<p>Hey I just sent in my deposit and I started looking at computers. I'm in the SOM, I was wondering if mac or pc is better, or if it really mattered?</p>
<p>Go with Linux. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.</p>
<p>Regardless of WHAT you buy, make sure you purchase it in the summer months. The major notebook manufactures generally have “back to school” deals. That, and, with technology time can really make a difference with what $x,xxx will buy you.</p>
<p>You will pay about 40% less for a PC with the same computing power as a Mac. I would buy a bargain PC notebook and with money left over buy a laserprinter as well as a netbook to carry to classes and to the library, home for break, etc… and leave the notebook in my residence. For the same amount of $$ you can get a MAC with no printer or netbook. If you buy a Mac you are paying a premium for what is mostly marketing hype.</p>
<p>Thanks! [:</p>
<p>Do you recomend a netbook? I had thought about getting one since I want alot of computing power in my college laptop, which means it will be a lot heavier… What did you use your net book for?</p>
<p>I’m sorry but i think ebenezer is incorrect. Windows Vista is not a very good OS. It is an absolute resource hog. Though a basic notebook you would get from say HP or Dell is probably dirt cheap, it will be a piece of crap. A basic notebook from Apple, though more expensive, will be an investment that will last at least your 4 yrs of college. I’m getting a new notebook in the summer and i will NOT be getting another PC. MAC HERE I COME.</p>
<p>As someone who’s worked with computer repairs for about a year or so- Windows Vista is a piece of **** operating system. Not that Apple’s OSX Leopard doesn’t come with its own share of problems, but coupled with the unreliability of PC manufacturer’s parts (we see brand-new Dell HDD failures within weeks of purchase, HP’s casings are TERRIBLE, etc), purchasing a Mac is a seriously valuable investment. While a PC laptop’s gonna last you a few years, I have friends and family members who have kept their Macs all four years of college.</p>
<p>You’re spending more, and you might necessarily get the kind of power you could get in a PC for the same amount of money, Apple products are seriously built to last.</p>
<p>My sister has a Dell XPS 1210. It is going on three years of heavy duty college use with no issues. My netbook Dell mini 9 does everything basic - email, word processing, video streaming, just as well as my big notebook does. I put Windows 7 prerelease on it. Vista with SP1 is very stable. Just uninstall all the junk that comes preinstalled from the manufacturer and get 2.0 GB of RAM and you will be ok. If you are unsure about the quality pay an extra $75 for a two year warranty. The forums are full of people that have had quality problems with Macs as well. The Intel chips and hard drives in the Macs are made in the same assembly lines in Taiwan and China that go into Dell and HP computers. Apple sells snob appeal and marketing hype. If you want to go ahead and pay extra for that that is your decision.</p>
<p>Apple products have always been aesthetically pleasing. What’s the problem with that? Anyway, you can run Apple OS X very well with the base requirements, with very few if any problems. Have you ever tried running Vista on a computer with the base requirements? It is absolutely horrendous. Not to mention there are about 5 different versions. No one is suggesting that MACs are infallible and every computer is bound to have its problems, but MAC is arguably the best today in regards to hardware and software. Who knows, maybe in two or three years Microsoft will get their act together.</p>
<p>Windows 7 rocks - another prerelease candidate will be available for free download in May. You can also get a new netbook with XP installed, not Vista. Ubuntu (linux) is also a nice platform. Linux is also available preinstalled on netbooks. Vista SP1 will work fine if you just add $40 of memory (1G) to a base system that just has 512 or 1GB to start with. Apple products are elegant and marketed well. If I had a lot of lifewealth I would go that way. If I was on a tight budget I wouldn’t.</p>
<p>Get whichever one you want. You can run Windows on a Mac for Windows only programs if you really need to.</p>
<p>Unless you know a lot about computers (which I’m assuming you don’t) I would not run Linux.</p>
<p>MAC…its an easy choice. i purchased my mac about 2-3 years ago and im taking it with me to college. the best part about it is the service. if you have a problem or a question, you can go to a store and get your problem fixed in minutes or questions answered in seconds. also, all macs right now come with a rebate that give you a free printer so thats a huge plus. you’ll never have to wait on the phone 3 hours again to speak to dell representative. plus its so easy to use and has a built in camera for vid-chatting with friends at other schools or even parents. easy choice- mac</p>
<p>Dell has online chat. You shouldn’t be on the phone. Wait time is <5 minutes.</p>
<p>I have a built in web cam on my Dell mini too.</p>
<p>i mean if your computer crashes and you cant get on im not quite sure how you;ll be able to go on their website… plus macs rarely get viruses since most are made on windows based computers so they dont work on macs. thats a big plus</p>
<p>i’m in SOM and use a PC
all my friends who have macs have problems when we have excel assignments so i would recommend PC to avoid that issue. Of course you can use the PODs if you want to spend the extra money to look cool and have a mac, but it’s annoying to go there. Honestly, my friends who have macs have had more problems than those with PCs and its easier to get PC support on campus than mac support.</p>