Laptops Headed to college. Which notebook to get?

[manu1991]

A Macbook will run Windows a LOT smoother and faster than a HP/Dell/Acer will run the modded OSX.

Don't forget, the Macbook Pro was rated as the best performing laptop to run Vista on

I dont think so

Benchmarks: Hackintosh vs. Mac Pro vs. MacBook Pro Benchmarks

I dont understand how a macbook can perform better than an HP/Dell or any other brand like toshiba/fujitsu with similar configs

+ they offer much more options / cusomization

 

[tracerbullet]

Bah. Can't possibly afford a Macbook Pro.

The problem is, the Macbook is for $1300, and I can get a bloody absolutely-top-of-the-line Inspiron for that much ... But then, a Macbook is a Macbook :S

Didn't you have a look at the refurbished MacBooks and MacBook Pros on the Apple site? You buy a MBP for as cheap as 1,450$. Apple provides its standard warranty on the notebook too. What more do you want

 

[Chaos]

Why buy a lame macbook used by someone else when you can get a brand new laptop from someone else with the same or better config? Mac fanatics are strange people :rofl:. Also OS X is rubbish... atleast for Comp Sci university work. You'd end up installing some strain of Linux sooner or later on the machine, so just make sure all hardware in the laptop is compatible with Linux. AFAIK the macbooks are not 100% compatible, making them nothing more than an expensive toy.

 

[guptaji]

Mac fanatics are strange people :rofl:. Also OS X is rubbish...

really mate..??
you sound like one of those pro-vista, anti-mac guys to me..
have you even tried the OS X..esp the Leopard..its brilliant..I have been hooked on it on my MBP..its a world apart from windows, and i'm not just talkin abt the eye candy factor. .
I use it for all my office documentation, mails, browsing and media. . MS office for mac is even better than the office 2007 IMHO
Mac has its limitations when it comes to gaming and some professional apps..but its still a great OS..

AFAIK the macbooks are not 100% compatible, making them nothing more than an expensive toy.

once again...u really think so mate..??
how many macs have u tried to install windows on and how many errors/issues have u encountered..!!?
I have been running xp on my MBP for more than 6 months with no issues now..in fact sometime u dont even realise that its a mac..

sorry if i went OT here...but i just cudnt resist responding to some statements

 

[Party Monger]

Mac fanatics are strange people :rofl:

Well live proof jus above..:rofl:
@guptaji I hav been running Xp since it launched..I never had ANY trouble..So ur macbook isnt any god blessed gadget..

MS office for mac is even better than the office 2007 IMHO

:rofl: now really..U've said it all...

Well with all due respect guptaji, what u use the MBP, forget vista even a pc with windows 98 can do with ease..and still end up giving u games and professional apps..

You buy a MBP for as cheap as 1,450$. Apple provides its standard warranty on the notebook too. What more do you want

$1450 * 40= Rs.58000

A second hand machine for 58000+ taxes??

Come ON:no: Is there no end to this fanboyism???

 

[Chaos]

really mate..??

you sound like one of those pro-vista, anti-mac guys to me..

have you even tried the OS X..esp the Leopard..its brilliant..I have been hooked on it on my MBP..its a world apart from windows, and i'm not just talkin abt the eye candy factor. .

I use it for all my office documentation, mails, browsing and media. . MS office for mac is even better than the office 2007 IMHO

Mac has its limitations when it comes to gaming and some professional apps..but its still a great OS..

As I mentioned... all those apps are simple office apps. In a comp sci degree you need something way beyond that . Macs do certain things okay but when you want to go beyond, they'll always be a stumbling block. Apple has still not fixed the broken opengl subsystem for instance.

BTW that office thing was a good joke . Also I'm an XP user with all effects disabled and the 2000 Pro UI and that on my config listed below . So you know where my priorities are.

once again...u really think so mate..??

how many macs have u tried to install windows on and how many errors/issues have u encountered..!!?

I have been running xp on my MBP for more than 6 months with no issues now..in fact sometime u dont even realise that its a mac..

sorry if i went OT here...but i just cudnt resist responding to some statements

If you read my comment properly you'd not have asked this question. I said linux not windows . Certain strains still have issues with EFI. Windows installs just fine.

 

[techie_007]

really mate..??

you sound like one of those pro-vista, anti-mac guys to me..

have you even tried the OS X..esp the Leopard..its brilliant..I have been hooked on it on my MBP..its a world apart from windows, and i'm not just talkin abt the eye candy factor. .

I use it for all my office documentation, mails, browsing and media. . MS office for mac is even better than the office 2007 IMHO

Mac has its limitations when it comes to gaming and some professional apps..but its still a great OS..

once again...u really think so mate..??

how many macs have u tried to install windows on and how many errors/issues have u encountered..!!?

