XP won as the better windows operating system still, even with win7 out.

like i said before, all from experience, if you ask somebody whats wrong with your PC, they will say something, "i hate the mouse pad" or "i get NO battery life", if you ask a mac user the same thing, 9 times out of 10 they will say what are you talking about my mac is great. plus hot chicks use macs, its a fact :p
 
But the game he wants to play CSS is older

I have a MacBook and love it!

My primary use is programming but I do some light gaming. I noticed the game you want to play css is older, the specks ate here: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-Strike:_Source?wasRedirected=true there is a Mac version too. Using bootcamp or vmware will get you far. Plus for $900 the Mac Book is a deal. Is it the best hardware you can buy for that price? No but apple has never been the price leader, it is more about value. For me it's the entire apple system features like the trackpad, time machine, spaces, dock, etc. The apple system is elegant and hardware that is good enough to get all my work done. My recommendation is a MacBook with upgraded ram and vmware then you can have your cake and eat it too.
 
You can play CSS on a Macbook. So now there is absolutely no reason why you should get a PC. I will never recommend a PC to anyone again after converting to OSX.
My PC friends have an routinely reinstall Windows and start from scratch just to have a clean computer again. There is constant maintenance that must be done to keep your PC running smoothly. It took me about a year after switching to OSX to realize that I was doing nothing to my Mac and that it was always performing well. It saves me some wrinkles and years of my life. Just get the Macbook dammit! :)
 
haha, guys,
thank you so much for the many responses ansd the time you v put into writing something!

im pleased to tell you that i will buy a Macbook, upgraded to 4 gig ram, soon.
i will buy it in Hong Kong, its way cheaper there.

I heard yesterday that our 2 computers, PC, died, AGAIN, so that really confirms what al you guys say. Iv also decided that i will buy an Imac for my parents so that they dont have anymore furstrations either with the computers, just to much trouble.

i just want a computer that runs and boots up quick and does what i ask him to! Not to wait and get frustrated!

So thank you guys, you ve succesfully converted me,

Mathew,
From The Netherlands

PS: On the Gaming thing, its just an hour thing, like 2-4 houres a week nomore, ofcourse University goes first, then family and friends, but a bit of gaming to relax, noything wrong with that ! ;)
thanks for the advice tho
 
I am sure you can get lots of info, but if you have the money...buy a mac.
I mean less headaches, wireless bluetooth capabilities.

with ease of effort, and yes you can install windows on macs.
best of both worlds.

So, long story short....buy a macbook. They are expensive, but you can get good deals on ebay, or refurbished ones on apple.com.

But overall, it's worth it.
 
First of all I think you are misinformed.


- Pc is cheaper TRUE
- Windows 7 is a huge upgrade compared to Vista FALSE
- More people uses PC/Windows from where i`m around, i dont know any macbook users, although in the school im in everybody uses Macbook ( im on a 6 month school in Australia and i`m from Europe )
- Powerpoint way easier then keynote FALSE
- Gaming is easy TRUE
- Lot of software is made for windows and is complicated to run on a Mac depends...

then why am i considering a macbook?
- Battery life is the main reason! You can get PCs with 8 hour batteries
- Very smooth Sure
- Faster No, not at first, but 6 months down the line it will be faster
- doesnt get stuck - freezes - as often as Windows TRUE
- works longer TRUE (This should be your main reason)
- good investment TRUE
 
hi,

i dont agree on what you say, a PC does go for 8 houres - some - but in long term - first couple of months - it will go to 4-3 houres and after 6 months its 1.5, for example, point is, Macbook lasts longer in any way.

thank you :)
 
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