Why We Choose PC's over Macs (or vice-versa)

You know, I actually considered buying a Mac when I was originally looking to buy a laptop. My reasons were:
- All the "cooler" people own Macs
- I'd look "cool" if I had a Mac

Howver, those were about my only reasons. And to more than outweigh them, my reasons why I didn't choose a Mac:

- (For the size I wanted) Two words: Black or white
- Most applications and games out there don't run on Macs
- OS X Leopard looks pretty dull...
- BLACK AND WHITE ONLY!!!!!

Now, I quickly put the thought of purchasing a Mac to rest, especially when I saw the new Inspiron line that Dell was offering. A choice of 8 colors for the laptop lid, dedicated graphics card, high resolution screen...and the perfect size: 14 inches!
On top of the amazing options I saw, the price really goaded me. A fairly cheap, but powerful laptop. It was the reason why I had worked all summer.
So in the end, I purchased the Dell Inspiron 1420, returned it, and bought a second 1420 with a better processor and hard drive for the same price because of an amazing $500 coupon.

Please feel free to post your story on why you chose a (Dell) PC over a Mac, or a Mac over a PC.

 

try playing a decent 3d game on a mac without installing windows You will still be paying the premium price for apple hardware.
Windows is for gamers and most people who like a functional computer
Mac is for... idno

 

Well i started out with PC's then switched and bought 4 Mac notebooks over time and then again sold them all over time and bought a PC notebook again.

I am not that fussed that much about the OS. Stuff like iLife i never even really used although i do think that Mac OSX has a nice interface it is also more secure as well. I like Vista Ultimate as well though. The reason why i switched to Mac OSX was because i was bored of Windows XP nothing more and nothing less. There are some things that i was not so keen on when i had a Mac like the two finger clicking as a replacement to the right click button i just never really clicked with that.

Vista has basically what Mac OSX does now. On the same hand though Mac OSX lacks some of the stuff that Vista offers also.

I have got a few viruses before in the past using XP but there were mainly down to my own fault. So far i have got zero viruses with Vista. Vista feels more secure to me than XP does. I got software protection free with my notebook and i don't actually need to run it if i don't want to as i got it free though i will.

My main reason for buying a PC notebook was because of the hardware. The Apple hardware is quite limited and they had nothing that really fitted my needs. Ideally i would like to be able to run both operating systems. As the majority of the media related stuff in the UK is Windows only I will always need Windows though no matter what. Yes you can illegally put Mac OSX on your Windows notebook but that seems like to much of a bother to me anyway.


I love this XPS M1330 because of its size and lighter weight i would have to say that it has been my favourite computer to date and my second close favourite would be the MBP that i used to own. I also love the finger print function as well.

I have read that Vista copied stuff from Mac OSX and that maybe a bit true but Mac OSX has also copied some stuff from Windows it works both ways i guess.

The at home warranty i think is a plus also with Dell.

 

I have a few reasons for going towards a PC opposed to a a MAC:

• MACs dont run the programs I need
• MACs dont run the games I want without installing Windows
• I prefer PCs for LINUX
• I've always been a PC user
• I dont like to be tied down to one company (APPLE), I much prefer having the choice of several different companies
• The MAC OS can be installed onto a PC if I REALLY want it
• I dont like the MAC OS!

From what I've heard, VISTA copied stuff from LINUX & UNIX to make it more stable & secure, might have done the same with the MAC OS, but im not sure. Just goes to show that M$ cant even code stuff properly, so they have to nick it! I kinda doubt they could have taken anything from the MAC OS cos it would be illegal! But LINUX & UNIX are both open source, so they could have easily taken stuff from them without any legal troubles!

 

H3rmaN it was the interface/feel of the OS that i was referring to and not really the coding when I wrote that MS may have borrowed some ideas from Mac OSX for Vista. I don't necessarily think that MS borrowed from Mac OSX but some people i know do for those reasons i have given. Apple i do think though probably took the Time Machine idea from Windows and possibly some other things to.