I have been running xp on my MBP for more than 6 months with no issues now..in fact sometime u dont even realise that its a mac..

sorry if i went OT here...but i just cudnt resist responding to some statements

oh, n another point against the fanboys, read posts properly

when chaos said not 100% compatible, he was referring to installing Linux on the laptop, not XP :rofl:

EDIT: chaos beat me to it

 

[tracerbullet]

Why buy a lame macbook used by someone else when you can get a brand new laptop from someone else with the same or better config? Mac fanatics are strange people. Also OS X is rubbish... atleast for Comp Sci university work.

Fair enough, but just one clarification. refurbished doesn't necessarily mean second-hand. At least in the case of Apple products, refurbished means that there was a defect in the product when it left the factory or was damaged during transport, which in turn got fixed, and hence the lowered pricing. Or the product was returned in compliance to Apple's Return and Refund policies.

$1450 * 40= Rs.58000. A second hand machine for 58000+ taxes?? Come ON Is there no end to this fanboyism???

Dude, you don't have to be a fanboy to buy a discounted or for that matter second-hand product. Sometimes, people just aren't rich enough. Incidentally, a new MBP costs 2,000$. A refurbished one (for the meaning of refurb, read above)

At any rate, do you know how good Apple's service is? Have you ever tried repairing a malfunctioning Apple product (which is under warranty of course) like an iPod for instance? Well, Apple doesn't 'fix' an iPod. It tosses it and gives you a new one. The process is instantaneous and over the counter if you're in the US, or it might take a week or two if you're in India. Do you know of my PowerBook G4 story? I had every component in it replaced entirely for free. New logicboard - 30k, new LCD display panel - 30k, new optical drive - 10k, new battery - 5k (because the old one could only hold about 70% of its initial charge), new hard drive (previous one had bad blocks) - 5k. Why? because my PowerBook G4 took a bad fall and luckily there wasn't any physical damage to any of the components. It was totally borked but Apple fixed it for free as it came under my 3-year Apple warranty period. Now that's what I call service. And that's what makes Apple users so faithful to the company.

Google for Apple's Refurbishment, and Return and Refund policies if you guys are interested in knowing the difference.

 

[Chaos]

Or the product was returned in compliance to Apple's Return and Refund policies.

If this is not second hand, I don't know what is .

At any rate, do you know how good Apple's service is? Have you ever tried repairing a malfunctioning Apple product (which is under warranty of course) like an iPod for instance? Well, Apple doesn't 'fix' an iPod. It tosses it and gives you a new one. The process is instantaneous and over the counter if you're in the US, or it might take a week or two if you're in India. Do you know of my PowerBook G4 story? I had every component in it replaced entirely for free. New logicboard - 30k, new LCD display panel - 30k, new optical drive - 10k, new battery - 5k (because the old one could only hold about 70% of its initial charge), new hard drive (previous one had bad blocks) - 5k. Why? because my PowerBook G4 took a bad fall and luckily there wasn't any physical damage to any of the components. It was totally borked but Apple fixed it for free as it came under my 3-year Apple warranty period. Now that's what I call service. And that's what makes Apple users so faithful to the company.

Apple warranty terms are so nice that even a macworld editor has to crib about it...

Macworld | Editors' Notes | The limits of Apple's warranty

 

[KingKrool]

There is only one way in which Apple's policies are really better than anyone else's - they have a retail presence, which means you can go in to a store and turn it in (other companies require you to turn it in at some depot, and there may not be many depots in your city).

Anyway, just don't get a Dell Inspiron (XPS should be ok) and you'll be fine.

 

[tracerbullet]

If this is not second hand, I don't know what is . Apple warranty terms are so nice that even a macworld editor has to crib about it... Macworld | Editors' Notes | The limits of Apple's warranty

Very misleading post, Chaos. I expected better. This article basically speaks about the lack of phone servicing after 3 months.

I then asked what my “free” repair options were for my broken machine, and there was basically only one: take it to an authorized service center, where they can do the diagnosis and then send it in if it’s really hardware. In the end, that’s what I had to do: I made an appointment at the Genius Bar, back in the Apple Store that I had just spent three hours sitting 100 feet or so away from. After about two minutes with the Genius, he concurred that there was something wrong with the backlight, and off my machine went into the back room.

All he had to do was take it to the Apple Store and it was all sorted out. Also, I suggest you look up Apple's Return and Refund Policies. As you clearly have no idea about them.

 

[Vij]

Just wanted to add, Keane. dont go for 13.3".

Get a 14.1" atleast... I feel strained reading from a 13.3" when on my lap...

