MacBook pro for my needs?

My current pc laptop is going to downward spiral and it time for a new laptop.

I was wondering if MacBook Pro have more benefits than a Pc laptop for my needs because I'm a pastry chef and planning to open my own pastry shop in the future. I'm dealing with writing up recipes, photos of my products, social medias, possibly do things on my pastry shop's site, and other pastry shop's business situation ... Also I don't do gaming

I never had a Mac related product, only Apple product I deal with so far is iphone 5. So I don't know what MacBook Pro can provide and was hoping you guys can help me out on the features if you think Mac is better than pc for me.

 

your needs are nonspecific can be fully satisfied by either pc or mac laptop.
durability and ultra high res screens can be found in both pc and mac.
best business laptops are dell/hp business lines.
but from your listed needs you wont need that.
your best bet is figure out budget, what specs are best for you, and then play with both at local computer shop and see what feels better.
for example you may not need dedicated gpu and should be fine with igpu so you can save money there.
another thing to think about is upgradeability for long term use.
i hope this points in right direction.

 

My current PC is barely helping .. internet is slow, MS office take a while to load... I write my recipes down on paper because I`m getting tired with the MS office being slow and want the MS office so I can make changes and not have to rewrite the recipe every time I do a modification.

I don`t even do gaming on it because I did it once in the past and basically crashed it and it wasn`t a high demanding game

It got intel T7300 2.00GHz, 1GB ram, 72.5GB HDD


General Questions

1) What is your budget?'

unlimited

2) What size notebook would you prefer?

c. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen

3) Where will you buying this notebook? You can select the flag of your country as an indicator.

Canada

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
a. Like: Lenovo, Apple

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?

No

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?

Watching HD movies/videos (best screen possible), surfing the net, listen to music... I'm a pastry chef and I'm planning on opening a pastry shop in the future... so I do office work (like writing my business plan), write recipes, photos of desserts and other related things, work on business site, social media, productivity data with products.. maybe possible POS system and other hardwares to sync with the laptop when the time come to open my business in order to manage the business.

7) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?

Both

8) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?

No

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?

At least 4-5 hours

10) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?

I could consider buying it without seeing it

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (Windows 7 / 8), Mac OS, Linux, etc.

Window and MAC

Screen Specifics

12) From the choices below, what screen resolution(s) would you prefer? Keep in mind screen size in conjunction with resolution will play a large role in overall viewing comfort level. Everyone is different. Some like really small text, while others like their text big and easy to read. Click here for Screen resolution information.

at least 1080p

13) Do you want a Glossy/reflective screen or a Matte/non-glossy screen?

Doesn`t matter

Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?

No but it couldn`t hurt

15) When are you buying this laptop?

Whenever

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?

At least 4-5 years

Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need? Do you want a SSD drive?

Maybe at least 256GB SSD

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD Burner, Blu-ray Reader or Blu-Ray Burner?

Not really

I`m not really going to use the Mac in the kitchen area because I will print out recipes as hard copy for my employees to follow but for now the laptop will be use in my home kitchen which I maintain a clean area while I experiment recipes

 

If you buy MacBook Pro, expect 2 year lifespan or less unless severe babied. Buy all the AppleCare Apple will sell you, you will need it. NO accidental damage coverage. Most business software is Windows centric so expect to buy a full copy of Windows to run software which has no OSX counterpart. And if you need to use both side by side, a current copy of Parallels or you will need to use Bootcamp to install Windows. And no MacBook Pro will easily go no 4-5 years. Lose the styling, buy a HP ProBook or EliteBook, Lenovo ThinkPad, or Dell Latitude you can trust your business needs to. Or expect to be replacing laptops more often and having to baby them much more. Your POS System will require Windows, Microsoft Office is best on Windows, most every business program is Windows only. And the MacBook Pro does not come with Windows or Parallels. So that is more money to cough up. Just some of the realities you face. MacBook Pro is not Pro, they are consumer machines. And consumer machines not what I want my business depending on. Especially if it is my only machine. Alternatively, get a MacBook Pro and a cheapie refurbished business class laptop so you can do both. That way you are covered when you need Windows. Also, next business day warranty repairs, business friendly tech support, and good warranties and repair technicians which come to you to repair the laptop is worth your peace of mind. Especially managing a busy day at your work. So, consider that. You will have enough stressing you running a business, make sure your technology is not one of those stresses.

 

are you okay with having to learn a new operating system versus using one that you are already familiar with for the most part? if you're ok with trying out a mac a macbook pro 13" retina should work well for you. if not you can look into a a comparable pc with a nice screen, decent cpu, memory, and ssd.

 

I'm a bit surprised because I thought macbook pro is enough to get into the business class because I always hear that it got a great build quality.

If I didn't get the macbook pro, I would consider getting the T440s/p .. Also I could get an ipad/mini for social media purposes like keeping up to date during the day on facebook, instagram, twitter and so on

I have no problem learning a new OS, I'm a quick learner .. as long this change from PC to Mac is beneficial for me and my pastry shop.. Then I got to make the change

Do you agree with Kent T's post?

 

nope still a consumer/Prosumer machine. the 13" and Air I would even hesitate to call prosumer.

I have to agree with Kent fully on a few points, a huge portion of business software is still windows only, especially in financial, accounting and analytics ( unless you go web based )

if you do go mac, don't hesitate, AppleCare extended warranty is a necessity as even the most basic off warranty repair can be almost the cost of an entire unit as it essentially has 3 parts, the screen, the casing and the logic board. I still manage to kill off 3-5 machines a year as a heavy power user.

even I would say a mid class business laptop with NBD/Accidental warranty is by far your best option. Your absolute best built systems are the HP Zbooks , Panasonic Toughbooks and the Dell Precision m's but those are heavy overkill for your needs. I again would say look at a higher end Lattitude or Elitebook, Probook or Thinkpad X or T series.

