Apple or PC Laptop?
Discussion
I've only ever used PC's for work at stuff.
My 14 year old has been saving and I've agreed to make up the difference for a combined birthday/christmas present and get him a laptop.
He is totally smitten with the looks of the Apple laptops (the 12" and 14" cheaper ones) and I must admit they do 'look' lovely, but, if we did go the Apple route it would need to work on our esisting wireless system at home (all run from PC's), and he would need to transfer files that he had started at school on PC using microsoft word/excel/powerpoint. I know that you can get Office for Apple computers, but is it really fully compatible.
Basically - help and advice welcome!
Thanks
Igg
PS. He'll want to use it for school work (yeah right!), internet, email, ipod etc. He probably won't use it for games as we have both X-box and Playstation, and anyway, my home PC is a very powerful machine that they tend to use for games.
My 14 year old has been saving and I've agreed to make up the difference for a combined birthday/christmas present and get him a laptop.
He is totally smitten with the looks of the Apple laptops (the 12" and 14" cheaper ones) and I must admit they do 'look' lovely, but, if we did go the Apple route it would need to work on our esisting wireless system at home (all run from PC's), and he would need to transfer files that he had started at school on PC using microsoft word/excel/powerpoint. I know that you can get Office for Apple computers, but is it really fully compatible.
Basically - help and advice welcome!
Thanks
Igg
PS. He'll want to use it for school work (yeah right!), internet, email, ipod etc. He probably won't use it for games as we have both X-box and Playstation, and anyway, my home PC is a very powerful machine that they tend to use for games.
igg said:
PS. He'll want to use it for school work (yeah right!), internet, email, ipod etc.
Apple would be fine then. I've got a Powerbook as my personal computer and it works great. iTunes works better on the Mac. Internet, Email etc are all fine.
I used Windows for years. Fancied a change, bought a Powerbook and realised that unless you 'need' a PC (software for eg) then a Mac is a fine substitute. Had no problems or issues.
I know its a bit cliched and I get the piss taken out of me at work for being a mac man, but when you sit down and use them, you realise that its not all hype but its actual a great product.
Happy to answer any specific questions about the changeover. Just drop me an email via my profile.
Ooh, you're opening a can of worms there.
I'll skip wireless because I don't have direct experience. However I understand it should be no problem whatsoever. You can easily set up the Mac to appear like a PC on the network (Windows Sharing in System Preferences). Most serious printers, scanners, etc. are compatible with both PC and Mac (but always check the CDs and websites for drivers and helper applications))
Mac easily covers all the things you want to use it for.
Office for Mac is totally compatible with Office for Windows and backwards compatible to Office 97 & 98. In some areas it is better (e.g. translucent charts). The one area you might notice slight incompatibilities is with colours (such as the fill colour of a shape). I've found the standard colour palettes in Office for Mac to be more vibrant, but different from those for the PC version. Once recognised, it's easy to manage (run a quick check on Dad's PC, so Teacher sees it right). The downer is that you will need to buy a dedicated copy of Office for Mac, rather than stealing your PC copy - hopefully you can get a Student version? N.B. you don't get MS Access with OfM, because Filemaker has it licked.
So do your research on Macs confident that you will not have any serious problems with compatibility. Check that your existing peripherals, and the school, support Macs. Pick up a copy of "The Missing Manual for OSX" (£20, excellent book). Sorted.
Then your only problem will be envy as you realise how good your son's computer is!
I'll skip wireless because I don't have direct experience. However I understand it should be no problem whatsoever. You can easily set up the Mac to appear like a PC on the network (Windows Sharing in System Preferences). Most serious printers, scanners, etc. are compatible with both PC and Mac (but always check the CDs and websites for drivers and helper applications))
Mac easily covers all the things you want to use it for.
Office for Mac is totally compatible with Office for Windows and backwards compatible to Office 97 & 98. In some areas it is better (e.g. translucent charts). The one area you might notice slight incompatibilities is with colours (such as the fill colour of a shape). I've found the standard colour palettes in Office for Mac to be more vibrant, but different from those for the PC version. Once recognised, it's easy to manage (run a quick check on Dad's PC, so Teacher sees it right). The downer is that you will need to buy a dedicated copy of Office for Mac, rather than stealing your PC copy - hopefully you can get a Student version? N.B. you don't get MS Access with OfM, because Filemaker has it licked.
So do your research on Macs confident that you will not have any serious problems with compatibility. Check that your existing peripherals, and the school, support Macs. Pick up a copy of "The Missing Manual for OSX" (£20, excellent book). Sorted.
Then your only problem will be envy as you realise how good your son's computer is!
I would add that you are going about it the right (boring) way, methodically asking the right questions:
- What do I want it to do, and can the Mac actually do it?
- What system/equipment do I want it to work with, and can I easily get the drivers & software? Is it compatible, and what does it take to make it compatible?
- What hidden extras will I need (software, airport card, RAM) do I need? How much will it cost? Is it still cost-effective?
