Bye Bye Mac

[Ironman273]

Mac Zealot? who me? I am PC all the way, Macs are lovely machines, and I made my computer unfriendly sister buy one, but I am sitting in front of my Vista Ultimate machine at the moment... thanks.

The point I was making, is that the XPS410 is not a good example of the 'PC are ultimately expandable' arguement, better to use say the E520 which is a real mini tower machine (as opposed to the SFF XPS410).

I am amused.. me a Mac Zealot :D

Well, then I misunderstood your "So what's your point" comment. If so, I apologize. Again, I picked it because it was in the XPS line, which is a little more high end than the E line and second because I have recently had some experience with it. I never started the expandable argument, you did. Anyways, like I said, I was just satisfying my own curiosity with this experiment and decided to share my findings. The price isn't that different, IMHO, but there are trade-offs both ways. Bluetooth and WiFi meen nothing to me in a desktop computer (and I can get a Bluetooth USB adaptor for $20-25). Either way I'm planning for a dual booting Mac as my next PC.

[+Fahim S. MVC]

I have yet to find a better consumer video editing software from what iMovie offers. I don't use Garageband nearly as much as iMovie but I'm not sure if Vista comes with music authoring software? Just wondering since I have yet to move on to Vista as XP is holding me well.

Which is fair... Vista doesn't come with Music Authoring software, and to be honest I really have no idea of how Windows DVD Maker compares to iMovie as I have no real need for either. I guess that explains why iLife doesn't wow me...

[spenser.d]

Yeah, and anyone who has a system that is 3 years old has to spend for upgrades in order to run Vista. That's a reality.

That's a load of bull****. My system is two and a half years old and can run Vista just fine.

I don't hate macs, but I won't ever own one because as said before, I can do everything I want at least as good, if not better on a PC and do it for far cheaper. I also build my own systems. Yes, I've used a Mac. A few of my buddies here in the dorms have them. They're nice, but I really don't see anything special about them that would give any good reason to warrant spending the extra to get them.

And to the guy saying you pay for quality, define quality, because I don't see how any mac that would have similar specs as my 2.5 year old system would have more quality than my system. Or for example, I don't see how my friend's MacBook Pro with a Core 2 Duo has any more quality than my Dell Inspiron 6000 that I bought a year ago (when you exclude obvious spec difference). You can't just say you pay for quality without defining quality.

-Spenser

[RaisinCain]

Don't forget that with the Mac you don't have to spend the time to uninstall all the bundled software and get going nice and quick. Also we got Boot Camp in the Mac world, which enables us to slap down Xp, Vista, Linux on our systems as well where as the Dell system you can install all those too, but you don't have OS X (legally).

Mac > Dell any day of the week.

Yeah & then turn around and spend $ on a monitor & decent speakers.

That's a load of bull****. My system is two and a half years old and can run Vista just fine.

I don't hate macs, but I won't ever own one because as said before, I can do everything I want at least as good, if not better on a PC and do it for far cheaper. I also build my own systems. Yes, I've used a Mac. A few of my buddies here in the dorms have them. They're nice, but I really don't see anything special about them that would give any good reason to warrant spending the extra to get them.

And to the guy saying you pay for quality, define quality, because I don't see how any mac that would have similar specs as my 2.5 year old system would have more quality than my system. Or for example, I don't see how my friend's MacBook Pro with a Core 2 Duo has any more quality than my Dell Inspiron 6000 that I bought a year ago (when you exclude obvious spec difference). You can't just say you pay for quality without defining quality.

-Spenser

No it's not. You obviously aren't the "average" user. Look at the box your PC is in & then look at a Mac. C'mon. BTW I use an Intel based XP system (haven't saved the $ for a Mac yet). I love them both. I just think that having the best of both worlds (OS X & XP) should be obvious.

[Chad]

Why all this hubub over a computer choice? It's a freaking machine!! For crying out loud, you don't sleep with it (or maybe some do?) so stop acting like you do.

[+Fahim S. MVC]

Well, then I misunderstood your "So what's your point" comment. If so, I apologize. Again, I picked it because it was in the XPS line, which is a little more high end than the E line and second because I have recently had some experience with it. I never started the expandable argument, you did. Anyways, like I said, I was just satisfying my own curiosity with this experiment and decided to share my findings. The price isn't that different, IMHO, but there are trade-offs both ways. Bluetooth and WiFi meen nothing to me in a desktop computer (and I can get a Bluetooth USB adaptor for $20-25). Either way I'm planning for a dual booting Mac as my next PC.

Just did a comparison of my own, of two very high end systems -

Mac Pro vs Dell Precision

Dual Xeon 2.66

QuadroFX 4500

4Gb RAM

500Gb Hard Disc

2x20" Wide Flat Panels

Dual DVD Writers

I was actually really surprised to see the Mac Pro come in cheaper - by ?2000.

