I have switched!

Hi everyone. I just switched to a Macbook Pro and I wanted to tell you guys my little story:

My Compaq V3000T notebook has been in the shop for a couple of weeks now, waiting for just the touchpad assembly to be replaced. I have no "backup" notebook, so I have been PC-less all this time. Right after I sent my Compaq in for service, my wife asked me to update her Macbook Pro to Leopard from Tiger. She's had her MBP for over a year. In that time, I messed with it once in a while but ultimately I had no clue how to use OS X, so I never really cared about it. But when a dude is without his PC, dude gets bored and desperate!

Anyways, I threw Leopard on it (clean install) and started to really figure out how to use OS X. At the very least it looked impressive. And performing basic tasks was ridiculously easy, so I was slowly getting comfortable. Then my wife asks me to set up Vista via Bootcamp. Setup and installation was easy...way too easy! Even the Bootcamp installer for Windows on the Leopard disc installed flawlessly! Do you know how long I had unstable audio and wireless drivers on my Compaq V3000T? 2 1/2 months! And Vista was working FLAWLESSLY as a Bootcamp partition on a MAC? What is this world coming to!?!?!

So I used Vista for a while, then I rebooted and used Leopard some more. And vice-versa. Both worked perfectly. This was freaking me out. Surely there had to be something that wouldn't work, but I couldn't find it. So then I started thinking about the feasibility of using a Mac full time as my combination work/home notebook instead of a PC notebook. I kept using my wife's MBP for another few days and everything was still working perfectly.

So then I did a lot of research on PC notebooks that stacked up well against the MBP. For what I wanted, I couldn't find a suitable contender. The form factor of the 15.4" MBP whooped all the other PCs to shame. I was also going to be very picky about the display's configuration. In my opinion, 1280x800 for a 15.4" screen is just too big a resolution. I need some desktop real estate for all the stuff I want to do. Then again, the 1680x1050 resolution on a 15.4" screen is a bit too difficult to read without squinting. So again, the MBP seemed to fit the bill. One last rant about displays on notebooks; the fact that most PC notebooks STILL have VGA out really bugs me. Are we still in the year 2000 here??? OK, rant over.

There were some other logistical and software issues I needed to work out before making my decision as well. Considering that I'm an IT consultant, I had to make sure it suited all my personal and business needs. I just wanted to say Thank You to all the users on this forum section for all the valuable posts that answered most of my questions.

In the end, I couldn't find a reason not to get an MBP as a full-time work/home notebook PC, so I took the plunge. I ended up with the 15.4" MBP with the following specs: 2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, glossy screen, 160GB 5400RPM SATA, 2GB RAM. My wife placed the order for me late last week, and Apple listed that I would receive it by the 30th of November. Imagine my surprise when I got the MBP 4 days before the estimated receive date! And my Compaq is STILL being serviced!!!

Sorry for the long post, but I'm pretty excited about this switch. I know I'll run into some bumps along the way, but I'm sure I'll be able to work around or fix any issues that come along (with your help, of course ).

 

LOL! Thanks for the story. If more people actually tried using OS X to the same extent you did, maybe we would have more switchers!

Having both Windows & OS X on the same computer was an attractive selling point for me, but now I find myself using Windows much less frequently.

 

Congratulations on your new notebook. Sounds like you're quite happy about it!

 

Congrats, track2, and thanks for your thoughts on it!

 

I remember how i was nervous before the switch, and now i've become a mac pusher on everone i know lol. i've had my mbp for alittle over 2 months now. I have vista installed and i havent been in it for over a month. im considering wiping that partition.
the switch went easier then i expected, google and this forum became my best friends.

 

Congratulations are your switch! I'm sure you'll enjoy Mac OS X as much as everyone here does.

 

Congrats!