Gives me back pain :ashamed:

 

[Anish]

Well I think the major question here is about priorities and flexibility. If your a professional into design/graphics/audio production/live artist to name a few, you cannot live without a Macbook, period.

Its not fanboyism that everybody from AR Rehman to Paul van Dyk uses ONLY a Mac for their production and performance needs and no coincidence either that 68% of professional photographers interviewed at the NFL Playoff final last year swore by a Mac (I don't have the time or patience to find you guys links).

The reason I recommended Akshit a Mac was the flexibility he's getting, to try out a brilliant OS in OSX and regular Windows as well, coupled with top-notch build quality and great after-sales.

If anybody here feels you need to be a fanboy to buy a Mac, well, then maybe your not suited for a Mac

 

[FaH33m]

^^ seriously..even i always used to wonder why most of the top artists and all use Macs like armin van buuren and all..

maybe there's something really more than fanboyism to a mac...

 

[stalker]

point here being that the OP is headed to college for a cs degree.. and as has been pointed out by others earlier, sooner or later, he's gonna be installing nix distros on it.. cant be helpfull if he has a lappie nd no drivers for it..

 

[Party Monger]

Dude, you don't have to be a fanboy to buy a discounted or for that matter second-hand product. Sometimes, people just aren't rich enough. Incidentally, a new MBP costs 2,000$.

I stressed on 58000 for a SECOND hand product..Not everyone is comfortable with it, as is evident.

At any rate, do you know how good Apple's service is? Have you ever tried repairing a malfunctioning Apple product (which is under warranty of course) like an iPod for instance? Well, Apple doesn't 'fix' an iPod. It tosses it and gives you a new one. The process is instantaneous and over the counter if you're in the US, or it might take a week or two if you're in India. Do you know of my PowerBook G4 story? I had every component in it replaced entirely for free. New logicboard - 30k, new LCD display panel - 30k, new optical drive - 10k, new battery - 5k (because the old one could only hold about 70% of its initial charge), new hard drive (previous one had bad blocks) - 5k. Why? because my PowerBook G4 took a bad fall and luckily there wasn't any physical damage to any of the components. It was totally borked but Apple fixed it for free as it came under my 3-year Apple warranty period. Now that's what I call service. And that's what makes Apple users so faithful to the company.
Google for Apple's Refurbishment, and Return and Refund policies if you guys are interested in knowing the difference.

NO i dont know how apples refurbishment policies are and i'm not an apple hater either(I've searched my self enough and also like the iphone at its US price.)
BUT,
I also know that when my Vostro had a slight problem(there was abt 2mmspace between the screen and its holder, Dell replaced the whole unit at request, without any questions.period.

 

[x86]

Just wanted to add, Keane. dont go for 13.3".
Get a 14.1" atleast... I feel strained reading from a 13.3" when on my lap...
Gives me back pain :ashamed:

ahem this is now what is confusing me most... i want a 14.1 incher but are there any XPX M1330 equivalent 14.1 inchers in India available within the same budget? [70k that is] if yes please recommend one.

If not whats the next best option should i opt for? Does 13.3 really creates reading issues? [-3.5 cylindrical glasses i got :ashamed: ]

 

[pause]

well, well, well. this thread seems to have almost become a mac vs. pc debate. honestly, if i had that kinda money to spend on a laptop...and especially frm the US where prices are far more sensible than in India, I'd have gone for a mac. i know it is only 13.3" but there are times when i look at my 15.4"er and wonder what it would have been to get a 14" or 13.3" instead. better mobility? definitely. better battery life? perhaps. but the mac is a lot about the OSX and nothing beats it as of now in terms of usage. flexibility might be an issue... but yes, if i had that kind of money to spare for a laptop, i'd be as confused as you r. i'd share the same concerns about visibility in a 13.3". but hey.....perhaps ur decision should be based on what u'd like to have. if u can live with vista, then get dell, if u can't then get the dell ubuntu version or get a mac. end of the day, when the debate has died down i'd go and get the mac. period.

PS: it's funny though, but i've never ever used a mac let alone own one. perhaps it is this impending novelty that attracts me most to a mac

 

[Chaos]

ahem this is now what is confusing me most... i want a 14.1 incher but are there any XPX M1330 equivalent 14.1 inchers in India available within the same budget? [70k that is] if yes please recommend one.

If not whats the next best option should i opt for? Does 13.3 really creates reading issues? [-3.5 cylindrical glasses i got :ashamed: ]

I use a 12 incher and have severe myopia (-7/-6.5) and have no issues... that should give you a hint.

 

[whatsinaname]

I haven't read all the posts in the thread, but was wondering if it would be decent to get a EEPC 900 for 500$ and maybe a desktop for 1000$? Best of both worlds?