Is a MBP right for me?

So for the last two weeks i've been debating whether I want to buy a MBP or an asus laptop. I have a very powerful desktop that does all the heavy lifting but I miss having a laptop to take to class. My original laptop was an Asus w3j which I liked a lot but it's dead from thousands of hours of gaming before I got my desktop. My needs are pretty basic just surfing and some light gaming. I also do some visual studio work. I'm looking for something durable that will last me at least a few years. If I customize the MBP (13'') with 4g of ram and a bigger hdd and apple care it's 1400. An equivalent ASUS notebook will cost me 850. is the price difference really worth it? I'll always be a pc nut at heart I just like the build quality of the macs. so is there anyone else who went through the same situation I am?



-thanks

 

If your only reason right now to pick the apple is the build quality I'd recommend going Asus, just as I'm assuming your price for that included a similar warranty option that was priced in the apple in which regardless or not if you get a lemon or soon to be lemon you'll have a repair warranty.

IMO cause I love OS X I would pick the MBP but if you've tried it and don't care the OS it's not worth the extra $$ just to run windows on.

Good luck with either purchase you make

 

I haven't used OSX extensively but it does interest me. IMO buying a MBP for win 7 would negate the performance improvements of osx. I'm just interested in the mac voodoo. . maybe try a hackintosh 1st?


Edit: the asus does come with a year accidental coverage. that's pretty nice right there.

 

i would suggest you go with the asus because it's cheaper and windows 7 is only slightly worse in multimedia tasks as compared to os x. i would suggest you but a notebook pc and keep the extra money for yourself...

 

I'm curious as to what makes you guys spend the extra money to get the mac? Just because you like OSX? Productivity Suite?

 

OS X | Packaged Software | & Multi-touch features.

Once you start to browser the web with gestures it becomes a must and a nuisance without

 

Id have to say go with the ASUS unit as well.

 

Mostly because of OSX the way the it works in comparison to Windows. And of course the multitouch trackpads on the Macbook Pros, I could never use a mouse again for things other than gaming.

 

I'm actually looking at the MBP since i can get no interest for 12 months. Pay it off in a couple chunks is no big deal. Also how much worse is the SU 7300 performance in comarison with like a P8400 (2.26 i assume) ?

I'm usually a big multi-tasker when im on my laptop and I don't know if the SU7300 is going to keep up.

 

Performance difference..... bugger all... and alot less heat as it is one of the low power CPU's.

 

bugger all?



Edit: What i really want is a UL30VT but i doubt Asus is gonna make it

 

I Have a P8400 in a Dell and an ASUS UL50 with the su7300, Benchamarks are disparent but real world performance is almost totally on par

and a UL30VT WOULD be a nice machine

the low volt intel chips sure can be confusing as I have an old Toughbook with a CULV 900mhz CPU and it can actually run circles around an early C2D for some apps

 

So if money wasn't the issue would you still recommend the UL80VT over the MBP? The MB is better value atm i just cant stand a plastic WHITE computer....so im considering the MBP.

 

I will still reccomend the UL80VT as there is much less heat generated and the battery life is better ... its an ideal portable unit.and not a blasted netbook

 

What about longevity? Sadly my 1st ASUS lasted me just short of 3 years

 

Cant say there, I have had ASUS units last 2 years and I have had them last 6.. but on the flip side I have also sent MBP's in for servicing 3 times a year as well, and that downtime is a killer.... ASUS does have 1 year accidental damage warranty on some models as well ... never hurts to check

 

Go with the ASUS, I have the G1P model from awhile back in my sig. Still plays most of my games well. Only sent in once for warranty the almost 3 years i've had it and I got it back the same week

 

I would also go with the Asus for your needs. Better warranty, less money, and I've heard you don't like the white. I'm not really seeing any good reason to go with the Mac, because the Asus should last as long as the Mac, assuming you take care of your laptops. W7 is nice, and at least you wouldn't need to run bootcamp.

Edit: The Mac might have better battery life, that's a plus. Whether or not it's worth the extra $550 is up to you.

 

thanks for all the input guys it's much appreciated. On a side note I realy hope asus releases a Ul30VT

 

Or if gaming isn't an issue for you, check out the Acer 1810 Timeline series.

 

You should also consider the HP elitebooks --- they are very well built, like tanks, beautiful, nice graphics cards and have 3 year warranties.
Have a look at the HP8530w.

 

The UL30VT was Just confirmed by an Asus rep on amazon.com discussion

 

I am dealing with a dilema righ now. Stay with my order for UL80vt, get a macbook pro or wait for UL30vt to come out (if it will) at the end of the year.

What I like about UL over macbook pro:

1) Longer battery life
2) More hard drive space
3) Double the memory

What I do not like about UL comparing to macbook pro:

1) No bluetooth
2) Webcam sucks big time - 0.3 megapixel is a joke in 2009
3) Larger in size comapring to macbook pro.

I think I ca live with either OSX and Windows 7.

What do you think ?

 

for me honestly was the dimensions and features. it was... "complete", cam, mic, led, 9400m gt compared to intel, and what not.

 

You get what you pay for, factor in the extra buy in costs of the apple chic look and it's a somewhat fair asking price.

Better yet, if you can find a good deal on ebay for a macbook pro, it'll probably fulfill all your requirements =P

That's what I did anyway. ^.^

 

So now with the UL80VT reviews coming out and complaints about the screen/keyboard I'm back to being interested in the 13'' MBP. 1099 with my student discount. What else is there in that bracket with 6+ hrs of battery life?

