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Macs' Intel Processors "Low-end?"

ingenious

ingenious

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Jan 13, 2004
1,509
4
Washington, D.C.
[Long post- if you want the just of it, read the bold below:]

Okay, so my best friend's mom is needing a new computer. She doesn't get why he and I and my sister are so into Macs, but she is (was/is) seriously considering looking into buying one. She waited several months for high-speed internet and when she finally ordered it, it worked perfectly on his Mac mini, but they couldn't connect her aging HP Pavilion with Windows ME.

Anyway, they went into Circuit City just to look around and found a US$500 computer :)eek: With 7 USB ports!) She was ready to buy it, but thankfully my friend convinced her to wait until they went to the Apple Store on Monday. The Salesperson told her (of course) that Macs were junk and even though they now used Intel processors, they were low-end and didn't do anything (As opposed to the 64-bit AMD Athlon he was showing them). He also said that Macs do get viruses. My friend vehemently argued and later called me.

We got the virus thing straightened out: No, Macs don't get viruses, but that's not because it's impossible and there have been some "proof-of-concept" ones, but there just aren't a lot (really any) out there. I also told him I didn't think that the Core Duo and Solo were "low-end" Intel processors, although they are 32-bit and not 64-bit. I also told him that his mom would'nt need a 64-bit processor anyway.

So long-and-short of it: Are the Intel processors in Macs "low-end?"

edit: fixed some words and added others.
 
no. they are intel's latest technology. They aren't 64 bit like the G5's and Athalon's, but that is intel's top of the line mobile chip.

Oh, and btw, that "proof of concept" virus/trojan is still on my computer :( . I can't seem to get it off :( . It doesn't do anything, but for something so minor, it's really hard to remove.
 
Yonah is the best that Intel has to offer for power and size. 64-bit currently only offers benefits for high end power due to the memory addressing size. So, you're only going to see major benefits for programs that need more than 4 GB.
 
This kind of crap annoys me. How could such ignorant people be working on the floor of big electronics shops like Circuit City if they are going to go off and say bad things about products that they haven't even used?

I'm waiting for that one time I am standing in a store and I overhear a "Macs are crap" conversation so I can butt in and set the employee straight.

Am I the only one here???
 
p0intblank said:
This kind of crap annoys me. How could such ignorant people be working on the floor of big electronics shops like Circuit City if they are going to go off and say bad things about products that they haven't even used?

I'm waiting for that one time I am standing in a store and I overhear a "Macs are crap" conversation so I can butt in and set the employee straight.

Am I the only one here???
Click to expand...
Yeah, I tend to keep up with the PC world even though I'm a Mac user. I just like being in the know. I have actually annoyed some employees to death by knowing more than them. :D
 
yankeefan24 said:
no. they are intel's latest technology. They aren't 64 bit like the G5's and Athalon's, but that is intel's top of the line mobile chip.
...
Click to expand...

So, if the Core is Intel's top of the line mobile chip, was he referring to an Intel desktop chip or did he just not know what he was talking about (which would be about normal)?

edit: fixed my end mark!
 
Life will make more sense if you remember the following:
When you walk into a Ford dealership, the salesman won't recommend a Chevy. ANY facts you hear MUST be suspect, so ignore them.
 
I hate this kind of thing, salesmen just saying that a competitor is 'crap'. A decent salesman would say 'well yes they do make very good products however, ours do this this and this whereas they're weaknesses are this and that'. I've had salespeople do this way and they're a hell of a lot more convincing because its obvious they know what they're talking about and are being honest. As soon as a salesperson says anything is crap (apart from Celerons) then I'll immediately want to go somewhere else.

Mind you I don't know how many times I've gone into a store without knowing everything there is to know about what it is I want to buy and any similar products. Apart from when I had to buy some make up for Halloween or when my girlfriend instructed me to buy some kind of foamy makeupy putty on things.
 
The thing is Celerons aren't crap. They're DIRT CHEAP. For some that just wants to web browse, word process, and maybe use iTunes on Windows :rolleyes: it's just fine. 1 GB of RAM and a 2.53 GHz Celeron is overkill for that.
 
Yeah I guess they are ok for what you pay for. I've just been very disappointed with them in the past for even basic use and my friends with celeron chips always complain about how slow they're systems are, even after they've been upgraded on the memory front. The basic requirement I've always said to people in the past is don't get a Celeron and don't get less than 512MB RAM although slowly that's changing towards 1GB.
 
The Intel Core Solo/Duos are not low-end, they are the best mobile processors intel has to offer, but they are meant for exactly that - Mobile Computers. Apple is only putting them in their Desktops right now because they have a good performance to heat ratio (something very important in computers with small form factors).

So I can understand how some would think that a Core Solo/Duo is a bad choice of processors for a desktop.
 
Spanky Deluxe said:
Yeah I guess they are ok for what you pay for. I've just been very disappointed with them in the past for even basic use and my friends with celeron chips always complain about how slow they're systems are, even after they've been upgraded on the memory front. The basic requirement I've always said to people in the past is don't get a Celeron and don't get less than 512MB RAM although slowly that's changing towards 1GB.
Click to expand...
Just make sure it's the chip and not the operating system. Windows XP/2000 handles the GUI differently then what Apple does with OS X (Quartz Extreme & Core Image) That might change with Vista and that the GUI uses much more GPU power. Or it'll lead to a bunch of older machines left with an ugly OS.

I keep thinking the 3.06 GHz Pentium 4 lab computers are slow even with 1 GB of RAM. It's just that Windows is terrible at multitasking and redrawing windows.

I pull off some magic for OS X using PCI Extreme. Quartz Extreme is a must for a good OS X experience.
 
