Mac or PC which is better, please lists. Pros and Cons?

Question

I Have an HP pc note book and are planning to purchase a Mac. But don't know if I should keep my 1year old Pc notebook or get a new apple mac notebook. Plaese help me. thank you :) and if you could list the notebook name and where I can get it for a good price.

I am planning to use my notebook just for note takling and homework and download music for free. Thats it. and I don't want to carry around a heavy notebook like my HP. Its really heavy when you have alot of book to carry plus this HP, and the battery life only last for 3 hours MAX! and its suck because I have to carry the charger while I'm in class charging my HP and taking notes.

Answer 1

So many answers and so much bad info. I use both on a daily basis. Neither is a piece of junk or a wrong choice just because of what it is.

First, I'll explain the bad info and then give you some straight dope:

"Macs for one there's no right click" -- hold the Command key when you click, same. How often do you right-click? Most people, about twice an hour. No big deal.
"...confusing to go from a PC tool bar where it seems so simple..." -- I use both Windows and Mac, no problem with the toolbar. It's almost the same as on Windows.
"... costs $300 or more for software, you'll find almost no shareware or freeware..." -- I haven't found any $300 or more programs except the ones that cost $300 for Windows also, such as Photoshop and Quark XPress. Tons of Mac freeware /shareware. I have dozens of them. Try versiontracker.com
"You have to buy all your motherboard and internals from Mac franchised dealers there is no OPEN SOURCE like on a PC" -- not true. You can buy NVidia, ATI, Beldon, etc. at almost any large computer store such as Comp USA, Fry's, etc. The motherboard is not made by third-party companies but do you plan to change the motherboard in your laptop? Come on, guys!
"Do NOT, however, expect easy data exchange UNLESS you buy Mac/PC compatible programs." --I exchange Excel, Word, JPEG, HTML files, no problem. Microsoft made some Word and Excel bottle-necks for Mac software ten years ago but now they have figured it out.
"pictures made with the "free" software that came with his Mac. Totally unreadable in a PC" -- Huh? I make JPEG and PDF files on my Mac using Preview and screen capture and send them by email to my brother's Windows box, no problem. Someone has a lame Windows setup if they can't read standard JPEG and PDF files.
"...he has to compress them using a Mac compression tool that does not work well with Win Zip" -- I don't have to compress my files at all. If I do, I can unzip them fine on my Windows box and so can my friends.
"You will not find familiar, easy to use tools. ...Fetch for FTP" -- If you don't want to see something unfamiliar, stick with Windows. And vice versa for Mac users, don't look at Windows, it's unfamiliar. About FTP, just use web-based such as www.01ftp.com
"if you do picture work you may HAVE to buy Adobe at $600 if you want to exchanged images with PC users, because we can't deciper their PCT images" -- Not true, get GraphicConverter or QuickImageCM for free and don't save in PICT format unless you plan to publish or print it from your Mac.
"Too many "Mac" proprietary formats to deal with..." -- Maybe your Mac using friends don't know what formats are good for Windows. They can save files in almost any format that other platforms need. Not true for Windows, but never mind. They needn't use the TWO OR THREE Mac proprietary formats.
"...only good exchange is Apple Quicktime" -- No, Macs can use almost any video format. Microsoft has stopped making Internet browser plugins for Macs since they got mad at Apple for offering Safari to replace Internet Explorer so their PROPRIETARY WMV format needs a third-party plugin.
"...not for casual computing, game playing or even Internet browsing, since many of the sites are Linux or NT based" -- Huh? Since when does the type of server affect your browsing ability? Many web sites use Mac servers and that doesn't keep Windows boxes from browsing. No sense here.
"You CAN expect to have problems seeing some sites" -- older versions of Safari were totally wacky but with newest version or Firefox, this is not an issue.
"I never got the hang of macs. they are way too complicated to operate." -- My friend's 8 year old learned to use my Mac in about ten minutes. You just have to relax and accept new ideas.
"..it has very little hardware support" -- Almost all printers, scanners, cameras, external drives work with Mac. I use a DOS formatted USB drive with both Mac and Windows, no problem. Can Windows use both drive formats? Oh, no! Limited hardware support for Windows!
"try Linux its better than mac" -- Actually, it is almost the same as Mac in most ways. Two differences: must choose different flavors for Mac or Windows, can't find much software for Linux. Oh, wait. That's how foks try to shoot down Mac but they fail to mention it for Linux. Hmmm...

Now, here is my list of Pros-Cons:

Windows: Pros --
* More software available, especially games.
* Most LAN maintenance technicians are only familiar with Windows.
* DOS partitions can be changed without loosing data (usually).

