Is a macbook worth the money?

DarrenCroker

Is a Macbook really worth the money?
Is it a waste of money to spend that much money instead of buying a normal laptop?

drunkmonkey

it all depends what you want to use it for, if it's just for mucking around and the internet ordinary laptop is just as useful.

Idleater

Mac definitely looks nicer lying about when not in use.
If you compare "designer" laptops then the MacBook prices up nicely.

silvine

Yes because:
They're well built and have lots of nice features e.g a 'fantastic to type on' keyboard
OSX is more reliable and less prone to viruses than Windows
The Macbook air is one of the lightest, fastest laptops available
The Macbook Pro 17" with SSD is a beast
They're 'headturner' machines or as another posted put it the 'Ferrari' of laptops
They work particularly well with other Apple products
Other laptop manufacturers look to Apple when designing their machines e.g. multi-touch gestures

No because:
Comparatively speaking, hardware wise it's cheaper to buy a Windows machine
There's a limited selection of games for OS X
You are buying into Apple's 'We Know Best' ethos i.e. the walled garden, F*CK Blu-Ray etc.
They're not as easy to upgrade or customise as other machines

That said: I can't imagine buying any other type of laptop.

Liameter

silvine wrote: »

OSX is more reliable and less prone to viruses than Windows

You can't state that as a fact because there are NO viruses for MacOSX. It might be VERY susceptible to viruses if there were any!

Richard

I bought a 2008 MacBook for £250 (€287) and it runs great. I put Snow Leopard on it and it runs great. I wouldn't buy a Windows laptop that old, but this works great and does everything I need.

If you are buying online, make sure it has an Intel Core 2 Duo or newer.

Richard

Liameter wrote: »

You can't state that as a fact because there are NO viruses for MacOSX. It might be VERY susceptible to viruses if there were any!

Believe me, people have tried. The lack of Viruses is largely due to the architecture.

You can get Virus checkers if you're worried.

silvine

Try Adverts.ie although most sellers have an overinflated sense of their machine's value. I should know I've sold and bought four Macs on Adverts!

Talisman

When selling you have to start off high so that the buyer feels they are getting a deal when they offer you closer to what you actually want for the computer.

MagicMarker

I've had mine since 2008, like any laptop over time it slows down a bit but recently I upgraded the ram to 4GB and it's like a brand new machine.

I bought a decent spec new Windows laptop for my mother about 7 months ago and tbh it's absolutely horrible to use compared to my Macbook.

If money is tight and you just need something to get by then just stick with Windows, if you want to treat yourself then go with a mac. I can pretty much guarantee that you won't regret spending that extra money.

I am pie

Based on price alone I'm saying no. I have a macbook now, i have to say for the money i spent it was not worth it. Maybe if i had used anything other than iTunes, excel/word and internet it would be. For me, far too expensive for the casual user.

I'm going back to Windows on a cost basis only now that my macbook has served it's 6 years.

Colonel Panic

If you have the money and you want one, it's worth the money.

Zimmerframe

DarrenCroker wrote: »

Is a Macbook really worth the money?

Yes.

DarrenCroker wrote: »

it a waste of money to spend that much money instead of buying a normal laptop?

No.

partyatmygaff

The only Macbook i'd buy is the Macbook Air. Solely because it's the only one that actually represents good value for money.

As for a Macbook Pro, it's much too expensive. People compare €1200-€2500 Macbook Pros to bargain bucket €500 Acers and then use that to say that Macbooks are the better laptops.

If you have the money for a Macbook Pro and want a proper premium laptop then you would do well to stick with Windows.

