The pros of an iMac???

shegirl

My darling,computer obsessed,computer whizz son has been desperate for an iMac for a while and it looks like I'll be getting him one for his birthday in April.

However,as I'll be shelling out over a grand for the thing can anyone give me a list of pros compared to other computers/laptops... I know about lack of pop ups and viruses but that's about it:o

CoolHotCold

Oh jeeze, I hope he is a good boy for getting a grand system.
But Wait a little while, I'm not usually one to say wait for tech, but Apple SHOULD be updating their iMacs so you can either get a good deal on a new system (a older model) or a new system thats a newer model, (and new OS called Lion in the summer released too)

Macs in my Very Honest opinion are possibly one of the best systems and hardware and shiney computers you can buy.

I can say I use Mac, Windows and Linux and Macs are by far one of the best systems you can buy. It does just work, the software is developed by Apple to work on about 20 different configurations of systems (and even then very little changes between most of them) whereas Windows has to work on countless other systems with a almost infinite configuration changes. It just works, the stability of Mac is brilliant and it runs much faster with fewer resources.


But yes, the differences between Mac and Windows are mostly security (None really needed on Mac).
The Absolute simplicity of the Operating System and Apples bundled software.
The Apple displays that Apple use are simply some of the best IPS's I've seen, everything looks so much more alive and perfect.

The software it comes with (iPhoto, garageband, iMovie) if you have kids or take photographs or videos you'll see yourself using it. Your son will probably mess around with Garageband and love it.


Quite simply when you factor in the hardware and the quality Macs are underpriced. I work with people and technology and once you get to learn how a mac works (very easy) you just don't go back, I've had customers who used Windows from 3.1 to Windows 7 and they've said once they used a Mac, they just couldn't fathom going back to Windows systems.


I'm not saying this to influence you, but I love Apple systems, they hold their value and they are so nice to use, but my views aside Apple systems are getting much more popular, Schools, Universities businesses are switching (or have done) to increasing their usage of Mac systems, I mean, Macs are only going to get more popular.

Also right now, go to Dixons website and you'll see 10% all computers over £299, I can guarantee you won't find a better deal right now for Apples.

pstones578

shegirl wrote: »

My darling,computer obsessed,computer whizz son has been desperate for an iMac for a while and it looks like I'll be getting him one for his birthday in April.

However,as I'll be shelling out over a grand for the thing can anyone give me a list of pros compared to other computers/laptops... I know about lack of pop ups and viruses but that's about it:o

He'll feel like he got what he wanted.

ian2211

Macs just work. They are absolutely gorgeous, are extremely stable, fast, secure, software looks better, the display on my 27" is far superior to my 1080p tv. I used Mac, Linux and Windows and the Mac is far and away the best followed by Linux.

viv0147

If you can afford the Mac for your Son get it and you will have no regrets it an awesome machine

curriej99

Been using Macs for a few years now. Am on second Mac machine. I feel Windows based PC's are false economy. They quickly grind to a standstill and you end up dumping them for a newer machine, whereas a Mac purchased at the same time would be still going strong. They don't get viruses and you don't have to wait forever for them to number crunch. The whole system is better from the ground up.
Well worth the extra cash. Also, if he is a student at school or college he can get a bit of a discount (about £60 on a £1K imac) if it is purchased from Apple store education (most people are not aware of this)
http://store.apple.com/uk/browse/home/education_routing

Also, Applecare (a 3yr service and support service) is very useful, and you get an educational discount of about £25 on this.

welshdent

I know you are asking about an iMac but ....
I am using still a 3 year old macbook. Nothing fancy, just the old standard mac book. Its awesome. It is only now starting to slow down a bit and I use it ALL the time. I have even dropped it and dislodged the screen so its a bit .... well ... bent. Still works. No viruses, built in firewall. Pretty much everything works on it. Awesome. I wont go back to windows. When I got this laptop it was to replace a windows based laptop that was 6 months old and practically unusable. The windows laptop was 500 and this one was 650 for the same spec pretty much. Granted I got mine in the states so it was a little cheaper. The apple ecosystem on all its PCs is superb.

If you were to go for a windows PC however I would recommend downloading ubuntu or linux mint and dual booting it, using the linux as the primary OS. They are like mac OS ... they just work.
My old laptop that I replaced has actually had a new lease of life using ubuntu by the way.

johann_van_der_splat

It might be worth considering a Mac Mini. They come in at around £400 less than an iMac and although they don't come with a mouse, keyboard or monitor, you can use any USB keyboard/mouse and standard monitor with them. Even if you buy a brand new 22" monitor to use with it, you could still be £300 better off.

They aren't as high-spec as a full blown iMac, understandably given the price, but given that I've got Leopard running on an 8 year old 800mhz G4 iMac with no problems, you're not going to have any issue with Snow Leopard or Lion on a brand new Mac Mini.

richardw

The new MacBook pro was out last week http://www.apple.com/uk/macbookpro/ , keep an eye on their website for the new iMac.

penrhyn

Lets hope the darling son appreciates it.
What constitutes a computer whizz one wonders. Can you even do whizzy stuff on Apples locked in products?

Mondez

OS X is a pretty solid operating system for home use and as a standalone work station, but the premium you pay for it IMO is not really worth it. Even given the good build quality, Apple are still raking in much larger margin than other PC manufacturers. If he's really such as whizz, perhaps he should try making himself a hackintosh system instead