Comparable to 17" MBP, not quite the price

[Jamiephofe]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Dell-Inspiron...QihZ001QQcategoryZ177QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

Apart from the .2ghz, isn't this roughly the same as the top end MBP customized with hi-res? (oh, except the dell is still higher res than the hi-res MBP, and the webcam is 2.0 mp, and it has 5 usb 2.0 ports)

£959 seems a lot to pay for looks and Mac OSX. This dell is better spec apart from the .2ghz.

No need to flame, just adding to the discussion on "Macs aren't more expensive".

 

[synth3tik]

Personally I think Dell laptops are ok. I would not get one instead of a Mac though. I really don' like the case designs of the Dells and they are heavy and clunky. Not to mention that you will be in a windows world, unless you go Linux.

 

[Jamiephofe]

Personally I think Dell laptops are ok. I would not get one instead of a Mac though. I really don' like the case designs of the Dells and they are heavy and clunky. Not to mention that you will be in a windows world, unless you go Linux.

True, I have heard that Dell cases are a little bulkier and obviously that laptop would require using windows. Considering the Dell is around $2000 cheaper, surely some people buy Apple laptops for more than the quality and up-to-date technology. That Dell screen is a higher resolution than the MBP Hi-Res, and it comes as standard!

Is it really worth spending $2000 more to avoid windows and a slightly bulkier laptop?

 

[nsbio]

Apple is BMW of the computer world. You pay the premium not for individual specs but you pay for the overall experience. It is entirely up to you to decide whether the premium is worth the price of admission.

 

[Jamiephofe]

Apple is BMW of the computer world. You pay the premium not for individual specs but you pay for the overall experience. It is entirely up to you to decide whether the premium is worth the price of admission.

Yeah, except that's not the general thinking. People argue that Dell's are worse build quality and that Apple are good value for money.

Considering a post on this page saying someone has had to return their 4th MBP in a row due to defects, and given the fact the Dell I mentioned is better than the 17" MBP for $2000 less, it makes me wonder why people kiss Apple's ass so much.

 

[bartelby]

Considering a post on this page saying someone has had to return their 4th MBP in a row due to defects, and given the fact the Dell I mentioned is better than the 17" MBP for $2000 less, it makes me wonder why people kiss Apple's ass so much.

Using a fourm to judge quality is very inaccurate. Many people come here for help with issues. While people with no issues are very quiet. The defect rate is still low but the vocal minority make it seem other wise.

 

[Scarlet Fever]

I went to Dell.com and built an Inspiron 1720 with specs as close to the MacBook Pro as i could possibly get, and I got a price difference of around $600. I don't know if the links will work, but here's the link for the Dell site, and here's the one for the MBP

 

[fedgirl]

I still have a Dell Inspiron 7500 I bought 7 yrs ago, yes, they are heavy and cluncky but it lasted me 7 years. Now I need a new lappy since its started to fall apart and the a/c adapter is failing. As far as quality I will say that I am surprised how it keeps on ticking.

I am choosing to convert to Apple because I do believe one will be better off future wise with an Apple. I am sick and tired of Microsoft and all these virus updates, firewall stuff.

I would go Apple all the way and never look back again.

You have to go with what you want not what others tell you to do. I know Sony has the blue ray disc drive and yes I would love that on my new lappy all the wonderful new tech toys and wonderful gadgets but hey we can't always get what we want and the question is do we need half of those things on a lappy~its all luxurious wants but not needs. With the current MBP you can't ask for anything more, thin, quality, no Microfault and no outsourcing to India and tech support that stands by you and resolves tech problems as agreed to warranty contract which Dell has a problem with currently not Apple with their AppleCare.

Good luck with your decision.

I know I am making the right decision by converting to Apple all the way.

 

[Jamiephofe]

I still have a Dell Inspiron 7500 I bought 7 yrs ago, yes, they are heavy and cluncky but it lasted me 7 years. Now I need a new lappy since its started to fall apart and the a/c adapter is failing. As far as quality I will say that I am surprised how it keeps on ticking.

I am choosing to convert to Apple because I do believe one will be better off future wise with an Apple. I am sick and tired of Microsoft and all these virus updates, firewall stuff.

I would go Apple all the way and never look back again.

You have to go with what you want not what others tell you to do. I know Sony has the blue ray disc drive and yes I would love that on my new lappy all the wonderful new tech toys and wonderful gadgets but hey we can't always get what we want and the question is do we need half of those things on a lappy~its all luxurious wants but not needs. With the current MBP you can't ask for anything more, thin, quality, no Microfault and no outsourcing to India and tech support that stands by you and resolves tech problems as agreed to warranty contract which Dell has a problem with currently not Apple with their AppleCare.

