Anybody go back to a PC?

Hello,

I wanted to get a MBP 17", but after looking at some pc laptops for gaming for about the same price, I can get more power.

Apple says the GT130 (imac) is faster than the 9600 MBP.
On paper (yes), but can you tell while playing fallout 3, ect?

Thanks

 

The GT130 (Geforce 9600GT) will be noticably quicker than the 9600m GT. But, if you want a machine purely for gaming, I would recommend a PC with an ATI 4870 or Geforce GTX260 or better.

 

I did (am in the process).
I didn't do it for gaming though, but because of dwindling quality control, catering (only) to the iPod Crowd (lowest common denominator consumer), lack of choice – getting even "lackier", glossy screens, non-working firewire, the extreme tie-downs of the users (iTunes et al), constantly having to deal with all sorts of workarounds and incompatibilities and a general sense of "enough is enough".

Twenty years of Apple. Less than a fortnight to go.

 

I did, because of a bad experience with an Apple Store.

 

I just use both. Desktop with Vista and all that for gaming and "everything else". My Macbook for computing on the go, and just entertainment in general. (Better screen than my CRT, much brighter, and I can watch series from the sofa.)

 

I was looking at the asus GT50V2

But am considering a 17" model.
for Desktop, HP with TV tuner at Best Buy for 1079.00

 

I'd never go back to a PC laptop, because I have yet to see a single PC laptop that isn't ugly...

On the other hand, I do use Windows 7 on my MBP instead of OSX, simply because OSX still lacks a lot of software...

 

You mean, you JUST have Windows 7 on your MBP? Or do you dual boot?

I can't go back to a PC laptop myself. It's just horrible in comparison to my MBP. Two finger scroll FTW! How did I ever cope without that?

 

One of my main reasons for a laptop is portability. Would I not need that, I might revert to only using a desktop system.

I suggest you do some thinking about what you actually need, make a list of pros and cons and then make your decision. Good luck.

 

I like the imac for power and 24" screen, but still want the mbp pro for not being tied to my desk.

I play Metal of Honor form time to time with my Son, using Windows XP

 

Not sure if the LED screen is better in quality than the older imac 24"

 

I dual boot, but I rarely use OSX. Ironically, the only time I do use it is if when I get some documents from other Mac users that aren't fully compatible with Windows software

 

Why not have the best of both worlds. A mac AND a PC.

 

The best of both worlds would be software developers waking up and deciding to make an OSX version of everything they make for Windows

 

It doesn't do me any good if the laptop only stands on three of its rubber 'feet' when I put it on a desk.

 

OS X lacks a LOT of software? Like what?

 

Most CAD software, many audio apps - including production "stuff" like Dalet, a proper owa-mail client and so on.

Of course, most types of apps are availabe on OS X, but that doesn't do someone any good who just can't settle for "well, it's the closest thing to the real deal".
Hell, on Office 2008 you can't run macros, so to some, that means they will have to make do with Office 2004 or use a pc. Of course, "an app" exists, but really, Office 2004?

Blame it on the corporations and the IT-departments for all I care, but it doesn't change anything about his statement.

 

Proprietary industry-specific software designed for your company/project specifically. This varies depending on the industry of course, but generally, if you're custom-ordering a program for a very specific function and you need it to be OS-specific, it'll be for Windows.

Free, open-source software targeted at niche user-bases, etc. These developers aren't likely to make cross-platform support a priority.

Decent media players and codec solutions - oh you can get by with some heavy tweaking of MPlayer, but it's a rather annoying workaround. Perian + QT is a solution, but not optimal. VLC is simply a joke.

Games and emulation and whatnot is a big one.

Certain websites. These could be old government websites still clinging to the last gasp of ActiveX. Or they could be script-heavy databases that wouldn't be fully compatible in Safari until recently in the latest Minefield builds and Webkit nightlies.

Also, even what might be presumed to be cross-platform aren't always. As mentioned above, Office 2008 v. 2007 is a big one. Macro support. Image embedding support. Etc. etc. etc.

As Persnickety said, there are similar OSX equivalents for most "types" of software (although this isn't always true for the games and the small open-source software out there)...but that doesn't always help when you're limited to one particular software for whatever reason.

