Mac or PC?

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I need to get a new laptop and so far I've heard both good and excrutiatingly bad opinions on both Macs and PCs.

so I thought I'll better ask people who know what they're talking about

Hmm... well, depends what you are looking for software wise, and even then thats not an end all.

It used to be that the whole Mac was built differently than a PC, now it's just the same bloody parts in slightly different spots. So as far as hardware goes, the only difference you'll find is Macs have prettier boxes.

Even software has it's end, photoshop and other programmes work just as well on both platforms.

The main thing that turns people off getting a Mac is price. PCs start out around 300 - 500, depending, whereas the same specs Mac is in the 1,000+ range.

If you like playing games though, definitly get the PC. Most games just don't work right without DirectX.

A Mac is a PC. What you mean, presumably, is MacOSX (only available on Apple hardware) or Microsoft Windows (available on pretty much any hardware). If you are uncertain as to which you would prefer, I would recommend getting a Mac and then using Bootcamp to set up a dual boot with Windows. Apple's hardware is generally very good, so even if you end up preferring Windows, you have a nice computer to run it on.

Of course, I would say to just get something with Linux on it. If I were getting a new computer, it would probably be a System76 Laptop. They're cheaper than Macs for the same specs, and having Linux pre-installed rather than having to do it yourself certainly makes life easier. And don't be put off so much by it being Linux- Ubuntu is by now easier to use than Windows, and I think it's even easier to use than MacOSX. It's installing it that's a pain, which wouldn't be an issue with a pre-installed setup.

No way. Between Dell and Apple, the price is roughly the same (or sometimes even slightly favoring Apple) for the same specs. There is no way you can find a 300-500 machine with the same spec as a 1000+ Mac. Unless maybe you're referring to building your own computer from the components, but even then I doubt the difference is so large.

You mentioned that it depends on what you want software wise, I agree. If you know you want Windows, don't get a Mac. But if you're not sure, I say better to go for a Mac because it's easy enough to install Windows on a Mac, giving you more software options.

Not Dells, overpriced pieces of propritary junk.

I'm actually talking more in the Toshiba / Nicer HP range. They seriously have HP's with dual cores and blu-ray drives and all that for about 600. And those are laptops.

I was also including desktops in that, in which Apple has a much larger price margin over PCs. Laptops are more comperable.

I don't really care for games (knowing my addictive personality I'd be lost for the world if I ever started playing them), I need a lot of space for my music/videos/pics. I'm thinking about getting FinalCut and other software for film and music edition so that's why I thought about Mac... I've been working on Windows all my life and find it a real pain sometimes.

I'm not sure about Linux though, I heard it's a lot of work...

I bought my first Mac five years ago (an eMac, that's still working fine) & a Mac laptop a year later. No way would I ever buy anything else.

One nice thing about a Mac, is that there are a LOT of really good freeware programs available for pretty much anything you want to do. - http://www.freemacware.com/

*points up* The man has a point!

If those are the programmes you are into, and you don't really play games, then definitly get the Mac. Might be the same crap thats in a PC, but Foxconn knows boards, and Intel knows procs. Those things LAST.

In terms of hardware specs I've seen D3ll offer machines similar to ~$1300 macbooks for ~$450 shipped, but those tend to only be during sales pushes before the end of the financial quarter. That being said, macs have the niche market in terms of looks/size,

I wonder what the two "others" are...?

Any laptop should be able to have a nice large HD, so that's not a deciding factor between brands. Movie editing and such is supposedly better on Macs, I wouldn't know because I've never done it. If you aren't intending to play games, there goes Windows' main advantage, though. And with a Mac you can always use Windows if you want to.

I'd recommend a REAL MAC because PC's (Windows) crashes, (one crash is too much!)
except for geeks like me and people who can't afford the macs.
I don't actually have any macs but lots of PC's and I use Linux because I had not enough time
between crashes to get anything done with Windows, thus no choice but to abandon it.

A friends Loves finalCut and is the only thing he now uses to edit videos, invest in a mac if you can

and today my iMac arives =D

<jealous>

yeah I heard so much good stuff about FinalCut, I want to get seriously into editing so I think I'll go for Mac when/if I have the dollar.

I voted PC. And this is mainly because ASUS has really good models nowadays.

A few years ago I felt that the Powerbooks was more attractive and I still like older models of Powerbooks(with PPC installed).

I love my asus one, very sturdy and well made, but now it's time for a change

I think it's the other way, that now with macs getting as fast as a pc, they are at an advantage.