HP or Mac

luvly_gal

Hi, I am thinking of getting a new laptop and cannot decide between a mac and a hp. I don't really know a lot about laptops but have heard that these are two good makes. I have a Dell Inspiorn already.
I use it for some gaming and also for work, mostly word. Also store all my photos and music on it.
As I said don't have huge knowledge of laptops but any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated.

Oh and my budget would be 1500 at the very most.
Thanks

Overheal

Macs run an entirely different operating system to windows and are a breed unto themselves. If you arent set in your ways though (ie. Hooked on Windows) and you arent that comfortable with your way around a computer either way it may just be better to go with a Mac for the sake that the OS meant to be a bit easier to work with. To top that off I'd seen this guy who owns his own brick and mortar in Carlow do a side by side of an HP and a Mac - macs will do things just a tad faster on similar specs, like loading webpages.

For gaming it wont be compatible with just any old thing, but you can also put Windows on the laptop and Dual-Boot (ie. Choose which OS to run on startup) and that process is well documented and fairly straightforward.

keefg

luvly_gal wrote: »

Oh and my budget would be 1500 at the very most.
Thanks

That could be your answer right there.

Unless you go for a lower end option then a Mac may be a bit out of your price range.

I am a recent convert from a "normal" laptop to a Mac and here is a post I made a little while back in reply to someone else asking the same question as you, this might help.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=59261428#post59261428

grizzly

keefg wrote: »

That could be your answer right there.

Unless you go for a lower end option then a Mac may be a bit out of your price range.

Good point, you'll have a choice between low spec Mac or a top of the range PC.

Tom Dunne

luvly_gal wrote: »

Hi, I am thinking of getting a new laptop and cannot decide between a mac and a hp. I don't really know a lot about laptops but have heard that these are two good makes. I have a Dell Inspiorn already.
I use it for some gaming and also for work, mostly word. Also store all my photos and music on it.
As I said don't have huge knowledge of laptops but any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated.

Oh and my budget would be 1500 at the very most.
Thanks

In my experience, HP are not that great. I had one crap out on me a day or two out of warranty. I also got no joy from HP support either.

If you are not comfortable with computers, do try out a Mac before you buy it. The Operating System (i.e. how you interact with the computer) is vastly different from Windows. It is, however, supposed to be exceptionally easy to use, and very intuitive, but if you are not used to it, you may have some initial difficulty.

The games you currently own will not play on a Mac without some work. And games written for Mac OS will not work on Windows.

There is also the cost. Macs tend to be that bit more expensive than comparable Windows laptops. For €1500 you will get a helluva Windows laptop.

keefg

I wonder if the OP will return of if our advice will be wasted?

I have just noticed that the oP has made 4 posts in 3 years:rolleyes:

Overheal

I can't complain about mine. Cost about $1100 and still truckin' on. The GPU was a complete clusterfcuk but thats nVidia Corp's fault not HP. Their in-warranty service was pretty good for the most part and they have some knowledgable tech support guys.

Al I would not have sat for that. thats what an EECB is for (google it)*. But I also thought wise to send it in for a complete re-servicing (sp?) 3 weeks before the warranty expired. Though if you can afford the extra money an extended+accidental will end up paying itself off within the first 2 years when the laptop either a) dies b) starts frying eggs or c) you drop it. I've already done B and C and I got no help with C so I was ultimately out $200 (the cost of the accidental cover) to replace the screen with my own tools.

keefg wrote: »

I wonder if the OP will return of if our advice will be wasted?

I have just noticed that the oP has made 4 posts in 3 years

I've had in account on yahoo.com forever and I only use it for the Answers section anymore probably about once every 2 months.

can't blame her.

*Never just sit there and take companies at their word. If they say sorry cant do it, always ask WHY and express your opinion (eg. thats a little unfair isnt it?) Explain your side of the story, ask to see a supervisor, etc. - at first my cable company wasnt gonna bat an eyelid that my cable was cutting out every other day for hours at a time. Then you ask to see a supervisor, get a refund, etc. and they told me "We'll have them call you back within 72 hours" so you promptly respond "K, when they blow me off in 72 hours which CEO do I phone?" - I got a phone call early the next morning from the Branch Executive for 15 minutes explaining the technical problem in great detail, and a $10 credit for days of signal lost. Havent had an outage since.

NullZer0

Im a so called "Mac Fanboy" but I say get a Dell Studio

luvly_gal

thanks for the advice.i plan on going and looking at laptops over the weekend and just wanted to have some idea of what to concentrate on.
thanks again for taking the time to reply.

keefg

luvly_gal wrote: »

thanks for the advice.i plan on going and looking at laptops over the weekend and just wanted to have some idea of what to concentrate on.
thanks again for taking the time to reply.

