1nce again: MAC vs PC. *Ding ding!*

Hotsauce84Hotsauce84 8,450 Posts
edited March 2009 in Strut Central
Tell me, friends... Should I go with this for $900:Toshiba Satellite E105-S1402Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit); 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8400; 4,096MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; Mobile Intel 4500MHD; 320GB Toshiba 5,400rpm 2 YEAR WARRANTY[/b]or this for twice the amount:Apple MacBook Pro MB470LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop (2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, 2 GB DDR3 RAM, 250 GB Hard Drive, Slot Loading SuperDrive)NOT SURE HOW WARRANTIES WORK ON MACBOOKS (anybody?)[/b]And most importantly...WHY?(Sub-question: When I mention MacBooks, I always hear "get a Pro." What's the real difference?)It will be used mostly for DJing, web surfing, DLing of the hottest new Blog Hop (and hopefully movies) and amateur design work. I might eventually want to mess with some video editing, but that may just be a pipe dream (not to be confused with Young Phonics home video entitled Pipe Dreams).I've had a Toshiba for the past 2.5 years. It's been good to me for the most part - twice rebounded from viruses and survived a fall of Scooby Doo proportions (Palm Springz Headz Know Thy Deal) - but I think I've outgrown it.
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  • BrianBrian 7,618 Posts
    Unless you have any OSX specific apps you want to use, I would recommend keeping your existing Toshiba around for all of your internet activities and buying that $900 Toshiba for any sort of professional work. A Macbook Pro is complete overkill for Microwave so unless you have some specific apps or need Firewire, save the $900 and buy something non-nerdy.

    Edit: The difference between the Macbooks and Macbook Pros right now are screen size (13" vs 15 or 17), Firewire (new Macbooks don't have it, MBPs do), and Express card slots (Macbooks don't have, MBPs do.)

  • FrankFrank 2,373 Posts
    I guess it depends if you want to have viruses or not...

  • drumsdrums 83 Posts
    Choose the Macbook. It changed my life.

  • catalistcatalist 1,373 Posts
    I guess it depends if you want to have viruses or not...



    Also Macs just work 'better'. Seriously.

  • OkemOkem 4,617 Posts
    I recently 'switched' and got a macbook.
    The PC I had been using had given me no end of troubles over the years (not virus related) and I was pretty fed up of always having to spend so much time trying to fix it.
    I trailed a Vista/Pc and didn't think much of it.
    I decided to cash in some shares, just before they collapsed, and use them to pay the extra for a Mac.
    So far I've been very impressed with it. It's hard to say why, but it's at lot nicer to use than a Pc.

    MacBookPros are pretty expensive kit for fairly light/casual use, could be overkill. As Brian already said there isn't, technically, a lot of difference between the top end macbook and bottom end pro. Get the MacBook, and put the money you saved towards an external harddrive.





    Also while we are on the subject.

    Since Macs have become SO popular, as a result of more users and more pirated software, there has been a marked increase in MacViruses. So maybe they're not so safe anymore..

  • ReynaldoReynaldo 6,054 Posts
    My MacBook is starting to get sluggish. I work it pretty hard because I figure it can take it but now I realize that it's just another computer. Don't believe the hype. There's no panacea.

  • GrandfatherGrandfather 2,303 Posts
    Tell me, friends...

    Should I go with this for $900:

    Toshiba Satellite E105-S1402
    Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit); 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8400; 4,096MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; Mobile Intel 4500MHD; 320GB Toshiba 5,400rpm

    2 YEAR WARRANTY[/b]


    or this for twice the amount:

    Apple MacBook Pro MB470LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop (2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, 2 GB DDR3 RAM, 250 GB Hard Drive, Slot Loading SuperDrive)

    NOT SURE HOW WARRANTIES WORK ON MACBOOKS (anybody?)[/b]


    And most importantly...WHY?

    (Sub-question: When I mention MacBooks, I always hear "get a Pro." What's the real difference?)


    It will be used mostly for DJing, web surfing, DLing of the hottest new Blog Hop (and hopefully movies) and amateur design work. I might eventually want to mess with some video editing, but that may just be a pipe dream (not to be confused with Young Phonics home video entitled Pipe Dreams).

