Should I buy a Mac or a PC?

Other Chit-Chat
1

So I’m headed off to college, and I’m going to need a laptop. I wanted to buy a high performance/high end laptop and I was wondering if a Mac or a PC is the way to go.

From most of the people I’ve talked to, I’ve heard that Macs “are the best” and Macs are “so much better” and that Vista is “horrendous” and can’t compare with a Mac. Honestly I think there’s a sort of misconception with this since your less expensive laptops will almost inevitably run Vista, and comparing a low end vista with a Mac that has a 9400 nvidia chipset with ddr3 ram isn’t really comparable.

I haven’t used Vista or Mac enough to be able to get a good feel for which one is better (I’m using XP, which Microsoft is apparently going to stop major support for soon). The price for the hardware is very similar on the laptops (try it yourself).

From what I’ve gathered, Mac is releasing an OS update, Snow Leopard, around early September and Windows 7 will be released in October (i think? :confused: ). I was hoping I could hold out until Windows 7 released, but school starts in September.

So, can anyone give me some good input on which one to buy? I was leaning towards Mac since they’re offering a free itouch. If anyone can give me a comparison between Mac’s current OSX Leopard and the Windows 7 Release Candidate, that would be great! (Plus, if I REALLY wanted to, I could use Mac’s Bootcamp to make a dual boot system as well…)

2

Hm… I really have to disagree with the people who proclaim that Mac is better, at everything, always, ect. ect. ect. I feel like these people have been brainwashed by Apples genius marketing campaign. Macs ARE NOT better than a PC in every way.

It’s well known that a lot of what Apple boasts in its commercials are blatant lies, such as being impenetrable to viruses. They do have some benefits though… Apple is very good at taking complicated software, and dumbing it down to be able to be used by anyone.

Vista… Yes, it IS garbage. Apple has had a couple “crappy” versions aswell, for example when OX X came out, it was slow, buggy and missing essential features like CD burning. What’s worse is that they soon updated to OS 10.1, which was a $129 update.

Windows 7… Rocks, probably one of the best operating systems I have ever used. It is everything Vista promised to be but actually working. It also runs GREAT on a laptop. I don’t know much about the new MAC os though.

3

(puts on his asbestos underpants)

As one of the “brainwashed” (owned 3 Mac laptops, two iPods, an iPhone 3G, and directed the purchase of about six or seven iMacs total), I’ll note that I buy Apple because I like how they work. I won’t venture to say that they’re better than Windows-based PCs in every application, but I feel that they’re the best solution for me.

It’s well known that a lot of what Apple boasts in its commercials are blatant lies…

[citation needed]

…such as being impenetrable to viruses. They do have some benefits though… Apple is very good at taking complicated software, and dumbing it down to be able to be used by anyone.
What you call “dumbing down” I call “making user-friendly”. Do you want all your applications looking like this?

Vista… Yes, it IS garbage. Apple has had a couple “crappy” versions aswell, for example when OX X came out, it was slow, buggy and missing essential features like CD burning. What’s worse is that they soon updated to OS 10.1, which was a $129 update.

Yeah, every major release for Mac OS X has been some $129. They’ve also had every major release count as an improvement–something that few would claim for Microsoft with Vista. (Or, lest we forget, Windows Me.) That said, Snow Leopard should do plenty of useful things on the back end of the OS, letting developers take advantage of things they haven’t been able to get to reliably before, and do so for a measly $29.

Now, if the question is of hardware, I’m of the opinion that you’re not going to find a better deal than a 13" MacBook Pro. The unibody construction is a dream come true–the thing feels rock-solid. The MagSafe connector is exclusive to them, and has saved my butt more times than I care to admit. The new SD card slot on the Pro line should be nice if you’re using gear that also uses SD. I’m still not too keen on having my laptop battery integrated like they’ve started doing, but reports are that the battery life on them is stellar. (And, truth be told, no Apple product has failed me on battery in its lifespan.)

Software is the killer. There may be an instance in school where you absolutely must run Windows. I encountered several, and they’re irritating. You’ll have to evaluate whether it’s worth springing for Windows in some sort of dual-boot or VM setup. (I use VMware Fusion for such applications at work; it’s more than fine for what I do, though I also don’t really push its limits.) You might find that lab access is easy enough that you don’t need it. I can’t claim any experience with Windows 7 (we were XP in college and are XP at work), but I much prefer OS X over any flavor of Windows. You may not.

