Is it worth getting a mac?

[Legion2213]

My laptop is over 6 months old...just as swift as the day I bought it, no viruses, no BSoD, no freeze ups, no problems, just smooth sailing...oh, and I am also running the leper OS that is known as "Vista Home Premium". I've nothing against Macs, never used one, I do get a bit sick of the BS that's spouted against PC's though (and those Linux folks who heap the same abuse on Windows).

[Mutineer]

you know after mroe time with them im pretty set that im going to get a mac as i just prefer them, its a sahme that a geniune request for opinions turned into a pc vs mac debate instead of actually answering the question i asked, which only 3 or 4 of you did. I think we all have answered your questioned hellsing ! It sounds like you want an iMAC. Price it out and go for it. Not one is better than the other and if you believe it is, you are really, really misinformed. Both PC and Mac are awesome solutions to the endgoal; making and cutting films. I cannot emplore enough though, Mac is not better nor is PC. There will be variations in options and pricing, pros and cons of each. I find most of these to be neglible. Want a Mac ? Go for it baby. I think whichever you choose will be a good one. But please; don't start believing the hype.

[DjfunkmasterG]

Any PC or MAC can get a BSOD. With todays technology the BSOD isn't faulty software or viruses, it is usually faulty hardware. This can also happen on MAC's. I recently did a PC build for someone and the RAM chips were bad, so I exchanged them for another set and voila, the PC worked flawlessly. Windows 98 was known for BSOD because of memory leaks, something XP fixed and has no issues with, and XP continues to be M$'s most stable operating system. So stable infact Dell gives you the option to choose XP over VISTA when ordering new Computers. One of the reasons I won't go over to vista is because of cost. Vista is stable, but the cost of the ultimate edition is way too much and is not justifiable in my opinion. Especially when I can buy an OEM version of XP pro for $120.00 vs Vista Ultimate for $299.00

[DubiousComforts]

In the end neither CAMP will win the argument, and anyone who tries, or thinks they can is full of sh1t. PC's have their niche as do MAC's. It is all preference. Amen. I've used both Mac and PC professionally and there is no difference. For all the hype, it's not like Mac users get their work done any faster or more efficiently. I've spent just as much time waiting for graphics from Mac users as I have from PC users.

[Mutineer]

It goes back to Mac and thier marketing strategy. Image, image image. Is there aything wrong with this ? Hell no. It's creative marketing. But is isn't any different than a PC. They both are made of plastic and have silicon processors (ATi or Intel usually), Monitors and a Tower. They use different browsers to surf the web and they have a different OS. As does Linux, IBM and Unix in varying degrees. Mac has taken the steps to make thier product stand out with modern and hip styling. They are demoing towards a demographic; males of 17 - 24 of age. Nothing wrong with that approach. I don't think anyone hates Mac users, but it's funny to see these guys proclaiming they have something unique and different and coming across as prentencious about it; SEE the damn commericials. Oh jeez; enough said I suppose.

[Ivarr]

And wile it is fashionable to bash Microsoft... keep in mind that without windows ... and with it the "majority" of computer owners using it ... we would never have had the explosion of the Internet.... And that happened because of the Web .... and ... Netscape.... then Internet Explorer.... Why did Netscape loose? when they demanded $1200.00 (base)for the right to have an ISP provide it for its customers for download.... (It was my job at the time... I worked for the largest ISP in New England at the time) And Microsoft ... those bastards were giving IE away for free... how dare they! And to add insult to injury ... they even gave us an SDK to brand the browser for ourselves.... and it even included a dialer ... (days long before broadband) Is Microsoft perfect? Please.... far from .... But not everything is perfect and rosey at Apple either.... And running any computer without an anti-virus is like saying "I don't use condoms because I hardly ever get laid... so how could I get an STD?"