 

I figure unless your going for some extreme high end gaming machine or just trying to get the cheapest PC possible you might as well go for a Mac. Considering you can run both OS X and Windows on it it's like getting two computers in one.

 

ah, right, fair enuff! I can see what you mean by it looking similar to the MAC OS

You can do the same with a PC, and you also have to option of the extreme high-end gaming & low budget PC.

 

I was planning on getting a macbook when leopard came out, but got tired of waiting and bought an xps m1210.

The reason i wanted a Mac was that i was tired of XP, and have owned macs in the past. I was fearful of vista after reading so many negative responses to it.

I found a pretty sweet deal on the m1210 on the dell outlet and decided to jump at it figuring that i could always return it if i didnt like vista.

I'm glad that i bought the dell and as it turns out i really like vista.

i'm sure that i would have liked the macbook, but I would have had to wait another few months to get it.

true story.

 

Wow, those are some poorly thought out reasons. Looking cool and the color of the laptop should not be your primary considerations. You bought a 14" Dell, you could have purchased a 15 MBP and had another color option. And your 1420 isn't going to be much better at playing games, a MBP would do a much better job.

 

PCs have a long history over Macs. And evil Windows dominate the whole world

 

if your fed up with Windows move to LINUX! It will take you a while to get to grips with, but once you know how to use it...OH MY GOD!! Its SSSSSOOOO much more stable than Windows (any version), and if you are root (admin) and you want to end something or delete a file you dont get any of the "access denied" crap! All it does is ask if you are sure you want to delete it, then it will delete it...end of!

The only bad thing about that feature is if your new to LINUX you could accidentally delete an important file and it will stop LINUX from booting.

But its SSSSOOOOOOO much more powerful & flexible then Windows!

 

Agreed. Windows is the standard. Compatibility and software selection make it the obvious choice. But I still wish MS would make a leaner, less demanding OS.. If they don't get vista running better for businesses and get all the networking issues fixed then it could be trouble for MS later on when they only offer support for a broken OS. It does not sound like the upcoming SP will offer any performance gains either. I predict MS will be forced (again) to offer XP and will further extend sales of XP to oems and retail.

 

Well an all silver laptop isn't much better. And the 15 inch is to big for me. That's why I didn't buy the Inspiron 1520. Besides, the MacBook Pro costs a lot more money for the same specs that I got in the 1420.

 

I was comparing a 17" MacBook Pro with the Inspiron 1720. I went with the 1720.

My reasons for looking at the Mac included; stability, security, dual boot, and not having to run a bunch of anti-vrius/malware removal SW.

My reason for not purchasing a Mac is pretty simple... price. I would have had to buy a Blu-Ray Disc Drive (BDD) at an additional ~$1,000 to get the same features and functionality that I was looking for, and could get preinstalled on the 1720. Besides a BDD, the two notebooks spec'd out almost identically.

 

I really want a Mac, but the idea of forking over an extra $1300 for a similar laptop doesn't sit well with me. Also, I don't like the lack of a trackpoint, or the lack of WUXGA on the current 15.4" Mac laptops.

I'd gladly write Steve Jobs a cheque for $300-$400 to run MacOS X86 on this laptop though.

edit: I guess if you click the MacBook Pro links in these forums, you get redirected to a refurb 15.4" MacBook Pro that has relatively similar specs to my unit, and costs only maybe $200-$300 more. So that's not so bad... But its a refurb, and the screen is only 1400x900, and the HDD is only 5400rpm...

 

I pondered the jump to Macintosh, but then realised that short of a faint curiosity, I really had no need to abandon ship.

I don't suffer stability problems, I'm smart enough to keep my system well maintained and secure, and I have more software options available both free and paid for to accomodate every forseeable digital venture. I like the versatility of Windows. The very same arguments that Mac owners use about my operating systems stability and security are in the same breath my advantages. Its technical lapses mean that you can make it do pretty much anything. Whether it's supposed to or not.

I see OSX as much more of a 'governing system' than an operating one. Although with the release of Vista, Windows would appear to be going much the same way in its hard coded restrictions.

