Thinking of changing from PC to IMAC, advice please.

custardy

MAC if you want speed is undoubtedly quicker. Boots up in no time. I've only had my macbook for 7 months but friends/family who've had them for years tell me they don't slow down over time like a PC does, if you don't constantly maintain it/run various programs to declutter etc. This is what did my head in with all PCs I've ever had. Constant maintenance to keep it running well.

onomatopoeia99 wrote: »

Unless the user is the problem, there is no need to "maintain" or "declutter" Windows using various programs, and in all honesty so-called "cleaners" cause more problems than they solve.


I built this PC seven and a half years ago, with Windows 7, took the Windows 10 upgrade when offered and amazingly it hasn't slowed down at all, nor I have run any ccccleaners or defragged (because I'm not living in 1998 any more). Slowdowns with Windows are down to the user, usually due to installing lots of crapware. It's far less reported, but OSX suffers in the same way when faced with user incompetence.

benson1980 wrote: »

I’m not an IT pro but I’m not an incompetent user either. Mac is a lot more protective of the user and perhaps this is one reason. Crap ware that you refer to is more prevalent on windows so again perhaps this is another reason. I can’t remember the last time I defragged a hard drive either so not sure what the point is there.

There’s a reason why people who have switched from windows to Mac and chromebooks tend to never go back and find them much better and more user friendly but never happens the other way around. They’re just better operating systems for 90% of people who aren’t IT/pc builder-type users but who want to use a few basic mainstream programs, browse the internet and want stuff to just work.

benson1980 wrote: »

De-fragging? Sorry you've lost me. Where have I raised it?

Where I was referring to decluttering etc, my regular windows activities were around cleaning up programs on start up to try and speed it up, running malware and anti virus software which themselves slowed the thing down. Also I found that windows updates would cause incompatibility issues- I know not desktop based but plugged in not charging issues, touchpad problems etc. I guess because apple make the products, and design the operating system it all seems to just work, as previously said, with zero maintenance. This is just my experience, but through owning all three platforms currently those who aren't IT savvy I suspect are better off with mac os. The downside is the initial outlay is expensive.

You description is PC usage from well over a decade ago.

Ah the old 'it just works' line.
I don't care what you or others prefer. However this utopia that is described is a falsehood like Mercedes Benz bombproof reputation.
Apple make decent products,many gorgeous pieces but scrimping on specs and charging at the front end goes a long way to securing that.
The little I3 box I type on now was bought 2nd hand,gets no love and runs 24/7.

benson1980

custardy wrote: »

You description is PC usage from well over a decade ago.

Ah the old 'it just works' line.
I don't care what you or others prefer. However this utopia that is described is a falsehood like Mercedes Benz bombproof reputation.
Apple make decent products,many gorgeous pieces but scrimping on specs and charging at the front end goes a long way to securing that.
The little I3 box I type on now was bought 2nd hand,gets no love and runs 24/7.

I’m describing windows 10 usage and issues. It wasn’t released over a decade ago. Still confused at what youre going on about.

prowla

I would agree that the seemingly constant stream of Windows 10 major updates is a niggle, but both Mac and Linux do have them too - perhaps not quite so frequently though.

I've got some emails I need to get at on my fault Mac, so I may pick another one up if I see one at a reasonable price.

As to Mac quality, I'd say that the main things are the display on laptops and the physical case, also the styling.

On to price - the "Macs are expensive" is true, but only because they cater for the top-end of the market; if you want a similar Windows PC/laptop you will pay a premium too, if you can even get one with the same build quality: plastic with a brushed aluminium painted finish is nowhere near as robust as a machined aluminium unibody and some of the rubberised plastics degrade over time and become slightly sticky to the touch.


The internal components of a Mac PC are pretty much standard and can be found in lots of Windows/Linux PCs too.

coffeehound

prowla wrote: »

As to Mac quality, I'd say that the main things are the display on laptops and the physical case, also the styling.

On to price - the "Macs are expensive" is true, but only because they cater for the top-end of the market; if you want a similar Windows PC/laptop you will pay a premium too, if you can even get one with the same build quality: plastic with a brushed aluminium painted finish is nowhere near as robust as a machined aluminium unibody and some of the rubberised plastics degrade over time and become slightly sticky to the touch.

The internal components of a Mac PC are pretty much standard and can be found in lots of Windows/Linux PCs too.

Yes something like a Dell XPS is made to rival the build quality of Macbooks with milled alloy shell and premium components and costs almost as much.

