MAC users....compare Mac's to PC's!

[my3kids]

Okay, getting fed up wit my windows laptop. Got some sort of 'issue' that I can't get rid of. So thinking about a MAC since I think I read here they really aren't affected by things like PC's. Has anyone switched and hated it? Have you gone back to PC's? Tell all! I would probably want a laptop, but that isn't a deal breaker.

 

[hsmamato2]

I "lost' my pc last fall to a virus,and I mean LOST... it was awful- my Mom gave me her older imac- I updated it to ver.0s10.3(the newest ver. is 10.9 or something) anyway, even with this "old" software,I'm HOOKED!
Macs are what all the devotees say they are, the systems just more integrated, and everything in in it works smoothly- for instance, I don't have to install anything, the mac just reads it and starts using things,cameras,printers,etc.
My pc, seems like a clunker in comparison! I had it repaired, and the kids use it now,it's got new hard drive, ton of memory, but I wouldn't trade my old/new mac in for anything! There's just a smoothness of use with it that I didn't find in my (much newer) pc- A NEW Mac? well, that's got to be GREAT!
hope this helps...I never thought I'd become an apple geek!

 

[mainewmn]

I am a PC queen and I doubt I ever convert but DS just brought a new MacBook Pro and loves it! His desktop cost him $2,000 last year and his new laptop cost him $2800 so both wore pretty pricy. He was offered $1000 cash for his desktop but he says he can’t live without either one.

 

[my3kids]

I can generally "fix" my PC issues just because I know how the PC works. Will I be able to figure out MACs or are they so good they don't need fixing??

Wow...they are a lot more than PCs, aren't they?

 

[disneysteve]

I can't resist jumping into this one, though I don't have much time right now.

I'm typing this post on a Toshiba Satellite laptop that I must say I'm very happy with, but my heart lies with the 17" widescreen iMac sitting on my desk at home. We also have 2 older Mac desktops and an Apple Powerbook laptop. This is our first PC.

Macs are just better all around. The reason they are better is the same reason they are more expensive and less popular. Apple has maintained a high level of control over hardware and accessories. There were off-brand Apple compatible computers briefly, but other than that it has been all Apple hardware. When you are running a PC with components and peripherals made by a dozen or more different companies, some compatibility issues are inevitable.

Macs are rarely affected by viruses. They have a more stable architecture. Plus, since they are less popular, they aren't targeted much by those spreading viruses. On my PC, I have to run antivirus scans every few days. I don't even own antivirus software for my Mac.

On newer Macs, if a program crashes, which doesn't happen often but it does happen, it doesn't take down the whole system. You can just force quit out of that program and go on with what you were doing.

Most "innovations" in Windows operating system have been things that Mac has had for years. Since 1984, Microsoft has been playing catch up to Apple and they haven't caught up yet.

 

[mainewmn]

I don’t know if they are more expensive then a PC if compared apples to apples, what DS got is top of the line and he beefed it up. http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/

 

[disneysteve]

I don’t know if they are more expensive then a PC if compared apples to apples

Possibly true, but very hard to compare because chip speeds are not equivalent. The fastest Mac is WAY faster than the fastest PC, but the numbers don't match up the same way. I'm sure there is some way to compare accurately.

 

[my3kids]

I think you all have sold me on ditching this laptop in favor of a MAC. I think I'll check out the university bookstore today!

to this one!

 

[mickman1962]

Possibly true, but very hard to compare because chip speeds are not equivalent. The fastest Mac is WAY faster than the fastest PC, but the numbers don't match up the same way. I'm sure there is some way to compare accurately.

First off I have no problems with Macs (I prefer PC's strictly from a gaming standpoint).The only time Macs have been proven to be faster is when Apple does the testing and everytime Apple gets debunked on their testing methodology. Also with the Mac switching to the Intel platform, a lot of software is not being written to take advantage of the added speed. Quite a few companies plan to run under emulation for another 1 1/2 years (Adobe being one of these) so these apps will be slower then running on a PC (no matter what Mac's marketing dept. is saying, if you add an emulation, you decrease speed). To buy a Mac just because you are having trouble with your PC is shortsighted. I've been in the PC/Mac repair business for over 20 years and believe me Mac's have their problem (probably at a slightly lower percentage compared to user base, I don't often hear people complain about their Ferraris either). I would highly recommend figuring out what software you will want/need to run and then buy the appropriate hardware, either Mac or PC.

 

[tabrizia]

Honestly I love my Mac. That being said I love my Windows PC and my Linux Desktop as well. Every operating system/computer has positives and negatives. I will never go pure Mac since I need a good gaming system and honestly Mac just isn't there, it tends to get games 6 to 12 months behind PCs and it tends to lack some of the ones I enjoy.

