is installing windows on a macbook a good idea?

I'm interested in the 13.3" but I'm used to using Windows. How does it fare with XP? Vista?

 

If all you plan to do is buy the Macbook to install and use only Windows then it's a bad idea since it will cost you more and the keyboard layout is different. You might be used to eating one brand of cereal but it doesn't mean you should stick only with that brand. You may want to give Mac OS X a try at a retail store or play with one that a friend may have before considering buying a Mac. If you are only considering a Macbook because it would be a "pretty" Windows PC then, again, it's a bad idea.

 

I've heard it's not too bad, but with a few driver issues. I'd dual-boot, if I were you.

 

Bootcamp is the program that can help you install windows on the macbook (dual-boot with OSX). I've used XP on my macbook before and there wasn't any issues that I recall of except for a lower battery life. I haven't used Vista, but I would assume it would also work. The windows drivers are also included in the drivers disk so you won't need to scavenge them on the internet.

 

There's no problems with a MacBook running Windows, all the main things run fine (there's very minor issues like you couldn't use the two-finger + trackpad button as a right click), its the equivalent to running Windows on any other PC.

Cost-wise though, I'd say unless you really want the MacBook hardware, then it is more cost-efficient to buy a Windows PC to well, run Windows. You are paying for Mac OS X and iLife and all the Mac-area things with a Mac, and you will need a Windows license on top of that to run Windows.

So by all means, it is perfectly fine, but it is more of an investment!

 

It is a bad idea. You are paying extra and not getting much in return. Unless you are planning to use OSX (even if only a little bit) as well as Windows, you would be better off with a PC. The PC would cost less for the same hardware or you could pay the same price as the MacBook and get more for your money as far as the hardware is concerned.

 

you need mac os for firmware updates and fan control. I primarily use windows but I like the mac hardware.

 

I wouldn't advice anyone to buy a Macbook only for Windows.

I bought a Unibody Macbook with the intention of running a lot of Windows on it. The touchpad did not work well and battery life was bad.

If you're not interested in making the transistion to OS X, stick with Windows laptops.

 

I got my 1st MB just a couple of months ago because I wanted to play around with OS X. It has now become my primary and favorite computer and for the very few instances that I need Windows (work) I use VirtualBox within OS X in virtual mode and it works just fine for me.

 

Wouldn't bad battery life be a windows problem not OS X/Apple hardware.?

 

I think it's a matter of drivers and integration.

Windows can get similar battery life on laptops with similar specifications and battery capacity as the Macbook with OS X.

If Apple really wanted to improve the battery of the Macbook in Windows, I think they could. They just aren't very motivated. They'd rather have people make the switch to OS X.

 

I just installed Bootcamp XP on my daughter's (uni-body) MacBook last week - and it runs very well. All the XP drivers are on the Leopard DVD as others have mentioned. The installation was smooth and easy - only tricky part was deciding NTFS or FAT32. I went with FAT32 for XP so it would be visible to MacOS. One thing important though - there is a touchpad update available on the Apple website for Bootcamp/XP. After I installed the update, the touchpad worked really well and I especially liked the two-finger right click in XP. I recommend you consider XP on yours and I'm trying to find the money to order one for myself!!

 

Do you have a link to the copy of XP you are using? I was wondering if Windows XP Home Edition "UPDATE" would work.

 

charger - I bought a 'system builders' copy of XP Pro SP2 last year, and that is the copy I used for her MacBook. I know the Bootcamp instructions said to NOT use XP SP3, but I don't know for sure about XP Home versus XP Pro. If your Home Edition Update is a full-up copy of XP, with activation code then I'm not aware of any reason it would not work. You won't hurt anything by trying, if I were you I would pop in the Leopard DVD, start Bootcamp and see what happens. Even if you create a new partition for XP, and the install fails, you can still boot into MacOS and delete the XP partition. I'm interested in hearing how it works out for you - Good luck...

Here is a link for XP Home on NewEgg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116511

 

Well I ended up going down to my local BestBuy, and picking up a copy of Windows Professional SP3 full edition, and it works great! The installation was speedy, and no problems!

 

Charger - Good news - I'm glad it worked out for you. Did you go with NTFS or FAT32? Although my daughter's MB ran great with FAT32, I wonder if there is a performance hit or anything (besides security) associated with FAT32? I found a great wallpaper for her XP partition - I will put the link up tonight if you or anyone is interested (my workplace WebSense's the tar out of photo sites). And, last question, if you don't mind me asking - how much was your copy of XP at BB? Thanks...

 

Ok, I ran into a problem. When I went to install it, it installed fine. I was using the 32-bit version of XP Pro. When it finally got installed completely, I turned it off to boot into OS X, and the only partition on the HDD was Windows. Now I had to restore my system back to when I used Time Machine yesterday, and works great now. But when I went to Bootcamp again, it said that I needed to format the HDD so it would be in a Full Journaled Mac OS X partition. Any ideas on how I could fix this?

P.S- the copy of XP was $279.99, but I had quite a bit of giftcards.