Miscellaneous laptop discussions forum: To Apple or not to Apple?

http://www.macbookrandomshutdown.com/

These kinds of problems are why I am abandoning Mac. Too bad, that elegant OS is tied to such rotten hardware. That's the truly costly part of owning a Mac.

and not getting their problems fixed (or getting new problems). Let's not impugn these fine folks who have found themselves in a difficult situation! BTW, I've found your advice on other threads useful. Thanks.

I use Zone Alarm's free firewall. AVG free edition anti-virus and several free spyware scanners. I never needed to reload my operating system and I have had bad experiences with all tech and customer support. The memory of Verizon's DSL tech support still haunts me.

Despite problems people are quick to point out with Apple, I feel as though they are not as big as people claim. There was the whole random shut down problem, which turned out to be due to a protective mechanism built into the computer that was designed to shut it off if the computer became too hot. Once they figured out what the problem was they fixed it.

A big advantage I have found is the Apple Stores in many major cities. If you have a problem with your Mac you can make an appointment and take your computer to the store to have someone take a look at your problem instead of calling tech support and trying to explain the problem to someone from India.

As for MacBook Pro improvements, rumor has it that Apple is switching to LED lit LCD displays; this means better battery life for laptops since LED's use less energy and last longer than the current cathode ray lights used (not to be confused with CRT monitors). If you don't need a new computer at this moment, I would be inclined to wait a few months because Tiger will be released sometime this spring as well as a refresh of the current MacBook and MacBook Pro lines. Also, the current beta version of Parallel's desktop has an option to let you boot a Boot Camp version of Windows XP as a virtual machine; Boot Camp lets you run windows as your native OS, so you can get the same performance on games and so forth as you would with a dedicated Windows machine. The only downside is that you need to buy a full version of Windows XP, not just an upgrade copy. I have bootcamp and parallels running on my machine, but I rarely find myself using either because most of the day to day stuff I do on my computer is done with OSX programs.

Lastly, if you start doing a price comparison of what you get with a new MacBook or MacBook Pro, you'll find that they're competatively priced in comparison to the equivalent PC (note that this therefore eliminates the $500 laptops that skimp on new technology).

In any case, happy computer shopping. New hardware is always nice and shinny.

They are not as expensive as I once thought. The only big issue with them is their lack of options. If someone like me does not take pictures, write my own music or make web pages; why does Apple still include this software in the price? If the software is optional, the price is cheaper if I do not need it. Why does Apple not let me choose the 15.4" laptop with a 1.66 GHz processor, 60 GB hard drive and 256 MB video card? I often choose laptops that have miniscule hard drives and huge resolution sizes. For example Dell offers monitors that give resolutions as high as 1680 x 1050 pixels on their 15.4" laptops. I know this option is not for everyone, but I am willing to spend $150-$200 more for this feature. In my early reviews I hated Apple laptops because I thought they were over priced. They are not overpriced, but their lack of options makes it more expensive if someone prefers different configurations.

I work in video web graphics etc. I use both windows and Macs. I have a windows laptop and a new macbook with os x. So far I have had the mac in for repair four times and havn't owned it for 10 months yet. I also use the new macs that boot xp and os x and it's not as handy as it seems. The windows on the mac is only 80% windows. From my experience Apple will cost you a fortune in the long run regardless of how you figure it. I am also a A+ PC technitian in Kansas where there is ABSOLUTELY no apple care stores anywhere. And the only apple tech I know of works for CompUSA. Thats right there is only 1 person in Kansas that will fix your crapple. Also the apples seem to break down very easily. And if you use flash drives free yourself from apple its all shortcuts. so annoying. When you buy an apple you only have limited things you can buy. You have to use either an apple processor or an intel processor that would ONLY benifit you if you used the new programs like Adobe photoshop etc. If your program isn't made to support the duo core intels then really your just getting a 1.66 ghz processor. There is a very limited selection of games on the apple and none will take full advantage of duo core. Everything apple is tied to cheap hardware that you CANNOT upgrade. Now you want a laptop, and most are generic and there is no room for upgrades but if you want to do any gaming go with windows period. Windows can do EVERYTHING apple can do and so much more. Besides the newest macs have problems and I seem to see the gay circle of death often on the macs at work.

Preston

Apple does make good laptops, but they throw in unnecessary upgrades I do not need. I do not want to pay for the 1.83 GHz Core 2 Duo processor if I can get the 1.66 GHz Core 2 Duo Processor. I also do not need the extra software that Apple includes in the price. For what I need, companies like Dell and HP are significantly cheaper than Apple. Apple simply does not offer what I need in a laptop. I want a 14-15" laptop that weighs less than 5 pounds. I want a 256 MB video card with a monitor that has at least 1440x900 resolution in a 14" laptop or 1920x1200 in a 15" laptop. I type too many papers for those little monitors that do not have enough resolution. I want it to be wireless with 802.11 a/b/g computability. I need at least 2GB of ram and long battery life is a plus. I need all of this for about $1500. Even though I like Apple, they do not have a laptop that offers these features for $1500.