I would like to toy with Linux in the near future, again, merely out of curiosity.

 

Open Source does not work like that. The GPL (General Public License), which is a common Linux license (the kernel is under that, for example), stipulates that any software derived from it MUST also be under GPL; so MS couldn't legally take things from Linux without also making Windows open source. That may not be 100% accurate, but that's the gist.

OSX is based on FreeBSD, which has a more liberal BSD license allowing non-open source software to incorporate code from it.

I admit that I haven't even read these, but I imagine they should be a decent source of information on free software licenses & UNIX for anyone interested:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software_licenses
http://www.dwheeler.com/secure-programs/Secure-Programs-HOWTO/history.html

Apples are used a lot by musicians; not only producer types, but also very tech literate experimental musicians using special computer-music programming languages etc. I believe there are genuinely some nice features of the OS in terms of how it deals with audio, but nothing all that significant. I'd rather run Windows or Linux myself, though.

Graphic designers often also seem to heavily favour macs, although I'm not sure if there are solid technical reasons motivating that choice. I believe Apple have been historically ahead on colour management, but again, I believe Windows is also quite capable if set up right. This is something I'd like to learn more about (at least to the point of having my own machine properly callibrated). Core Video in OSX promises to use GPU accelleration for raster image processing, which seems like a really good idea to me, but in terms of the software that people actually use (photoshop...) taking advantage of that, I'm not sure any of it really does.

I know quite a few very savvy tech people who really do prefer macs, I still don't totally understand why. Generally, these people are working with audio and/or video, and the combination of really industrial strength multimedia software with a unix environment is an appealing one. Nonetheless, I think that the apple brand is mostly about hype, vendor lock in, etc. When I've used macs, I've not found them easier to use or more reliable (witnessed quite a few problems with apple hardware).

In the past few years, there have been a number of major upheavels affecting software compatibility which cause substantial inconveniance to users, IMO; first to OSX then relatively shortly after to intel processors. Memories of using studio machines with audio-editting software running in OS9 emulation & frequently crashing (ie, freezing the whole machine), while the 'super'drives sat there broken with the tray permanently open... hmmm.

 

i can offer a good perspective on this subject because i have owned both a windows laptop and a macbook. Basically.... screw macs. i switched to macs and sure its a bit more stable and looks better... but:

1. Weak Hardware
2. No games.
3. Doesnt always "just work"
4. most importantly... Price

I sold my macbook and lost 300 dollars on it... i took my losses and decided to never own a mac again. I dont understand who in their right mind would choose the macs IF they know that they are getting an inferior product with better plastics on the outside.

Windows on the other hand... Not the perfect solution but as close as it comes.

1. Compatible with everything.
2. CHEAP ! look at my sig. How much would a macbook cost customized to those specs?
3. Games
4. I dont feel like an idiot by buying this because i know i get the most bang for the buck.

If you are an impressionable idiot go ahead and buy a mac. You can overpay by hundereds if not thousands. enjoy an OS that doesnt offer games or a wide variety of programs, and have a relatively weak computer compared to what you could have gotten if you bought a pc.

Remember i was a mac owner as well... i just realized im not stupid enough to pay steve jobs for plastic.

Oh btw... i get the idea that most mac owners are chumps; all you have to do is look at the guy in the beginning of this thread comparing a macbook pro 15 inch to an inspiron 1420. Nice comparison moron, now compare it to the vostro 1500 or the 1520 , because thats what you need to do to make a fair comparison. If thats how you people think then i honestly feel sorry for you. Are you so stupid you cant even make an equal side by side comparison?

here is how much a macbook PRO costs that is = to my vostro 1500. You ready for this? $2,074.00. Yeah... 2074. thats WITHOUT TAXES !. With taxes and shipping its $2252 !!! thats over TWICE what i paid for my vostro.... Note that the macbook i configed is identical to my vostro except it has a slightly better processor (2.2 ghz instead of 2.0)

I wonder how many macbook owners i made cry by posting this.