In reality the XPS isn't quite as highy-specced. E.g. at the time I was looking, the XPS had Intel 620 HD graphics where the apparently similar MacBook has Intel 640 HD graphics. The wifi card in an XPS is two channel whereas the Mac has three channel. Also Apple computers have a rep for being better designed at the board level. E.g. Hi-Fi users like Mac Minis as music players because they reputedly put less electrical interference on the music signal. The price differential might well be justified depending on your requirements.

EveryWhere

I paid £360 for my Dell Inspiron 17-7746 a couple of years ago.



Swapped out the HDD for SSD.

S0litaire

I'vs been watching a YouTube channel recently by a guy called "Louis Rossmann"

https://www.youtube.com/user/rossmanngroup

He's a New Yorker and does "Unauthorized" Apple repairs of mac books. He live streams some of these repairs.

Watching his stream you can quickly see some of the "terrible" design choices Apple make. (and he's quite vocal about it!)

He charges around $250 for most repairs Apple would charge $800+ for and does it quicker.

custardy

S0litaire wrote: »

I'vs been watching a YouTube channel recently by a guy called "Louis Rossmann"

https://www.youtube.com/user/rossmanngroup

He's a New York and does "Unauthorized" Apple repairs of mac books. He live streams some of these repairs.

Watching his stream you can quickly see some of the "terrible" design choices Apple make. (and he's quite vocal about it!)

He charges around $250 for most repairs Apple would charge $800+ for and does it quicker.

Yes, but he isnt a 'genuis'

Edit: just looked at his featured video,linking to the one about Apple refusing a repair on a broken screen. Saw that one recently. Classic.
Theres was an even better one on a genius vesa mount 'repair'. I may have to post it

S0litaire

custardy wrote: »

Yes, but he isnt a 'genuis'

Edit: just looked at his featured video,linking to the one about Apple refusing a repair on a broken screen. Saw that one recently. Classic.
Theres was an even better one on a genius vesa mount 'repair'. I may have to post it

I seen that VESA mount "repair" video as well!

rhysadams

Now this is a post that could bring up the Apple Fanboys and the PC users.


Depends on the type of person you are, both have pro's and con's to them and the added cost of an iMac can put you off. But and just touching on this slighty, when you come to sell the machine on the value can still be pretty good.


For instance I purchased a used 2007 17" Macbook Pro for £200 off ebay, upgraded it with SSD and used it for a project. I've just sold it on ebay for £300. I've done similar things with quite a few others. They do hold their money well.


Software you can get quite a lot for free, if you aren't bothered about MS Office, Apple's version Pages, Numbers and Keynote are all excellent and have compatibility with MS Office. Into editing music, you've got garage band, for photos you have.... Photos. Even 4k video work can be done using the free iMovie.


Of course you can then upgrade the software to more professional versions. For instance I purchased Final Cut Pro many years ago for £250, but I can still upgrade it to the latest version without upgrade fee's and even add it to my newer iMacs.


Mac's can get viruses, so don't believe the hype - there just aren't as many around. Its all about being careful and not opening things you shouldn't.


Apple offer PC migration tools to move your bits over to a new system and if you already have an iPad and iPhone you'll love things like handover an the easy syncing systems.

datostar

If you go for a used iMac, anything before the Late 2009 model won't run the current High Sierra OS. Anything before the late 2012 model won't run the forthcoming (September?) Mojave OS.
I paid £520 for a Late 2012 21.5" iMac 4 years ago with Apple Care still valid, i7 3.1 GHz processor, 16GB RAM, NVidia Graphics Card. Auctioned on eBay as 'collection only' which drastically cuts down the bids. I didn't mind the 60 mile round trip to pick it up!
High Sierra has slowed down the boot up process (seems common with older machines) but once it's up and running no difference from previously. I use iPhone, iPads and the integrated features are excellent and improving with each OS release.
Obviously a learning curve as I'd been a long-term Windows user but nothing too severe. The only Windows progs I couldn't find suitable replacements for were Microsoft Money and NewsBin Pro so I paid for VMWare Fusion and run them in a virtual Windows 10 machine. I also have Ubuntu Linux and a clean installation of Mac High Sierra as virtual machines - these mainly for experimentation and software testing. The 16GB memory helps. Virtual Box is free but possibly a bit more finicky to set up, and Parallels is another well-thought of virtualisation programme again not free. Boot Camp is another option to run Windows but that does mean a reboot to use it.
I'm certainly not going back to full-time Windows.