I’d suggest going to an Apple Store or a Best Buy that carries them and giving it a spin. I love mine, you may think differently after using one for a bit. Ultimately, all my ranting and raving and a dollar will buy you a cup of coffee–it’s your laptop. Choose well.

4

i’ll throw out the laptop im getting for college - a Dell Studio 15

also i remember hearing that someone (bestbuy i think) was offering free windows 7 upgrade coupons for people who purchased computers between june and october - something you might want to look into

5

Seeing as a Mac is a PC, I’m not too sure that this statement makes any sense. Please elaborate.

To rebut this, I will use some actual statistics:

About 71000 Viruses for Windows - 0 for Mac os X (there are total of 579 viruses for the mac, 553 of them are word/excel macro viruses, and all of them are for the older non-os x based system)

All of the “viruses” for Mac OS X have been “proof of concept” devices, and have never been spread to more than 50 computers.

Have fun using another 300-700MB of RAM running your anti-virus app!

With regard to the “dumbing it down” comment - I would like to add that all of the BUILT-IN software provided on your mac is simple enough for ANYONE to use it (not just the snappy-minded people - have you ever TRIED to use Windows Movie Maker? Is it even possible to put text over video?) Regardless, at least a Mac comes WITH some software, as opposed to Windows, which comes with Solitare, Minesweeper, Calculator (ooh fun!), and Windows Movie Maker (the worst video editing software… ever.) Your mac will come with fun and useful things, like, Photo Booth, iChat, Chess, iTunes (runs best on a mac ya know :wink: ) Dashboard, etc… And MANY awesome utilities like Time Machine (automatic subversioning and backup), iCal, Grapher, and a bunch of Unix tools (part of that whole no-virus thing :wink: )

Hmm… I’m not too sure how strongly I feel about my OPERATING SYSTEM using a gig of my RAM…

In all honesty, t41w4ne5ef0b, I have used the Windows 7 beta and RC - It’s just as bad as Vista, and in many ways, worse. It uses more RAM, has many of the same driver issues, has locked up on me numerous times, and things just… Fail to work! Applications, hardware, it’s a disaster. IF you decide to go with a Windows-based laptop (I hate to call them PCs… All computers are PCs) please use Windows XP, SP2 (SP3 is garbage, and breaks way more things than it fixes. In my opinion, SP3 is a ploy to get you to upgrade to Vista after your machine stops working from the broken update.)

:stuck_out_tongue:

6

Just curious: Who ever said you have to use Vista or even 7? XP still works great for me even on newer computers, and until Windows 7 can start using less memory and stop freezing up on me, I’m sticking to XP.

One thing these guys kinda failed to ask, what applications are you most likely going to be running?

(This is why getting a laptop from the college for free is just so much cooler sometimes :rolleyes: )

7

Apparently Windows will stop major support for XP (something along those lines) around the time of Vista’s release, so it’s still usable

I have noooo clue, but when I visited the college, there were a number of Macs in use, so I’m willing to bet that most applications used there are Mac and Windows compatable

As for the windows 7 upgrade coupon, those start June 26 (yay really soon) or it’s said to start around that time. http://www.pcworld.com/article/166563/windows_7_upgrade_starts_soon.html?tk=rss_news

I’m pretty sure both Windows and Mac have “white lies” to some extent in their computers. Mac exaggerates the problems of PC (I’m assuming), and I know theres a comparison issue with Windows. (I recall in one commercial, a lady was like, “This is the best mac available, and it only has 2 GB of RAM” then her face is like :confused: But that’s probably because it was DDR3 RAM instead, but she got a free laptop so I wouldn’t complain if I was her.

I think it’s good that they “dumbed it down” because that allows for a much easier switch from a Windows system to a Mac. I’ve used the one click mouse, and because I’m so used to using Windows and the left and right click, it feels funny. And I’m pretty sure Windows XP has the rollback option (analogous to the Time Machine on Mac?) but I’m not sure if that’s on Vista. I agree that WMM is really bad too.

Apple seems to know what it’s doing now. I remember using the old old old Macs, and despising it because it was just so strange (basically un-windows like). I mean, the iPhone is RIDICULOUSLY hyped and just about everyone wants one, but with good reason because it’s fun and easy to use with a bunch of downloadable apps and what not. I’m pretty sure that if Vista wasn’t so bad and that the iPod and the iPhone (whoah they aren’t considered misspelled) Apple wouldn’t have as much attention and I wouldn’t even be considering this.