Windows Cons --
* Registry. Enough said.
* Viruses. Enough said.
* New Hardware Found Wizard can't find drivers. Enough said.
* Many issues are too vague for even a well-trained technician to resolve so, format and reinstall. Arghhh!!!
* Software uninstall can be a nightmare.
* Not very secure from hackers, malware, etc.
* Partition (drive volume) sizes are restricted.

Mac Pros --
* Very intuitive thus easy to learn and remember how to use all features.
* Install the OS in 30 minutes and restart once. Ready to go.
* Many more drivers pre-installed by the OS so you don't have to go searching the Web for hours.
* Driver and other software installs are 99 percent one pathway, no errors.
* Software uninstall is a piece of cake. Drag the progam file / folder to the trash and it's gone!
* Built-in password for screensaver plus "hot corner" activation so if you want to walk away for ten minutes, no one can snoop.
* Use older software without rebooting to an older OS.
* Partition sizes are almost unlimited. You can use the entire 100GB drive as one partition.

Mac Cons --
* Not enough gaming software for serious gamers (situation is improving weekly now with Intel processors in new Macs).
* Only 15-20,000 programs available.
* Only Mac-knowlegable technicians or those with the intuition to just give it a try can resolve Mac issues for networking.

Which movie, book, wine or lover is better? There is no "better" except what is better for you. Try them both.

Answer 2

Many people are having this problem choosing between the two. I would suggest a Mac for many reasons. Before I say what they are, I would like to say that I do not own a Mac but have extensive experience using them but I already have a PC and have no need for a new computer right now.

Reasons for choosing a Mac

- it can run both windows and OS X(voted best operating system recently) BTW, when leopard(new Mac operating system) comes out, the version of Boot Camp already installed in it will be Vista capable.

-OS X is a very stable operating system. It has very few viruses and is better than windows.

-You seem to be the person who needs power because of your music downloading. Macs are best for entertainment.

Reasons not to buy a Mac

- they are generally cheaper than PCs(in the low end to middle class range) if you can afford it, get a Mac.

Where to Buy

you can look on the apple website. there are educational discounts for students such as yourself. I would recommend the MacBook( not MacBook Pro) because it is REALLY small and it can be upgraded to very powerful configurations. It weighs somewhere about 5 pounds and it has a nice 13.3(diagonal) screen.

Answer 3

I'm a Mac user. I actually grew up in a PC world, but eventually I became frustrated with the constant crashes and "blue screens of death". I bought a Mac laptop a couple of years ago, and man.. I am ECSTATIC with my decision. I'll never go back. This is not to say that PCs are bad. They are great for certain things, especially people who love to mess around on computers, hack, really get into all the nitty gritty of computing. I am a computer USER, someone who just needs my system to work every time, be intuitive, and entertaining. For the two years I've owned this computer, never once - NEVER - has my computer crashed or caught a virus. That says an aweful lot, considering almost every time I use any PC, some weird glitch occurs. Also, the Mac community is very friendly, open, and always willing to help. As far as right clicking goes, this is untrue. Macs have the same funcion, but just different ways of getting there. In fact, once you get used to using all the keyboard shortcuts, Macs are MUCH more productive, in my opinion. I could go on and on, but I'd be here all day. Get yourself a Mac, and I really think you will be a satisified customer for life.

Answer 4

I was a PC person for over 10 years and this past year bought my first Mac, and I have to say I'm totally converted! They main thing that I loooooove about my mac is the fact that there are NO viruses or spyware or any of that annoying crappola. My ibook has NEVER crashed once in the year that I've had it, and I don't think that I've ever actually had a single problem with it. Also, they are completely compatible with anything a Windows system can do. I don't think I've come across a single program that my Mac couldn't run. Macs are seriously worth it, I promise!


Oh yea and you CAN do all the right click functions on a mac! (using the apple key)....you really don't miss the mouse button i swear

Answer 5

mac! mac! mac!

I got my first iBook four years ago and I've never looked back! I now have an iBook G4 (14" display) and it is awesome! I've had it for four months and it has -- get this -- NEVER crashed. Never. It's fantastic!

Mac's are just wonderful because you get a quality product, excellent customer service, and if you are lucky enough to live in a city with an Apple Store -- they are always (well, during business hours) ready to help you. They have a special desk just for bringing your mac in to help with *any* technical issues you may have. Also, they have free classes so you can make the most out of your mac!

I am SO non-tech it's ridiculous and I find my mac so easy to use! iPhoto, iWeb and iDVD are awesome. Again, I'm a computer doofus and I was able to create a professional personal web page, and with iDVD I made a DVD with pictures from our last vacation - complete with a theme, music, subtitles, etc!