 

For less, this Sony is pretty sweet. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Sony+-+...lack/9556269.p?id=1218124203998&skuId=9556269

I believe the battery life is around 6 hours, though I'm having trouble confirming that.

 

Seriously I would rather you buy an Apple than a SONY if you are insistent on either one.
SONY has ZERO reasons for selling overpriced laptop except "It's a SONY"
They even use Toshiba harddisk (worst among the lot)

 

I dunno, I've played with this Sony firsthand, and the build quality is really good.
It also uses a WD drive. He asked for a lappy with high battery life around his price range, for for $899 this is really sweet. I was forced to ask a friend who works with me the battery life, because I can't seem to find that spec online. He says he gets 6 hours 45 minutes.

 

I would probably buy an Apple before a Sony. What about an Acer Timeline? I'm considering getting a UL30-X5 or waiting on the UL30VT but I kinda need the laptop now. Plus i don't know if the straight intel integrated is enough in the grahpics department.

 

You think the Acer is better than the Sony? Ok.

 

For Acer built quality is pretty standard.
It is good if you don't get a lemon set always make it a point to check the laptop on the spot before you leave otherwise it could get messy.
AND DON'T DEPEND ON THE TECHS AS IF YOUR LIFE DEPEND ON IT.
If you are tech savy and can fix most laptop issues, with Acer you could save a whole lot of money, otherwise if you encounter issue you could end up swearing "no acer for me for the rest of my life".
I don't think SONY is fantastic either.
You end up paying more for the same components and they don't offer anything much over other brands.

 

IT was just a question?

 

I'm thinkin MBP, UL30-X5, or UL30VT. UL30VT might be too late on my timeframe though. I guess i'm just having issues because people say not to buy a MBP if you don't need it for the "artsy stuff".




Edit: Can you fix your link to BB? It's broken

 

If you consider the Apple logo to have aesthetic value then maybe "artsy" will apply.
IMO it is just market and Macbooks are just like any other laptops with the exception of running OS X legally.

 

Yeah the BB links are being a pain in my butt. Let me try again:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olstemp...terSP&sp=+currentprice+skuid&usc=abcat0500000

It's the one in the list that says "Professional Series" and "New" like 2/3 down the list for $899.

I don't care about the Sony whiners, this has gotten very good reviews so far. I'd love one for college.

You should seriously check it out in person if you can, the screen is amazing.

If you still can't find it, it's the Sony VGN-SR520G/B, you can search for it.

 

About the battery:

MacBook Pro 13: In OS X with the backlight set to about 70%, wireless active, and the hard drive set to never turn off we found the 13" MacBook Pro to last 7 hours and 59 minutes.

Source: http://www.notebookreview.com/defaul...ewsID=5105&p=2

Asus UL30A: A more realistic battery life was measured by our test with WLAN surfing. After 7.25 hours the battery was empty. During this test we visited YouTube, downloaded files, and visited several news websites. The display we set to the fourth highest setting, achieving just above 100 cd/m².

Source: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-...k.22057.0.html

So, the battery is not that different. Again, I am thinking that I will get MacBook Pro 13 instead of UL30vt

Hmm....

 

From my experience with the W3J, Asus has excellent build quality on their higher end products. If you want the aesthetics of a computer completely devoid of visible ports and farily decent performance (not to mention that nice touchpad), choose Apple.

On top of that, if you're anal retentive like me and like to keep things well protected from the harm of both the living and the non-living, you would choose Apple because there is a huge market of hard cases, palm rest protectors, keyboard protectors that come readily available to any owner of a Mac. =P

 

Well if it comes down to Apple vs. Asus i'd go Asus because they have awesome quality. But Apple vs Sony, Apple all the way.

 

i second mac in mac vs sony build quality...macs are superior in design but are not designed to run windows.

 

What do you mean by this?

I'm a mouse guy and rarely (if ever) use the trackpad... but I'm curious to know what you mean. Thanks.

 

The MBP is higher quality then Asus ~800 $ line though aye? I was disappointed in the UL80VT review.

 

I have this choice to make and I went with the MBP 13". However, if you really need to run Windows, then you will take a hit because Macs simply don't run Windows as well as regular PC's.

I installed Windows 7 on my MBP and it serve the purpose for me to use when I need Windows, but I generally use OS X most of the time. However, I do struggle with finding software to do many of the things I like to do in terms of music ripping, encoding. Most of that is likely because I am new to the Mac OS.

I think it boils down to do you want a Mac to run OS X or do you want a Mac to have OS X to play and then use Windows. If it is the latter I think you'll be disappointed with the Windows performance. I know I am, but again no big deal because I got it to use the Mac OS. I have other Windows Machines that I can use for heavy lifting and performance.

 

I built a desktop 6 months ago:

Q9550 oc'd to 4ghz
8 gig ram
GTX 260

so my mac won't need heavy lifting. I need it for word processing and maybe some other stuff. I think with the student discount a 13'' MBP for 1099 isn't a bad deal at all. I have yet to see something with that kind of build quality in that price bracket. I guess I'm either looking for a MBP or a well built Thin and Light.

 

Sounds like the MBP would be idea for you. I also agree with you based on the specs, backlit keyboard, quality build and my own cheap hard drive and memory upgrade I couldn't be happier with my MBP 13". I have used mine to do a lot of word processing and spreadsheets, I have also created a lot of power point presentations and then used it to present them. WORKS GREAT!