Mac vs PC for a new laptop

[Rat407]

Just looking at upgrading from our old Dell laptop to a new one. What are the pros and cons?

The only issue I see so far is that Quicken doesn't work well on Mac. Other than that no other programs we use will be an issue.

Thanks

 

[NJ_Car_Owner]

They do the same, it just is what you like better. People who are into photography and art tend to go MAC. Business oriented people tend to go Windows. My son who attended college for Accounting said MAC versions of programs tended not to be the same as Windows. He owns both a MAC and Windows machine ... does different things on both. If you are into photography and am thinking MAC - no need to these days as Windows 10 seems to be pretty stable and basically has most programs that can do the same thing in about th same time.

 

[Donald]

For the same features and performance, a Mac is more expensive.

I think it comes down to what your comfortable with, what you have at work, what people have who you help or help you.

I prefer a PC.

 

[Alfred_B]

I prefer the hardware of Apple but the functionality of Windows. Given all the factors, I would probably select a Mac if I were to choose one.

 

[Kuato]

Originally Posted By: Donald
For the same features and performance, a Mac is more expensive.

I think it comes down to what your comfortable with, what you have at work, what people have who you help or help you.

I prefer a PC.


Not by much though; when I looked at a MAC two years ago my first thought was "wow that's expensive". But when I went and built a Dell and HP online with the same hardware, all 3 were within $50-$100 of each other.

I always had a PC....now I will never go back. With the MAC, things just work. Plug in a printer, no need to load drivers or mess with settings. Same with every other accessory I have used - it just works. You still have the option to go mess with settings if you really want to, but it's not necessary to do so. PCs I have used since I got my MAC have seeemed clunky in comparison.

Add to it the fact it is linux based and doesn't generally need antivirus software and it was an easy choice for me to pay the small premium at initial purchase.

Edit: the interface on the MAC is different than the PC and takes a little getting used to; but once you learn it it's intuitive and flows much easier than a PC. Anything I've needed to figure out has been a 20-second Google search away as there are numerous sources for demos etc.

 

[Cujet]

I'm a PC guy, my boss a MAC guy. We have similar work requirements for aviation based apps and dataloading. The PC is trouble free, the MAC is far more difficult to deal with due to the many "work arounds" required. In the end, he has to run a virtual machine on his MAC to get the job done.

I see no advantage to the MAC.

 

[Kuato]

Originally Posted By: Cujet
I'm a PC guy, my boss a MAC guy. We have similar work requirements for aviation based apps and dataloading. The PC is trouble free, the MAC is far more difficult to deal with due to the many "work arounds" required. In the end, he has to run a virtual machine on his MAC to get the job done.

I see no advantage to the MAC.


Interesting he's got to run a vm to get the job done; it's very true that some software developers haven't created programming for the MAC, which can make it difficult for some application use. For those that do however, the software has worked flawlessly for me.

 

[Andrew1972]

My wife has Mac book pro and I have an upper end Thinkpad with windows 7.

Mac book pro excels in a superior display to any Windows machine I have seen And keyboard feel is wonderful. The experience is different and preference based.

I like both but my eyes love the Mac display and fingers the Mac keyboard. Apple spent a ton of money in that and it shows.

 

[FastLane]

All my life I was a PC guy. I got so sick of [censored] windows and laptops that struggle to make it a year. I'm a business jet pilot and I do all our flight planning off Mac. No issues. We have switched to Apple for everything now.

It costs more but I need something to last and is fast. The MAC display is clear and sharp. The only downside is the small hard drives that come with the Mac.

 

[mazdamonky]

If you spend as much money on a PC as you would on a Mac, you are more than likely going to have a much more impressive piece of machinery both on the hardware side and stability. As for the operating system, it is all preference. Pick what you like and enjoy it. Mac is going to cost a lot more in the long run either way due to a monthly subscription required for tech support and hardware warranty.

 

[LotI]

Another Apple convert here. Used to be into the PC thing, gaming, building and spec'ing my own. PNP made things a whole lot easier than DIP switches(youngsters can google it)

8 years ago my ex-wife converted me and after a learning period I "got it". It's easier, the hardware and software works, and if you go all in with iPhone, iPad, and a MacBook it works together. It seems to stay current longer too. My last iPad worked fine but I needed more memory. The trade-in value was great and I got a new Pro.

 

[EdwardC]

I'm an Apple fan, largely for the robust hardware. I have an 8+ year old Macbook Pro is still perfectly usable. I've never had any other machine last so long. I think the closest was the ThinkPads that we use at work, they seem very well built. I think a comparable Macbook and ThinkPad are in the same price range. At that point, it comes down to which operating system you want to use.

If your looking for a lower priced machine, you're probably not going to be looking at Macbooks.

 

[PolarisX]

I'm a PC person. More cost effective to me.

 

[dcf]

Mac

 

[bunnspecial]

Originally Posted By: mazdamonky
Mac is going to cost a lot more in the long run either way due to a monthly subscription required for tech support and hardware warranty.


I've been using Macs for 5 years now and have never been hit up for any kind of "monthly subscription for tech support." Even out of warranty, I've had the genius bar take care of minor issues for free.

I pay 99¢ a month for iCloud space as I needed more than the free amount, but that's it.

BTW, if you need/want Windows on a Mac you can easily dual boot or run a virtual machine. Apple makes dual booting almost mindlessly easy with Bootcam(included for free). I like VMWare for virtual machines since it can run a LOT of different OSs, but Parallels is polished and more user friendly.

BTW, as a small correction to the above-the MacOS(formerly OS X) is BSD Unix based and not Linux. The difference is small and all *nix OSs share a common lineage, but they're not the same.

Typed from a 2012 MBP that's still going strong.

