Thinking getting a Macbook Pro (13'' or 15'')

burrough · Nov 25, 2010

Hi everyone,

I am new to this community, and I am currently considering buying a Macbook Pro, or otherwise a PC notebook.

I have fairly powerful desktop PCs at home and work, but I need a mobile solution that I can work with in between. I have to confess that I have no experience with any Macbook product before, but have heard many people praise about them. I intend to use the notebook for mainly word processing, programming, reading documents/emails/web pages. I rarely play games or do any heavy image/video editing, though I do use Photoshop for my photography hobby.

I am mainly looking at either the 13-inch or the 15-inch version of Macbook Pro. I think the main differences between them are two: processors and screens. Given my intended usages above, I would like to hear if it is worth the money to invest more on the relatively upgraded 15-inch version.

On the other hand, I do wonder if I would be better off (in terms of the value of money) with a PC notebook, which would be considerably cheaper and I think they are equally capable of doing the tasks I mentioned above. I understand people here love the look-and-feel and interface design aspects of Macbook products, but apart from them, can anyone outline some functional benefits that would convince me to give it a try. Many thanks.

s2odin · Nov 25, 2010

burrough said:
Hi everyone,

I am new to this community, and I am currently considering buying a Macbook Pro, or otherwise a PC notebook.

I have fairly powerful desktop PCs at home and work, but I need a mobile solution that I can work with in between. I have to confess that I have no experience with any Macbook product before, but have heard many people praise about them. I intend to use the notebook for mainly word processing, programming, reading documents/emails/web pages. I rarely play games or do any heavy image/video editing, though I do use Photoshop for my photography hobby.

I am mainly looking at either the 13-inch or the 15-inch version of Macbook Pro. I think the main differences between them are two: processors and screens. Given my intended usages above, I would like to hear if it is worth the money to invest more on the relatively upgraded 15-inch version.

On the other hand, I do wonder if I would be better off (in terms of the value of money) with a PC notebook, which would be considerably cheaper and I think they are equally capable of doing the tasks I mentioned above. I understand people here love the look-and-feel and interface design aspects of Macbook products, but apart from them, can anyone outline some functional benefits that would convince me to give it a try. Many thanks.

Much, much easier to use. I used Windows machines for around 15 years, and will only use one to game on. I never thought I would like Macs, but I love it. They also (on average) give better battery life, and have better screens. With the lower specs on Macs may be a turn off, they are optimized for their use. I had an Asus laptop with a Core 2 Quad @ 2.0ghz (2.4 OC'ed). It ran the same as this C2D 2.26ghz. The OS is optimized for the hardware inside.

As far as 15 vs 13 MBP, the i5 processor in the 15 is synthetically twice as fast. With the 15 you get the bigger screen and higher screen res, along with the possible faster processor. If you need the beefy processor, i5 is the way to go.

CrimsonRequiem · Nov 25, 2010

Computers for the most part are all the same. It's the Operating system that sets Macs apart from any other computer. Get the fastest processor you can afford. If you do a lot of photoshop work you might want to consider upgrading to the 15" with the dedicated graphics card.

For the RAM, and storage space (HDD/SDD) you can always buys these after market from a third party vendor for a fraction of the price that Apple charges.

Such as OWC aka MacSales, Newegg, Amazon, ebay etc.

burrough · Nov 27, 2010

CrimsonRequiem said:
Computers for the most part are all the same. It's the Operating system that sets Macs apart from any other computer. Get the fastest processor you can afford. If you do a lot of photoshop work you might want to consider upgrading to the 15" with the dedicated graphics card.

For the RAM, and storage space (HDD/SDD) you can always buys these after market from a third party vendor for a fraction of the price that Apple charges.

Such as OWC aka MacSales, Newegg, Amazon, ebay etc.

Is there any noticeable problem with performance if using these third-party vendor products (such as rams, ssd, etc). Does anyone know which vendor(s) Apple uses for these components on Macbook Pro? Thanks.

s2odin · Nov 27, 2010

burrough said:
Is there any noticeable problem with performance if using these third-party vendor products (such as rams, ssd, etc). Does anyone know which vendor(s) Apple uses for these components on Macbook Pro? Thanks.

No difference.

For HD's go with the Samsung Spinpoint HD or Seagate Momentus.
For RAM go with a trusted brand; Crucial, Kingston, G.Skill, Patriot, OWC etc. RAM is RAM for laptop users.
For SSD's look at the Intel X-25, Crucial C300, OCZ Agility/Vertex 2.

Mac uses Hitachi / Fujitsu HD's in their machines, and Samsung / some other brand for RAM. Most parts can be found here: Performance Upgrades; FireWire USB SATA Storage; Memory, more at OWC

osxx · Nov 27, 2010

burrough said:
Hi everyone,

I am new to this community, and I am currently considering buying a Macbook Pro, or otherwise a PC notebook.

I have fairly powerful desktop PCs at home and work, but I need a mobile solution that I can work with in between. I have to confess that I have no experience with any Macbook product before, but have heard many people praise about them. I intend to use the notebook for mainly word processing, programming, reading documents/emails/web pages. I rarely play games or do any heavy image/video editing, though I do use Photoshop for my photography hobby.

I am mainly looking at either the 13-inch or the 15-inch version of Macbook Pro. I think the main differences between them are two: processors and screens. Given my intended usages above, I would like to hear if it is worth the money to invest more on the relatively upgraded 15-inch version.

On the other hand, I do wonder if I would be better off (in terms of the value of money) with a PC notebook, which would be considerably cheaper and I think they are equally capable of doing the tasks I mentioned above. I understand people here love the look-and-feel and interface design aspects of Macbook products, but apart from them, can anyone outline some functional benefits that would convince me to give it a try. Many thanks.

Besides what has already been said I bet you will not find a better trackpad
on the current market something you should give a try at the store.

CrimsonRequiem · Nov 27, 2010

burrough said:
Is there any noticeable problem with performance if using these third-party vendor products (such as rams, ssd, etc). Does anyone know which vendor(s) Apple uses for these components on Macbook Pro? Thanks.

Apple uses third party hardware. Hence Intel for the Processors, NVIDIA for the Graphics card, and the HDD/SDD range from Samsung, Hitachi to whatever else this is also the same with the RAM.