 

I've never owned a mac, but when I used them in university or played with my friends MBP, I really love it.

Technologically speaking, both have their advantages and disadvantages. I can't believe the Apple commercials though, they're like a bad political party. To perk themselves up they have to put PC's down, that's very low. Macs have a lot of good features but I don't think I can support a company who's main commercial is degrading someone else.

 

Gaming experience on any notebook is determined by the hardware in the notebook. I can game just as well with a pc notebook (get more games in fact + dx10), and not have to pay extra 1k or so.

 

Woah!
You do realize you are calling 99% of the people on this forum uncool right?
That is so not cool

^^That's what I would have said if I owned a Mac - would have probably moved my hands around a little bit while saying it. But since I don't own a mac, I'll just say that the most popular kid in youtube, aka Angry German Kid, owned a PC, and I don't want to imagine what would have happened if his parents got him a mac...

 

Wow, DeusEx...

OS X doesn't always just work, you're right. Nothing's perfect. When you find the crash-proof OS, let us know. But OS X has less issues than Windows does for me, I can say that. Just yesterday, I had the video-editing application on my Windows computer freeze and crash on me, after two hours' work. I was able to salvage a previously saved copy, but I lost a lot of work and time there.

And honestly, its hard to compare a MBP with a Dell notebook. If you're looking for raw power, if you're looking for the most powerful notebook for the lowest price, sure, its probably a Dell. Go ahead and get it, yes, Dell's are really well priced. But if you're looking for more, that's where the MBP and MacBook's price comes from. Take the MBP for example. 5.4 pounds...1-inch thin. That sort of sleekness takes money. How about the LED-backlit display? That costs quite a lot too. Backlit keyboard, magnetic power cord, two-finger-sensitive trackpad...these all are little things that add up to the MBP's price. If you don't want them and don't feel like paying for them, then obviously the Mac isn't for you. But the MBP isn't that overpriced, and the price mostly comes from little features that just add up.

Once again, I'm not saying Macs are better. I prefer Macs, but you may not, and that's perfectly fine. Which OS you prefer is a personal opinion. But when comparing a MBP with a Dell, you can't really just look at power vs. price. If you want the most powerful notebook for a low price, then get a Dell. But if the MBP's extra features intrigue you, the MBP's price is justified as well.

 

What's a Mac?

 

The only reason I'd consider a Mac is because you can put Windows right beside it!!

I like the design of the MacBooks(13.3"), but, given the choice, I'd stick with say, a Dell m1330 or an HP dvxxxxt.

Windows, any version, for has always been stable. As long as you take care of it, it'll be fine.

 

Never seen a McIntosh apple before? Here's a picture :

 

The same goes for ALL computers (MACs or PCs), not just notebooks...

1) LINUX

2) Take it you havn't played about with the XPS M1330...and you forgot one more thing that makes MACs to expensive...the big APPLE logo, and lack of competition.

 

i think what it came down to for me was price. i'm not a power user by any means and to get the same specs on a mac as i got on my dell 1420, i'd be looking at hundreds more dollars. also, i don't find macs to be as customizable as dells when ordering. that's really it. i'm sure the OS is lovely, but i'm not paying hundreds more 'cause it's a mac. it's that simple. when i can get a new mac with the specs i need for $800, i'll jump on board.

 

Mac desktop publishing software, or anything Adobe, use to be years ahead of the PCs . I'm not sure if that's still the case as I'm not a heavy user of graphics design programs.

PC operating systems will always be bigger, bloated and more bugs. For an OS to be compatible with this many hardware components, you gotta take into account tons and tons of factors. The kernel alone needs to compensate for hardware bugs in each generation of CPUs. Think about this and multiply it by each component.

One thing the Macs do well is interface, although Microsoft really scored with the new office 2007 and Vista live search. I think Microsoft is starting to realize that more feature don't mean jack unless people can actually find them. The Ribbon shows previews of your document if you decide to select each option. It takes away the uncertainty factor in looking at new ways to do things. Vista live search moves away from using the mouse for EVERYTHING and puts the focus back on the keyboard. I honestly hated the huge start menu and digging through layer after layer of menus. Even keeping the menus trim was a pain in the rear. Now it's a simple and trim Google for your desktop.