Good luck with your decision.

I know I am making the right decision by converting to Apple all the way.

The point is that the Dell notebook doesn't have all those extras, it has practically exactly the same as the MBP, even better in some cases. (screen res)

I don't have the decision to make. I need to use a program which is only compatible with Mac OS X. I just wanted to shed some light on the fact that while people may insist on backing Apple up with everything and refusing to hear a bad word about them, they aren't any better than Dell/HP/Microsoft etc.

That Dell notebook I linked to is a canceled order from Dell. In other words it's unopened and in perfect condition with warranty. I'd consider it much better than the 17" MBP which is $2000 more. If someone doesn't "need" a Mac, why on earth would they choose one over that Dell?

$2000 is a hell of a big difference to look "cool".

 

[killerrobot]

I don't have the decision to make. I need to use a program which is only compatible with Mac OS X.

What program is that?

 

[Jamiephofe]

What program is that?

Logic Pro.

 

[miniConvert]

Well, the difference isn't really $2k. You can't compare a rejected/cancelled Dell with a sticker-price Mac.

Spec for spec it's easy to find machines that are cheaper than Macs. Easy. What you're not getting is a 1" 'thin' aluminium enclosure and relatively light weight for the class. Then there's all the 'extras' like Magsafe, backlit keyboard, and finally you've got OS X and everything that comes with that.

If you don't think Mac's are good value for money then you need to find an alternative to Logic Pro!

 

[Lone Deranger]

I've always noticed that the "cool" factor is often used by PC users to try and explain why people are willing to spend more on a Mac. I think you'll find quite a lot of people are more than willing to spend this amount of money to get away from Windows and all that it stands for.

Anyway, it sounds like you've already made up your mind.

$2000 is a hell of a big difference to look "cool".

 

[Jamiephofe]

I've always noticed that the "cool" factor is often used by PC users to try and explain why people are willing to spend more on a Mac. I think you'll find quite a lot of people are more than willing to spend this amount of money to get away from Windows and all that it stands for.

Anyway, it sounds like you've already made up your mind.

Yes I have. I require a Mac to run Logic Pro for my studies.

If you think Mac OSX is worth $2000 more than Windows that's fine by me. I was just trying to clarify that was the case.

 

[Zel]

I like that the MBP's are flat, I could stack it if I ever needed to, while the dells are lumpy and you cant really put it in a pile of books to carry under your arm.

The 'looking cool' actually has functional benefit.

This is an ebay link, which could just as well steal your money as give you a broken laptop.

It is 1000 pounds, which is something like 2000 dollars, and the 17 inch is about 2800 dollars, so the difference is only 800 dollars, not 2000.

Magsafe is the only way to connect power nowadays, I've seen TOO many laptops with broken power jacks to risk using that on an expensive device of any kind.

the touchpad is too small.

 

[Jamiephofe]

I like that the MBP's are flat, I could stack it if I ever needed to, while the dells are lumpy and you cant really put it in a pile of books to carry under your arm.

The 'looking cool' actually has functional benefit.

This is an ebay link, which could just as well steal your money as give you a broken laptop.

It is 1000 pounds, which is something like 2000 dollars, and the 17 inch is about 2800 dollars, so the difference is only 800 dollars, not 2000.

Magsafe is the only way to connect power nowadays, I've seen TOO many laptops with broken power jacks to risk using that on an expensive device of any kind.

the touchpad is too small.

The 17" MBP with hi res on the Apple UK site is £1858. (didn't notice the Dell was a 5400 drive) So let me correct my statement. It's more like a $1,500 saving. I'm comparing it to the UK model as the Dell is in UK pricing also.

That ebay link is to a verified company reselling Dell's, by the looks of the feedback they aren't a scam.

 

[killerrobot]

Logic Pro.

Cool. Never used it. I was killing myself trying to think of what program it could be.

 

[timnosenzo]

Where are you getting a $2000 difference? When I convert GBP, that Dell laptop works out to be roughly $2030. USD--17" MBP fully loaded (high-res, 7200 RPM) is $3049. USD (from the Apple store, not eBay). I can probably find a better price on a MBP on eBay.

 

[Jamiephofe]

Cool. Never used it. I was killing myself trying to think of what program it could be.