 

I'm going to go against the grain here and defend the Mac a bit. It's unfair to categorically say that it'll last just two years. There are plenty of PCs -- Mac and Windows alike -- that are four and five years old and still running fine.

For a business though, and absent any unusual needs, I'd probably think in terms of three years as a goal, and anything after that would be gravy. A good quality machine will last that long physically, but software tends to march on and at some point one tends to encounter motivation or reason to upgrade to a newer model.

@bigbang07, the things you mention can in fact be done on a Mac, but there is no special advantage that I can think of over Windows. You had asked about whether there are "more benefits" to the Mac. The answer in my mind is down to preference. The most important thing is to buy a good-quality machine. Spend some money. Don't skimp.

It is true that most business software is written with Windows in mind. I currently run Office on both Mac and Windows, jumping back and forth sometimes during the same day. Office on Windows is a much better experience than on the Mac.

Point-of-Sale systems do though, exist for the Mac. Here is one for restaurants, and you'll notice the photos show iPads:

POS Systems for Restaurants, Mobile EPOS - Lightspeed POS

Here is another option:

MacPOS - Point of Sale Solutions for Macs

I wouldn't worry though, about supporting a point-of-sale system from your laptop. If/when you do buy such a system, you'll probably be spending enough on the system that it won't matter to just throw in another PC to run it. And you probably do not want your business's ability to check out customers to rely upon the laptop that you are taking home for writing recipes. So, imho, separate the issue of the point-of-sale system from the question of which laptop to buy for your own use.

FWIW, I like to keep a spare PC on hand, and have done so for 14 years now. My ability to get work done and make an income depends upon a working computer. There's a lot to be said for being able to just grab a spare PC and be back up and running within minutes, which is pretty easy to do these days when using cloud-based file services. My spare is an older machine, but it is plenty good enough for the work that I do, and having a spare allows to me fix my primary machine more or less at my leisure. It's an approach that has worked well for me.

Good luck in your new business, btw.

 

A MacBook Pro or Air would fulfill those needs perfectly well, but I would not use such a system for that and any point of sale systems. You can use an iPad or buy an inexpensive off-lease business desktop to manage that. Bookkeeping and accounting are better suited to a Windows environment, but on a Mac you can install Windows either natively through Boot Camp or in a virtual machine with Parallels or VMWare Fusion in order to work with those programs. This way you wouldn't need a separate machine just for those purposes.

 

@KCETech1 applecare is quite a pricey little thing

how ironoically you mentioned panasonic toughbook because that what I'm using right now

My other options beside the macbook pro is thinkpad T440s/p for their great keyboard... too bad T440s only have dual core i7 but T440p have quad core but it bulkier than T440s


@jonathangennick I agree with you on buying a good quality machine

I see where you are coming from regarding the POS system. I have no problem using an ipad or some hardware as long I can transfer or sync easily to the laptop for business/productivity purposes. Also I can use the ipad for social media and update things for customers on real time.

That's funny you mentioned a spare PC on hand because I had two laptops which are the toughbook and a thinkpad. But the thinkpad is the oldest of the two and died out some time ago

I'm so outdated with computers and latest apps lately... I don't know cloud service well enough which I assumed it some service with an account that allows my laptop to save things on a third party's server?

@saturnotaku basically in nutshell get a business PC laptop or macbook with bootcamp for accounting/bookkeeping purposes and ipad for POS?

 

I think I may fuel the fire of debate a bit more bigbang, and toss in another point my husband brought up this morning, look at your environment it will be in, no matter how hard you try to keep it clean a kitchen is still a war zone on laptops and many tablets. why? because flour dust etc is HORRID for building up in thin and light laptops ( even some desktops, you are always near fluids and it will get in your way and probably get dropped a few times.

After mentioning your post to him he started to laugh ( he runs an IT/IS house and does ALOT of point of sales work for NCR, Posi and Squirrel ) and pretty much implied that most chefs and bakers should just epoxy a CF-30 to their countertop. try to think of a kitchen environment a lot like a welding shop, quite hostile to many electronic devices that are not well sealed from dust and water and moisture.


depending on what you need for a POS, Saturn has a very good point, you could use a simple POS such as Square, Zingcheckout or many others for your retail business side and direct credit card processing. ( Debit takes a bit more work ). and use a more rugged unit for in kitchen work and your business work as well.

 

dont forget to consider the ability to upgrade can also play big factor in longevity of laptop and keeping up with changes.

are you able to change battery when goes bad?
upgrade ram?
change out to faster hard drive like ssd?
etc.?

this will help you keep up with changes.

 

Good points ...

Most time I won't use the laptop in the kitchen area ... Most time It will be in the office and take it with me to home and write up like ideas of desserts, research and other stuffs. if I can use an iPad plus Evernote ... It can take pics during the work time to tell customers the latest products live on fb, Instagram and Twitter and have access to the Evernote for latest updates on recipes or experiment something new

 

with black friday coming soon...you will find some good deals regardless what you pick. dell has some good outlet coupons if you dont mind refurbished (which come with same warranty as new ones)

 

I'm more toward lenovo ... Do they do Black Friday?

Probably going to look for 13-14, best screen to watch hd movies/videos, portable to take it around with me, good keyboard, able to upgrade as well