    I've had a Toshiba for the past 2.5 years. It's been good to me for the most part - twice rebounded from viruses and survived a fall of Scooby Doo proportions (Palm Springz Headz Know Thy Deal) - but I think I've outgrown it.

    buy the toshiba and keep it off the internet.
    do not download shit, download on to your other toshiba, and transfer
    you can keep your pc up to date by occasionally plugging it in to the internet
    but really, you should stop as many of the services as you can, put on the no frills gui and it would be a real nice, very reliable dj'ing pc

    the mac is overpriced, way overpriced.

  • catalistcatalist 1,373 Posts
    Tell me, friends...

    Should I go with this for $900:

    Toshiba Satellite E105-S1402
    Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit); 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8400; 4,096MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; Mobile Intel 4500MHD; 320GB Toshiba 5,400rpm

    2 YEAR WARRANTY[/b]


    or this for twice the amount:

    Apple MacBook Pro MB470LL/A 15.4-Inch Laptop (2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, 2 GB DDR3 RAM, 250 GB Hard Drive, Slot Loading SuperDrive)

    NOT SURE HOW WARRANTIES WORK ON MACBOOKS (anybody?)[/b]


    And most importantly...WHY?

    (Sub-question: When I mention MacBooks, I always hear "get a Pro." What's the real difference?)


    It will be used mostly for DJing, web surfing, DLing of the hottest new Blog Hop (and hopefully movies) and amateur design work. I might eventually want to mess with some video editing, but that may just be a pipe dream (not to be confused with Young Phonics home video entitled Pipe Dreams).

    I've had a Toshiba for the past 2.5 years. It's been good to me for the most part - twice rebounded from viruses and survived a fall of Scooby Doo proportions (Palm Springz Headz Know Thy Deal) - but I think I've outgrown it.

    buy the toshiba and keep it off the internet.
    do not download shit, download on to your other toshiba, and transfer
    you can keep your pc up to date by occasionally plugging it in to the internet
    but really, you should stop as many of the services as you can, put on the no frills gui and it would be a real nice, very reliable dj'ing pc

    the mac is overpriced, way overpriced.

    I don't know if you noticed that he wrote this:

    "It will be used mostly for DJing, web surfing, DLing of the hottest new Blog Hop (and hopefully movies)[/b] "


    What's the point of getting a newer and faster computer if you can't use the internet and download on it?

    No point.

  • GrandfatherGrandfather 2,303 Posts
    the point is he has another pc he could use for that
    I know a lot of dudes that keep their DJing computer off the grid

  • DJBombjackDJBombjack Miami 1,665 Posts
    Yawn. This subject is so boring.
    Just go to a Mac store, spend some time on the Macs to see if it's for you. The MacBook is fine for what you need, no need to get the MacBook Pro.

  • RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
    Macbookpro is total overkill for what you need. Get a macbook.

    PCs suck so much ass it's not even funny. If I had a dollar for every family member and co-worker who have complained to me about Vista I would be a rich man.

    Spend the extra dough and get a Mac. There are no viruses to deal with, no spyware, no bloatware, and if you happen to have a problem with your Mac, the Genius Bar at the Apple Store will hold your hand (unlike PCs where you talk to a disgruntled tech in the Phillipines or some Indian named Sam who you can't understand.)

    <---- Apple fan boy

  • SwayzeSwayze 14,705 Posts
    Get a MacBook (no Pro-mo), install XP via bootcamp, then install Unbuntu via Wubi.

    Have the best of all worlds.

    $999 son, $999.

  • AserAser 2,351 Posts
    The low end macbook in the old white casing is actually the best buy of the moment. It has firewire which is missing on the unibody (needed for video editing), plus it has the NVIDIA geforce9400 video card, vast improvement over the previous intel integrated video option. Done in preparation for Snow Leopard (os 10.6).

    I need to cop one before it's discontinued.

    http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/ma...core-2-duo.html

    http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/ma...core-2-duo.html

  • PonyPony 2,283 Posts
    Choose the Macbook. It changed my life.

    Yep. Get the Macbook, you'll never look back. This is coming from someone that uses both on the regular. If you want a laptop don't even consider a PC.

  • DORDOR Two Ron Toe 9,903 Posts
    I still say buy the aluminum 13-inch MacBook over the white. You do save a bit of dough. But I'd rather have DDR3 Memory over DDR2 & a bigger HD (tho, not that it really matters with ext. being so cheap now). Plus, the aluminum is just so much hotter than the white.

