Considering MBP, my comparison with thinkpad.

I am purchasing a new laptop. Currently I have a thinkpad on order. The estimated ship date is 10/30. My current laptop (thinkpad) is on the brink, so I would like to get my new one ASAP. I am considering the macbook pro because I am able to simply go purchase one, and walk out the door with it. I also like its form factor.

My primary use will be Excel and engineering applications. The engineering applications are very computationally heavy. Since most of them will only run on windows, I will be using boot camp to run windows XP exclusively.

Comparision of Specs

Laptop: Lenovo T61 15.4" WS Macbook Pro 15"
Cost: $1855 $1799 (Educational Discount)
Processor: Core 2 Duo 2.6Ghz Core 2 Duo 2.2Ghz
Memory: 3 GB 2 GB
Hard Drive: 160 GB 7200rpm 120 5400rpm
Screen: 1680x1050 1400x900
Video Card: 128 MB 128 MB
Warranty: 3 Year 1 Year

I believe the rest of the configuration will be identical.

The benefits of the Macbook I see are:

1) I can get it now.
2) Slightly smaller form factor.

The obvious drawback is that the thinkpad is more powerful in almost every respect.

Does anybody see any other benefits?

Any insight is appreciated.

 

Hmmm, I see that all of my fancy formatting was removed for the comparision of specs. I hope it is still readable.

 

It runs Vista and it looks like an IBM. There will be no comparison.

I was gonna buy an Alienware or Dell XPS. The chap who sits next to me curses is Dell all day long.

Best purchase of my life. Rock solid OS and does everything and more. It will also run XP in a couple of ways if you so wish.

Take a look a my diary, specifically my first entry. Hopefully you will see the light like I did.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=173244

 

if you're going to use xp exclusively on it, i really don't see why you should get the macbook.

 

LED screen, two finger scrolling, etc.

 

Well, the Thinkpad and the MBP are two different classes, hard to compare.

In terms of build quality, the Thinkpad wins, but the MBP isn't shabby. But the MBP does have a nicer and sleeker design (personal preference, of course, but most agree) and is more lightweight.

If you ask me, it comes down to what OS you want. If you just use/need Windows, then stick to the Thinkpad. If you need Windows and want to try out OS X, then obviously its the MBP.

 

also remember there's only one clicker button, a feature i find really annoying but i guess it's based on preference.

 

I hadn't even thought about the fact that there was only 1 mouse button. I figured that by now Macs had 2. Didn't OS X introduce right clicking?

Either way it sounds like if I am not going to use OS X I should probably stick with the thinkpad. I ran linux for the previous 5 years, but was forced to switch to windows for application compatibility. And to be honest, I have had XP on my laptop for ~ 3 months, and it is surprisingly stable. All of the applications I need run (no need to virtualize) and general email / internet is hard to do wrong.

Thanks your advice

 

Well, yes, the button is still left-click only. However, Apple has introduced lots of ways to do right-click, and frankly now I find myself loving the other methods more than a dedicated right-click button.

From the Common Switcher Questions of the Mac Switcher's Guide:

Anyways, since you aren't going to use OS X, yeah, best bet to stick with a PC (and the Thinkpads are fantastic notebooks). Good luck!

 

Thinkpads aren't what they used to be. Build quality is down (albeit still better than the majority of the players out there) and the customer service is taking a noise dive. The build quality is nowhere close to what it was a few years ago. Fit and finish in comparison to a MBP (or even a MB) isn't even close. I say this while typing from my work T60.

 

Yeah, Lenovo is to blame for that. But still, I think the Thinkpads are better built than the MBP. That statement may change in the future, but for now, I think the Thinkpads are still good, solid business machines.

But while we're at it, I recommend the HP 8510P/W . If I was looking for a PC, I'd probably get that.

 

You going to be running Pro E, Cadence, AutoCAD, what? I think you should stick with the thinkpad.

 

Build quality may be somewhat debatable; however, the Thinkpad should definitely be more durable than the MBP.

The 8510p/w that Sam mentioned should be good too, but it has the same problem for the OP as the Thinkpad: you can't easily just walk into a store and take one home today.

 

Thinkpads are supposedly better built, though they do tend to have the 'big black brick' effect when it comes to aesthetics. Honestly though, either way between the MBP and the Thinkpad currently you'll end up having to deal with nVidia's (lack of) driver support.

Essentially, it's $1,500 right now for a good Thinkpad T61p, $2,500 for a good MBP w/ 2.4ghz. Though, and I say this without taking any responsibility for the rumor not turning out true, there is a mounting feeling in my mind that Apple will lower their prices soon. They're in the position on the chess board where Microsoft is currently struggling to fix Vista, and they have the chance to raise their 10% market share in the computer business to 20% just with a suitable price tweak over the holidays.

Though admittedly, it's never seems to have been Apple's policy to offer rebates on between-refresh products.

 

i dont like how the thinkpad keyboard is just tranfered directly from the 14inch 4:3 ratio thinkpads. It looks awkward on the 15'4 wide screens. I also like to have the delet key on the corner so i don't have to look for it.

Seems like lenovo is just terrified at doing anything to the keyboard. Just make it wide and put some of the keys on the sides. Theres no logic in arranging the keys like that anymore since it isnt a 14inch 4:3 ratio notebook anymore

 

Get the Thinkpad. OSX is the main advantage of MBP. If you're not interested in using it (or can't), I'd suggest you not waste your time and energy bothering with Boot Camp. Buy the Thinkpad or another nice Windows machine like Asus, perhaps. This, from an Apple/Mac fanboy. Sad, ain't it!

 

I'm wondering how you got the price for the Thinkpad. I tried configuring those specs, and i came up with almost $2300. You getting some type of monstrous discount or something? As for the choice, I considered the thinkpad myself. The prospect of having to downgrade from xp to vista forced me into looking to OS X. As far as ive seen, the macbook pro is a better choice aesthetically and the OS isnt crap.