Only reason I got a mac? A mac fanboy talked me into it.
I had never used a mac platform, never even tried one. Seen them, thought they were pretty.
Best choice I've ever made. =)

 

Same here OSX is awesome and MBP is just sweet

enjoy the experience

 

A long time ago I was actually an Apple certified technician, back in the Quadra days. I thought Macs were great back then, but even over 10 years ago I was already knee-deep in Windows dependency.

It is funny to hear the "sosumi" audio clip after so long.

 

I sold computers, was interested in selling macs, talked the shop owner into it and got a distribution contract with Apple (we were located in too smal a town for them to want their own store, big enough that they wanted to sell) and got to use the first demonstration machine. One month later I bought my MBP and vastly prefer it to Win machines. Heck, one of the reasons I wanted to try the Mac was Vista (we'd been mucking around with the betas), there just HAD to be a better alternative
I still have a WinXP desktop due to some programs and plugins I have there, but if it crashes and needs a reformatting it will be receiving Ubuntu.

 

Well, I just placed my order for a base model MacBook, so in a few days I'll be a switcher too, I guess, though it'll be running alongside Arch Linux.

 

Congrats Lysander! Glad to have you onboard .

 

Congrats on the purchase, Lysander. The MacBook is a good machine!

 

Congrats lysander!
Black? White? high end white? =)

 

Low end white. Already have 4GB ram and a 200GB harddrive on order from my supplier though, they should arrive here wednesday. MacBook should arrive tomorrow or monday.

 

Congrats from me too, Lysander!

In my quest to get "settled in" to my new MBP I keep finding more reasons to stay on the OS X side. I was successful in not only pairing my cell phone in OS X via bluetooth, but I was also able to use it for a dial-up connection like I do in Vista. I was also surprised to see the Logitech has a Mac OS X version of their Harmony Remote software. Two more reasons to hang out in Leopard!

 

I just realized I didn't give you the links, track2!

These two links are very helpful to switchers, I recommend them all the time:

http://www.apple.com/support/switch101
http://www.apple.com/support/mac101

 

I am a gamer that happens to love laptops, weird I know, but Microshaft has plans to pull the plug on XP and I have the Vista is not for gaming at all as it is slow demanding 1 gig just to function well, forget gaming. I am being pushed to the Mac side as I am tired of having to be my own IT dept just to keep my Dell laptop running correctly. I read many inspiring stories like yours and I want a 17" mack book pro even more as I hear vista runs better on the Mac than it does a PC(glimmer of hope) and the Mac is just easier to use with no registry to deal with, that is nice. The more I learn the more I want to say by by to Microshaft as my main operating system, and Apple just seems to work!
I am interested to hear how the transition works out for you.

 

If you ever have any questions, don't be afraid to ask us, LAPTOP GAMER!

 

I was wondering how well gaming in boot camp will work as I hear Windows runs very well in boot camp.

 

Gaming in Boot Camp is fine, as well as any other notebook with the same specs. Get video drivers from www.laptopvideo2go.com though, and not Apple's stock drivers, as they're not the best ones.

 

Doe you game with you're Mac book or know any one who does?

 

I play CSS and Homeworld 2.

 

I'm not familiar with those, are they pretty demanding?

 

No, I do all my gaming on my desktop PC. Several members play WoW on their MacBooks though, it seems to be a favourite .

 

I understand that Wow is one of the most demanding games out there.

 

Of course!

Yeah, don't expect the MacBook to play demanding games. The X3100 is better than the GMA 950, but still isn't a dedicated graphics card.

 

:wub: :rolleyes2:

 

The new Mac books are running a better card than the X300, as that is what is in my Dell laptop and it is ok but not great.

 

No, the MacBooks have the X3100. The MacBook Pro has a 8600M GT DDR3 though.

 

I would go pro on the Mac book, might as well get all the performance I can get.

 

You can read other threads around here for gamer's experiences. On my MPB I've played Bioshock on the Boot Camp partition running Vista. Using Nvidia drivers (not Apple's), I've been able to play the game at 1280x800 in full screen with all graphics options enabled, and gameplay has been excellent. Graphically, I've very impressed with performance on the MBP.