    Then spend around $50-60 bucks and buy the extra ram and pop it in yourself and have 4 gigs.



  • SwayzeSwayze 14,705 Posts
    Firewire > USB! Bus independence or death!

  • BrianBrian 7,618 Posts
    Soulstrut: Overpaying for records AND computers

  • DORDOR Two Ron Toe 9,903 Posts
    I don't think it's really over paying.


    EG:
    The big difference IMO is watching people who buy PC vs Mac laptops deal with any issues. Apple is WAYYYYY better dealing with service with Apple care.

    If anything goes wrong, alot of times apple will just give you a brand new one. No hard times or F*ck arounds.

    The amount of times I've seen people with Apple products do this with great outcomes is amazing.

    Damn, I once even saw a friend who's video card died. It was outside applecare by a couple of months and they they still gave him a brand new laptop. BRAND NEW...


    Try that shit buying a Dell or Toshiba.

  • chasechase 767 Posts
    I just bought that exact Toshiba, its pretty sick, the speakers suck though just like cnet says, other then that for 799. its a damn fine deal

  • DORDOR Two Ron Toe 9,903 Posts
    Firewire > USB! Bus independence or death!

    Yeah, not so much a big deal to me. I'd still prefer DD3 Ram.

    I guess if I did, I would probably just spend the extra cash and get the pro.

    Then use the ExpressCard to hook up eSATA and laugh at how slow firewire is.

  • UnherdUnherd 1,880 Posts
    Like everyone else, I'm pretty sick of this debate, but I'll throw one experience out there for Herm's benefit.

    My girl's Dell laptop finally kicked the bucket a year ago, and she decided to go along with what a lot of people we're telling her and make the switch. 2 weeks after spending over a G on the white MacBook plus hundreds more for the service plan, a giant black spot appeared in middle of the screen. The Genius Bar was no help, saying that it wasn't covered and could only be caused by a serious impact, even though it had sat in her bedroom for almost the entire 2 weeks. I went down and screamed on dudes, but it was no use, she ended up dropping over 900 bucks to get the screen fixed.

    This admittedly soured her on the purchase, and she ended up hating OSX, or at least the learning curve. In the end she uses my IBM thinkpad whenever she can. (It doesn't help that I literally throw my thinkpad in my backpack and then bang it going through subway turnstiles every day, and its seemingly unstoppable.) Anyway, Herm I don't know how well you know OSX, but she hated the switch. I also haven't had to deal with even a single warranty issue with IBM, so I can't comment on them, but I think her experience is illustrative of the limits of the fabled Genius Bar.

    Lastly, my only real experience owning Apple is an ipod touch I received as a gift, and I've found the experience of buying peripherals frustrating. Yes the ipod works on the tv, but the cable costs 50 bucks because you have to buy it name brand. I'm pretty techy, so for me, being able to go on newegg, and cop all kinds of cheap generic accessories is great. Even getting a second power supply for work was only 60 bucks. I have a hard drive tray that cost 45 bucks, pops in where the CD drive goes, and holds the drive with my whole serato library. My guess is these would be much more, or impossible with an apple laptop.

    My 2 cents, and btw if I had the money, I'd probably have one of each....

  • DORDOR Two Ron Toe 9,903 Posts
    I've seen that happen a ton of times. Including a Toshiba I owned.

    It's never covered.

    You don't even have to press the screen to hard to crack the liquid crystal and you can even have your laptop closed and press to hard from the outside for it to go. After a while, the LCD will bleed making the screen useless.

    When it happened to me I was trying to stop my laptop from falling and grabbed the screen (Not even that hard) and that was it... First it was only the size of a thumb print and then it started to bleed after a month until it took up 75% or the screen. Funny thing was, they wanted $800 to put in a new LCD.

  • DJBombjackDJBombjack Miami 1,665 Posts
    Like everyone else, I'm pretty sick of this debate, but I'll throw one experience out there for Herm's benefit.

    My girl's Dell laptop finally kicked the bucket a year ago, and she decided to go along with what a lot of people we're telling her and make the switch. 2 weeks after spending over a G on the white MacBook plus hundreds more for the service plan, a giant black spot appeared in middle of the screen. The Genius Bar was no help, saying that it wasn't covered and could only be caused by a serious impact, even though it had sat in her bedroom for almost the entire 2 weeks. I went down and screamed on dudes, but it was no use, she ended up dropping over 900 bucks to get the screen fixed.