Lucky you :T that would make my life so much easier.:frowning:

8

Wow, how about titling the thread Flame War Here?

I recently bought a computer for school and it runs vista. If you are smart (run anti-virus, don’t go to virus prone websites, only download programs you trust, etc.) you will be fine. I have yet to have my computer crash.

Macs to me are too much money for what you get. Most time you can get a PC for hundreds less with same memory and hard drive space. It was stated earlier that one person uses XP at work. 98% of businesses use windows, I would think you want to have a background with the OS you would use in work. Macs have their place, they are better for media, but I don’t think that is best for a college environment.

Last thing I [strike]want[/strike] need to say is get the computer that fits you. If you want to have music and videos then choose a mac. If you want an industry standard then choose a PC. This is your computer, don’t forget that.

9

most applications are either made for windows, or made for mac and windows, so a mac with bootcamp or windows would be fine. It comes down to whether you want to play some more $ for the mac interface. Or, if you want flashy features on a windows laptop, you could always dual boot something like ubuntu.

10

Can we not do this again.

I’m a Windows user. I have Vista and XP machines. I hate Vista but still use it because my customers do and I need to be familiar with the OS. I have never had problems with viruses on either operating system because I don’t do dumb things.

Macs are great. They are simple to use. Hard to go wrong with them. Yes they are overpriced if you are looking for a cheep computer but when you get to the higher end stuff not so much. Their support is great if you have a Mac store in your town but I have heard numerous horror stories about their phone support (but that’s not any different than most most PC companies.)

But that plain fact is this is a Windows world. That’s why I hate to recommend Macs to students. It good experience to get used to what you are going to use in the work world (including the pain.) Having said that you can’t go wrong buying a Mac.

See how simple the choice is?

11

It’s not necessarily up to just what you prefer; there are little things that will make your life easy or incredibly frustrating.

Some things to verify:

Where you’re going, are they friendly to both Macs and PCs? If they don’t support Macs when connecting to basic network stuff, you really don’t want one. If they do support/allow Macs, do they REALLY support them, or do they just say they do?

Do they offer any free software to students? They offered a free copy of Windows XP to all students where I go. This is useful either way; if you hate Vista, you’ve got something to tide you through until 7; if you want to dual-boot, you’ve got something to install. However, I think this is more of a boon to Mac users, who, if they absolutely need to run a Windows program, can do it. Living with Vista would be far easier, even if you hated it.

Are you open to the idea of Linux? I have many friends who run Ubuntu exclusively, or dual-boot for Windows apps. Linux has advantages and disadvantages compared to Windows and OS X, but I know that, for example, it happens to play nicer with our VPN than either Windows or OS X.

Consider that the most valuable resource is time. How often is a class going to require you to use proprietary software that will only run under Windows? If the majority of work is going to be Windows-only, what’s the point of having a Mac? You don’t want to be running Parallels/VMware ALL the time, or dual-booting every 5 minutes. On the other hand, if you need to do what I do, which is reboot once a week or so for SolidWorks or the occasional game, it’s not so bad. Effectively, what is your major?

In terms of daily-life applications, I actually think there are more of these available for the Mac. Windows VNC and (good) FTP clients are frustrating to find and download. RAR is usually in the form of WinRAR, which is shareware. iTunes runs better on Macs, as does QuickTime Player, which, with a few extra CODECs (Perian, Xvid and DivX), can play a multitude of formats, up to the point where I don’t open VLC anymore. I find the Mail e-mail client to be far superior to web-based interfaces. Safari on a Mac is a much nicer experience than Firefox.

Construction-wise, I’ve heard horror stories on both sides. One of my friends had her MBP overheat and melt. Another had a Dell, and it kept slowing down, which he eventually discovered to be an improperly attached heatsink.

I wish there was a simple, inexpensive way for you to try both for some time before deciding, because it would probably become very apparent which one was right for the way you work. I’ve always been a Mac guy, but I can’t recommend them to all people.

12

Whatever fits YOU best.