I still keep finding more ways to stay running fully within OS X and not switch back to my Boot Camp partition. I'm finding Spaces to be an indispensable tool for daily usage. I just recently decided to give VMware Fusion a try (as yet another reason to not have to reboot to Boot Camp). Imagine my surprise when Fusion let me use my Boot Camp partition with OS X running! Now if I need to use some Windows software like Office 2007 I can just fire up Fusion. Nice

 

I am finding more and more reasons to become a Mac fan. I think Apple sat back and watched Microshaft's screw ups and is now taking advantage of it.

 

Really? All those swtich to Mac commercials that contrast Vista's flop? They sure threw me off!

Personally I love the multi bar ad by mac

"Don't Give up on Vista"

 

It is not just a slick ad campaign, they actually speak some truths about Vista and the PC some of what I have experienced and I have done a lot of research on Apple and I am sold on Apple.

 

What prevents Apple for releasing Mac OS for us who don't want to get an Apple branded PC?...

 

A repeat of Microsoft's errors in Windows. With limiting OS X to its own hardware, Apple knows what is running OS X, every piece of hardware in those computers. They can write OS X to best take advantage of that, and also, because they know what hardware is running OS X, they can get all the drivers done for it quickly.

Windows licensed to anyone who could pay for it. That's why Windows has so many driver issues, because it needs to be able to support basically every computer out there. This is also why it deserves some kudos, as its not easy to support just every computer out there.

Personally, I feel OS X's closed market actually is a reason why its so good. Apple can just keep it simple by writing drivers and such for the hardware that it makes, and it also knows what hardware they plan to use next and prepare for that. With Microsoft, they spend so much time just coordinating with its manufacturers, instead of actually working on some new, cool stuff.

 

While I always have a good laugh at the Apple commercials (John Hodgman is ridiculously funny), there's something I do not like about the ads. Why do they need to make the recent set of commercials such a (funny, but sneaky) smear campaign against Windows Vista? Why are the commercials NOT extolling more of the virtues of the "300+ New Features" of Leopard? Hopefully people who are really on the fence with regards to the 2 OSes will try both out before making a final decision. Just my $0.02.

 

Yeah, I do not particularly love the Get a Mac campaign either. Its really funny (as you said), but I feel it just further stereotypes Mac users as being arrogant, conceited and such. I like the iPod campaign a lot better.

 

This is an excellent point you bring up, Sam. I'm going to give Bill Gates and Microsoft another point by saying that if Apple had to deal with all the different hardware and interoperability that Microsoft had to, OS X would be just as difficult to stabilize as Windows is in general.

 

I agree, especially considering Leopard has had it's share of problems. To be perfectly honest, Tiger is plenty fine for now. I will get Leopard soon, but I am in no huge rush.

 

They should bring out the positive things about the Mac OS. I personally have heard about so many things that don't work on Vista, that 4 to $600 I could just put towards a new Mac book pro that works well.

 

Congrates track2 enjoy

Lynn

 

Yeah...instead of putting others (Windows) down, Apple should highlight its own strengths.

 

Dear friends:
I'm new to Mac.
I just bought an MacBook that will arive soon.
My two points I would like to have your help:
- what can I read in order to improve my learning curve ("first steps")?
- how does Mac compare to a similar powered Windows machine? Specially in terms of performance (I'm interested in photo software).

Thank you for your help.
Best regards,
Frank

 

Let me recommend to you Sam's Mac Switcher's Guide and Sam's trademark links.

http://www.apple.com/support/switch101
http://www.apple.com/support/mac101

They really do help a lot.

 

Hi FrankAv,

As thnksfrthmmrs said, those links really do help a lot! I learned a lot from Apple's guides myself .

As for performance, since the Intel change, Macs run basically as well as any PC with the same hardware.