Getting a NEW Laptop!

[reg]

In fact, in the first quarter of '08 Apple commanded 66% of all computer sales in the above $1000 category.

And the PC is winning in the under 1000 dollar category... because Apple has one, yes one computer under a grand.


How often do you see PCs that are even in the "above $1000 category"? The fact is, I can build a great PC for under a grand that runs well.

Very few even need what's in a "super" PC, as long as they're running a decent OS (that means no Vista) and keep it in good maintenance.

 

[Dao]

Note to PC sufferers ... especially those who keep saying that the only reason Macs don't get viruses is because so few people use them:

First, I like Mac. I do not own one but would like to get one myself.

As for the market share, no doubt that Windows Based PC is still dominant the world market. As a result, they are targeted.

The owner or operator of those botnet are not stupid. They are very clever and I am sure they will not want to make their army of zombie/bots from the Mac machine. It because most of the machine out there are windows based. If they want to launch a multi-gig attack to a site, they need to have a lot of machines from all over the world to send to the traffic to the site. (as well as the recent massive SQL Injection attack and IFrame attack)

Trust me, most of the zombie computers are Windows based machine and they are targeted simply because they are popular and there are a lot of them out there.

 

[ewhite11]

To go along with a few posts I own a laptop and am wondering the best way to back up my pictures. My pictures are quite large close to 3mb. Should I just be putting them on to CD's and DVD's or should I buy an external hard drive to put the pictures on? It takes a long time to put pictures on the DVD's, so is it better to compress the picture files on the dvd's?

 

[Samriel]

This topic is going way off the track IMO. It's like a Canon Vs Nikon argument. How about we just sum it up:

Desktop Vs Laptop

If you wan't a really good computer for photography go for a desktop (I'd suggest a Quad-CPU, 8GB RAM, 1TB+ RAID system, with a monitor of at least 24". Should be around 1500$). If you really need the mobility, get a laptop, but keep in mind you will never have the raw power of a desktop.

Mac Vs PC

The advantages of the PC are clear - it's modular, it's full of options - if you really want to, you can build anything (you still have to know how to), and it's surely going to be cheaper, and probably even better than the Mac option. The disadvantages are also clear - you'll probably be using a Microsoft OS, which is not famous for it's stability, and has been known to agitate millions of users worldwide. Also, you need to know how to build a good PC, not one of those brand machines. And you need to maintain it by yourself.
The Mac on the other hand has a nice stable system, and comes pre-made in all the flavours. It also comes with nice (although sometimes expensive) Apple support. On the downside, you buy it and you're an Apple slave - want to have some part exchanged or upgraded? Talk to Apple. ONLY Apple! It's a one-brand system. Most consumers consider that a minor problem compared to the benefits above.

Know your priorities and needs

I've been using both, and I personally prefer a PC, but that's because I can build and maintain my own PC for my needs, and there is no Mac at the moment that will fit my needs exactly. Also, PCs upgrade easier. For a laptop, which are just by nature meant to be mobile and not modular or easily upgradable , I'd take a Mac.

Sort out your priorities and you'll know what to get.

 

[jakedoza]

This topic is going way off the track IMO. It's like a Canon Vs Nikon argument. How about we just sum it up:

Desktop Vs Laptop

If you wan't a really good computer for photography go for a desktop (I'd suggest a Quad-CPU, 8GB RAM, 1TB+ RAID system, with a monitor of at least 24". Should be around 1500$). If you really need the mobility, get a laptop, but keep in mind you will never have the raw power of a desktop.

Mac Vs PC

The advantages of the PC are clear - it's modular, it's full of options - if you really want to, you can build anything (you still have to know how to), and it's surely going to be cheaper, and probably even better than the Mac option. The disadvantages are also clear - you'll probably be using a Microsoft OS, which is not famous for it's stability, and has been known to agitate millions of users worldwide. Also, you need to know how to build a good PC, not one of those brand machines. And you need to maintain it by yourself.
The Mac on the other hand has a nice stable system, and comes pre-made in all the flavours. It also comes with nice (although sometimes expensive) Apple support. On the downside, you buy it and you're an Apple slave - want to have some part exchanged or upgraded? Talk to Apple. ONLY Apple! It's a one-brand system. Most consumers consider that a minor problem compared to the benefits above.

