PC v Mac...cliche I know

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
1

<p>Well Im starting to research the laptop market to find which would be best for college and am just curious to see what others have to say. </p>

<p>I know its mostly based on personal preference, and personally I'd rather have XP, but with Boot Camp (still not very familiar with it) coming out, should I consider a Mac? Im also into film editing (Avid on my home PC/Final Cut on a G5 at school), but I probably won't have as much time to dedicate to the hobby during the school year.</p>

<p>Any advice or opinions welcomed</p>

2

<p>If you want XP, then go with a PC. Boot Camp is a great utility, but it's meant for Mac users that need to use a Windows OS occasionally.</p>

3

<p>I've made a few posts on this already, use the search feature.</p>

4

<p>Well, if you want windows, you should go with windows...but macs are still awesome. I have a Powerbook I got in March (i'm a new switcher!) and I love it.</p>

5

<p>I love my VAIO. Bootcamp allows you to switch back and forth, but I my VAIO is about $400 dollar cheaper for the same or better config. :/ Consider that.</p>

6

<p>Macs are rip-offs. No student in their right mind should waste their money on one. You pay more for weaker technology, less flexibility and stupid ad campaigns.</p>

7

<p>Mac's are overpriced and poor values IMO because they try to carve out a special niche for themselves style-wise that people pay a premium for. That extra money you're paying for over a normal pc is not for extra performance, its for extra "style." PC's nowadays have surpassed the Mac quite a bit in terms of performance and you shouldn't hesitate to get a good PC over a mac. With all the customizable cases and monitors out there, you can make your PC look like a Mac anyways.</p>

8

<p>There's a great deal at Costco(CA) in July: HP Core Duo, 2 GB DDR memory with 100 GB HD for only $999.99 with the coupon.</p>

9

<p>Hey g1a2b3e and DIOGENES, prove your points. Same to berenelen. You claim that Macs are overpriced, that a similarly spec'd VAIO is $400 cheaper, that performance is poor. I want to see some evidence.</p>

<p>I am on Apple's and Dell's sites right now, pricing out notebooks. Apple's 13.3" Macbook with a 2GHz Core Duo, 1GB of RAM, 60GB hard drive, DVD+/-RW etc. comes to $1399. The Dell Inspiron E1405 at 14.1" costs $1336.50. Wow, that's a whole $70 worth of difference; the kind of difference you see even between different PC manufacturers. And guess what? DIOGENES, you said that "PC's nowadays have surpassed the Mac quite a bit in terms of performance." The notebooks I spec'd have identical processors, identical amounts of RAM, identical onboard video, and identical hard drives. Further, Macbook Pros were some of the first notebooks to even carry Core Duos, arguably the best performing notebook chip available right now.</p>

<p>If you go to Sony.com and price out a VAIO with the same specs, I'll bet you will find it isn't $400 less either. Price and performance are not reasons not to get a Mac unless you want to spend less than $1,000 (in which case you have to get a PC, because Apple doesn't make notebooks that low-end).</p>

<p>If I were to buy a laptop right now, I would get a Mac personally (I currently own an IBM and have never actually owned a Mac). They have good build quality (which is why I got my IBM), are UNIX-based (as a programmer I do a lot of develop in UNIX/Linux), and can boot to Windows if necessary (obviously only as a back up if I needed some Windows app, such as AutoCAD). Further, I feel that 13.3" is the best size in terms of trading off portability for usability (I own a 14.1", the next best size available in IBM's line).</p>

<p>That said, there aren't a whole lot of disadvantages to getting a Mac right now. Consider: if you spend $1500 on a PC, you will be able to run Windows and Linux on it if you want. If you spend $1500 on a Mac, you will be able to run Mac OS, Windows, and Linux. You effectively have more flexibility with what OS you choose to use. Now, if you hate OS X, then don't get a Mac, since it will obviously be your primary OS. However, from my experience with OS X and from hearing positive remarks about it, I wouldn't doubt it would be a nice OS to work with.</p>

10

<p>You all do realize that 2gHz on a Mac is different from a 2gHz on a PC. The raw speed is the same, but the efficiency is far different, because of the powerful OS X. So, you can't really compare by specs like that.</p>

11

<p>
[quote]

That said, there aren't a whole lot of disadvantages to getting a Mac right now.

[/quote]

Yeah and you can even feel like that cool guy in the commercials; omg, I am totally gonna buy a mac! One price comparison between two computers is certainly an indication regarding pricing too! I HATE VARIETEY and TECHNOLOGY and FLEXIBILITY; I want to be restricted in every possible way, and I want to pay for stupid advertising campaigns! GO APPPPLE!</p>

12

<p>
[quote]
You all do realize that 2gHz on a Mac is different from a 2gHz on a PC. The raw speed is the same, but the efficiency is far different, because of the powerful OS X. So, you can't really compare by specs like that.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>You do realize that OS X incurs A LOT of overhead due to the constant switching between userspace and kernel space because of the mach microkernel right? Do you know what I'm talking about? Right? Right?</p>

<p>And the fact that the CPU is not the main bottleneck any more in modern computing, right? The fact that DRAM memory is multiple orders of magnitudes slower than CPU. The fact that magnetic disks are orders of mangitudes slower than DRAM.</p>

<p>g1a2b3e, go troll else where.</p>

<p>You do realize that Apple doesn't manufacture their own hardware right? The Intel Macs (with the exception of maybe the motherboard), all use standard computer hardware available at any place. Companies like Dell, IBM, HP, Compaq, and Apple do not manufacture their own hardware. They just choose the parts and put it together. There is nothing stopping variety, technology, and flexibility for any computer.</p>

<p>There is nothing stopping you from building your own laptop. You can buy an Acer barebones kit for ~$700 and just plugin a CPU, RAM, HDD, and an optical drive.</p>

<p>The new Intel Macs perform just as well as standard laptops. Buy a laptop that suits your needs and fits your budget. Don't listen to these people.</p>

<p>Keep in mind, a laptop is not required and I have yet to find it useful other than for killing time. In that case, it's probably better to just get a PDA.</p>

<p>If you like a clean looking operating system that is relatively hassle free, go for OS X.</p>

<p>If you like having a computer supported by mainstream, go for Windows.</p>

<p>If you want a cheap laptop, I'd suggest a Dell but keep in mind what you pay for.</p>

<p>If you want a quality laptop, I'd suggest a Lenovo (IBM).</p>

<p>If you want a full desktop replacement, I'd suggest a Sager.</p>

<p>If you want something that just works, I'd suggest a Mac.</p>

<p>If you plan on going into EECS, go for Linux because you'll need to learn your away around nova, cory, qusar, pulsar, h50, etc. ;)</p>

13

<p>umm eudean, I got mine 400 cheaper because PCs go on sale while Mac prices are virtually set in stone. :/</p>

<p>I'm not saying that a PC is best for everyone, but for most people, PCs are going to be easier on the wallet.</p>

14

<p>"I got mine 400 cheaper because PCs go on sale while Mac prices are virtually set in stone. :/"</p>

<p>It's a comparison betweeon ONE COMPANY and thousands of others, along with the freedom to do it yourself.</p>