Of course, I can't afford a ?4000 computer... but just goes to say the value discussion is really a non-starter.

I do believe that Apple should bring out a mid-range tower style computer (For those of us that won't buy an iMac)... I think they are missing out on a massive chunk of the market by not having one.

[Rudy]

once a mac hater, always a mac hater.

stop drinking so much haterade, people...

if this were a swamp, you'd be an allihater...

sure, come on up. take the elehater...

not really, i used to hate macs (played around with some OS8 and OS9 macs and totally hated it....then tried 10.1 still didnt like it, it wasn't until i tried 10.3 that i fell in love with OSX)

[spenser.d]

Yeah & then turn around and spend $ on a monitor & decent speakers.

No it's not. You obviously aren't the "average" user. Look at the box your PC is in & then look at a Mac. C'mon. BTW I use an Intel based XP system (haven't saved the $ for a Mac yet). I love them both. I just think that having the best of both worlds (OS X & XP) should be obvious.

Ya still didn't define quality.

-Spenser

[osirisX]

Don't forget that with the Mac you don't have to spend the time to uninstall all the bundled software and get going nice and quick. Also we got Boot Camp in the Mac world, which enables us to slap down Xp, Vista, Linux on our systems as well where as the Dell system you can install all those too, but you don't have OS X (legally).

Mac > Dell any day of the week.

Did you end up keeping your iWork or Office:Mac trials? Did you also keep all of the iLife components?

[raskren]

Don't forget that with the Mac you don't have to spend the time to uninstall all the bundled software and get going nice and quick.

Last time I checked OS X came preinstalled with all sorts of fun trial software such as Office 2004 "Test Drive", Quickbooks, and iWork.

Try again.

[blade1269]

hey,

+Adamb10 returns from the darkside... :whistle:

[lostOnes]

Last time I checked OS X came preinstalled with all sorts of fun trial software such as Office 2004 "Test Drive", Quickbooks, and iWork.

Try again.

Indeed, but mac fans tend to forget that stuff. It's not preinstalled junk-ware on a mac. On a mac it has to be candy coated, so it's wonderful because it makes life easier. (You must have forgot about the double standard).

iLife is overrated.

[corrosive23]

There is no reason to buy a PC nowadays. You get the benefit of Mac OS X & u can run XP or Vista (don't know about the Mac drivers). Plus u get a beautiful machine.

unless you want a better video card, or more storage, or a different sound card.....

[divinatum]

you don't sleep with it (or maybe some do?)

:blink: How did you know?!

:blush:

[Rudy]

unless you want a better video card, or more storage, or a different sound card.....

well an mac pro could do all of that but it's a bit pricey, so we'll talk about the more mainstream imac. You can do all that except the video card one. The sound card can be replaced by a usb one, and the storage, well apple allows you to have up to 750gb. Now if you want you can get a firewire or usb enclosure and add as many gbs as you want.

[riku0116]

well an mac pro could do all of that but it's a bit pricey, so we'll talk about the more mainstream imac. You can do all that except the video card one. The sound card can be replaced by a usb one, and the storage, well apple allows you to have up to 750gb. Now if you want you can get a firewire or usb enclosure and add as many gbs as you want.

Actually, no. Mac Pro is clearly geared for servers/workstations. Intel Xeon is a server cpu, any motherboard that offers 8 memory slots is definitely a server motherboard, and Nvidia Quadro FX is workstation graphics.

Like many people said before, it is definitely a matter of personal preference/uses.

If you are an enthusiast who lives for gaming/overclocking then buying a mac would be stupid, since they don't offer 2x 8800GTX SLI, Core 2 Extremes, Soundblaster X-FI Elite Pro, SCSI hard disks, or unlocked bios.

But if you run a server or a workstation then macs would be a great choice over pcs because of the stability they offer and customer support and warranty in case it breaks down. Whereas in a custom built pc, you would have to deal with it yourself.

[LTD]

I sold my mac mini because it's too slow compared to my Athlon 64 X2 system.

Alright, so let me get this straight:

You sold a first-gen PPC (waaay obsolete architecture - G4 right?) Mac Mini because it is slower than your *obviously* faster 64-bit AMD rig (which is currently quite behind in performance compared to current Intel models anyway.)

Ok. So what? Do I congratulate you for perhaps doing the obvious? Or do I tell you to visit the Apple site to find out what everyone has known since what, January 2006?

I'm not sure what the point of your total of two posts was. I certainly hope it wasn't for the glee of inciting a flame-war. Seems you disappeared after informing everyone that the grass is green.

[Nashy]

I don't even own a mac, I am just sick of all sides throwing insults. And why is it you have to stab at the Mac people? Windows, and Linux users are all just as bad.