As for not being able to Right Click -- you can't do that. HOWEVER, to copy something, just highlight it and then press ctrl+C. Wah Lah! You've copied it! To paste, ctrl+V. To highlight an entire site or everything on the page in front of you, ctrl+A. I copy and paste photos and text and images all the time. No biggy.

My husband is a staunch PC guy and detested buying my macs for me. Well, now he's hooked! He loves how fast my computer starts up, that it never crashes and is so easy to navigate. He has an HP laptop that sells for about $2K. If we turn on our notebooks at the same time, mine's up and running and surfing the net and his is still getting started!

I think the best place to buy your mac is from www.apple.com . It's fast and easy. Buy the mac. You won't regret it, I promise.
All the best!

Answer 6

Well OS reliability Mac

Low cost Hardware and Software PC

Just about everything in the world of Mac costs $300 or more for software, you'll find almost no shareware or freeware.

Mac works better with movie transfers using FireWire (it should, they invented it!)

Macs are faster than PCs

A PC notebook, new, cost $500 or less. Macs are easily over $1K

A tower PC costs $400, a Tower Mac $1K+

You have to buy all your motherboard and internals from Mac franchised dealers there is no OPEN SOURCE like on a PC

Hardware is better, but more expensive.

You can get an 8 track recording system for a PC for about $600, while Pro Tools for the Mac costs over $2k

When doing audio or graphics intense work Macs almost never crash. PCs crash ever few hours.

There is a reason for this. Mac REQUIRE the graphics handle be cleared after use.

PCs rely on a process called "garbage collection" in which unused heaps of memory are removed, but usually not in the same century.

Do NOT, however, expect easy data exchange UNLESS you buy Mac/PC compatible programs.

My friend with Mac keeps sending me pictures made with the "free" software that came with his Mac. Totally unreadable in a PC.

Not only that, when he sends them to me he has to compress them using a Mac compression tool that does not work well with Win Zip, so had to get this compression tool.

You will not find familiar, easy to use tools. They might still, for example, be using Fetch for FTP work, while those in the PC world have a multitude of shareware and free ware tools, such as WTS FTP and other tools to use.

So, if you do picture work you may HAVE to buy Adobe at $600 if you want to exchanged images with PC users, because we can't deciper their PCT images

Too many "Mac" proprietary formats to deal with!

The only good exchange is Apple Quicktime, but a Windows user need to have Quick Time or have another player that can handle the current Quick Time versons.

Macs are designed for professional graphics, AV and audio users, not for casual computing, game playing or even internet browsing, since many of the sites are Linux or NT based.

You CAN expect to have problems seeing some sites.

Answer 7

Get a Macbook. They're fast, virus free, fun to use, and they do have right-click capabilities either using the trackpad, control-clicking, or a two button mouse. I use a Radioshack two button mouse on my Mac and it works just fine. Macs are not expensive. A Macbook comes with the Core 2 Duo processor and it's as low as $1099. That's less than comparably equipped Dell laptops that run virus laden Windows, which by the way, you can run on the Macbook if you need to. You won't want to run Windows, but you might need it for something. ;)

Answer 8

First of all isn't a MAC a "personal computer" PC. The difference between them is the operating system. Their are pros and cons with both of them. Mac is a bit more stable and secure but it has very little hardware support. When it comes down to it you should get the one with the best price. And if you want an awesome operating system try Linux its better than mac and windows put together and its FREE

Answer 9

I'm telling you PCs are better overall. macs are good for drawing or design stuff but macs have many pitfalls. Macs for one there's no right click, so you cannot copy an image for example like you would on a PC. Look at all the things your right click does, you wont have any of those features on a mac. Second macs, have a completely different setup for tool bars. Generally speaking its more confusing to go from a PC tool bar where it seems so simple to find things then go to a mac. PCs just are better if you just use it for everyday needs, checking email or things of that nature. I hope I helped you in your decision.

Answer 10

Alright well i LOVE macs!! I have always had one for myself..In school, usually I use PCs and let me just say Mac is SO much better FOR ME!! It all really depends on what you want to do with it. I record music and edit movies, so mac works perfect for me, but im sure PCs have a good quality or 2 about them. But I love my mac I have been able to do ANYTHING I want with it and not have any problems, knock on wood! Just go for the Mac, everyone is starting to learn from us Mac people!! As far as buying it, check an Apple store around you, or on apple.com!! And there IS a right click on mac, all you do is click and hold for a second, then you can copy images or whatever you want!!

Answer 11

First of all, there IS a right click - it just depends upon the particular Mac os. Second, there ARE viruses for MAC's - they're just not widespread right now/yet. I've been working on PC's for 21 years, and MAC's for 8 years. They are becoming very similar now adays, with the major difference being price. MAC's are usually more "stylish" and used by "creative types" - PC's are generally seen as more business like and more utilitarian.