You can get a top of the line Samsung Series 7 Chronos for example.

https://picasaweb.google.com/114505572735471364563/Chronos02?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCI-Bjq-vhqTL3AE&feat=directlink#5665218173310910914
http://i1-news.softpedia-static.com/images/news2/IFA-2011-Hands-On-with-Samsung-s-Series-7-Chronos-Laptop-3.jpg

It has everything that a Macbook Pro has and more in some areas. A Series 7 specced with
2.2GHz i7 Quad Core
8GB RAM
750GB 7200RPM HDD + 8GB ExpressCache SSD
Radeon 6750M 1GB dedicated graphics
Aluminium Chassis
Backlit keyboard
15.6" 1600x900 Superbright screen in a 15" laptop chassis
Matte Screen

will only cost you about €1250. A similarly specced Macbook Pro will cost you €2,299. Over €1000 euro difference for what is essentially the same laptop.

If you were absolutely dead set on spending €2,300 on a premium laptop you could always get a Sony VAIO Z series with its carbon fibre chassis or something. They're one of the few Windows laptops that can be even more expensive than a Mac.

mikemac

Yes, it's worth it OP, you won't look back

Having said that I expect to get at least four years from a laptop and maybe more.
So it can be expensive up front but over time it's well worth it

And I don't buy all the latest games
So if you are a gamer well think again

DubDJ

I've used Dell Laptops for 6 years but just recently bought a great Macbook Pro and i'm really happy with it. Don't think i'd switch back. It is well worth the money.

DotOrg

promotional obviously but a pretty honest explanation from apple themselves as to why you should use a mac:

http://www.apple.com/why-mac/

conor.hogan.2

No, I recommend paying 500 euro or less and having to buy two of them (most likely) and half less battery and more weight instead of buying a macbook.

JohnSmith17

worth every penny.....

triggermortis

I've had my macbook 6 years now and would never go back to a windows machine. I'm now using Logic a bit so there's no going back anyway...

Tordelback

I've had my MacBook for over 5 years now, using it for work and home every single day, taken it with me camping and cycling, and let the kids play with it. While I've expanded the hard drive and had to replace a damaged power cable and a coffee-drowned keyboard, it's still the most reliable computer I've ever owned - and that's including desktops.

Oh_Noes

No it's not worth the money and yes it is a waste. I've bought one before and if anything it was rubbish compared to the toshiba I replaced it with that cost about 35% of what the macbook cost.

You're asking in the wrong forum though tbh. This is like asking "Is Kim Jong-il a good supreme leader?" in the North Korea forum. Like someone above said, spend half your macbook budget on a good latop, keep the other half and buy another good laptop in two years time.

MagicMarker

Oh_Noes wrote: »

You're asking in the wrong forum though tbh. This is like asking "Is Kim Jong-il a good supreme leader?" in the North Korea forum. Like someone above said, spend half your macbook budget on a good latop, keep the other half and buy another good laptop in two years time.

lol, yes OP, buy a windows laptop now and replace it in 2 years.

Says it all really.

mikemac

Oh_Noes wrote: »

Like someone above said, spend half your macbook budget on a good latop, keep the other half and buy another good laptop in two years time.

If you're only getting two years from it it's not much of a laptop
When did two years become acceptable?

If the OP gets the macbook or realy any very good laptop it should last them all through college
And maybe longer
So while it's expensive at the start the OP will be keeping it for years

Maybe you're one of those who has to buy the latest phone and latest model of everything

mickoneill30

mikemac wrote: »

If you're only getting two years from it it's not much of a laptop
When did two years become acceptable?

+1 to that.
I've a 13" Toshiba I bought 3 years ago (well nearly, it was in the January sales in 2009). It's been around the world with me, I use it for work, I've used it for the last two years for a night course in college and I'm using it now. It's still fast enough for me for standard work, I've no plans to replace it. At the time it cost about €560.

Some caveats are

1: It came with Vista. I wiped that and put on XP for performance.
2: I don't install crap on it. I have a pile of standard apps I need. I let other people experiment with crappy apps.
3: I've installed avast free so that's the virus angle sorted.
4: If I needed Windows 7 I'd probably need to replace it for the current model, so that'd be another €500 - €600

I gave my folks my old Fujitsu laptop when I got my Toshiba. That's still going fine for them (my dad did replace the battery on it recently though which cost €80 as the old one would only hold a charge for 20 mins). Bottom line, a laptop should last you 3 or more years. I don't think Macs are made out of magic parts. They're made well.