Whoo Hoo! Post number 5:D

Only kidding, I hope we were of help.

luvly_gal

you were.
just have one more question.i would probably be willing to spend more money to get a mac, but is it worth it?would i be better getting another brand for less and if so is there any that would be recommended?

keefg

luvly_gal wrote: »

i would probably be willing to spend more money to get a mac, but is it worth it?

Have a read of my link in my first post, that will tell you what I think of Macs.

They are good machines but at a premium cost and I'm just not 100% convinced they are worth it.

On the other hand you will get comments from Mac lovers telling you they are the best thing since the Baby Jebus.

I would advise that you try before you buy and don't believe the hype.

Dartz

Overheal wrote: »

Macs run an entirely different operating system to windows and are a breed unto themselves. If you arent set in your ways though (ie. Hooked on Windows) and you arent that comfortable with your way around a computer either way it may just be better to go with a Mac for the sake that the OS meant to be a bit easier to work with. To top that off I'd seen this guy who owns his own brick and mortar in Carlow do a side by side of an HP and a Mac - macs will do things just a tad faster on similar specs, like loading webpages.

For gaming it wont be compatible with just any old thing, but you can also put Windows on the laptop and Dual-Boot (ie. Choose which OS to run on startup) and that process is well documented and fairly straightforward.

Problem with Macs is your paying between 400-1000 euro more than a PC laptop with the exact same specs.

When I bought my Dell M1530 last May, it was 1000 euro cheaper than a Macbook pro, for the exact same specification. That for me, is a deal breaker.

ant043

i'd recommend mac and save yourself the inevitable frustration with antivirus software and windows firewall.

daithijjj

I do alot of live streaming online..........there is no difference between a mac and a turnip where this is concerned.

Dartz

ant043 wrote: »

i'd recommend mac and save yourself the inevitable frustration with antivirus software and windows firewall.

There are Macintosh viruses. They do exist. Antivirus software isnt a pain for me anyway. Get a decent one and you never have to worry about it.

cnocbui

Dartz wrote: »

There are Macintosh viruses. They do exist. Antivirus software isnt a pain for me anyway. Get a decent one and you never have to worry about it.

No, actually there aren't any mac viruses in the wild.

cnocbui

cnocbui wrote: »

No, actually there aren't any mac viruses in the wild.

It is a bit reckless to be recommending Macs purely on security through obscurity. It's the same as telling someone on Windows that Firefox is the be all and end all of spyware - it's just not true. Even Apple themselves have recommended anti-virus software recently.

herya

One vote for HP, solid little machines (if you don't go for this plasticky "entertainment" line that is).

jayo2004

Stay away from Hp Laptops they are nothing but trouble IMO. If you want to get a windows based laptop you wont go far wrong with with a Lenovo Thinkpad.

luvly_gal

Kinda dragging this off topic, but have to ask...

luvly_gal wrote: »

My budget would be 1500 at the very most.

How does anyone spend that much on a laptop?

I just flicked through two different things (a leaflet for harvey norman and a newspaper that had an ad for some shop i never heard of) and both had decent laptops at no more than €800. I seen one that had 160GB Hard drive, 2GB RAM, etc. and it was only €400. What the hell is in a €1,500 laptop that makes it worth the money?


I'm genuinely puzzled.

My PC (Deskptop) is a HP that cost me €1,150 when i bought it (about a year and a half ago). It's a fast computer, can do everything i want it to, never once gave me a problem and I honestly can't fault it in any way (seriously).

How does one spend €1,500 on a laptop (that's not a Mac)?

Alanstrainor

Yes that is dragging the thread off topic...way off topic. If you want to discuss it you can create a new thread of your own.

Passenger

A biased Mac endorsement here but it really is different strokes. Try not to be influenced by over-zealous aficionados. Best advice is to try a Mac for yourself to gauge an opinion. There are plenty of display models in various stores.

BostonB

luvly_gal wrote: »

Hi, I am thinking of getting a new laptop and cannot decide between a mac and a hp. I don't really know a lot about laptops but have heard that these are two good makes. I have a Dell Inspiorn already.
I use it for some gaming and also for work, mostly word. Also store all my photos and music on it.
As I said don't have huge knowledge of laptops but any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated.

Oh and my budget would be 1500 at the very most.
Thanks

The one thing that stands out in all that is the gaming. That will define what laptop you get. What kinda games. Because not all laptops can play games.

Run_to_da_hills

jayo2004 wrote: »

Stay away from Hp Laptops they are nothing but trouble IMO. If you want to get a windows based laptop you wont go far wrong with with a Lenovo Thinkpad.

Using one at the minute NX9030 and no complaints and had same for over three years.

The OP would almost get two HP's for the price of an equivilant Mac.