MacBook Cost Comparison

Hammyman

Sambucus_Nigra wrote: »

I've never had a cracked bezel - am I missing out? :eek:

[and what you doing going into PC world? I thought you were a professional?]. :rotfl:

Its not just the bezel, but all the plastics - plenty of results in Google if you put macbook cracked case. Here's a short thread on Apple Discussions:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=12067019

And I went into PC World because they had one and its 20 miles from me. I went in armed with ammunition and paid £80 less than the ticket price. There is no magical way to get a Mac for less than discounted retail / Applestore refurbs unless you become an approved distributor.

Hammyman

redcard wrote: »

The Windows laptop will most likely be worthless after 3-4 years (if it even lasts that long), the Macbook will still have a decent resell value.

Indeed. I can get £1200+ retail Thinkpads that are 2 years old with a year onsite warranty still left for well under £200 - around £150 usually - with my record being buying a fully loaded 3 month old T61 with 2yrs 9 months left of onsite next day parts and labour for £250 all in. You won't get a 2 year old Macbook Pro for £200 or even double that yet it costs just over half the Thinkpad when new.

redcard

Hammyman wrote: »

Indeed. I can get £1200+ retail Thinkpads that are 2 years old with a year onsite warranty still left for well under £200 - around £150 usually - with my record being buying a fully loaded 3 month old T61 with 2yrs 9 months left of onsite next day parts and labour for £250 all in. You won't get a 2 year old Macbook Pro for £200 or even double that yet it costs just over half the Thinkpad when new.

2007 Pros in decent condition seem to be going around the £400+ mark.

I'd have thought a Thinkpad would have held it's value better than that!

thescouselander

wdw2003 wrote: »

My style-conscious student daughter wants to buy a MacBook and thinks that getting one in the US on a trip next year would be the cheapest option.

If she's going to the US she can legitimately buy a laptop tax free at the airport when departing the UK - they will also keep it for her so she can pick it up on the way back through the airport when returning to the UK.

The discounts can be pretty good - I saved £200 on my Mac when I bought it at the airport.

in_the_Cotswolds

You can also run Windows on the Mac if you want to. Install this http://store.apple.com/uk/product/H2511Z/A?fnode=MTY1NDA1Mw&mco=MTkwNDIwNzY and Windows (which operating system you want) I used Vista on my PC and had no trouble. Then you can use all Windows programmes.

suburbanwifey

poppy10 wrote: »

She doesn't need a macbook pro, they are hideously overpriced, and overkill for a student's needs when all she will probably be doing is word processing and web browsing. A non-Apple laptop for a quarter of the price will do the same job. Just because she is "style-conscious" doesn't mean she should be burning money that she doesn't have - you'll be setting her up for a lifetime of bad spending habits.

But if she must have a macbook, it's probably better to buy it from here, she'll have difficulty getting servicing under guarantee if the macbook was bought in the US.

I beg to differ. I bought my MacBook Pro because they are quite simply the best laptops you can buy. They are the price they are for a reason and also, the service you get from Apple is outstanding and no PC manufacturer or distributer can compare. I had PC's for 10 years, I changed over to Apple 3 years ago and my first purchase was a MacBook Pro costing £1,400. six months later I bought an Imac costing a grand.....Three years on my MacBook Pro is still one of the best computers you can buy....the only better one being the latest MacBook Pro (very slight difference, not enough to warrant a new one) If you want good looks, reliability, quality components, excellent customer service and you don't want to be buying a new laptop every few years or having to cope with zillions of Windows updates/crashes - buy MacBook Pro.

:T

suburbanwifey

Hammyman wrote: »

I would argue the opposite. A Macbook pro is made of solid aluminium compared to plastic of the Macbook which has a known problem with cracking bezels when you close the lid.

I have a macbook pro and its taken all kinds of hammer but only has two light small marks on it. I've seen display macbooks at PC world which have done nothing but sit on the shelf and the lids are already scratched. I was originally going to buy a Macbook until I picked it up and felt how flimsy it was compared to the pro next to it.

Spec wise, they're on par but I know which one would survive the rigours of uni life the most.

I've had mine over 3 years and its travelled with me, done all sorts and its not even got a scratch on it...it still looks brand new and its been hammered (put through its paces) ..never had one flaw, one crash, one problem! After 10 years of hell with PC's, Mac's are a joy.

victor2

mechanic wrote: »

You can also run Windows on the Mac if you want to. Install this http://store.apple.com/uk/product/H2511Z/A?fnode=MTY1NDA1Mw&mco=MTkwNDIwNzY and Windows (which operating system you want) I used Vista on my PC and had no trouble. Then you can use all Windows programmes.

So you spend twice as much as you would for a PC, run Windows on top of the Mac OS, lose the benefits of the Mac OS and run slower than the cheaper PC as you're running an operating system within another operating system.
Once you commit to a Mac, you go with the more expensive software for it, otherwise you can't afford it!

BikerEd

poppy10 wrote: »

But if she must have a macbook, it's probably better to buy it from here, she'll have difficulty getting servicing under guarantee if the macbook was bought in the US.

Wrong. My Macbook Pro, bought in the USA, was repaired three times by Apple UK and was eventually replaced due to a recurrent problem. The fact it was bought in the USA didn't matter as Applecare (for Macs, not iPhones) is a worldwide warranty.

As for the white Macbooks and their susceptibility to cracking, my daughter's machine (2007 model) was swapped out free if charge by Apple (for a 21.5" iMac) after 2.5 years because it had two replacement cases then failed for a third time.

Chimpofdoom

Can't fault the Apple customer support.. beats all the PC vendor's tech support put together!

Also my girlfriends macbook pro has been through hell and back and still works! Her friends macbook pro has been through worse, is slightly scratched but still runs like a new one!