So to me it's not worth the money. However if you've paid for apps in Mac format then it might be worth the money to you. If you have a Mac and all your apps will only work on your Mac then changing to Windows means paying for those apps again or getting free equivalents. That's not worth it to some people.

Oh_Noes

MagicMarker wrote: »

lol, yes OP, buy a windows laptop now and replace it in 2 years.

Says it all really.

Two years is a hell of a long time in technology in this day and age. Unless you can upgrade parts in your macbook, which you can't, then it is going to be well behind the curve two years from now.

We're not talking about a pair of shoes.

7ofBrian

Absolutely worth the money! I just got a new one from work so am selling my other one (18 months old!)

http://www.adverts.ie/mac/macbook-pro-13-mid-2009/1068416

Liameter

If you want to keep up with technology and always have the latest you need to replace your laptop every year. I love people with this philosophy because that's who I buy my Mac laptops from every 4 or 5 years!

So my laptop is never less than a year old and my wife gets the "cast-off" (but still working) older model to watch DVDs in bed.

partyatmygaff

Mr.S wrote: »

OS X is far nicer to use then Windows/Linux/whichever.

Nicer to use than Linux? Definitely.
Nicer to use than Windows 7? Debatable.

It's not terrible to use but the little things like not being able to cut and paste or having an absolutely minuscule selection of applications and games taint the experience a bit.

The build quality is really nice, your not using some cheap plastic laptop that feels cheap. Macbooks look great as well.

Apple Customer Service is great, they will go that extra mile and help you, which can't be said for some other laptop manufactures.

A common fallacy when comparing Macbooks to Windows laptops is comparing a Macbook Pro with a bog standard €500 Dell or Acer. They're not in the same league and the €500 Windows laptop doesn't pretend to be in the same league either. If you can afford to spend around €2000 on a Windows laptop you'll get equal if not better build quality and service not to mention better spec.

whiterebel

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Nicer to use than Linux? Definitely.
Nicer to use than Windows 7? Debatable.

It's not terrible to use but the little things like not being able to cut and paste or having an absolutely minuscule selection of applications and games taint the experience a bit.



A common fallacy when comparing Macbooks to Windows laptops is comparing a Macbook Pro with a bog standard €500 Dell or Acer. They're not in the same league and the €500 Windows laptop doesn't pretend to be in the same league either. If you can afford to spend around €2000 on a Windows laptop you'll get equal if not better build quality and service not to mention better spec.

Either I'm missing something, or you are........
There are plenty of applications for Mac, still short on games, but not everyone buys a computer for games.

partyatmygaff

whiterebel wrote: »

Either I'm missing something, or you are........

There's no simple way to move files from one location to another. I know you can use the option key and just drag and drop but that just isn't efficient if you have tens of folders open and you're moving files from place to place all the time.

There are plenty of applications for Mac, still short on games, but not everyone buys a computer for games.

That may be so but the vast majority of computer applications available are designed for Windows. This is more so a problem with specialty applications than anything else.

Idleater

partyatmygaff wrote: »

There's no simple way to move files from one location to another. I know you can use the option key and just drag and drop but that just isn't efficient if you have tens of folders open and you're moving files from place to place

What's the simpler way to do the same task in windows?

Going back to the op, where it isn't specified what the purpose of Mac use is. Given this lack of clarity, this is just a PC vs Mac handbags thread. You either have no use for the windows specific applications in which case you are comparing form over unnecessary function or you have use of windows specific application and have to decide whether the form of a Mac with a windows vm or dual boot is worth the extra premium over whatever box windows is installed on.
To be quite fair to Apple, they have broadly advertised prices and fixed specifications with updates periodically advertised. Windows is an os installed on any random box that may work well or be underspecced for a given price.
As a purchaser, you have x money and the choice is yours to make. Worth is different things to different people.

partyatmygaff

Idleater wrote: »

What's the simpler way to do the same task in windows?