That being said, for a surfing machine/work type machine I love my Mac, Office for mac is actually better then window's verision. My mac is easy to matain, if something crashes I rarily need to reboot. When I replace this machine I will likely upgrade it to a mac as well since it is mainly a surfing machine/work machine and Macs have everything needed to do general tasks. That being said I have had to send my Mac in for service, I ended up with hardware going bad/being bad and sent it in. It took them under a week to send it to the service department, replace the broken piece and send it back. So it was great service and took little time. I can't really compare it to fixing a PC though since I would end up doing that at home (which means it would probably take more then a week till I got around to it ). Overall, I am extremely impressed with my powerbook and really enjoy it and will definately continue to buy macs in the future, though I will also continue to build PCs.

As far as viruses go, yes it is true there are less viruses for Macs, but part of that is because there are less Macs so in general the virus makers don't focus on a minor market and focus on PCs. So while viruses are rare they are out there, and Macs are not more secure then PCs persay other then the fact they don't have the majority of the market share.

 

[Jen D]

Problems can come with any machine, and as a Mac owner for almost 15 years I have had my share of them although things have been smoother since OS X came into the picture.

I have mostly used PCs at work and Macs at home and I love the Mac for the elegance of its OS and ease of use.

Price-wise they are more, but be sure to check out the Mac minis, if you don't need to replace your monitor. It's a low-cost way to go. Although the iMac is a thing of beauty.

I noticed you said you'd be looking at the university bookstore- I'm pretty sure Apple has student and educator discounts so be sure to look into those.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I've used both, and have been seriously fed up with every MAC I've ever used. I MUCH prefer PC's! IMHO, MAC's tend to have little quirks that really annoy me. I haven't used the super new ones, so maybe they are better, but I've usually found the PC's to be more to my liking.

 

[my3kids]

The surfing/office work comment was exactly what I need. I don't play computer games so no need for anything fancy in that area. Kids type papers and do school projects with clip art. I use if for my digital camera, word processing for PTA stuff....general stay at home mom kinds of things. My current laptop is probably pretty old by computer standards....maybe 4 years or so. How long are computers supposed to last before they are on their last legs? This one is very slow and lately has been only erratically working.

 

[disneysteve]

How long are computers supposed to last before they are on their last legs?

I think 4-5 years is generally considered the average useful life of a system. After that, it generally needs significant upgrading or replacing.

 

[princessjv]

I love my IMAC! It is the best computer that I have ever used. When I worked outside of the home, I always had PC's. Nothing wrong with all of those PC's, but once you turn on a new MAC, there is just no going back. From the very first plug in and turn on, you will see why! I will never forget it, it basically told me 'hello' and then step by step what to do. WOW! I will say that if you are currently using a PC, there will be a bit of an adjustment, but it goes quick. To make the transistion smoother for me, we bought Microsoft Office.

I know MAC's are much easier for children (and computer illiterate grown ups) to use and that is why it is the #1 choice for schools.

Hey, rumor has it, Apple wants to buy Disney... hmmm

One more thing I thought of...We bought my IMAC 4 years ago. To date my computer is just as fast or faster than many out on the market, plus it has all of the bells bows and whistles that I need.

 

[mickman1962]

I know MAC's are much easier for children (and computer illiterate grown ups) to use and that is why it is the #1 choice for schools.

Actually it was a marketing (something Apple does great) decision to flood the schools with Macs for a very low price. Apple thinking that when it came time for Mom and Pop to buy a computer they would buy what junior was using in school. Dell does the same thing now and has for a few years with very good results. So most schools now are not Mac-centric.

 

[MayMom]

I have a Dell desktop at home, a compaq presario at school, an IBM laptop and a Mac Powerbook laptop. My Mac is my absolute favorite computer.....nothing ever goes wrong, it does things "on its own" (for example, when using an airport card for wireless access the computer finds all the information for me - I just have to turn it on) it NEVER has any problems with any typs of virus, it is just a dream to use....

 

[MayMom]

OP - you may want to look at refurbished Mac laptops on eBay - I had a friend buy one for about $600.00 and it works great! That way you could "try it" before buying a more expensive machine...I think she got a cute little colored iBook....

 

[my3kids]

Okay...really stupid question here....does it come with 'stuff' already loaded? I looked at the specs from the Apple website but it doesn't list any thing other than the internal stuff. I remember when I got this one it said it came with Windows, Works, Outlook Express and all the other Microsoft stuff listed. Does the Mac have all its own equivilents to necessary programs already on? Does it 'talk'(very cool what someone said, btw!) you through setting up the wireless or other network in the house?

 

[my3kids]

Never mind. I finally found the page of what every Mac has included!