I have a few questions before switching from PC to MAC.

So I have been reading tons of post on the forum here. I love my iPhone and after looking on Apple.com, I have decided to go to the apple store in a few days. So here are a few questions I have:

1. Is apple care worth $200?
2. I have seen many complaints about the power supply going bad? Any thoughts on this? Does apple care cover power supplies?
3. Has anyone had problems with the SuperDrive going out or problems loading and ejecting the disk?
4. Does anyone have problems with the wifi connecting after sleep mode? Or starting up?
5. If there is a problem, can you wipe out the computer and reload it?
6. How are Mac with virus protection?
7. Are the apps in the Mac store pricey?
8. How easy is it to transfer files from PC?
9. What are some pros/cons between PC and Mac.
10. I've seen this question a lot but should I go Mac pro or air?

Thanks for any opinions you can post for me on any of the questions I have asked. I hope be looking in the newbe forum next week on my new mac.

WmTasker said:

So I have been reading tons of post on the forum here. I love my iPhone and after looking on Apple.com, I have decided to go to the apple store in a few days. So here are a few questions I have:

1. Is apple care worth $200?
if you want more then a year warrenty
2. I have seen many complaints about the power supply going bad? Any thoughts on this? Does apple care cover power supplies? see apple care
3. Has anyone had problems with the SuperDrive going out or problems loading and ejecting the disk? no if issue occuers see apple (1)
4. Does anyone have problems with the wifi connecting after sleep mode? Or starting up? not on my last 2 macbooks 2009 and a mbp 2011
5. If there is a problem, can you wipe out the computer and reload it? yes and its easy
6. How are Mac with virus protection? this is what i use and a list of virsus (and others) Mac Virus Database | iAntivirus
7. Are the apps in the Mac store pricey? was cheaper for me to get it bioshock from app store then amazon
8. How easy is it to transfer files from PC? PC---> easy no problem at all
9. What are some pros/cons between PC and Mac.
p/c
more games
cheaper
MAC
games they have seem to work better (imo)
runs windows
comes with multiple media editing tools
no HP software taking over your every action


10. I've seen this question a lot but should I go Mac pro or air? do you need a superdrive? whens the last time you used a cd/dvd? if you do need one does it need to be in the machine? and can you just get what ever is on the cd online or on a usb drive?



Thanks for any opinions you can post for me on any of the questions I have asked. I hope be looking in the newbe forum next week on my new mac.

Click to expand...

its all up to you!

1. Is apple care worth $200?
Yes, and get the 3 yrs. Shop Amazon, Ebay etc. instead of paying full retail w/ Apple.
2. I have seen many complaints about the power supply going bad? Any thoughts on this? Does apple care cover power supplies?
My cord got tweaked, was replaced under Applecare.
3. Has anyone had problems with the SuperDrive going out or problems loading and ejecting the disk?
My machine is an original MBP from 2006 and it has been bulletproof!!
4. Does anyone have problems with the wifi connecting after sleep mode? Or starting up?
Not an issue.
5. If there is a problem, can you wipe out the computer and reload it?
Yes, but you are feeding off your PC worries- Mac OS is stable and even running Windows under Bootcamp or Parallels is a piece of cake.
6. How are Mac with virus protection?
Call me nuts but I don't even consider it an issue. No VP installed and no issues.
7. Are the apps in the Mac store pricey?
Depends on your choices. Free to ??.
8. How easy is it to transfer files from PC?
Can be done via bluetooth, airport network, flash drive, external HD, CD- as long as you have compatible software on the Mac to open the files, not an issue.
9. What are some pros/cons between PC and Mac.
Macs can do both!!! PC's are PC's.
10. I've seen this question a lot but should I go Mac pro or air?
Never played with a MacAir. MBP is a great machine- depends on your needs and budget.

Apple care is really up to you. I never buy extended warranty's. You still get a 1 year warranty.

Macs are well built; power supply, superdrives etc, are like any other hardware, pc or mac and your mileage will vary.

Wifi is not an issue, if it was no one would be buying macs.

I've never used virus protection. Imo you don't need it.

My macs came with restore cd's, but now I'm not sure. They will provide a way to restore though.

Mac apps cost the same if your comparing the same programs. Pc's have more cheap apps available.

You can transfer most files.

I would go for mac pro over air, much more computer for the money.

Don't expect your mac to be a windows machine and get frustrated because things are done differently. You need to get used to the new operating system.

Buy one, you'll not regret it. PC user for 20+years (work and home) until 4 weeks ago when I took the plunge, said good riddance to Windows FOREVER and bought a Mac Book Pro MC721.

My priorities were speed, excellent multi tasking and photo handling. I'm delighted - it's fast, doesn't tell you what to do all the time, doesn't crash and looks beautiful. I sussed the models out online, played with them in-store to decide on screen size (got 15.4") then bought £300 cheaper from a reputable trader online.