Neither one is superior to the other. My roommate this past year at school is a CGT major (Computer Graphics Technology) and used a Vista PC to do ALL of his projects and never once had a problem. Likewise, a kid down the hall from me always ran into compatibility issues with some programs he used for class so he had to use a computer lab. But he always ranted and raved about the interface of the OS and how he loved it. Granted Vista had its cons at the beginning, I havent had immense issues with it recently.

Like Akash said, nobody says you have to use Vista. If you are use to XP, get XP on it. From my limited experience with Windows 7 thus far, I think it may be a good mix between Vista and XP so you may look into that down the road.

But, like I said at the beginning, pick the one that fits YOU best, not the one that can trash talk the other best. IN the end, YOU will be the one using it so YOU know what you want it to do/perform like. I would suggest trying to borrow a friends PC and MAC for a night, do the exact same thing on both, and see which you prefer.

13

I’ve used a Mac for 5 years now. Personally, they’re not perfect machines, but I’ve been much less frustrated with machine problems overall as compared to Windows XP. The idea that it’s a miracle machine that “just works” is dumb, but I’ve personally not had more than a handful of frustrating bugs and problems with it.

I’d say get a Mac if you can afford it and dual boot. Best of both and all that.

14

The real question should be - What is your major and what programs / applications do you envision using your potential computer for?

Macs are said to be better for graphics applications, I personally don’t think this is the case as you can get any Adobe product on a Windows machine as well. If you can work photoshop in Windows you can easily do it on a Mac.

The only reason I would buy an Apple computer is for Final Cut Pro. It’s a great piece of video editing software. However, Adobe Premiere will work just as well.

I’ve gotten a lot more bang for my buck by purchasing a Dell Studio 15" laptop last Christmas. It was several hundred dollars less than buying an ‘equal’ laptop with the same specs from Apple. Absolutely no problems with viruses and whatever else the mac fanboys above stated.

I’ll echo what mostly everyone else has said - Do your research and find what fits you. If you come back with some computers, specs, etc. to this thread, I’m sure people could comment to better help you choose.

15

If you do buy a Windows based laptop my recommendation is that you take the time to clean it of all the bloatware the tends to come loaded with pre-built machines. I’ve had zero problems with either my desktop or laptop as I built the desktop (no bloatware) and I cleaned my laptop when I got it. However I’ve had tons of problems with stock machines before, which leads me to believe the majority of problems are caused by the programs the computer company loads onto the computer, not Windows.

16

I’m dual booting 7 and OSX off of my new MBP 13". Find a machine for the same price and specs, you can’t (2.56ghz stock one.) I can run Autocad and Inventor great and fast and boot into OSX for everything else (including webmaster for my fraternity’s site, graphic work, to answering emails.) It’s thinner than any other machine I’v seen, solid built like crazy, and beautiful. You can’t go wrong with it.

As for Chief Pride, yeah, that’s good for you. Irrational posts don’t deserve rational responses.

17

I was going to stay out of this, but…

If you’re going to dual boot, I would go with a windows machine. If you buy a mac, then add on a windows OS, you stuck with one of mac users’ biggest downfalls- a total inability to upgrade your hardware. Additionally, you can find the same mac specs on a PC for buttloads cheaper. The only advantage to buying mac in this case would be that you get the sleeker design.

Finally, I thought I would add a plug for windows 7. It’s awesome. The main point of this, though, was to inform you that starting around June 26th, those who buy a PC with Vista will be eligible for a significantly discounted Win7 upgrade. Current estimates are around $10 to upgrade. It is also good to note that Win7 currently looks to be far cheaper than vista all around, with prices around $75-$100 depending which of the three versions you are buying.

18

I suppose the expansion slots on the Mac Pro don’t count. I suppose the fact that we’re discussing laptops is also moot–Mac or PC, hardly anybody does upgrades to a laptop beyond perhaps RAM or a hard drive. Also note that Apple’s EULA for Mac OS X only allows it to run on Apple-branded hardware.

Additionally, you can find the same mac specs on a PC for buttloads cheaper. The only advantage to buying mac in this case would be that you get the sleeker design.

Wanna bet? A Dell Latitude E6500 with education discounts actually costs MORE than a 15" MacBook Pro with similar equipment and discounts ($1633.08 vs. $1599). The price gap has closed for most scenarios short of “What’s the cheapest computer a manufacturer makes?”

19

I guess if you want a $300 mac netbook, you get an iphone? too bad it involves paying ATT every month…

20

Or a Dell Mini 9