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Community Newsletter: Q&A: MacBook or PC laptop for college?
- 8/22/08 4:21 PM
here is what you do
by blueman96 - 8/14/08 4:39 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
you can buy an Intel based macbook and duel boot mac with windows xp. so you can have the features of mac and windows.
PC or MAC
by waytron - 8/14/08 6:45 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
This MAC vs. PC question should render some heated debates and I have to say that you can have a great computer experience with computers on either platform. But before we get into the heat of this question ANYONE going off to school should do their homework and check with their specific school to make sure the school does not have a specific recommendation. Some schools may even require that you purchase or lease your computer from them or they may even have some great deals on specific brands. Also some specific courses that you select may influence your decision. For example: If you are majoring in Music or the Arts, I would lean toward going with the MAC. If you are planning on majoring in business, I would probably recommend getting a PC. It is not to say that you can not use either type of computer for any of these subjects, it is just that it may be to your advantage to be using the same computers as everyone else in the class. Also, when you finally get out of school and you show up at your first job and find that the entire company is using PC’s, you may be at a slight disadvantage if you are more familiar with the MAC platform. The same is true if you have worked on a PC all through school and show up at your first job and the whole company is using MAC’s. If you really want to take this decision seriously, you might want to research your field of interest and see what type of computers are being used in those businesses.
Again, you can pretty much do all the same stuff with either type of computer. Apple does make very nice computers that are well made and extremely attractive, but you can also find excellent models from Sony, IBM (Lenovo) and Dell. Especially in the higher end price ranges. All I can say is please DO NOT be lead astray by the MAC ads. MAC computers are made from pretty much the same components as PC, their hard drives still fail and you still need to backup your data. They are not immune to problems like the ad’s would like you to believe. Decide for yourself. Simple perform a few Google searches for things like “PC will not Boot” and “MAC will not Boot” or “Problems with my MAC” and “Problems with my PC” and compare the results. You would expect the number of hits to be a least 10 times greater for the PC vs. the MAC simple because of the number of PC’s in use. You will start to realize that MAC has many problems and issues as well.
Dana
Wayland Computer
CASHU21 REPLIES FOR WENDEE-MacBOOK or PC
by CASHU21 - 8/14/08 9:49 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
HY WENDEE,THIS IS CASHU TO ANSWER U.THOUGH I DONT HV MUCH KNOWLEDGE BOUT MACBOOK BUT I THNK I CAN HELP U.AS A MATER OF FACT B'COZ U R GOING TO COLEGE,AS FAR AS I SAY U SHOULD STICK TO A PC-LAPTOP.THERE R MANY REASONS FOR THIS ANSWER BT THE MAIN PUNCH IS THE VERSATILE CAPABILITY OF A PC,AS A COLEGE STUDENT U WONT GET SUCH A TASK WHICH IS OUT OF PC's range.MAC BUK Has a diffrent range of task solution.AS I M ALSO AN ENGINEERING STUDENT,I USE A PC LAPTOP AND IT HELPS ME BEST.I HOPE UR PROBLEM WIL BE SOLVED.
As one college student to another, get a PC
by Maxwell De Long - 8/15/08 6:32 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi Wende. I am a senior this year and when I came into school I got a mac, and it was a huge mistake. I thought I would have time to play with videos and my pictures, but I was greatly mistaken. I ended up having to buy a new computer in the first year. I am an engineer, and if you are going into the sciences you need a PC. All programs that you would ever use are PC based and there are no alternatives. PCs are cheaper, easier to use, with more programs and honestly I think my PC works better than my mac. If you are going to have two computers, go ahead and get a mac as well, but if its just one, make sure its a pc.
PS: I go to UMass Amherst. Enjoy your first year of school!
What, couldn't figure out bootcamp?
by fastboxster - 8/16/08 9:36 AM In reply to: As one college student to another, get a PC by Maxwell De LongDude, all you have to do is download the free BootCamp software from Apple and you can boot your Intel based Mac AS A PC! It is then the exact same thing as a PC, no difference whatsoever. I've run Mathcad, Autocad, and a ton of PC only software on my Macbook with no problems at all. Gaming is the only category where Vista/XP trumps OS X, but get an XBOX360 or PS3 for that for college anyway.
Macbook for college is the best investment
by tao51nyc - 8/15/08 6:36 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I bought my daughter a Macbook for college a year ago. I've been in the IT business for 25 years, I'm a pro at both platforms and use both at the office. At home, I'm Mac only. The reason? Return on investment. The extra money laid out for a Macbook will be a better long term investment than a similar PC. Macs just last longer. I know the Macbook I bought my daughter last year will last her entire college career, if not longer. I've never seen a PC last that long, no matter how much chewing gum and bailing wire you apply to it. You can listen to the siren's song of cheaper PCs now, but the next Windows upgrade will grind it to a halt, and your poor kid will be crying for a replacement before the middle of junior year. Unless it craps out sooner because of a virus or trojan. Add up the total long terms costs of ownership before you make your decision, not just the upfront price.
Mac - Unless you're gaming
by wyrmzr - 8/15/08 6:49 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Contrary to what some have said so far, Mac is widely accepted, and often preferred, by the IT departments of many colleges and universities.
And when it comes to schoolwork, business work, and most other areas aside from the latest video games, MacOS has all the programs you'll ever need to get things done.
If you want a system that you can run the latest video games on, then you will either want to go with a PC, or run Bootcamp on the Mac to have both MacOS and Windows. But leave that MacOS intact, because one click on a wrong link in Windows and you'll be glad your data can be stored on the Mac partition.
