<p>I've got some money saved up and looking to establish some good credit before college, so I'm probably going to get a Best Buy credit card (no interest for 6 months) and just pay it off within the first three months and not touch it again.</p>
<p>But I had a qestion..I REALLY want a Mac. Is a Mac going to limit me in anyway on campus? Neither myself nor my family has ever owned a Mac so I'm unsure about ALL of its advantages/disadvantages. </p>
<p>If anyone could help, it'd be much appreciated!</p>
<p>P.S. Would it be wiser to wait until the summer in order to buy a notebook?</p>
<p>Well I've always been a Mac user and so has my family. My brother is at Clemson University right now with his laptop and has no problem. You might want to get it earlier in the summer so that you can get used to it before you go off to school. I'm not sure if they'll add anything to them from now until then but they may update some software. But there is also a deal where you can get a student discount when you buy a Mac at the Apple stores. When my brother bought his a few years ago it was like $100 off or something. Now I think they either do that or throw in a free Ipod nano. Although its not as strong as the Gateway/Dell etc. support, there is usually a place on campuses where you can get support if your having trouble or an error (Macs almost never have problems compared to a PC).
But I'd check out the UVa site or try calling someone about the support there. But I know I'll have my Mac with me at UVa next fall. Hope I helped a little.</p>
<p>You'll definitely be able to connect to the network and almost all colleges have support for multiple operating systems nowadays, so I wouldn't be too worried about that.</p>
<p>Based on the UVaWeb statistics, 93% of browsers are using Windows, 6% Mac, and <1% Linux. I think those may be stats based on visitors to virginia.edu, so they may not fully reflect the usage by students at UVa.</p>
<p>I would definitely wait until later to buy a Mac. The MacWorld convention is coming up in January, where there will likely be new products announced and slashed prices and upgrades of certain products. Also, a new update to the Mac OS is slated to be announced sometime next Spring (OS X 10.5), so you should wait until at least then because you'll get the new OS for free with the laptop.</p>
<p>Make sure you use the student discount when purchasing from the Apple store online. You'll probably be able to save $100-200 on a MacBook (Pro).</p>
<p>I've heard that engineering students use programs that only run on Windows.</p>
<p>So you might want to steer clear from a Mac if you're an engineering student.
I know there is a program for Macs called, Parallels, but it might be just a hassle for those that absolutely need windows.</p>
<p>If you want to get a cheap notebook they are the way to go as far as value there, but if you are looking for something higher end, $1250+, I'd suggest HP or maybe a thinkpad.</p>
<p>Two Dells in my hosue right now, both incredibly unstable</p>
<p>i'd recommend u just get a desktop. i wish i would have gotten one instead of a laptop. its always easier to just use a computer at the library, or borrow a library laptop then to lug urs around, and with homedirectory you can access all your files at any computer.</p>
<p>also, i've found that with a laptop, every year my desk space gets smaller...this year im completely lacking a desk and my laptop sits on my coffee table/floor. no desk means home isn't exactly condusive to doing work.</p>
<p>Dells are fine computers that you can find for great deals. I recommend staking out techbargains.com or notebookforums.com for Dell coupons and buying one that way. Macs are alright too, if they're you're thing.</p>
<p>At all costs, avoid computers sold through the University. You'll just get ripped off.</p>
<p>just fyi, Macs have all Microsoft Office products on there (Word, Excel, Visio, PP, ect)...they leack Outlook-type programs, but have the exact same thing with a cooler name...so if you're issue against Macs is not being able to have "microsoft" typical programs, fear not =P</p>
<p>i have a macbook at uva, and it is the best. i always used PCs so I was worried about switching to a Mac before college. However, it was one of my best decisions i have friends who wish they had gotten a mac rather than dell. there is an Cavalier Computers in the bookstore repairs Macs even if you didn't buy it through UVa (which I didn't). The Macbook is especially great because you can carry it around with you - I use it to take notes in nearly every class. They are just such sweet machines.</p>
<p>i plan on getting a macbook this summer. one of my friends is quite a tech nerd and loves macs so i thought i'd give one a try. plus i love the way macbooks look.</p>
<p>i currently have (and am using) an ibm t40. it is a great machine; fast, easy to use, compatible with nearly everything. it's laid out nicely and is a very professional looking laptop. windows is a familiar operating system and managing wireless connections is very easy as well. i've had this very same laptop since the summer of 2003 and have only had a few problems: hard drive crashed, motherboard came loose, screen cracked. while those sound scary, i have an awesome warranty on it and everything was covered for free.</p>
<p>i suppose it depends on what you're looking for!</p>
<p>I so want an Apple iBook/MacBook, but I'm worried I might not be able to adjust quickly to the OS. So any kind of nice notebook that supports Windows would be fine for me. I'm looking to get a Compaq or something of that sort.</p>
<p>I would rather have a desktop...but I'm from the Philippines, so I can't really fly over a whole computer to UVA. :P</p>
<p>Hello,
My name is Bill Strong and I am the webmaster of the Cavalier Computers store here at UVA.