Typically the only one I have to use Well, except for Pro Tools, but I can use that on my PC now

 

[Jamiephofe]

Where are you getting a $2000 difference? When I convert GBP, that Dell laptop works out to be roughly $2030. USD--17" MBP fully loaded (high-res, 7200 RPM) is $3049. USD (from the Apple store, not eBay). I can probably find a better price on a MBP on eBay.

Compare it to the UK site. US is well known for getting MBP's **** loads cheaper, seeing as how I'm from the UK the US site pricing isn't relevant. As I said I didn't notice the Dell had a 5400 drive, so I'm comparing the dell price of £1000 to the MBP price of £1858. I haven't used a converter, but I'm assuming that's very close to $1500, I displayed it in $ as I know many users are from the US.

This is also a brand new unopened Dell. I'm sure you could find a used Mac for a good price yeah, not a new one.

 

[Lone Deranger]

Actually.. it goes beyond just OSX... It's Apple's understanding of style and user friendly functionality in both software and hardware. The keyboard backlighting, the magsafe, the 1" form factor, the multi-touch touchpad, the firewire 400, 800 and USB2 support, etc.
I was in John Lewis just the other day checking out the latest MBP's and had a go on various plastic laptop offerings (Vaio, Toshiba, etc.) and I couldn't believe how cheap they felt (and dare I say, looked).
Also, don't forget to factor in the time lost on any windows machine maintaining it, keeping it free from malware and virusses and nagging firewalls. That hassle is what pushed me over to Macs years ago and I'm more productive because of it.

It's easy to look at two laptops online, compare specs and prices and reach a decision based on just that. What that will not do for you is teach you the difference in user experience between a Mac and a Dell. So I guess you'll just have to take our word for it until your MBP arrives.

Yes I have. I require a Mac to run Logic Pro for my studies.

If you think Mac OSX is worth $2000 more than Windows that's fine by me. I was just trying to clarify that was the case.

 

[Jamiephofe]

Actually.. it goes beyond just OSX... It's Apple's understanding of style and user friendly functionality in both software and hardware. The keyboard backlighting, the magsafe, the 1" form factor, the multi-touch touchpad, the firewire 400, 800 and USB2 support, etc.
I was in John Lewis just the other day checking out the latest MBP's and had a go on various plastic laptop offerings (Vaio, Toshiba, etc.) and I couldn't believe how cheap they felt (and dare I say, looked).
Also, don't forget to factor in the time lost on any windows machine maintaining it, keeping it free from malware and virusses and nagging firewalls. That hassle is what pushed me over to Macs years ago and I'm more productive because of it.

It's easy to look at two laptops online, compare specs and prices and reach a decision based on just that. What that will not do for you is teach you the difference in user experience between a Mac and a Dell. So I guess you'll just have to take our word for it until your MBP arrives.

Agreed. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait to get my MBP once Leopard is released. It's just that for the price difference an everyday user could buy a decent iMac + the Dell. Or even a Dell + a Macbook. It's a damn huge price difference, maybe some people are better off looking for a good anti virus/firewall.

All I see from Apple users in general is constant abuse of Windows and other hardware manufacturers, it's like a religion you have to pay to join. I just wanted to point out the reality - no religion is better than any other.

 

[G4DP]

Apple is BMW of the computer world. You pay the premium not for individual specs but you pay for the overall experience. It is entirely up to you to decide whether the premium is worth the price of admission.

Well if that is you idea of Apple why the hell are they so popular. Comparing Apple to BMW is treason. Dell is more suitable to BMW, mass produced, common as muck, and even full of more poo.

If your going to compare Apple to any automobile manufacturer, make it Audi or better.

 

[afkbradshaw]

definitely go the Mac route, but Logic is a poor reason nowadays, as is getting cumbersome and unnecessarily complex for what it offers, Pro Tools 7.3 etc beginning to destroy it, and dare I say it works okay in Windows anyway.

 

[Lone Deranger]

Well, I think it's good you're asking these questions. Many people don't and therefore (in my opinion) miss out on a great alternative computer experience to Windows. First Mac I bought was a 15" G4 PowerBook which set me back close to £2000 at the time. Huge chunk of money especially considering that I already had one of the best Dell Precision workstations under the desk (which was more powerfull than the G4). The Dell become virtually obsolete and now serves as a footrest.

Agreed. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait to get my MBP once Leopard is released. It's just that for the price difference an everyday user could buy a decent iMac + the Dell. Or even a Dell + a Macbook. It's a damn huge price difference, maybe some people are better off looking for a good anti virus/firewall.