Anyway, I don't want to turn this into a what can a PC do that OSX can't and vice versa thread. Suffice to say that if not for the software side, I wouldn't touch a PC ever again.

 

I own a MB and a Rock notebook and I've just ordered a bigger hdd for the MacBook so I can install Windows 7 because I had enough with Leopard ... it seems I am not the right person for mac OS ... and also I can live quite well without 2 fingers scrolling

 

Ha ha, yes, two-finger scrolling and "looks" (i.e. "I care more about how I look posing, than I care about what I do and how I do it), doesn't really cut it with me.

Anyway, and the reason for this post:
After twenty years with Macs, I am not the right person for the "Mac OS". They have switched their focus, to put it mildly.

 

Antitrust issues aside, I wonder how Apple would do if they released a Windows-only version of the MBP. Contract up front that they'll provide no software-side support whatsoever. It would only accept Windows - probably some mod to the EFI so that OSX can never be installed on it and have a Windows-specific keyboard. Basically selling the case and a premium for the design...

I might be willing to buy one of those

 

When I went to my MBP I seriously thought about selling my 17" HP laptop, but never got around to it. There was the beginning learning curve and stuff, but now after a couple of years I've found I mainly use my Mac for business and productivity while the HP is regulated to games.

I guess each individual has his/her preferences, likes and dislikes, but that's where I am.

 

You're point (while slightly unfair) is well taken. Although this last line here you wrote is complete nonsense. Dude, what else would most people use any computer for besides for the software it runs?

 

That's a big joke, that would be Apple admitting that OS X is useless to anyone and they would be giving in to Microsoft Windows. That would disturb a ton of professionals in music and movie studios where the Mac OS is the preferred platform.
Taelrak, I see you hate Mac OS X, no biggie, but why even spend the money on the hardware when you get a real Windows machine? Sorta silly.

 

Taken alone, that line does seem redundant. However, taken in context with the rest of my post, I feel it's fairly clear that I was merely stating I wouldn't use Windows if not for the necessities of having to use certain software that don't exist on the OSX side.

You have this penchant for jumping to conclusions which hasn't changed over the past year I see.

I don't believe I've ever stated I dislike OSX - especially since I greatly prefer it over nearly any other OS commonly available today. What I did say is that the practical realities of the software market today make it so I can't use OSX as much as I'd like.

As for your question, even assuming for the moment that I dislike OSX (which as I pointed out is far from the truth), I would still buy Apple hardware simply because they look better, and I don't mind paying the premium (both in terms of money and inconvenience during use) of using Apple hardware with Windows.

 

I do that-11 PCs and couple of macs

 

Dude if you just want to play games, buy a PC it's that simple.
If you are doing audio, video, web design work, or other kinds of work, that's where I feel Macs really shine, they are super productive/stable and you don't have to maintain them like you do windows machines (spyware, viruses, registry, defragmentation).

I would never go back to working on a PC. Windows isn't even close to OS X in my opinion* (* - I haven't used Windows 7, it might be catching up finally).

 

When it comes to laptops (and iMacs for that matter), Macs don't shine anymore if we're talking audio (and to a large extent video - in a professional setting).

The Agere FW chipset is one of the problems with recent Macs – not to mention the non-working/buggy expresscard slot (when using FW-expresscard adaptors – even with the TI chipset), which, as it happens, work perfectly fine on the same MBP if you boot into windows. I find that rather ironic.

Then of course, there's the question of super glossy oversaturated screens, but that's another matter.

 

I recently switched back to a PC. Had a Macbook for 4 months, but it wasn't working out for me. For starters Office 2008 SUCKS (and I use Office a lot), a lot of the software I need to use is not available for the Mac, and I was getting too much unwanted attention. Other than that, my Macbook was very nice. I wouldn't mind buying a Mac again in the future.

 

while my next purchase is 1~2 years away, and i am more toward tablet notebooks, apple isn't on my list until they offer one.

though for desktop, i might* consider getting a 24" imac later for the IPS panel(the only reason), if i cannot settle a good monitor.

 

What is IPS?

Is the 24" display quality better than the 17" MBP LED?