Initial investment is higher for Mac systems, but in the long run, if you manage to get malware or a virus, your inexpensive PC will start to run up the bills in expensive labor. And no manufacturer I've ever seen will provide free support when you have a virus or spyware.
I run a PC because I constantly change hardware, but I wish I could install MacOS. The *nix OS I have as my alternate is nice, but not as refined as OSX.
A quick addendum
by wyrmzr - 8/15/08 7:01 PM In reply to: Mac - Unless you're gaming by wyrmzrReally, the "unless you're gaming" statement doesn't even apply since you can now run both Windows and MacOS on a Mac system. This means if you want the best of both worlds, you can have it.
I've worked in several shops which sold and service both PC and Mac systems. The most common problem people have at this point is malware/spyware, and I've had many PC users ask how they can be totally sure they won't ever have to bring in their computer for removal of unwanted programs. The only honest answer I can give them is to buy a Mac.
And that's coming from someone who makes single digit revenue on Mac systems.
MacBook gives you fewer hassles and isn't more expensive.
by DJN - 8/15/08 7:01 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I own both a MacBook and a PC laptop [an IBM thinkpad. I've owned PCs and two MacBooks. First, before you bought anything, I'd check with the university for recommendations. I doubt if the university will have any problem; most kids I see in the Big 10 have MacBooks. Once that is determined, and you are free to use either one, I'd definitely recommend a Mac... but only if you can afford the 3 year warranty. I found the Macs to be less reliable than the PCs, and more expensive to repair. If you can swing the added cost of the Mac warranty, but the Mac.
I'd buy a Mac because:
1. The Mac OS is easier for all of the things you use a computer for. Sure you need to be able to access your University account, email, etc, but you will also want to use your computer to manage your music and photos. I can't tell you how many times I've lost the audio on my PC, and had to troubleshoot it through Windows. I've spent entire days trying to restore my audio. That's a day's studying lost trying to fix the computer. The computer is for computing, not for teaching you PC repair skills.
2. There is the Mac cool factor. Your social status in college does matter. And, with so many students using Macs, you shouldn't have trouble getting instruction or help.
3. As irritated as I get with it, the Apple user support forum is better than anything else available. Who wants to send a computer [or iPod for that matter] in for repair when you give some things a try before you go this far.
4. I would make sure there is an Apple store near you. Apple does seem a little stingy with licensing full service outlets.
Good luck at college!
No doubt. MacBook.
by TonyLP2007 - 8/15/08 7:22 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
There will be little to no learning curve or difficulty transitioning to a Mac for school. They're easier to write with, connect with, and hook up what will be your staples throughout college: your iPod or iPhone. The OS is more solid, and the design is more sleek. Plus, all your classmates will be using one. For all the features you'll use, like chat and wi-fi, Mac is just plain easier.
Oh yeah... and a p.s...
by TonyLP2007 - 8/15/08 7:34 PM In reply to: No doubt. MacBook. by TonyLP2007If you do get a Mac and bring it to school, please don't spell it out your computer's brand as MAC (with all caps), as many people do, which is really the acronym for Media Access Control. The name of the computer brand is the Apple Macintosh --Mac-- in upper/lowercase, for short.
Go Mac ........You will be much better off in the long run
by craig38w - 8/15/08 7:28 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I have just went thru the transition from pc to mac and could not be more pro mac. I have only used pc and microsoft prior to three months ago. I bought a macbook with my education discount it cost just about 1300, my wife bought a hp and spent about 1000. I have to say my macbook has been fantastic it works no matter what with no problems so far. I can not say the same for my wifes hp laptop, it has been sent back to hp three times in less than three months and finally, they just sent her a new computer and now it is breaking after two weeks of use, and hp customer service is the worst there is no doubt about it. Go Mac it is cheaper and better in the long run. I can only make one suggestion if you buy a hp product, get the warantee you are going to be needing it.
If price is not your problem...
by cheboncruz - 8/15/08 7:32 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
You can buy a Mac. Use bootcamp,vmware,parallels to boot both mac and windows. So if you get uncomfortable and need to use a particular software you can change the OS you are currently using.
Get a Mac
by chappejw - 8/15/08 7:47 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Battery life is much longer on a Mac approx. 5 hrs vs 2.5 - 3 hrs on a PC laptop. Just remember if you get a Windows based laptop you will need to regularly scan it for spyware, adware, and perform virus removals. Which takes alot of time that you don't have in university. Mac's have only ever had about 3 or 4 viruses vs. about 300,000 viruses for Windows so they are more secure and durable. Any university also offers Mac support. If you buy a Windows based laptop you will also need to buy a good virus scanner and firewall which will cost you time and money. All in all you will have way more problems with a Windows based laptop than you will with a Mac. Get a Mac.!!
Get the Mac
by ArturoYee - 8/15/08 7:48 PM In reply to: MacBook or PC laptop for college? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi,
Good question - I have spent 30+ years supporting PC/Microsoft OS's and about 6 years with Apple OS 9/OS X. When I had to buy a laptop, I got a Mac Book.
No problems transitioning to OS X at all. If you know a little about computers, the transition is easy.
For software, I use OpenOffice (NeoOffice) - it is free, and convert them to MS formats for the folks that are using MS Office. I have not even have to buy any software yet -
I still have MS machines - and spend a lot more time keeping them running efficiently then my Mac-
Do spend money on extra memory - I went for memory upgrade vs cpu speed or hard drive upgrade.
I have been very happy about my choice of going to Apple OS X. I am sure you are very capable of transitioning to OS X - just much simpler to install and run software.
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