About to purchase MBP 15", need advice!

Hello everyone!

I am a grad comp.sci student, and I am about to buy MBP 15" 2.2ghz. I will use this machine mostly to write/compile code while I am at school, and perhaps play games occasionally (can't live without that, huh).

I have several questions:

1. Would it make sense to buy MBP now? I know Leopard is on the horizon, but I am not going to use MacOS at all (I will be using Ubuntu and Vista, both x64). Is it possible that October release will bring hardware updates/changes to MBP? Should I wait?

2. RAM. I plan to upgrade RAM to 4GB myself. How easy is it to change RAM in MBP? Will I be able to do it without voiding Apple's warranty?

3. Glossy vs Mate. I know it's more of a personal choice, but could someone explain me the key difference? Is mate better for outdoors and glossy for indoors? Which one would look better in complete darkness with minimal screen brightness? Normally I would go to retail Apple store to see the difference myself, but we don't have any around, so I am pretty much stuck with online shopping =(



Thank you very much in advance,
rad

 

I have one question for you too! If you aren't going to use OSX at all, why buy a macbook pro? Get an equivalent PC for several hundred dollars less.

 

I am looking for a stylish/slim, but powerful notebook. Plus I absolutely love the looks. Hope you understand me =)

 

I've read several threads like this from folks who are considering a Mac simply for looks, and will not be using OSX. Silly, IMHO, unless you've got gobs of money for which you have no other need, and I'm an owner of several Macs. As did sasiki, I suggest you go with a Windows PC such as Asus, for example. Asus builds great looking machines, which are, AFAIK, reliable, stable and can be, depending on the specs you choose, very powerful.

 

Such as Asus.. well allright let's take G1S and compare. Here G1S will cost me more than MBP (with my student discount). It will be heavier, won't have LED and will be more thick (and is ugly as hell).

But does it really matter? I've already decided, I just need help with those questions I asked =)

 

Something else to consider is the fact that many other notebooks make it easy for the user to upgrade the RAM and hard drive. That is not the case with the Macbook Pro. Apple doesn't offer accidental damage protection either, while almost every other notebook manufacturer does.

I suggest looking at the HP 8510p, Asus V1S, Thinkpad T61p, and Dell D830. All of these notebooks will be able to match or exceed the Macbook Pro in power, but they will come with Vista preinstalled. The HP is very stylish (in my opinion), and almost as thin as the Macbook Pro.

Edit: After you pay for a new version of Vista, it won't be less money. You also have to pay tax on the MBP, but if you order the Asus online you might not have to pay tax.

 

Well HP 8510p does look interesting, but it does not have LED, does it?

I am not worried about buying vista, I am fortunate enough to get it for free from my school.

Also for Asus and no tax thing, does that work only in the US? Not that I am interested in Asus, just wondering.

Thanks!

 

Yeah, I think that would only work in the US. I shouldn't have assumed that.

Another thing that I just thought of is that I believe Apple installs OS X on your computer (if it's not there already) when they service it. I can't argue that the Macbook Pro doesn't look good, but I have to agree with everyone else. Buying a Macbook Pro to only run Windows and Linux is not a good choice.

 

Wait. If you use Tiger, then you'll only be able to use boot camp as a beta, and support will end at the end of this year. If you get Leopard, then you get the full version of Boot Camp plus some sort of assistance from Apple

Upgrade later. Buy from newegg and install yourself, it takes about 3 minutes. This is one thing that Apple way over charges on, because(iirc) they use buffered ram, and unless you're running a server or super high end gaming rig you won't notice the difference.

I prefer matte. If you move around at all(which you obviously will do since you're getting a notebook) then you generally don't want glossy because you can never be sure of the lighting conditions. Some lights just make glossy screens impossible to read. Plus if you're going to be coding then the matte screen is a lot easier on the eyes.


I do have to suggest, though, that you give coding in OS X a try. If you plan to code with Linux, then you should feel pretty comfortable doing so in OS X(as it's based off of Unix). xCode is a great tool if you spend the time to figure it out, and if you don't want to, you can just as well use g++/gcc to compile.