    This admittedly soured her on the purchase, and she ended up hating OSX, or at least the learning curve. In the end she uses my IBM thinkpad whenever she can. (It doesn't help that I literally throw my thinkpad in my backpack and then bang it going through subway turnstiles every day, and its seemingly unstoppable.) Anyway, Herm I don't know how well you know OSX, but she hated the switch. I also haven't had to deal with even a single warranty issue with IBM, so I can't comment on them, but I think her experience is illustrative of the limits of the fabled Genius Bar.

    Lastly, my only real experience owning Apple is an ipod touch I received as a gift, and I've found the experience of buying peripherals frustrating. Yes the ipod works on the tv, but the cable costs 50 bucks because you have to buy it name brand. I'm pretty techy, so for me, being able to go on newegg, and cop all kinds of cheap generic accessories is great. Even getting a second power supply for work was only 60 bucks. I have a hard drive tray that cost 45 bucks, pops in where the CD drive goes, and holds the drive with my whole serato library. My guess is these would be much more, or impossible with an apple laptop.

    My 2 cents, and btw if I had the money, I'd probably have one of each....

    See that's the thing about Apple fanboys - they never tell you the story of when things go wrong.
    I've been on Apples since 1992 and I can't stand PCs or Windoze. But I do respect the needs of the individual and that an Apple just may not be the choice for everyone who needs a computer.
    In an ideal world PC heads would recognize the awesomeness of Apple and Apple heads would stop thinking they own the greatest computer ever invented.

  • BrianBrian 7,618 Posts
    The good thing about having those Genius Bar dudes is that you can just keep going in until you get some nice person who will actually help you with your problems and even replace your shit that was damaged by you. Unless the LCD is shattered completely, any company should replace your shit if it was within two weeks.

  • OkemOkem 4,617 Posts
    Switching, or the 'learning curve', was pretty easy really. For what Herm described he's going to use his PC for, I don't see why he would have any real problems. (The only real difference would be the way a mac, with itunes, deals with downloaded mp3s.)

  • PonyPony 2,283 Posts
    Switching, or the 'learning curve', was pretty easy really.

    When I first made "the switch" I did a tutorial DVD "PC to Mac" took about an hour, after that it took about a week to get the feel of a Mac. Later I started get frustrated with my PC because it doesn't have the Expose/Dashboard features that OS has, so usefull and intuitive. Just being able to click and drag a program on/off the toolbar or drag an image of Safari onto the desktop is so simple and fast, learning to use a Mac is like the opposite of learning you basically have to dumb down your computer know-how because everything is so straight forward.


  • OkemOkem 4,617 Posts
    Switching, or the 'learning curve', was pretty easy really.

    When I first made "the switch" I did a tutorial DVD "PC to Mac" took about an hour, after that it took about a week to get the feel of a Mac. Later I started get frustrated with my PC because it doesn't have the Expose/Dashboard features that OS has, so usefull and intuitive. Just being able to click and drag a program on/off the toolbar or drag an image of Safari onto the desktop is so simple and fast, learning to use a Mac is like the opposite of learning you basically have to dumb down your computer know-how because everything is so straight forward.

    Yes.

    Using/Owning a Windows PC is like owning anything else that comes in 'kit' form. It can be great if
    you have the time and knowledge to get the most out of it. If you don't then it's going to be a struggle.
    Using/Owning a Mac is like owning something that's bespoke, built with clarity and purpose. Because of this they should always be easier to operate.

  • Hotsauce84Hotsauce84 8,450 Posts
    Thank you all for your input! I know this topic has been beat to death but I'm a-technical so I need things to be dumbed down for me.

    Speaking of which, how does mp3 DLing on a Mac differ from a PC?

  • BrianBrian 7,618 Posts
    Get a PC netbook, install OSX via bootlegged installs, then install Unbuntu via Wubi.

    Have the best of all worlds.

    +-$500 son, +-$500.

  • BrianBrian 7,618 Posts
    Speaking of which, how does mp3 DLing on a Mac differ from a PC?

    If you're just downloading stuff from blogs or whatever, shits basically the same. You might have to use a different RSS reader if you currently use one or something. If you use Bit Torrent, some of the PC clients are not available for OSX but you should be able to find something usable.
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