Mac or PC???

[cyberbox2]

I'm a computer engineer (small network integrator) and P.C.'s are all I know at work and at home. But since buying my iPhone and seeing how easy it is to use and then hanging out in the Apple store ALOT more often, I really think I might take the plunge and convert to an iMac 24" they look so sweet and the hardware spec's are pretty impressive.

My only hesitance at this point is all of the software I have on my P.C. that will not run on a MAC, of course I could always run XP in a virtual machine but I'd rather not have to.

It's only a matter of time though

 

[lucysdad]

I've been using Macs since they first came out, both professionally and personally. They are much easier to use in many ways, i.e., it is much easier to install software and fonts. Everything is basically drag and drop which is very nice. I love everything about Macs except a lack of software choices in the gaming department. That being said, I won a Compaq laptop at work last year and it is way superior to any Mac I've ever owned for one thing, and that is surfing the net. The PC seemlessly and smoothly plays all the streaming video from mlb.com and cnn.com, etc. My desktop Mac, no matter what I do to tweak it, plays these videos very slowly and with lots of stoppage and interuptions. Also, the keyboards on many PC laptops are superior to the Mac laptops, whose keyboards just feel flimsy and too small. So, as much as I love my Macs, I love my Compaq PC lap as well. One of each is the way to go

 

[OKW Lover]

I use both. At the office where they pay me to use one, I have a PC. At home where I get to chose what to spend my money on, I have a Mac. Does that tell you anything?

Mac's are much easier/simpler to set-up and use.

 

[dpuck1998]

I'm a computer engineer (small network integrator) and P.C.'s are all I know at work and at home. But since buying my iPhone and seeing how easy it is to use and then hanging out in the Apple store ALOT more often, I really think I might take the plunge and convert to an iMac 24" they look so sweet and the hardware spec's are pretty impressive.

My only hesitance at this point is all of the software I have on my P.C. that will not run on a MAC, of course I could always run XP in a virtual machine but I'd rather not have to.

It's only a matter of time though

Get VM Fusion, you'll love it. I run XP, Vista and Ubuntu on my mac...that I'm on right now...17" Mac Book Pro...lots of RAM...4 gig...needed for VM..

 

[alexb]

Mac, Mac, Mac.

At work I have both and at home we have both. At home one of the Macs is an eMac we bought 8 years ago and it is stable and we have updated the OS up to the version prior to the current OS. There has been no performance degradation like we've experienced on our 2nd PC during the same time. Once the home PC dies we'll go all Mac.

The other thing to consider is what are you going to do? If you are going to browse the Web, use iPhoto, iTunes then Mac is the way to go. It's easier to use, generally speaking you don't have to load drivers if you add peripherals, I think the appropriate term is that it is very much a "plug and play" machine.

If money is an object and you are comfortable doing so, go to Apple's website and scroll down to the very bottom of the Store page and look at their refurbished machines. They come with the same 1 year warranty as a new Mac and you can buy and extended 3 year warranty. One of the down sides is that you can't configure the Mac.

 

[CelticBelle]

Ok so ive decided to go with a macbook. im going to have to take a student computer loan, so money at this moment in time isnt an issue. I can either upgrade from my pc and switch to a mac now or wait until next january...im choosing now. You guys all got me very excited about this.

Ok so now my main question is details. what recommendations do you guys have for the specs. also black or white? i heard some concerns over this earlier.

Do I have to buy office for the mac or can I use microsoft office 2003 that I currently have? I also have xp, so is it possible to install that and use my office on windows in the mean time if I have to save up for the mac version of office?

Sorry for the questions! but now im really excited!

 

[trivial]

Regarding Office and Windows, you can only use a Windows version of Office with Windows. You'll be able to install and boot Windows on your Mac, however.

 

[goofeyken]

Celtic, max the ram out at 2 gigs and you'll have a machine you will love. I love mine, at home I plug it into a 23" widescreen monitor. It is a blessing to not have to deal with viruses or spyware anymore. Really a great product.

 

[CelticBelle]

Celtic, max the ram out at 2 gigs and you'll have a machine you will love. I love mine, at home I plug it into a 23" widescreen monitor. It is a blessing to not have to deal with viruses or spyware anymore. Really a great product.

Now the ram goes up to 4 gigs. Is it worth the money to upgrade it, or is 2 plenty. i think the upgrade is $200

 

[ghost1000]

Well the three models are broken down to the cheap one and the other two - the top two are basically the same specs except the "Blackbook" has a 250GB hd standard. The "cheap one" does not have a DVD burner and has a smaller stock HD and Memory (which you can upgrade yourself easily).

