[pnrgi]

im going to college in the fall, and i was looking in to getting a powerbook. The college that im going to requires that you bring a laptop, and they recomend a dell, but i feel that this is the perfect time to get a powerbook.

now apple's site is full of ********, so i need to know, what are the real reasons to get a mac? What advantages and what disadvantages does it have?

What should i do when i buy it? like RAM, apple seems to charge alot for it, can i use regular notebook ram or is it special apple ram? How does the clock speed relate to a pentium?(i heard 3x faster). what about the APP, what does it really cover, is it worth it?

Thanks in advance.

[TampaDeveloper]

The RAM is just regular DDR memory (speed depends on model). You can get it anywhere. iBook will be more durable for a student!! The figure I see quoted is 1 Ghz G4 = 1.6 Ghz P4...

[pnrgi]

no, lol i know the power of a mac, it jsut that i have been on windows for so long, im afriad.

[Bruck]

Relax. I switched from pc to mac. Well basically I added a mac to my desk and I honestly am about to build a new pc, but I love the mac.

If I could, i would boot OSX on my pc. But I can't, i chose the powerbook for portabilitiy and for the OS. The powerbook is the best damn laptop in the world, nothing can honestly compete with it, that is if it ran windows, since it runs osX it's by far the best. You can even run windows if you need to (at first I thought I would but i haven't yet) So now 2 months after getting my new powerbook I barely use my pc. Sometimes i use it for its second display and the familiarity of some applications but for the most part, it can stay off for days and I don't notice. I want a new pc for gaming, but a pc laptop wouldn't handle that, so if you are going to buy a laptop, it should be a mac, no doubts.


Enjoy!

[Phat Bastard]

Here's my $0.02:

Originally posted by pnrgi:
now apple's site is full of ********, so i need to know, what are the real reasons to get a mac? What advantages and what disadvantages does it have?

Advantages to having a Mac:
-amazing OS: OS X has accomplished what Linux has been trying to do for years, and that's make a powerful yet easy to use GUI on top of a stable, powerful UNIX backbone. Plus there are NO viruses that target OS X, there are way fewer security holes and subsequent security updates, unlike Windows XP which has a critical security breach almost every month;

-longevity: the upgrade cycle for the typical Mac user is more than double that of the typical PC user. You won't need to buy another Mac for a few years after you buy this one, unlike PCs which go obsolete pretty much every year, and software becomes unusable as a result;

-incredible "digital lifestyle" software. I'm talking about iLife--iTunes and iPhoto are incredible, and the others are pretty good too (iMovie, iDVD, Garageband);

-style: Macs are SO much better looking than PCs and that makes them SO much more fun to use!

-non-conformity/originality: do you really want to be like every other Dude who got a Dell?

-close-knit community: there might be only 2% of us Mac users in the overall market share, but we're vocal and we help each other out. Macnn is the best community online and Mac people are usually super-friendly;

-did I mention the OS is a UNIX-based one? It's amazing how powerful the Mac OS has become.

Disadvantages to having a Mac:
-of course, software compatibility. It depends on what you'll be running. Most major software packages exist for the Mac, such as Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, Macromedia stuff, but of course there could be issues with your Mom-and-Pop piece of software. Find out what you are going to be running in college before you buy a Mac, of course. It helps that OS X is UNIX so you can run UNIX apps in the X11 X-windows environment, that leads to a huge amount of compabitility with computer science-type apps;

-fewer retailers and service locations. This depends on where you live. If you live in a big city, chances are there will be at least a handful of Mac dealers. So that's not a huge disadvantage but again it depends;

-fewer users. By this I mean you might not be able to discuss issues/problems with your Mac with other computer users around you, because generally there are fewer Macs around. But again, this depends on your school. I'm in biological sciences so there are a ton of Mac people around. Plus there are communities like this one to help you out;

-less potential for upgrades. This applies to laptops in general as compared to desktops. Mac laptops are not easily upgradeable, beyond RAM and Airport cards. You'll have to open up the machine and void your warranty if you want to put in a new hard drive (pretty easy) or optical drive (with difficulty) yourself;

-last but not least: envy. You will be the subject of the envy of many people--they will love your Mac and will want it. Be prepared to show it off and brag.

This was just a taste, there are many more adv/disadv. of course.