 

I dont get why mac people say they love them so much more then windows, yet they install windows on their mac.

 

Actually, I'm not calling any PC users uncool. In fact, I think Mac people are relatively "uncool". I was only referencing that "all the cool people own Macs" because it's true at my school. I did not mean that, globally, all the cool people own Macs. (And besides, I wrote that post at like 2:00 in the morning...)


I agree: the Apple commercials are quite stupid; I can't say that I have seen one Apple commercial advertising their Macs without thrashing a PC.

 

What kind of school do you go to? When I was in school (only just over 2 years ago) only a handful (and I literally mean no more than 5) people had their own PC! Most folk just had a PC that the whole family used!

I only got my 1st lappy when I went to uni in September 2005!

And has no-one ever told you that it's much better to do your own thing, and not just follow the crowd like a mindless sheep?

Who cares what all the "cool kids" have! 99% of the time, the "cool kids" are the ones that end up working in MacDonalds, and the "geeks & nerds" end up working in major corporations earning hundreds of thousands a year!

 

I think everybody's missing 'Gunners' unbelieveably simple and culturally accurate point about the Apple franchise. But just to ease your frustration fella, I for one agree.

Now let's move along with the subject...

 

As everyone knows, and this thread is designed to discuss, the reasons why we choose either platform varies by person and with our individual needs. I'll discuss mine here although I'm late to this thread (takes me too long to read during a busy day ).

Firstly to bore everyone with a tiny bit of history!

My first computer was a mac back in 1997 with the old Macintosh Performa 6400/200 running Mac OS 7.5.3. This was back in the days before macs became "pretty" (this occurred around 2000 with Mac OS X, but has some light starts in Mac OS 8, the last Mac OS I ran daily). So I have some fading experience with the Mac OS...

It was a mixed experience then! I remember loving the simplicity of the Mac as it was my first computer and all problems were fixed with the deletion of the "Preferences" folder. But I also hated the lack of Mac software. I used to curse Bill Gates because I remember being taken into the back or basement of stores to look at the 1 shelf of mac games. I don't think the situation has improved much to date (well you might not have to go in the basement anymore at least).

With the recent conversion of Macs to the Intel platform I was encouraged to think about the Mac again by various people and sources. That consideration lasted probably less than 10 minutes once I remembered reality. The reasons were the following for me:

1. The price difference between the PC OEMs and Apple were just too extreme! I compared the current machine I got from Dell with the same trimmings from Apple and I was looking at about $1,000 more for the Mac. Beauty isn't worth $1,00 to me, at least.

2. Lack of software compatibility with the tools I need to do my daily computing tasks. Being a ASP.NET web developer I can't live without Visual Studio and related tools. The argument I was given to still look at the Mac is that I could still load Vista on it via Boot Camp and then I'd still have access to my tools.

That was a silly idea to me... Why would I spend MORE for a mac only to have to end up spending MORE for Windows and end up running it as a PC... Seems like a waste of $1K to me...

3. I've read too many horror stories of Apple warranty repair services compared to Dell. I've owned Dell laptops since my initial conversion to Windows in 1998 and have always had superb experiences with Dell support when it comes to repairs. To me warranties are very important because I expect the equipment to last me on average 3 or more years and I only want to have one expense in that time frame.

Those were my main reasons at least... For some people it matters more that their machine looks "cool" since they are that kind of person and with the proliferation of web software the OS is less important.

For sure choose whatever works for you

 

The XPS M1330 isn't cheap. If you compare the Dell Inspirons with Macs, that's where it doesn't work out. The M1330 has a lot of more features over the normal Inspirons, such as LED-backlit display and sleek design, and as you can see, the XPS M1330's price is also higher. That's why Macs' prices are higher as well. There's extra features such as those found on the XPS M1330, and that's where the price comes from.