Ctrl and choose the files you want to move. Ctrl-X. Open the folder you want to move the files to. Ctrl-V. Very elegant and efficient.

In Mac OS X however it's all done using a combination of the mouse and keyboard. That's fine for moving say one file from "Downloads" to "Documents". It's incredibly cumbersome however when you're working on a large project and have tens of folders open and you're moving multiple files all around the place.

It's the many little things like these that make Mac OS X almost unusable for me.

harry21

partyatmygaff wrote: »

There's no simple way to move files from one location to another. I know you can use the option key and just drag and drop but that just isn't efficient if you have tens of folders open and you're moving files from place to place all the time. .

Cmd C to copy, Cmd V to paste. WHats wrong with that? Same as windows?

partyatmygaff

harry21 wrote: »

Cmd C to copy, Cmd V to paste. WHats wrong with that? Same as windows?

Copying isn't the same as cutting.

gerryo777

I have a MacBook and I have to say that its the best laptop I've ever owned.
No problems. After 2 years my battery wasn't holding its charge so I contacted apple and they replaced it free of charge. Great after sales service. Defo worth the money!

Sad Professor

Don't use it myself, but cutting and pasting files was added in Lion. It actually works better as there's no risk of deleting the file, which I imagine is the reason Apple never added it before.

MagicMarker

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Copying isn't the same as cutting.

cmd x is cut.

Sad Professor wrote: »

Don't use it myself, but cutting and pasting files was added in Lion. It actually works better as there's no risk of deleting the file, which I imagine is the reason Apple never added it before.

If cut wasn't an option before lion then I never noticed in all the years I've used a mac.

Sad Professor

Cutting and pasting files in the Finder wasn't an option before Lion. Cutting text, etc, was.

But I never had a problem with it not being there either. I wouldn't even know about it if not for Windows users harping on about it all the time. But having said that, it's only natural that someone coming from Windows would be used to doing things the Windows way. It would be same if a Mac user switched to Windows. Mac OS has always been focused around drag and drop, where as Windows is more of a menu-driven operating system.

B000

In Lion:
To copy: Cmd+C -> Cmd+V
To Move: Cmd+C -> alt+Cmd+V

Very elegant also, IMHO

B000

B000 wrote: »

In Lion:
To Move: Cmd+C -> alt+Cmd+V

i didnt know about the alt in alt+cmd+V...
thanks

now i can finally move on from windows since i have this fantastic OS feature.:rolleyes:

bonnieprince

Bought my first Macbook Pro in late 2006, just got a new one recently. The first one lasted me 5 years without any issues. Had Windows laptops from work before that. To be honest the hardware is always spot on but its OS X that makes the difference between Windows. A better operating system i have not seen.
Go for it, once you go mac you never turn back!

Snowie

just got my first macbook pro i wanted to by e avery fancy i mac but saved the money in order to bye my new, camera.. I love it Ive been useing them college for little over a year now, and there just soooooo intutive to use well I find they are which is a really important... to me

bennygood

I love my iMac but that's the problem. I spend too much time on it. I'm always surfing and messing with tunes and garageband and Pixelmator and stuff. When I had a windows machine I used to spend most of my time shouting at it and trying to stop myself from throwing it out the window.

was.deevey

Yes .. worth it unless you really are just surfing the net from time to time.

A few reasons for me anyhow...

1. The build quality is SUPERB! Compare a $1000 mac to a $1000 Dell/Sony/Acer/Asus.

You'll note the lack of protrusions, vents, god awful looking ports all over also note the nice "Clunky" feeling of the Mac compared with the creaky Dell or Acer

After having various Mac (and PC) models over the past 10 years or so ANY other laptop or desktop feels comparably "cheap" (Lenovo probably the least cheap feeling of the PC's)

If you know a bit about computers have a look inside any Mac Model, they are put together amazingly well, beautiful & almost as nicely finished as the exterior ... its hulla easy to replace most components too, easier than almost all "PC" counterparts.