 

Here's a good explanation:

http://www.pchardwarehelp.com/guides/lcd-panel-types.php

 

And I see that you RARELY read what you actually write. I see nothing's changed for you here either.

Are these not your words from post #12?
I dual boot, but I rarely use OSX. Ironically, the only time I do use it is if when I get some documents from other Mac users that aren't fully compatible with Windows software

Doesn't sound like someone who actually "prefers" OS X. You know that you don't need to use Windows for everything. If you need it for specific software then why are you using it as your main OS on a Mac? You can use Mac OS X for all of your non-business stuff but since you state that you "rarely" use it on your Mac then it doesn't sound like you actually prefer OS X.

And please, if people (namely me) are making conclusions based on your posts then maybe you should proofread your posts. Stop blaming people for not fully understanding what you are trying to say

 

Looks like the Apple LED Cinema Displays 24" is better than the imac 24"
Do you agree?

 

Yep, I did say something to that effect in an earlier post. Nothing in that line implies preference or explicitly states the rationale behind why I rarely use OSX. I'm not responsible for any conclusions you draw from my statements that I haven't explicitly said - except I may decide to point out when said conclusions are wrong.

Sadly, although I greatly prefer OSX as an operating system over even Windows 7 (which actually isn't that great an OS), the painful truth is that OSX does not have the full range of software that Windows does.

Even for what you call "non-business stuff", enough of the software I use simply don't have OSX equivalents. Rebooting back and forth is simply not a viable option since I run a lot of these software concurrently in the background.

Using Windows out of necessity to use certain software doesn't change my preference for OSX as the better operating system. It's simply an undeniable fact.

 

It kind of depend what you'll be using it for, really. But yes – screen quality alone for, say, photo editing, it looks like the cinema display is better. For games, not so much.

 

I have a PC desktop, but I got into the MBP because I wanted Mac OSX and liked how the MBP looked back in 2007. I've achieved a balance in using OSX and Vista: OSX for simple stuff like browsing the web, using iTunes, and typing up documents with Open Office; and software development chores using the Vista virtual machine (which I have Boot Camped in case I need serious crunching power).

So the answer is, I never left PC to begin with.

 

I did...Owned a MacBook for 8 months got tired of the small size and lack of screen res and graphic power. OS X is great but I have no problems with Vista and I was able to get my Thinkpad which blows the Macbook out of the water in performance for about $100 more than I sold the Mac for. Didn't wanna spend another grand for a Pro when this does everything I need and more.

 

My computing environment is mostly PC and a 2 Macs. I was just not impressed with OS X. It is good, but not THAT good. Overrated.

Vista is pretty average, but OS X was not that much better, if at all.

All of my new hardware will not be Apple. The price premium for a Mac was not worth it for me. Once the "cool" factor wears off, a Mac just becomes another hunk of silicon and germanium. Then seeing how everyone and some loser celebrity has a Mac, it is just boring. Nothing special in the grand scheme of things.

 

Only time will tel me that...

 

I'll preface this by saying I've never left PC. My business is built on Microsoft development tools so I won't be leaving any time soon.

With that said, I went to Mac in 2007 out of curiosity. I went from an iMac to a Macbook. Late last year I got the gaming itch and fell in love with the budget Gateway 7811FX Gaming laptop.

It was cool and fresh again for a few months - first time using Vista, which wasn't all that bad. And of course I did a good amount of gaming, but eventually the games got boring and I was stuck with a 17" bulldozer of a machine. I started to frequent Apple.com and pop my head in the Macrumors community, which I did miss. I got a different itch this time and it was Apple.

I recently purchased a 15" Macbook Pro. I couldn't be happier. The design and build are just a cut above. I really do enjoy using OS X - there's something about it that just feels right. Then there's the development side of me looking to branch out from the .NET world over to Ruby on Rails. Exciting times for RoR devs and Mac users.

Will I go back to PC? Probably not full-time. I can deal with Windows but I can't find a laptop build with the quality and polish of a Macbook. I'm pretty content where I am right now.

 

Any reason you chose the MBP 15" over an imac 24"?
The only reason I see MBP is for portability.

 

Yep, portability would be your only benefit over the iMac. The iMac has a stronger video card, more HDD space, bigger screen etc, so if you really need power vs. portability, then iMac it is.