OK, Convince Me To Go Apple...

[carfac]

I have been thinking for a bit that I need a new laptop... The old one works, but the new ones are so cool. Now, I see that CompUSA is doing a "trade in" on old notebooks to get the new ones loaded with Vista.

Now, don't throw up just yet... you get a credit voucher for the old notebook that you can use on ANYTHING. And I asked- yes, I can use it on a MBP even though it does NOT have Vista.

SO, this is rather cool, and has me looking again.

My current laptop is an HP, and I do quite like it. It does many things that a MBP cannot, and that I would miss on a MBP. However, the MBP also has some things the HPs do not.

So I like the 15.4- that is settled. Same with C2D.

Plusses of the hp:

I like the memory card reader (why doesn't Apple offer this???) Having a card reader seperate is SUCH a hassle- I want portable, not portable, with lots of other little things I must take with it.

HP has a nice little area on the side of the pad which slides the page up and down. Nice, useful thing. I notice on my current HP I use it a LOT.

HP has two mouse buttons on the touchpad.

HP is significantly less expensive- almost 1/2 the price... 900 bucks!

I am used to my current HP, and I have found it to be well built and to work well.

I have a ton of PC software, though some may be needed to upgrade to work on Vista.

More Mem (2 G vs. 1 G)

More Video Mem (256 m, but MAY be shared, I do not know)

More HD (160 vs 120)

To my eyes, the HP screen seems more evenly lit than the Apple. Maybe its me, but I do not think the MBP is as even...

Advantages of MBP:

It's not MS (and I mean that seriously... I HATE battling Windows. My iMac never needs work). Also a disadvantage- I am still learning Apple. There are some things I NEED to do, that I have yet to figure out how to do (like ssh to my servers).

Wireless N

Faster Processer (2.16 vs 1.66)

Bigger L2 (4 Vs. 2)

Backlit keys

Higher Res screen (1440 vs 1280)

BOTH have small form factors, and are nice looking. Both are fine machines, I think.

Partially, I am afraid to make the jump to Apple- having an iMac AND PC's is one thing, moving over on my laptop is a commitment. Plus, at almost double the price, I am not seeing the value in the Apple. It would be nice to move away from MS, but do I want to pay THAT much for the privilege?

Or, I can just wait a bit, forgo the 3 bills for a trade in, and wait until OS X.5, iLfe 7, Santa Rosa and LED screens are out. I mean, I am NOT needing one, but the trade in is pretty nice....

Thoughts?

Dave

 

[Eraserhead]

The scrolling is much better on a Mac, you put two fingers on the touchpad anywhere to scroll. Whats the graphics card with the HP? The MBP has a standalone card X1600, that is pretty good. The Mac can right click with two fingers on the touchpad and clicking the button or double tapping.

 

[72930]

HP has a nice little area on the side of the pad which slides the page up and down. Nice, useful thing. I notice on my current HP I use it a LOT.

The MBP has a two finger scroll option (in system preferences) it is a bajillion times bette then the side area...you basically put two fingers on the trackpad, and move up and down, left and right, or diagonally

HP has two mouse buttons on the touchpad.

Again the two finger thing...after a short while you will find that (apart from in minesweeper) right-clicking by pressing with two fingers on the trackpad is really fast, easy and improves your work flow...

There are some things I NEED to do, that I have yet to figure out how to do (like ssh to my servers).

1. This forum is great for things like that
2. I recommend parallels if you have that ONE program that is incompatible with osx, or codeweavers crossover if what you need is supported...

 

[carfac]

you put two fingers on the touchpad anywhere to scroll.

Oh, that is cool! I never realized how much I used this- or how useful it is until resently! It is an advantage, right?

HP has an Intel GMA 950, which I am not familiar with....

 

[AJ Muni]

Go to apple. ...Honestly it was the best thing I have ever done. My first mac was an impulse buy, back in dec '05. I literally walked, saw the ibook and walked out in 10 minutes. I quickly ran back in and asked an employee "Hey how do I check how much free space I got left on my HD?"..I was THAT new to macs...fast forward 2 years later..3 diff macs, 3 diff ipods..debt..

 

[72930]

Oh, that is cool! I never realized how much I used this- or how useful it is until resently! It is an advantage, right?

HP has an Intel GMA 950, which I am not familiar with....