What should i do when i buy it? like RAM, apple seems to charge alot for it, can i use regular notebook ram or is it special apple ram? How does the clock speed relate to a pentium?(i heard 3x faster). what about the APP, what does it really cover, is it worth it?

As TampaDeveloper said, the RAM is normal DDR RAM (PC2100 or PC2700, depending on the Powerbook you buy), which is standard memory that is available anywhere. Yes, Apple does charge too much for their memory, you should check out Ramseeker for a breakdown of the prices by various distributors out there.

Clock speed: It is really hard to say, because there are too many factors that determine a user's perception of how fast the computer is (software, OS, processor, RAM type and speed, etc, etc). I think the best gauge of speed is whether you think the computer is FAST ENOUGH for YOUR specific tasks. Like do you get impatient waiting for your browser, your email program, instant messaging program, to load. I use a 1.6 GHz P4 at the lab and my 12" Powerbook G4 867 MHz, and the P4 outperforms the Powerbook by a very slim margin for normal tasks like browsing, email, IM. I'd suggest trying out a few programs with a demo model at an Apple Store and seeing if it's fast enough for you. There's no simple equation to relate the P4 and the G4 chip speeds.

As for Applecare, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES BUY IT! Laptop repairs are EXPENSIVE as hell and your FIRST repair will MORE than cover the cost of the Applecare. Applecare is expensive to buy, but it's just something you have to buy so suck it up. It's like insurance, everyone has to have it. The history of hardware failures in Powerbooks depends on the model you're talking about, but there have been trends in the past with hardware flaws that a lot of people experience (just look around this board, such as white spots on the 15" Albooks, logic board failures on older Tibooks, etc). But WAY MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, Apple will repair these flaws no questions asked. Apple Support really is second to none.

I hope all that helps..

[Rocketman]

should one get the AppleCare Package like a couple of months after the purchase of the laptop .. since it comes with a 90 warranty that way it would last a couple of months more .. or you can't do that?

[javabeans]

Originally posted by Rocketman:
should one get the AppleCare Package like a couple of months after the purchase of the laptop .. since it comes with a 90 warranty that way it would last a couple of months more .. or you can't do that?

I bought my first Mac, a 17" PB, it has been an exceptional experience. It's almost a year now. I didn't get AppleCare, knock on wood that things will be working fine! Also convince my g/f to get a Mac and she did get a 12" PB. She's loving it!

[Rocketman]

Speaking of Making the switch .. i'm going to be getting my first Mac .. never used one b4 .. i was wondering if anybody can post some helpful links .. for like shortcuts and for beginners in general ..

[mjames]

I will also be a college freshman in the fall (can't wait!) and I made the switch from a Dell desktop to a 15" Apple Powerbook. It's great! I made the switch with no knowledge of the OS or of software available, but wonderful sites like this and a couple knowledgeable friends made it a smooth experience. I am now a Mac person and plan buy more Mac products down the road.

[typoon]

Originally posted by Rocketman:
should one get the AppleCare Package like a couple of months after the purchase of the laptop .. since it comes with a 90 warranty that way it would last a couple of months more .. or you can't do that?

Here is the thing about Applecare. You have from 1 year from the purchase of your Mac to buy Applecare. So you can wait if Money is tight at the moment. I would still get it.

[Rocketman]

typoon, i thought i read somewhere that you have a year to purchase to applecare but i wasn't sure if i had read it wrong .. i will do that .. thx

[Phat Bastard]

Right, you get 1 year warranty with the purchase of your Mac, and you can only buy Applecare during that first year. Regardless of when you buy it exactly in the first year, you get 3 years full service from the date of purchase of the Mac, NOT the date of purchase of the Applecare. So if money is tight, wait until the end of the first year, otherwise it doesn't matter when you get it.

[Rocketman]

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ... then there is no point of waiting .. might as well get it all at once .. i thought it would give me an extra year .. if it was like 3 years from the date of the purchase of the applecare thingy ...

well that sux .. ohh well ..
thx dude

[Phat Bastard]

Don't mention it. Yeah, it would better if the 3 years began when you bought the extended Applecare, but hey, life isn't perfect. You'd think with how much they've increased the cost of Applecare in recent years they'd make it last longer.