I want to welcome you to UVA and let you know what is going to happen over the next month or so.
Cavalier Computers, owned and operated by the University of Virginia, is the official computer and technology store for UVA. We are currently preparing the UVA recommended computer offerings catalog that we will be sending out to every first year student. The catalog will include UVA recommended computers that have pre-installed software, 4-year Next Business Day on-site warranties and an accessories kit that includes a surge suppressor, usb cable, laptop bag, UVA's required Ethernet cable and more. Basically the computer bundle will have everything that you need to get started here at UVA. </p>
<p>I don't have any more details that I can give at this time, but feel free to e-mail me at <a href="mailto:wdg9c@virginia.edu">wdg9c@virginia.edu</a>. I'll make sure your questions are answered and I can even answer any questions about the UVA Bookstore.</p>
<p>Don't forget that with the new Mac computers, that they can dual-boot into Windows. Which means that any Win-only application can be run at anytime. If you don't want to restart your computer, there is another program called Parallels which allows you to run Windows at native speeds inside Mac OS X. That way, you get the best of both worlds.</p>
<p>Well, it is not as simple as that. You also have to look at who is going to support a system like that. Apple wont support windows and MS wont support windows on a mac.
That really means nothing to the techies out there, but to the 99.9% of everyone else it does. It can mean the difference between finishing that paper on time, or not.
If you are looking at an Engineering degree, SEAS does not recommend the Apple products. Now some students have made them work. I personally would rather be concentrating on keeping my GPA up then looking for ways to make the programs work.</p>
<p>I am an avid user of macs. I own a 12" powerbook and a 15" MacBook Pro. I just know the difference between marketing a product and real world experiance :)</p>
<p>The other issue that you need to look at is warranty. Apples have a hardware warranty. The Dells we sell have hardware and an insurrance policy that will cover the computer if you spill something in it, drop it, bend it etc... Basically accidental damage protection. Apple does not have that.
I dropped my Dell a few years ago from about 3 feet. The strap on my backpack broke. I could hear the crunching sounds as the Latitude crashed to the ground. The next day I had a new motherboard, new bottom case, new screen and a working computer. And it did not cost me a cent.</p>
<p>i appreciate that you're trying to sell computers, but i have to say, my experience with CavComp has been nothing but bad. Not that the people arn't nice, but you guys sold me a lemon. And btw, maybe you get next day service because you work there, but everytime I bring my computer in (which is fairly frequently) its a 1 week turnaround.</p>
<p>Actually I call the Help Desk, which is the proper procedure and the tech comes to my place and fixes it. I actually get no special treatment. </p>
<p>What I see is students either don't know that the fastest way to service is to call the Help Desk, or they are just trying to bypass the system thinking it will get them fixed faster. Help Desk is the way to go.</p>
<p>When you say we sold you a lemon, what do you mean?
By the looks of your sentence, "a one week turn around", I assume your issues are software related, either from virus, spyware. Hardware issues are taken care of very fast. Software issues are not covered under any warranties. But without knowing your problems I can't really say what the problems are. </p>
<p>I am not trying to sell computers. I get paid by the state to offer you guys a service and a fully supported product. I have been with Cavalier Computers for almost 10 years now. I have been here before the DCI program when students could purchase any computer they wanted. I worked as a tech that fixed those computers. You were looking at 2-3 weeks before getting your computer repaired back then. Now even during the most busy times like rush and after long holidays times rarely exceed 3 or so days for hardware repairs.
The other great point of the system is that our repair techs will work with you and meet you when it is right for you to fix your computer. Not like other companies that tell you they will be at UVA at XX:XX and you need to be there as well, only problem is that you have class at that time... You can even drop the computer off at the Bookstore or the medical center store if you don't have time to meet the tech. We have people that drop by each store twice a day and will pick up those computers for repair.
Oh, I was just thinking... do you have a Mac? if so that would explain the week as Apple requires us to send them back to depot to be repaired. Whereas the Dells are field servicable.</p>