MacBook or Laptop?

Goldust

Hi!

My sister has about £800 to spend on a laptop from Comet (she has vouchers)

She has set her heart on a MacBook, probably the MB061B/B.

I've looked at the specs and they don't seem too hot compared to similar priced laptops.

What are the pros and cons of both and what would anybody advise?

Thanks!

isofa

If you compare them to a similar top end PC laptop like a Sony, you'll see it's a similar price. They are a top end quality brand so they aren't cheap - but they are built very well.

The MacBooks (rather than MacBook Pros) are very keenly priced, for full specs have a look at https://www.apple.com/uk and note they contain technology that most PC laptops don't have, like the iSight camera, MagSafe connector, firewire etc.

depends if you want to use Mac OS X all the time or Windows.

Remember the Apple laptops are built on Intel processors and just as fast as the PC equivalents, and can dual boot into Windows, or run windows applications (if needed) using virtualisation software such as Parallels Desktop.

The MacBook Pro is personally my current laptop of choice - but it's expensive.

Justin_Scotland

I guess it depends what she would like to do.

Video, photo and music editing is the selling point of Macs and they get very good reviews on gadgetshow and other reviews. However this does limit you to having to buy Mac software or run windows software in compatibility mode which means it runs slower for some apps.

Personally I would love a Mac but the sensible side of me says stick to Windows as it will be cheaper in the initial purchase and for future software availability.

Only if she is planning on using it for creative work then Mac should be looked at otherwise stick to Windows.

isofa

I use both platforms daily, both at home and at work. Unless there is a specific need for one or the other, choose the one you like working with most, and like the feel of etc. I use them both and I need them both personally.

You can do any office work on the Mac just like the PC, MS have just released the latest Office 2008 for Mac - so everything is cross compatible. All the major players have software for the platform, I much prefer using Adobe CS3 on the Mac to the PC. Also there is tonnes of Open Source software available, from office to graphics applications, just like with Windows.

Mac OS X is also a terrific secure OS too, definitely my pick over Vista.

If you did want to run some windows software not available on the Mac, as long as you either dual boot into Windows or run in Virtualisation, it'll run as fast as on a PC laptop - because the Mac laptops have Intel Core 2 Duo processors, so there is no emulation required.

Because of this facility, the next laptop I buy will be a top end MacBook Pro, as then I can replace both a Mac and PC laptop with one super stylish system than can run everything at once. Also several reviews have found the MBP to be the fastest laptop available to run Windows Vista (there's an irony!)

Millionaire

I switched to a iMac about 6 months ago and Ive never looked back since.

It all depends what she wants to run on it and if a Mac equivalent is available.

It the main software she wants to use is available I would recommend she get a Mac.

almillar

I'm not sure I understand what Justin_Scotland means about Windows programs running in slower compatibility mode but I'm pretty sure it's wrong. As has been said in this post, OSX.5 (Leopard, which you will get with any new Mac) comes with Boot Camp, which allows you to install Windows XP SP2 or Vista onto your Mac (Supply your own Windows of course!). Then you can choose to start in OSX or Windows. Macs are excellent Windows machines! They run programs exactly the same, and you wouldn't know it wasn't a plain old PC. The other choice, as mentioned here, is virtualisation, which involves running a 'Virtual Machine' inside OSX. Since Macs are now on X86 (plain old PC) processors, this runs extremely well, and certainly isn't compromised by any compatibility modes.
As mentioned above too, don't read the specs of a laptop purely in ghz and GB, for example, the MacBook has Core 2 Duo processors, which are far better than Pentium 4, Centrino or Celeron. As mentioned above, the cheaper laptops are highly unlikely to have webcam, firewire or the toughness and build quality of the Macbook, but you have to buy based on your needs...

chunter

mattarmy wrote: »

Hi!

My sister has about £800 to spend on a laptop from Comet (she has vouchers)
She has set her heart on a MacBook, probably the MB061B/B.
I've looked at the specs and they don't seem too hot compared to similar priced laptops. What are the pros and cons of both and what would anybody advise? Thanks!

Mac's :
Pros -

• almost no such thing as a virus on them.
• well set up for graphics and music, still the pro's choice in both sectors
• look very good !!!

Con's

• may be difficult to find repair shops if not in an urban centre
• limited options on software - there's not an awful lot of options out there compared to the windows market.
• more expensive in general
• not familiar if you're used to Windows

isofa

Just to expand on chunter's post above.

I've had Macs for 15-20 years (as well as PCs) and not one has ever needed a repair. From my point of view they have been the most reliable technology devices I've ever owned, but most of my PCs have done well too! There are plenty of authorised Apple dealers and many, many more independent resellers, I'd say most large towns have them, and 99% offer a mail order service. Also don't forget quality retailers like John Lewis sell and warranty them too.

All major applications, except Access, Outlook (but MS have Mac only Entourage instead) and Sage, are available on the Mac platform, it's only more specialist apps that aren't. But equally there are some specialist apps that are exclusively available for Mac OS X but not Windows (everything from the iLife suite to Logic Audio and many pro production video systems.) There are thousands of applications available for the Mac, and because it's now built on UNIX foundations, thousands more released all the time.

Games is where there is less choice, but I'm not into games so it doesn't bother me. If you are into the latest games, get a decent PC with the latest graphics card.

They are just as good as business computers as PCs, it's just Apple haven't targeted that area as much, I use both platforms for a lot of similar work, including business applications, spreadsheets, databases etc.

The price point now has diminished between the two, compare a iMac with a similar spec'd all in one PC (if you can find a decent one!), or MacBook with a similar spec'd quality PC laptop, and there will be little in it. A cheap PC will always be cheaper in the same way a Ford will always be cheaper than a BMW.

If you can use a computer you can use Windows or Mac OS X, both have similar interfaces, the Macs is cleaner and less cluttered and generally more friendly, stable and secure IMO - it's the underlying technology which is very different.

Garz

almillar wrote: »

I'm not sure I understand what Justin_Scotland means about Windows programs running in slower compatibility mode but I'm pretty sure it's wrong.

He is right. The mac has to emulate to do this hence its not really windows but appearing to be.

isofa

Garz wrote: »

He is right. The mac has to emulate to do this hence its not really windows but appearing to be.

No you are both wrong!

Boot into Windows using boot camp under Mac OS X and Windows and their applications run native, just like a PC runs Windows, directly on the processor with no emulation and no virtualisation either. You can use a Mac just as a Windows box if you want, but no idea why anyone would want to when OS X is better than Vista - but each to their own!

Several recent tests in PC magazines, have shown that the MacBook Pro, running Windows Vista, is faster than any other PC Laptop running vista! PC Pro covered this several months ago as did and PC World (not the shop). Obviously new PCs and Macs are released so the winners change every few months so these goalposts move.

Install a virtualisation package such as Parallels Desktop and it'll run Windows and windows apps in virtualisation (i.e. in a window whilst Mac OS X is running too) almost the same speed if they were running in a booted Windows system - virtually the same performance - it is virutalisation not emulation. No code has to be converted or emulated, it is executed directly on the Intel processor. This is ideal for running software not available on the Mac for specialists and for people who need both platforms in one box. You can't buy a PC and run Mac OS X, or it's apps, alongside Windows.

Garz

isofa wrote: »

Several recent tests in PC magazines, have shown that the MacBook Pro, running Windows Vista, is faster than any other PC Laptop running vista! PC Pro covered this several months ago as it and PC World (not the shop). Obviously new PCs and Macs are released so the winners change every few months so these goalposts move.

No

He has asked about the Macbook and not the macbook pro. There is a massive price difference..:p