I would reccommend the middle priced one - since it has a DVD burner. That, the faster processor, bigger disk, and more stock memory are well worth the $200, but the price difference for the black one doesn't justify the hardware differences (unless you really really like black).

The one thing not to do is pay for the Apple branded memory upgrades - you can regularly buy 4 Gig for $60, but that is an upgrade you can do later since the 2 Gig will be plenty for 99.9% of applications.

As far as office another option I just thought of - they did just upgrade to office 2008 - so a lot of people are upgrading and selling the older version cheap on ebay (many are going for less than $70 and they will probably continue to decrease). I upgraded and don't see much difference other than looks.

 

[macman752]

Ok so ive decided to go with a macbook. im going to have to take a student computer loan, so money at this moment in time isnt an issue. I can either upgrade from my pc and switch to a mac now or wait until next january...im choosing now. You guys all got me very excited about this.

Ok so now my main question is details. what recommendations do you guys have for the specs. also black or white? i heard some concerns over this earlier.

Do I have to buy office for the mac or can I use microsoft office 2003 that I currently have? I also have xp, so is it possible to install that and use my office on windows in the mean time if I have to save up for the mac version of office?

Sorry for the questions! but now im really excited!

Before you buy Office check with your school to see if they have made arrangements with Microsoft to offer student discounts on software. When our son was in college he was able to buy the full Mac version of Office for less than $100.00.

 

[mickeydude]

Definitly go with the MAC. Much more user friendly. Also, they are almost virus free and have less operating system issues.

MAC Pro

Good Luck!!

 

[shmedly123]

looks like i'm gonna be the turd in the punchbowl here but I have to go with the PC. I think the MAC is marketed extremely well, it is "trendy" right now and those commercials make it seem as though if you turn on a pc for more than five minutes and you don't get a virus or the pc doesn't crash then you are lucky. If you use common sense you will be fine.

I have been using pc's for 14 yrs now (my first pc was a packard bell...anyone remember them?) and have never had a serious problem with viruses or crashing. Every company has some issues including apple(anyone who has a gen 1 or 2 ipod can tell you that). The fact is that there is so much competition with pc's that the prices are wayyyy better IMO. It is hard to compare software as depending on the PC brand you can get a ton of bundled software too. I paid $499 for the laptop I am typing this from and I've had it for two years with no issues...

if price were not a factor i would say it is a wash but no matter which you choose, mac or pc, there is a good chance that in five yrs from now it will be time to upgrade it anyway.

 

[simonkodousek]

Congrats on your decision to buy a Mac!

I agree with Ghost; go for the mid-level MacBook. The black one is pretty useless when you think about the low price they charge to upgrade the hard-drive initially with the white MacBook's.

Enjoy your purchase!

 

[simonkodousek]

Apple makes most of its money off the hardware vs. the software, thus the higher prices. The closest you will get to Mac on a PC is a Sony or Dell all-in-one computer, with Windows Vista.

Microsoft makes almost no money off hardware, so they could care less as to which box their operating systems are applied to, just as long as they are used.

Just my opinion...

looks like i'm gonna be the turd in the punchbowl here but I have to go with the PC. I think the MAC is marketed extremely well, it is "trendy" right now and those commercials make it seem as though if you turn on a pc for more than five minutes and you don't get a virus or the pc doesn't crash then you are lucky. If you use common sense you will be fine.

I have been using pc's for 14 yrs now (my first pc was a packard bell...anyone remember them?) and have never had a serious problem with viruses or crashing. Every company has some issues including apple(anyone who has a gen 1 or 2 ipod can tell you that). The fact is that there is so much competition with pc's that the prices are wayyyy better IMO. It is hard to compare software as depending on the PC brand you can get a ton of bundled software too. I paid $499 for the laptop I am typing this from and I've had it for two years with no issues...

if price were not a factor i would say it is a wash but no matter which you choose, mac or pc, there is a good chance that in five yrs from now it will be time to upgrade it anyway.

 

[CelticBelle]

looks like i'm gonna be the turd in the punchbowl here

I havent heard that phrase in a long time!

 

[tinkbutt]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my MAC!!!!!

 

[dpuck1998]

I have been using pc's for 14 yrs now (my first pc was a packard bell...anyone remember them?)

HECK YEA....I HAD A KICK **** PACKARD BELL!!

 

[shmedly123]

HECK YEA....I HAD A KICK **** PACKARD BELL!!

I remember paying $450 for a 8mb ram upgrade back in the day

 

[dpuck1998]

I remember paying $450 for a 8mb ram upgrade back in the day

payed 200 bucks for 1mb to up my IBM 286!