 

Interesting...maybe we get different news feeds , but I've always heard excellent Apple customer support reports, whereas normal Dell support I normally hear tons of complaints about. Its improved since and XPS support is good, but I find it interesting you think Apple has bad customer service and/or warranty issues.

 

Personally, I believed in the fact that anything Apple released is indeed in a better quality than the others especially the quality of the designs and the design for the easy of use. However, I also figure out that for the price of the Apple product your could just get the other alternatives which in some cases may even be better than the Apple Product in terms of functionality. A quick example with Ipod, it is small, compare to some other mp3 players, and it has a slick design, almost, not all, everyone you see listening to music in public is using a Ipod. Alternatives like Zune, or the Zen Series from Creative both beats Ipod in terms of types of file it supports, and small additional functionality like FM Radio, Voice Recorder build-in, etc. However, I believed the reason Apples products are always chosen over the others is because it is very easy to use any of their software, Same with OSX, it promotes a look of it's own, and use the "easy of use" as a key selling point which are quite clearly demonstrated in their always bashing PC ads. However, Windows and Linux are both catching up in the "ease of use" departments of their own, and are now less technical and more "User Friendly". In my opinion, I don't want Apple to lower their prices, I just want other manufactures to make PC to be as good as Apple in terms of design and quality; then this would naturally force Apple to cut down prices in order to stay in competition.

 

Macs are great if you enjoy spending hundreds of extra dollars for the fact that you have a worse computer and one less mouse button

 

well said.

 

I wasn't talking about speaking to the techs per say as I usually stear them where I want them pretty quick with any company as I don't call them until it actually is a hardware issue.

There are countless stories from satisfied customers like me that will tell you that Dell has the best warranty support in the business.

They always have parts to your door the next business day or a box to send your machine in in the problem is bad enough. They then fix your machine and have it on a truck back to your door the same day! All prepaid by Dell all the ways around.

Their Dell Care Plus and above plans come with complete accidental protection and on site service at around the same price Apple charges to add 2 years to your warranty. Apple only offers on site for Desktops and they don't offer accidental damage protection.

 

i honestly like them both but for differnt reasons. macs i like more for school work and windows based i like more for everything eles lol

 

I like OS X, but I don't like not having a right-click button on a laptop.
I don't like having to drag a mouse around separately from the laptop.
I also don't like that the current Macbook Pro's seem to run so hot.

 

Macs have lots of features for an average home user, but not for a pro.

Time machine is just a copied modified version of volume shadow copy (previous versions) in windows server.

 

And Vista does it far far better! No need to tote a second /hD around to make it work and no need to scroll through a crappy animated UI to find what I need.

 

Apple is a master craftsman that combines a refined aesthetic sensibility with outstanding technical skill to create superb, desirable products.

Then, unable to let the quality of his creation speak for itself, goes out and stands in the middle of the street and shouts "Hey! Look at my fantastic, kick-ass computer! I sure make that competitor of mine look stupid, don't I? I'm soooo cool! I mean, really, I just so incredibly rock! That Microsoft is such a tool! Ha ha ha!"

If a corporation is a legal person, Apple is an arrogant jerk. A bully. That's why I will no longer give Apple any of my money. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth. And that is why my M1330 has replaced my MacBook.

(And really, I'd much rather be John Hodgman than Justin Long.)

 

That's why I bought a PC...

 

Why We Choose PC's over Macs (or vice-versa)?

A platform is chosen based on your unique requirements. In some cases both platforms will do but in other cases only one will do.

PS: A few years back in college, our professor had asked this question: Why we choose intelligent brunettes over beautiful blondes (or vice-versa)? (No offence intended ladies) Your question is on similar lines.

 

(mmm, intelligent brunettes)

 

because I like my women to be smart, and I just prefer brunettes in general...however I dont really know that many blondes anyway!

And the best type are the beautiful intelligent brunettes!

 

That is like Dell in Apple's chassis

 

The intelligent brunettes here seem to be attracted to my Dell Inspiron. Screw the Apples. I'd rather use the extra $1000 on alcohol!!!!!!!