I expected some issues transferring data from my pc; photos and documents were fine but I had trouble with email contacts (had to drag them individually) so didn't bother with favourites. My WD external hard drive has to be reformatted to work with Mac (and thereby lose everything on it)so I used a 32mg memory stick to transfer material.

There are some obvious differences - eg. names of applications, the task bar is called the dock, keyboard layout slightly different - but watch the introductory videos, use System Preferences and help menus and you'll find it intuitive and actually simpler than Windows. TextEdit (like Wordpad) is rubbish but I don't do much 'office' work so downloaded 'Bean', a free word processing software programme.

Other points:

* I adore the multi task trackpad, inclusive photo editing and the easiness of uploading pictures to facebook, etc; I joined some ancient video segments together, something I'd never achieved with Windows

* it's taken me a while to remember to 'eject' any hardware before removing

* don't like the way a memory card sticks out of the base rather than going all the way in

(Macbook Air doesn't have a CD drive.)

1. Is apple care worth $200?
See this article: It's up to you
Advice From A Genius: Should You Buy AppleCare? - MacRumors.com

2. I have seen many complaints about the power supply going bad? Any thoughts on this? Does apple care cover power supplies?
It's covered. And if you abuse your power cord, ie. let it drop get pulled out, etc. then yes it likely will go bad.

3. Has anyone had problems with the SuperDrive going out or problems loading and ejecting the disk?
Only really an issue if you start dropping the computer a lot.

4. Does anyone have problems with the wifi connecting after sleep mode? Or starting up?
Never

5. If there is a problem, can you wipe out the computer and reload it?
Yes you can- most macs will come with restore discs, though with lion I believe it is a network restore.

6. How are Mac with virus protection?
Non-issue with Macs. Just don't do anything you wouldn't do on a PC.

7. Are the apps in the Mac store pricey?
They tend to be more expensive than their iOS counterparts, but overall it depends what you're looking for, and the Mac app store is still trying to find its niche.

8. How easy is it to transfer files from PC?
See above posts

9. What are some pros/cons between PC and Mac.
Pros: does most PC tasks better than a PC
can run windows
much more stable operating system
Just overall better

Cons: game variety
a lot of pc software does not have a Mac version so you may need to find alternatives

10. I've seen this question a lot but should I go Mac pro or air?
Watch this video:‪Macbook Pro 13" VS Macbook Air 13" 2011‬‏ - YouTube
Also it depends what you need it for. Performance wise they are pretty similar if you only looking at getting a 13 inch model. However the 15inch MBP will blow the MBA out of the water any day of the week.

Just wanted to say thanks for all the help. I hope to have my Mac book pro 13" on Thursday. Please post anything else if you have an opinion.

Glad to hear it! Hope you enjoy your purchase! Let us know if it comes with Lion pre-installed.

I was just in the store Monday talking to them. the computers in stock don't have lion on them. They will start selling with it preinstalled as stock turns over and new comes in. But the said you get a free download of it and they will install it there for you free when you purchase the computer.

I suggest you let them do it for you right there if you have the time. It was a pain in the ***** to get my redemption code from them (I purchased my Mac about a month before Lion launched)

Ok thanks. I was planning on letting them do what ever they will. The guy I talked to there said they would spend as much time as needed working with me there so I knew what I was doing.

Sounds great! Let us know how you like your new Mac!
Also- just a few app recommendations- iClean memory (available from the app store)
maintenance- freeware application- Download Maintenance for Mac - OS X maintenance utility. MacUpdate.com
It's a good program that runs a few of the maintenance things. Good to run every once in a while. It's pretty basic and is entirely graphically based.

All I can say is holy bat computers, Batman. I went to the Apple Store thursday and bought the lowest end 13" MacBook Pro they had $1199. I got the student discount so $1099. This was a lot of cashola for me. I can't believe I have spent the last 15+ years on a PC. This thing is like driving a Ferrari. I truly think that this low end MacBook is better than any high end PC I have ever had my hands on. I've had it for just over 24 hours and I can't believe what all it can do. I can only imagine what I will learn in the weeks to come. I can't wait.

All I can say is holy bat computers, Batman . I went to the Apple Store thursday and bought the lowest end 13" MacBook Pro they had $1199. I got the student discount so $1099. This was a lot of cashola for me . I can't believe I have spent the last 15+ years on a PC. This thing is like driving a Ferrari . I truly think that this low end MacBook is better than any high end PC I have ever had my hands on. I've had it for just over 24 hours and I can't believe what all it can do. I can only imagine what I will learn in the weeks to come. I can't wait.

Please share with me all the cool things you like to do with your Mac. I am drowling over here waiting to learn new things. I just can't stop playing with it. LOL ... I'm talking about the Mac.

Congratulations on your purchase. Don't forget to read all our Sticky notices at the top of each forum. You'll find a wealth of information to glean through. After doing some reading, if you have any questions just ask away.

And... please do not post the same thread twice. Keep it confined to one thread and reply back to the same thread. Thanks. The same thread you posted in "Switcher" has been merged here.