It is worth asking whether he really requires portability. A Mac Mini (especially if you have a spare screen knocking around) or an iMac are worth considering - you may find the extra bang (e.g. screen size, DVD writer) comes for less bucks.
- What do I want it to do, and can the Mac actually do it?
- What system/equipment do I want it to work with, and can I easily get the drivers & software? Is it compatible, and what does it take to make it compatible?
- What hidden extras will I need (software, airport card, RAM) do I need? How much will it cost? Is it still cost-effective?
It is worth asking whether he really requires portability. A Mac Mini (especially if you have a spare screen knocking around) or an iMac are worth considering - you may find the extra bang (e.g. screen size, DVD writer) comes for less bucks.
Plotloss said:
I'd have a PC in a Mac case...
Or a good spec'd Mac for the price of the same spec Windows Laptop.
I'll take your G4 and place it against the Dell
Inspiron 6000 laptop, not even a cheap brand!.
Clicky
20 quid more and just a slight difference in performance (not).
Anyway, kids will with out a doubt want to play games and MS is the daddy for that!.
I'm quite a Mac fan but I thought I would just even up the debate.
MSI Megabook S260, 1280px resolution on 12", 512MB ram, centrino 1,7G, 80GB hd, magnesium case, same price as ibook 12", but lighter (1.8kg instead of 2.2) and thinner. 
Go for the Apple, you won't regret it.
We have a wireless network at home and in the office, with Apple PowerBooks and Windoze laptops working fine.
The hardware and software Apple Mac really is a different leauge in terms of quality and user interface.
They are a bit more expensive but prices are much less than they used to be. Microsoft Office is fully compatible (I'd say works better) but you will have to pay for it. However, off-set against this all the fab applications you get for free with Mac OS X ' Tiger' - iPhoto, Mail, Safari, GarageBand, Spotlight, Dashboard etc., etc.
A good starting point would be to buy a magazine called iCreate. Lots of tips for those new to Mac OS.
We have a wireless network at home and in the office, with Apple PowerBooks and Windoze laptops working fine.
The hardware and software Apple Mac really is a different leauge in terms of quality and user interface.
They are a bit more expensive but prices are much less than they used to be. Microsoft Office is fully compatible (I'd say works better) but you will have to pay for it. However, off-set against this all the fab applications you get for free with Mac OS X ' Tiger' - iPhoto, Mail, Safari, GarageBand, Spotlight, Dashboard etc., etc.
A good starting point would be to buy a magazine called iCreate. Lots of tips for those new to Mac OS.
If it really must be a laptop I'd buy Apple, but the mini and the iMac (I bought my mum one) are very nice.
The only problem with the Apple laptops at the moment is heat and performance. Apple are moving to Intel (less heat, more performance) chips and new Intel based laptops are expected early 2006. This may not be an issue for you but it's worth bearing in mind.
http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/
The only problem with the Apple laptops at the moment is heat and performance. Apple are moving to Intel (less heat, more performance) chips and new Intel based laptops are expected early 2006. This may not be an issue for you but it's worth bearing in mind.
http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/
800 said:
The hardware and software Apple Mac really is a different leauge in terms of quality and user interface.
Yeah its not as good as PC hardware by a huge amount. Once reason they are switching to Intel is to try and compete on the PC level.
The Mac interface against the Windows interface is debateable.
__Lee__ said:
The Mac interface against the Windows interface is debateable.
Lee, there are many areas where the Mac system can be criticised, but you are having a laugh, aren't you?
I recently borrowed a friend's XP machine, and quite frankly the interface was appalling - cluttered, confusing, and just plain ugly. Even the first screen grabs of Vista look like a poor facsimile of Panther (already outdated). Yes, there are areas where Windows does things better than Mac, but the interface is most definitely not one of them.
In OSX, I am still astounded by the Expose feature (if any PC people are near an OSX Mac, go press the F9 button to see it) - in both concept and execution, it is a little piece of genius. So simple, so obvious. It's the many elements like that which make me and many others prefer Mac.
The Mac evangelists on PH have offered constructive opinion to igg. I'm all for a decent counter-argument (a Mac may not be right for him), but at least try to be equally constructive and highlight the features that you think make Windows better.
Hirich said:Lee said this is debateable.
The Mac interface against the Windows interface is debateable.
Lee, there are many areas where the Mac system can be criticised, but you are having a laugh, aren't you?
I recently borrowed a friend's XP machine, and quite frankly the interface was appalling - cluttered, confusing, and just plain ugly. Even the first screen grabs of Vista look like a poor facsimile of Panther (already outdated). Yes, there are areas where Windows does things better than Mac, but the interface is most definitely not one of them.
In OSX, I am still astounded by the Expose feature (if any PC people are near an OSX Mac, go press the F9 button to see it) - in both concept and execution, it is a little piece of genius. So simple, so obvious. It's the many elements like that which make me and many others prefer Mac.
The Mac evangelists on PH have offered constructive opinion to igg. I'm all for a decent counter-argument (a Mac may not be right for him), but at least try to be equally constructive and highlight the features that you think make Windows better.
You're debating it.
I guess you agree then
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