[Khardis]

BSOD is a Windows issue, not a Mac issue so I gotta disagree on that one. Using the Unix type of system, if an error occurs on a mac, the program crashes out and closes down while the system stays up and keeps running. This isn't always so in Windows, too often will a program encounter a fatal error and crash the entire thing and take me to a BSOD especially when its leaking memory. Khardis, the parts problem must be you or whom you chose to order from because I have beenusing newegg.com for 3+ years and have had zero problems or broken parts from them. PC's aren't as deathly as you make them out to be. I leave my PC online 24/7 connected to a 128bit encrypted wireless network, which has another PC connected to it. I am using WINDOWS XP and the installation of XP currently on the system is the one that has been on it since I built it in March 2007. My Previous PC was an AMD Single Core 64 3700+ which had its windows install for 22 months with no issues. I had no viruses, no issues whatsoever. If you were stupid enough to hook up your PC to the internet with no Virus protection you deserved to be zapped right off the bat. However, if you were smart you would have connected it to a network to prevent that from happening. The only reason I may ever go MAC is for FCP, but since VEGAS does such an excellent job and has all the features I need, why upgrade to something else when the thing I have works flawlessly. Not too mention why spend $10,000 on a MAC that is now capable of running WIN XP when I can build a more kick ass PC for 1/4 of the price, and it will run circles around the MAC. In the end neither CAMP will win the argument, and anyone who tries, or thinks they can is full of sh1t. PC's have their niche as do MAC's. It is all preference. Also lets talk about warranties... Khardis you stated there is no warranty on PC parts... strange. My HDD came with a 5 year warranty, my motherboard a 3 year warranty, video card 3 years etc etc. You know how many warranty repairs I have needed in my years of playing with PC's? NONE! I have never had a part wear out, I usually upgrade way before that happens and sell the used part on eBay and make half my money back. Your information is flawed and inaccurate and maybe you should do some research before opening your mouth again, because everytime you do you have your ass handed to you by someone in the know. Since you don't know Jack maybe you should stay out of the conversations, or only interject what you know 100%. Try cashing in your warranties. Thats where the issues come from, not from the arbitrary numbers they ascribe to the package labels. And god forbid you don't like your product and you want a refund because its busted or whatever. Hope you speak good Urdu.

[DjfunkmasterG]

Well 1st off, I don't buy questionable components. I do my research on Motherboards and other components. Second, I use newegg.com so if I had any issues I just send it back, and in 3 years all I ever had go wrong was 2 ram chips that wouldn't work with a particular motherboard... I just exchanged them. In the last 3 years I have built and sold over 50 computers and that was the only issue I ever had. So your statement is worthless. Also, WIN XP doesn't always go to the BSOD when a program crashes it goes right back to the desktop... just like a MAC, and not even MAC's stay 100% stable, they probably have just as many issues, but you never hear about them because less than 5% of Computer owners use MAC. I bet if you took their failure rates and compared them the percentages would be the same.

[Mutineer]

Warranty? I have bought nothing but DELL with minimal problems in a decade (Like 5 computers). Two times I have had to call and ask WTF with my computer ? (Blue Screen), Each call lasted no more than 15 Minutes, no charge, full warranty, total fix with a few F12 Bootups and input ..... Propaganda man. Don't spread it.

[DubiousComforts]

BSOD is a Windows issue, not a Mac issue so I gotta disagree on that one. Using the Unix type of system, if an error occurs on a mac, the program crashes out and closes down while the system stays up and keeps running. This isn't always so in Windows, too often will a program encounter a fatal error and crash the entire thing and take me to a BSOD especially when its leaking memory. A software crash in Windows is not what leads to a BSOD. More often than not, it's a system error called a stop error (the computer doing something that the system views as dangerous and so it shuts down immediately). A computer tech friend says that in his experience, this is usually due to a hard drive failure. In my experience with PC, the system keeps running when a program crashes. Anyone that gets those annoying "report this error to Microsoft" pop-ups could have told you that. You don't get a pop-up when the system shuts down. Is Microsoft perfect? Please.... far from .... But not everything is perfect and rosey at Apple either.... This is the difference between PC and Mac users. PC users have nothing to prove, no inferiority complex to feed and have absolutely no problem pointing out technological shortcomings whether PC or Mac based. Warranty? I have bought nothing but DELL with minimal problems in a decade (Like 5 computers). Propaganda man. Don't spread it. We use several DELLs at work, and just once, I called tech support for a restore disc. Bad move. Supplying restore discs apparently isn't in the English script handed out in India, so I was quickly shuttled from "Tech Support" to "Parts" to "Sales" and then back to India after being hung up on by "Sales." The moral of the story is don't call DELL unless you have a crisis situation. Stupid me, actually trying to plan ahead. And don't get me started on the failure that is iTunes.

[Mutineer]

LOL Gotta love the call centers in India. Dell isn't the only one using them. I always go straight to TECH SUPPORT; usually some computer wizard in Iowa or something.