Another thing I have to recommend against is installing Vista. Really, stick with XP. I've yet to see a reason to get Vista over XP, especially if you're coding(the UAC goes nuts!).

 

Your ability to use Windows through Boot Camp will expire when Leopard is released. To continue to run Windows through Boot Camp, you'll have to pay for an upgrade to Leopard... so just be aware of that.

Anyway, I agree that you should take a look at the laptops that Ken Wind suggested above.

But if none of those suit you...

Yes, you can upgrade the RAM yourself... newegg.com is one good place to buy it, or you can look at the Deals forum on this website.

glossy vs. matte -- Do a search, there's a million threads on this. If you want to use it in an office or large classroom or outdoors, I'd get matte for reduced reflection. Actually, since you're a programmer, I'd get matte anyways; I think it would make it easier to stare at the code for a long time. But I've only ever owned a matte laptop so I'm probably biased.

 

Alright, thank you very much guys!

I think I will actually give OS X a try, plus, indeed, I have a friend who uses xcode all the time and he's been recommending it to me. Do you know by any chance, is xcode free? Or does it require some sort of dev subscription?

And thanks for the screen tips! I think I understand how it works now.

Thanks again guys!

 

If you pay for a Student Developer Membership with ADC (Apple Developer Connection), you can get a one time discount that will be greater than the one you get for being a student, and you will receive Mac OS X and Xcode tools.

The membership price is $99 USD.

 

1) The MacBook Pro will not have a hardware update in October...other than maybe the 17-inch MBP getting LED-backlighting. The current MBP is already using the latest components, so there's nothing to update it with. Expect a MBP update in early 2008 (as early as January, possibly) with the release of Penryn.

2) Changing the RAM in the MBP does not void the warranty. It is a bit harder than changing the RAM in a MacBook, but its still do-able. There's lots of guides on the web showing you how to change the RAM on a MacBook or MBP.

3) The key difference between glossy and matte screens are that glossy screens display colours with more richness; this makes pictures and movies look better, but at the same time, that means what you see on the screen is not actually what the colour is, as the glossy coating makes the colours look better than they actually are. So if you're in the printing business, for example, then you may want matte so that the colour you see on the screen will be the exact colour you see when printed. But if you don't need this accuracy, then you may enjoy glossy for its richer colours.

And of course, a glossy coating creates reflections, while a matte screen does not. Whether these reflections are distracting is up to you; some don't mind them, some absolutely detest them.

So I guess, my suggestion is, if you absolutely cannot choose between the two and you can't see them in person, then get the matte screen. You can't go wrong with matte, but you may absolutely detest glossy.

 

xCode is free. You have to install it yourself, but all you do is put in your installation disc and install xCode from there.

 

I am hoping to upgrade to 4 Gigs as well. I will be using my MBP for intensive visual effects/3D work, requiring big previews rendered directly to the RAM. Would purchasing Apple's RAM (rather than another brand on Newegg) have advantages? Also, I am a closet gamer... would Apple's RAM handle Bioshock better?

 

ram is ram... as long as it's the same speed. just get the cheapest compatible stuff you can find, as long as it has a brand name you'll be fine.

 

Matte screen would be perfect for your particular situation, though I have a glossy. Also, matte screens will suffer from a grainy appearance on the visuals. I doubt that really will make much of a difference for your application. I have the glossy screen and it's great. I wouldn't compare it to other glossy screens from other notebook makers either. I believe Apple uses a special coating on theirs to reduce glare or reflections in bright light environments.

I did have a chance to view both side by side in the Apple store though. The glossy looks so much better and I didn't have any issues or even notice reflections.

 

I personally don't like the trend of glossy screens. I find the reflections tiring, especially in sub-optimal surroundings. In general, glossy is worse for extended working at the computer but better for watching video, playing games etc.
Matte doesn't look quite so nice for the first ten minutes, after that it's nicer in most respects (a little graininess), especially 'cause it's a little less tiring on the eyes.

Admittedly,in the end it's down to personal preference. The only problem is that short in store comparisons don't show the difference of extended working periods.