Know your priorities and needs

I've been using both, and I personally prefer a PC, but that's because I can build and maintain my own PC for my needs, and there is no Mac at the moment that will fit my needs exactly. Also, PCs upgrade easier. For a laptop, which are just by nature meant to be mobile and not modular or easily upgradable , I'd take a Mac.

Sort out your priorities and you'll know what to get.

Isn't that in a nutshell what I suggested?
BTW.. as far as stability is concerned. XP has come a long way and is very stable. maybe still not as stable as MAC, but I don't use one so I wouldn't know. I do know that I would not use Vista, nor wish it upon my worst enemy.
lol

but you can get a PC with XP on it.. for a while you couldn't, but now you can.

 

[manaheim]

AMIGA RULZ!!!
MAC DROOLZ!!!

<sigh>

 

[jakedoza]

AMIGA RULZ!!!
MAC DROOLZ!!!

<sigh>

 

[Rogan]

IMHO jakedoza is right

i had a dell PC for years and it cost me a fortune in pairs and alot of data when it died.
i also had a laptop wich didnt last anywhere near long enough.

for some work experience when i was in hifghschool i worked at a computer repair shop and saw hundreds of branded supposedly good quality pc's come in totally failed including macs and mac laptops.

after this i built my desktop pc myself, it sounds much harder than it is, my first build took less than 2 hours shoved in the XP disk and its run perfect for god know how long., stuck on the FREE very low recource hogging AVG av software and ive had no problems since then.

I run light room and photoshop CS3 no problems at all and this PC cost me less than $700

 

[JerryPH]

I went for a Mac. The bonuses are not immediately apparent but they're there. They run better than PCs - they don't slow down as the disk fills. They don't slow down as updates are applied. They don't need resource-hogging antivirus programs as to be effective, viruses need to be installed and that needs a password.

The software works better and Hell, I wish I'd gone mac years ago.

I just don't know... I think that if one knows how to maintain their computer, its just basically a no contest win for the PC.

- I've not had a virus in 12 years.
- I've not seen a BSOD (blue screen of death) unless I purposely invoke it for demo purposes
- My XP powered machine has NOT been reinstalled in 5 years
- It runs as fast today as it ran the day I FIRST installed it
- The cost of PC software is significantly less than MAC software
- The cost of PC hardware is significantly less than MAC hardware
- More software fchoices or the PC than the MAC
- More hardware choices for the PC than the MAC
- Windows XP does NOT slow down if the hard drive becomes full. It slows down if you never defragment it or if you never run registry cleaning tools on a monthly basis.

Now, Vista... thats another animal. I am a Consultant and Microsoft Certified Trainer... and none of my clients are even allowed to run Vista until *maybe* SP2 comes out becuase it is unstable, has issues running corporate custom programs, it is slow, overpriced and is hardware intensive. Along with the upgrade, they MUST purchase all new hardware to run at speeds they are currently running at.

Microsoft really dropped the ball with Vista... so, for us here, an XP powered machine is the way to go... for as long as the support and software is available.

 

[Mav]

I love windoze jihadists!

 

[Mav]

Ok the OP was asking about a laptop so I have no idea what PC desktop system building has to do with that. Since this is a photography forum, a Mac is the obvious choice since all Mac laptop screens have great and accurate color and contrast which is essential for photography. If there was a PC-based laptop that had an equally good screen then it'd be worth considering, but good luck finding it. The PC market is cost driven, and the only people that would know about and seek out a PC based laptop with a screen that's actually good enough for photography is probably buying a Mac anyways. Yeah it's part of the extra cost, but it's worth it. Bonuses with Mac: It has a built-in PDF writer, which I use almost all the time. This is $300 software for Windows. You don't need a resource hogging antivirus program that you have to keep paying to update every year, so that's more savings. A lot of the software included in Mac OS X is quite useful and has no equivalent in Windows, thus requiring you to buy yet more software. Yes, Macs are proprietary which makes them more expensive. The hidden benefit though is that the hardware is FAR more tightly controlled, the same company handles both hardware and software, and that helps to ensure that all of their gear actually works as it should with NO hidden surprises. The openness of the PC market is great and what drives prices so low, but with zillions of possible hardware combinations it's simply not possible to maintain nearly as high of quality control on the systems that Apple can. This is a big part of what makes Apples more stable, on top of having a much better OS. In the two years I've been using Macs, I have yet to see a system crash. I don't even know what one looks like, whereas I saw it quite frequently on my PC desktop and laptop systems. If you really get into advanced photo or especially VIDEO editing, some of these apps run ONLY on Mac, and most creative professionals use Mac. And there's absolutely nothing I can't do on my Mac either. I can even run Windoze! In fact I DO run Windoze too via Parallels virtual machine software. Can a PC do that? The engineering world where I have a day job is all PC based, yet the creative world is Mac based, so I have a conflict. A Mac with Parallels and Windows is the perfect combination for me. In fact you don't even need extra software. OS X has Boot Camp software built-in to the OS to partition your drive for dual-booting if you don't happen to need to run both Mac and Windows at the same time.