I can almost guarantee you that a $500 computer from Circuit City is not going to be a good computer. No matter what chip it has. The AMDs are nice, especially the 64 bit ones, but who knows how good the rest of the machine is. For what she's going to do with it though, a mini will work just as well as any lowend PC. Better for most things.
 
Just wait till she gets to the Apple store and sees the cute lil Mini over that big hunkin 500 dollar tower. ;)

Athlon 64s are amazing though, but so are Core Solo/Duo processors. :D

I dont have much beef aganist Celerons, they're dirt cheap, and work nicely. Plus then, I <3 the PIII based Celerons. They overclock like MAD. XD
 
CHEAP PC'S DIE EARLY

Naff case design, poor airplow, too much heat buildup etc.

Tell you mum that Apples are the BMW's And Merc's of the computer world, they just keep going.
 
i went into my local PC World the other week, because i needed an iPod cable in a rush and nowhere else in town had any. (PC World should always be last on anyone's list in the UK). so i pick up the cable, and wander over to the nice little mac section. while i'm playing about with a mini, a salesperson appears behind me and starts to *try* to persuade me to go for a pc.

i asked him why he was trying to pitch a PC to me instead of a Mac:

"Because Macs are crap, PCs are just so much better!"

"Why?"

"Because I don't know how to use them"

He also admitted to not knowing what they could do. so i do the first thing anyone from here, in my situation, would do: i showed him - iLife and what it can do, and then pulled out my TWO YEAR OLD PowerBook, and Motion, FCP, and Shake..

he was rather impressed.


the annoying thing is i get people at University (i'm doing computing science) who think Windows is the best thing since toastie makers, who bash me for having a Mac to do my uni work on.

of course they're the ones continually having to restart an assignment, or rewrite something because that computer's crashed while compiling a simple Java programme. mwahahahahahah. :rolleyes:
 
cheap pc's have crap psu's which blow up and fry your whole pc.

also ask her if she wants to do an scientific modeling and computation, if yes get a G5 if no get a mini/imac
 
bigandy said:
i went into my local PC World the other week, because i needed an iPod cable in a rush and nowhere else in town had any. (PC World should always be last on anyone's list in the UK). so i pick up the cable, and wander over to the nice little mac section. while i'm playing about with a mini, a salesperson appears behind me and starts to *try* to persuade me to go for a pc.

i asked him why he was trying to pitch a PC to me instead of a Mac:

"Because Macs are crap, PCs are just so much better!"

"Why?"

"Because I don't know how to use them"

He also admitted to not knowing what they could do. so i do the first thing anyone from here, in my situation, would do: i showed him - iLife and what it can do, and then pulled out my TWO YEAR OLD PowerBook, and Motion, FCP, and Shake..

he was rather impressed.
Click to expand...
Always the case. We have a salesperson at our place that is slowly coming to realise that Macs are worth it, but I still hear him say that they are more expensive and there is less software available for them, (but he did join us six months back from Dixons). He only seems to want to sell a Mac if someone expresses an interest in them, he rarely shows them one to start off with. I find this all over too.

I find it quite an annoyance that people dismiss them so much, until they properly use one. I have impressed him in the past with showing him the 3D transitions in Powerpoint and Keynote. So few truely understand how to sell one though, only actually ringing them through the till if someone else decides to buy one. If a person has never owned a computer before, has no knowledge and has no price in their mind, I always think the ideal machine is the 17" iMac, first and foremost. I point out the advantages and disadvantages and let them decide. I can't recall a single person I have sold a Mac to ever phoning up to regret the purchase. In fact, I am one of the people on the department who gets the most praise from customers and managers alike. One woman said to me that I was the first person out of three that managed to listen to what she wanted in an mp3 player, understood what each one we sold had and which would suit her best. I apparently even managed to explain it at a level she understood, despite my degree in electronic engineering, unlike the other two.

While some will say low-end processors, I say efficient, cool, quiet and cost effective. It's not what you read that sells a machine, it's what you know.
 
Hector said:
cheap pc's have crap psu's which blow up and fry your whole pc.
Click to expand...
I agree. We have one desktop with a Celeron inside it. Every day, we switch it on, it freezes on the boot screen, we switch it off and back on again. Regular as clockwork. The Core Solo Mini, switch it on, it just works.

While the Celeron machine may have 3 extra USB ports, an extra firewire, dial-up modem, DVD writer, 256MB dedicated graphics, room for expansion, come with keyboard and mouse, the Mini is much smaller, quieter, reliable, has more software and for the target audience of both machines, it fits the bill so much more. People read tickets, specs etc and come to their own conclusions on what you are getting.
 
combatcolin said:
CHEAP PC'S DIE EARLY

Naff case design, poor airplow, too much heat buildup etc.

Tell you mum that Apples are the BMW's And Merc's of the computer world, they just keep going.
Click to expand...
THEY DO!

My step brother's emachine just died within 1 year of having it; kept good care of it and the powersupply just went out.
:rolleyes:
 
steve_hill4 said:
Always the case. We have a salesperson at our place that is slowly coming to realise that Macs are worth it, but I still hear him say that they are more expensive and there is less software available for them, (but he did join us six months back from Dixons). He only seems to want to sell a Mac if someone expresses an interest in them, he rarely shows them one to start off with. I find this all over too.
Click to expand...
Talking of Dixons, our local Dixons only just started selling a Mac again! They have a whole one (and it's a big store), and it's a medium-sized G4 iBook surrounded by tonnes of PC laptops and desktops.

I think Apple needs to address this problem - they need to get more of their machines into stores, and they need to give training assistance.

I certainly wish somebody had recommended an Apple Mac to me somewhere along the line.
 
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