I'm about to make the big jump to Apple: Quick Help?

So i'm about to purchase my MBP this week.

Quick Questions i have on the customizable features:

1. Glossy or Matte?...what is preferred most or better?
2. Apple Software?...Do i need to add anything else?...I'm a student, so i need all the office type stuff that Windows offers..Does it include ilife, iwork, imovie 08?...Is ther anything else i should consider?

3. Regarding upgrading RAM, what brand does apple use?..I plan on purchasing a stick off newegg.com, so i was wondering which one is the best for the standard MBP?..I want to upgrade to 4 GBS.


Thanks guys.

 

1) Its a personal preference. Usually though, it seems glossy screens are more popular. If you really can't decide between the two, I'd say go matte. You can't "hate" matte, but you might detest glossy.

2) Bundled onto new Macs are iLife '08 (which includes iMovie '08). There is an iWork '08 trial, but you will have to buy it after the trial. $79, not a bad price. If you're just typing up essays, NeoOffice (free, the Mac version of OpenOffice) should be fine. Just a free download.

3) Not sure...any RAM stick works fine, if you ask me. Just get a cheap one.

 

1. Your choice. Generally, glossy looks a little more vibrant, and matte is better for various bright-light situations and color fidelity. However, both are extremely good. Go to an Apple Store (or better yet, find someone with the new MBP in a lighting environment you'd be likely to be in) and see for yourself.

2. iLife 08, which includes iMovie, GarageBand, iDVD, iPhoto and iWeb, comes included with your MBP for free. IWork is Apple's office suite and it's not free, but I suggest you actually try it out before buying it. While it offers some compatibility with Microsoft Office, you might find that it may or may not meet your specific needs. Office 2008 is coming out in January 2008, and if you are planning on waiting for that, you can try NeoOffice, which is free, until then. Of course, if you like iWork, then definitely get that - it's a good software suite.

3. Apple uses Samsung RAM I think. In any case, it doesn't really matter as long as the chip is from a fairly well-known brand. Just get the 2 cheapest 2GB DDR2 667MHz sticks that you can find.

EDIT: Psh Sam beat me to the keyboard

 

1. Get the glossy if you like vibrant colors, Apple's glossy screen is one of the best i've seen.

2. Im having good results with Office 2004. Haven't tried iWork or any freeware solution.

3. Can i ask why you want 4GB? It seems like thats the trend these days.

 

I've got a glossy screen on my MB and I do find it a little irksome as I use it in my car a fair bit and on sunny days I end up working at funny angles so I can see the screen! Indoors it's not so much an issue. I think if I'd had the choice I'd have gone for a matte screen.

I downloaded NeoOffice (good version of OpenOffice), iStumbler (wifi, bluetooth and bonjour detector) and Firefox other than that I just use what was already on the MB.

For RAM I'd just go for a reputable brand which has a good deal on at the moment. It's what I plan on doing next week.

 

Let me clarify. iLife comes bundled with a purchase of a new mac. This is includes iMovie, iPhoto, iDVD, Garage Band, and iWeb. iWork is a different piece of software that you have to purchase. It includes Pages, Keynote, and Numbers. For free software I suggest you take a look at this. http://osx.iusethis.com/hot

 

Also, I want to plug in our very own Eluzion's OS X Freeware List. There is quite a list of free applications for OS X, worth checking out.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=160062

This link can also be found in the Recommended Guides & Links section of the Mac Switcher's Guide.

 

Do the new macs come with iLife 06 or 08. I thought it was 06 but lol I am new to Macs.

 

iLife 08 on the new Macs.

 

Just remember, that the mbp doesn't come with a single 2gb stick of ram. It has two 1gb sticks in dual channel.
So if you want 4gb, you'll need 2 2gb sticks.

No one mentioned it but yea just thought I would.

 

All the new Macs that started shipping from China after the iMac announcement back in August will have iLife '08, and you will for sure have iLife '08 on your new Mac.