They really arn't. Mac users will fight to the death. They just never give up.

[admf]

@OP:

That's a shame, but I guess if you're not getting any use out of a piece of kit it's probably a good idea to sell it off :) MacMinis are dinky little things, kinda handy with that box with a handle too. I quite like the idea of it being a sort of portable hard drive with connections/inputs & outputs , an OS and a sturdy case.

@Many of the unfortunate resulting replies:

Word to the wise: fanboyism is idiotic in the extreme. Another little bit of information: there's nearly always a lot of irony in somebody saying "all the users of [opposing brand] are fanboys".

Why do so many people care about what type of computer other people use? It's a sad situation when you feel you need to push your computing decisions onto others for what reason, to justify your decision by having others make it too? Make your choice, go with your preference, and shut the hell up about it. There are pros and cons to every choice, and everyone has their own personal preference and a right to it.

It's as bad as little children arguing over which brand of toy is better, except they're also then badmouthing the other brand too.

In fact, it's worse, because little children have the excuse of not knowing better. Grown adults acting in such a way is frankly embarrassing. It stretches my belief that these kind of petty, pointless arguments are still so rife.

Me? I like PCs and I like Macs too. I haven't tried Linux yet. And you know what? I couldn't give a rat's ass what platform/os/whatever the next person is using, and you know why? Because I have other things that aren't as infinitely trivial as that to concern myself with.

Seems like every single time somebody makes a topic with even the slightest hint that they use a mac, there's a group of idiots waiting to jump in with their super-important opinions on why everyone should use [their favourite OS/brand] because [competing OS/brand] is [derogatory comment], instead of what could have been a thread with something interesting to read instead of the same old rehashed fanboy war-cries.

Ugh. :sleep:

[Kudos Veteran]

They really arn't. Mac users will fight to the death. They just never give up.

Flamebait. For the most part the mac users here are being completely reasonable.

I put it to you that you just contradicted your own point, you are as bad as it gets. Go troll elsewhere.

[bibutteryboy]

Word to the wise: fanboyism is idiotic in the extreme. Another little bit of information: there's nearly always a lot of irony in somebody saying "all the users of [opposing brand] are fanboys".

Why do so many people care about what type of computer other people use?

This has nothing really to do with computers or any other topic.

It's for the debate. People love to argue. They love to debate things.

It's part of our nature.

[ccuk]

Flamebait. For the most part the mac users here are being completely reasonable.

I put it to you that you just contradicted your own point, you are as bad as it gets. Go troll elsewhere.

Excellent post... (Y)

Ya still didn't define quality.

-Spenser

Neither have you.

How about I start?

For instance buying a MacBook Pro over a Dell laptop... you have a 1-inch thick, magnesium alloy casing, backlit keys, built in webcam, 802.11n and the ability to legally run both OSX and any other OS which runs on the x86 architecture. What does the Dell offer? plastic fantastic, possibly a webcam on the more expensive models, bluetooth on the more expensive models, as far as I know currently no 802.11n just 802.11g and certainly no backlit keys. You can't run OSX on those Dell laptops either.

I have to say the iMacs are nothing more than glorified word processors. Great for joe average, but not so great for those who need a more substantial system.

MacPro is also over rated and you can build a better specced system for a lot less money.

[+Fahim S. MVC]

For instance buying a MacBook Pro over a Dell laptop... you have a 1-inch thick, magnesium alloy casing, backlit keys, built in webcam, 802.11n and the ability to legally run both OSX and any other OS which runs on the x86 architecture. What does the Dell offer? plastic fantastic, possibly a webcam on the more expensive models, bluetooth on the more expensive models, as far as I know currently no 802.11n just 802.11g and certainly no backlit keys. You can't run OSX on those Dell laptops either.

What a lame arguement... Dell laptops also offer features that are not available on MacBooks/MacBook Pros regardless how much I hate the things (Dell Laptops that is).

I personally define quality as build quality, and from experience it is not something the MacBook Pro has in spades either...

Again, I have to turn to my favourite laptop brand IBM, to show you what build quality is all about.

Edited April 1, 2007 by L0KI

[Nashy]

Flamebait. For the most part the mac users here are being completely reasonable.

I put it to you that you just contradicted your own point, you are as bad as it gets. Go troll elsewhere.

So, I'm a PC user, who's about to buy a MacBook Pro.... unlike people in here, I couldn't give two ****s what sort of computer someone uses.

But people who argue about consoles, computers, browsers, video cards, OS's, mobo brands, CPU's are all just, well, stupid really. Whats the damned point?

[Vice]

Last time I checked OS X came preinstalled with all sorts of fun trial software such as Office 2004 "Test Drive", Quickbooks, and iWork.

Try again.

Very true, and the Quicktime that is included won't even play videos in full screen!