As far as reliability and stability, no it's not simply a matter of knowing how to maintain your system properly. I've seen plenty of perfectly well maintained PCs crap out and need OS reinstallation or rebuilding, and then completely neglected ones that "surely" should have crashed that just keep going and going. And no amount of proper maintenance is going to prevent crashes and data loss when you have zillions of possible hardware combinations, some of which will conflict with each other, and due to cost pressures in the PC market they never really bother to test for. If they waste time testing something, it's already obsolete or they've added too much cost to their systems and now they're no longer competitive. Crappy GM cars from the 80's and 90's will still die an early death regardless of proper care, and then some keep going forever. It's a crap shoot and you never know what you're going to get. I'm laughing at my buddy who is an IT pro who just lost half a vacation worth of photos including his very best shots because Windoze hacked up his memory card. I've had the same thing happen to me. He's always joked about my "Crapple" but he's looking for one himself now. :mrgreen:


Anyways, there's no right or wrong answer. This is just like Nikon vs Canon. Anybody who tries to claim that one system is superior to the other automatically has no clue what they're talking about in my book. Mac works better for my needs, but the PC/Windows world still has their virtues and plenty of advantages too which have already been pointed out that one cannot ignore, and that I'm not going to repeat. If you're on a tight budget a PC may very well be the better choice. But it sounds like the OP may be willing to buy whatever and isn't very budget limited.

 

[manaheim]

Anyways, there's no right or wrong answer. This is just like Nikon vs Canon. Anybody who tries to claim that one system is superior to the other automatically has no clue what they're talking about in my book. Mac works better for my needs, but the PC/Windows world still has their virtues and plenty of advantages too which have already been pointed out that one cannot ignore, and that I'm not going to repeat. If you're on a tight budget a PC may very well be the better choice. But it sounds like the OP may be willing to buy whatever and isn't very budget limited.

This was almost the only thing you said I agree with. It's also the most important point overall.

If you have a lean towards one platform or the other in BOTH cases you need to understand the limitations of the platform (and the level of device you are choosing) and make sure you don't have a problem with that.

 

[jakedoza]

It has a built-in PDF writer, which I use almost all the time. This is $300 software for Windows.

ever heard of FREEWARE??
http://www.tipsfor.us/2008/04/07/21-awesome-but-lesser-known-open-source-applications-for-windows/

You don't need a resource hogging antivirus program that you have to keep paying to update every year, so that's more savings.

Ever heard of AVG free... there is a reason its called free... because its free... yes, even the updates.

I can even run Windoze! In fact I DO run Windoze too via Parallels virtual machine software. Can a PC do that?

Yes! In fact I have OSX Tiger, XP, and Vista on my PC.. all run great

 

[Mav]

Right Jake, and you're ignoring a whole ton of other points I made too. So you've made a Hackintosh? That's cool, but really more for computer hobbyists and this is a photography forum. And you still don't even need to bother screwing around with AV software on Macs.

4. People that say that MACs are better when it comes to video/photo are full of crap. They havent experienced a well built PC.

All I have to say is

Anyhow I've now exceeded my self-imposed post limit for these threads, so good day.

 

[jakedoza]

*sigh* to each their own.. Like I said, I'm a Tech, and have been for many years.

BTW.. if you ever need important photos off an erased or jacked up memory card.. let me know... and yes.. I do that on a PC.. lol