 

[kschachn]

Originally Posted By: bunnspecial
Originally Posted By: mazdamonky
Mac is going to cost a lot more in the long run either way due to a monthly subscription required for tech support and hardware warranty.

I've been using Macs for 5 years now and have never been hit up for any kind of "monthly subscription for tech support." Even out of warranty, I've had the genius bar take care of minor issues for free.


Yeah I don't know what he's talking about either, I've owned Macintosh computers since 1988. You do only get a certain amount of time for tech support and if you wish to extend that to two years then you need AppleCare (which also extends the warranty). AppleCare isn't a monthly fee either, it's one-time.

But you get some free support for a while. In my 29 years of Mac usage and three MacBooks and currently four iPhones, I've never called tech support once.

 

[serversurfer]

Originally Posted By: Kuato
Originally Posted By: Donald
For the same features and performance, a Mac is more expensive.

I think it comes down to what your comfortable with, what you have at work, what people have who you help or help you.

I prefer a PC.


Not by much though; when I looked at a MAC two years ago my first thought was "wow that's expensive". But when I went and built a Dell and HP online with the same hardware, all 3 were within $50-$100 of each other.

I always had a PC....now I will never go back. With the MAC, things just work. Plug in a printer, no need to load drivers or mess with settings. Same with every other accessory I have used - it just works. You still have the option to go mess with settings if you really want to, but it's not necessary to do so. PCs I have used since I got my MAC have seeemed clunky in comparison.

Add to it the fact it is linux based and doesn't generally need antivirus software and it was an easy choice for me to pay the small premium at initial purchase.

Edit: the interface on the MAC is different than the PC and takes a little getting used to; but once you learn it it's intuitive and flows much easier than a PC. Anything I've needed to figure out has been a 20-second Google search away as there are numerous sources for demos etc.

Just to clarify, Mac OS is actually UNIX based (since OS X). Specifically, it's based on FreeBSD, as is iOS, and the operating systems for the PS3, the PS4, and the PS Vita.

Linux is basically a "reverse engineered" version of UNIX, created by Linus and friends so they would have something both similarly functional and functionally similar of their very own.

Oh, and Mac is short for Macintosh…

bunn

 

[B320i]

I'm an Apple convert that will be *Switching Back* to Windows (albeit Windows 7) soon enough.

My 2011 MBP 13" has been a decent computer, but I seriously dislike the direction Apple took their operating system in, forcing more integration with iOS that, in my opinion, is rather pointless given the lack of touch-interface on their traditional machines.

Apple computers today are severing lacking in connectivity options. You get their proprietary Lightning + 2 or 3 USB connections, and maybe an SD card slot. Most Windows computers beat that quite easily.

Other qualms were Apple's claims over battery life. Apparently the battery should retain 80% of its capacity after 5 years or 1000 cycles, whichever comes first. Well, my "Service Battery" prompt (i.e. battery life lower than 80%) came on early last year, with about 680 cyles and 4.5yrs. The battery has slowly been bulging, it seems, since 2013, as the trackpad doesn't have a pronounced "CLICK" like it once did. 25% of the trackpad is "stiff" and rather mushy to use. There is a crack in it from the stres of a dying battery.
The chiclet keyboard isn't much to write home about either. It gives me somewhat sore fingers after typing on it all day. I greatly prefer keyboards on older laptops, or the IBM Model M I use for my desktops. Plus, I had to replace the keyboard after trying to gently clean it with a moistened cloth (with Windex). Inside, I found screws that had been rounded off at the factory - I had never needed to completely disassemble the machine before.

Whereas in 2011 I'd have happily bought almost any Apple product, today I'm disappointed in their products and will likely avoid Apple hardware in the future.

 

[wander2039]

I agree with the longevity comments above. Just got a iMac 7.1 for $65 and still runs great, our 07 HP has been dead for at least 6 years! I'd say Mac and use Virtualbox for any of your Windows applications. My main station is a Mac Mini (late 2012) and that's what I use, don't see replacing it anytime soon. Yes more expensive upfront but should be cheaper in the long run.

 

[bunnspecial]

Originally Posted By: Eric Smith
I agree with the longevity comments above. Just got a iMac 7.1 for $65 and still runs great, our 07 HP has been dead for at least 6 years! I'd say Mac and use Virtualbox for any of your Windows applications. My main station is a Mac Mini (late 2012) and that's what I use, don't see replacing it anytime soon. Yes more expensive upfront but should be cheaper in the long run.


My main office computer is a Mac Pro 1,1(2006). I've done two CPU upgrades on it and it's now maxed at dual quad core 3.0ghz. I have 16gb of RAM, although I could go as high as 64gb thanks to it having 8 RAM slots. With a GPU upgrade from stock and a bit of work, it can run El Capitan. Also, since 10.7, s lot of off-the-shelf GPUs will work without flashing to Mac ROM. I am running an 8800GT from MacVidCards, but would upgrade if I had a pressing need to do so. I also have an SSD in it, and could throw in 3 more if I wanted.

Most people can't believe me when I tell them that the computer is nearly 11 years old.

I'm also rather partial to the MacBook Pro 3,1 and 4,1(late 2007 and early 2008, respectively). These have the old, pre-Unibody design that more or less dates back to the late PowerBook era, but they can run El Capitan out of the box and Sierra with some work. They're also pleasantly peppy with an SSD. What's not to like about a laptop that can often be had for well under $100? I've kept a 17" 4,1 along with 15" versions of both 3,1s and 4,1s for myself(I"m a Macintosh collector, with a collection that-at this point-stretches back to a 1986 512Ke) but have also given quite a few of them away since I often buy them in bulk from a tech recycle/resell place down in Tennessee.