Regardless of the "Spec" ... due to the Mac working with a rather small subset of peripherals you get reliability in the software and drivers written for them..... I've seen many a Windows machine with the highest spec money can buy grinding to a Halt almost until a reinstall or this driver/that driver uninstalled..... its not all mhz and Ram that makes a good reliable machine.

2. You can be totally dumb about "how it works". By that I mean you don't need to worry about every dodgy popup that comes your way, whats on that usb key, is that a virus in my email, worry about AV software updates etc etc .....

3. IMHO all round reliability factor, Upgrading/replacing anything is a breeze, OS, Components etc.

4. You'll probably end up getting more done due to everything just "working"

Bad Points:

1. Higher INITIAL price compared to the Dells etc ... they aren't really in the same league though as mentioned above :-S

2. Need to install Bootcamp to Game, but then again you need to Hackintosh if you want OSX on a pc

3. Wife/GF probably won't let you upgrade as often unless you take a sledgehammer to the thing :P

maccored

??

Ive replaced and upgraded parts in my imac, mac mini and macbook

Oh_Noes wrote: »

Two years is a hell of a long time in technology in this day and age. Unless you can upgrade parts in your macbook, which you can't, then it is going to be well behind the curve two years from now.

We're not talking about a pair of shoes.

tibor

Liameter wrote: »

You can't state that as a fact because there are NO viruses for MacOSX.

Not true.

There has been plenty of malware in the wild for OSX since 2006 at least.

Fake security products, network-share aware worms, backdoor trojans etc, etc...

http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2006-021614-4006-99
http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2009-050514-1952-99
http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2011-110201-3434-99
http://www.f-secure.com/weblog/archives/00002165.html
http://www.mcafee.com/threat-intelligence/malware/default.aspx?id=154438
http://www.mcafee.com/threat-intelligence/malware/default.aspx?id=153893

Apple have created their own malware protection within the OS to combat this. However, some threats are already attempting to disable these system defenses...

http://www.f-secure.com/weblog/archives/00002256.html

NicsM

Emphatically yes, I've only ever had Macs and the thought of using Windows or a Windows laptop full time makes me shudder. My MacBook recently had a little accident but I'd rather spend the money fixing it than spend the same on a PC.

The initial outlay is higher as others have said, but I have an iBook bought in 2005 that is still going strong. Everyithing about the OS is seamless and yes, the build quality too! Also, the latest update gives you the Mac App store which operates on a similar premise to the iPhone app store-hours of fun

Liameter

It's true. There are NO viruses for MacOSX. As for other malware, you have a strange idea of "plenty". So far I've personally come across two "trojans". Compare that with the tens of thousands of malware (and real virus) threats available for Windows and you have to admit that it is an infinitesimally small number.

Only a very ignorant or stupid Mac user is going to fall for one of these trojans or phishing attempts - assuming they ever come across one.

tibor

Liameter wrote: »

It's true. There are NO viruses for MacOSX. As for other malware, you have a strange idea of "plenty". So far I've personally come across two "trojans".

You have a strange perception of computer security if you're going to rely on the debatable semantics surrounding the term "virus" to argue against the fact that all internet users regardless of their operating system need to be conscious of their security.

Anywho, you're still wrong, here's an example of a Mach-O file infector on OSX from 2006...
http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2006-110217-1331-99

Hobbes

All I know is we have a perennial news story about how Macs are finally becoming popular and this is the year for when Macs will be attacked. I think that has been going on for a number of years now.

The only real exploits are social attacks. Even these are being combated with Apps going the route of sand boxing.

As for the OP. Sister got a Pro and loves it. Personally I am more a fan of the Air. Whatever you pick I can't stress enough the SSD drives are worth it. I don't think I can go back to HDD type technology again.