GMA 950 is integrated and not very good...it gets you by quite well, but when it comes to graphics intensity (e.g. 3D games) it is poor at best...

 

[jsw]

I like the memory card reader (why doesn't Apple offer this???) Having a card reader seperate is SUCH a hassle- I want portable, not portable, with lots of other little things I must take with it.

US$30.

Only you can decide if the MBP is worth it, or if the wait for a new form factor is worth it, but the fact that you can boot into Windows is surely a bit of risk mitigation.

If it was me? If I didn't need it now, I'd wait for Leopard and iLife '07, then jump. The LED screens are rumored but not confirmed.

 

[The General]

Intel = crap video card.

The memory is shared, for sure, with that video card.

So the MacBook Pro is pretty much only lacking your card reader, but that's ok because you can get an expresscard..card reader and it will work the same way.

 

[Max Payne]

HP has an Intel GMA 950, which I am not familiar with....

This is the same graphics card used in the MacBook.

 

[FireArse]

hang on...

Can I add one thing?

The Apple experience doesn't end when you turn your Mac off or put it to sleep. Its the peace of mind that if something goes wrong (and you're in warranty) that you'll be supported by a company well-known for its "second to none" Customer Service!

Helps me sleep at night with my £3k expenditure

F

 

[jsw]

GMA 950 is integrated and not very good...

Intel = crap video card.

Just to set the record straight: the GMA 950 is not bad at all. It's perfectly usable for everything including HD video except for 3D apps. Yes, it's not a gaming card. But, for virtually any non-3D app, it works just as well as any of the other cards. It does eat some of the RAM, which is a pain, but it isn't a detriment to the system unless you game or use 3D apps.

I've got an MBP and an MB. 99% of the time, they behave almost identically.

 

[compuwar]

There are some things I NEED to do, that I have yet to figure out how to do (like ssh to my servers).

Open a terminal window. Type "ssh -l username host.to.connect.to" where username is the ID on the remote server and host.to.connect.to is the name or IP address of the server you want to ssh to.

 

[spicyapple]

I had a violent reaction to your thread title...

... now that I've recovered, all I can say is that I don't think anyone can "convince" you to get a Mac. In my experience, the more you try to convince someone, the more they resist.

I'm pretty sure you've already made up your mind which laptop you are going to get anyway. Good luck wasting everybody's time. God, I'm mean today..

 

[The General]

US$30.

Do you know if this card fits in flush, or if it sticks out?

Thanks

 

[greenmeanie]

I was going to make the switch too but the screen just isn't there for me on the MBP. The light isn't even and I see grains across the screen. For $2700 I expected a better screen than that.

 

[jsw]

Do you know if this card fits in flush, or if it sticks out?

Thanks

Dunno. My guess is that it protrudes slightly, but I honestly don't know.

 

[patrick0brien]

-carfac

I agree with spicyapple that starting off with a 'convice me' clause is confrontational to the point you appear to have made you decision already.

But since you've given us the option, I'll give it a go.

I like the memory card reader (why doesn't Apple offer this???) Having a card reader seperate is SUCH a hassle- I want portable, not portable, with lots of other little things I must take with it.

This is legitimate, but how often do you use the reader? And what with? I use my ExpressCard/34 slot (replaces the 54 commonly referred to the PCMCIA slot in older machines) for my photography using CompactFlash and SD medias, and I keep the cards with the cameras. Oh, and Express/34 is fast as hell. But to each their own...

HP has a nice little area on the side of the pad which slides the page up and down. Nice, useful thing. I notice on my current HP I use it a LOT.

Eraserhead is right, two-finger scrolling. much nicer than dedicated areas of the pad that you can set off accidentally (like I often do with my Thinkpads)

HP has two mouse buttons on the touchpad.

Common complaint, but really, you won't miss the second button. and if you find it difficult to get used to, plug in a two or three button mouse. No biggie.

Oh, and to right-click, you two-finger-on-pad and click in the MBP

HP is significantly less expensive- almost 1/2 the price... 900 bucks!

Why do you suppose that is?

Granted, Macs used to be overpriced, but that was when they were a closed proprietary system - about 8 years ago.

Things have changed. Ask yourself what is HP skimping on...

I am used to my current HP, and I have found it to be well built and to work well.

They're good machines, but it may not last you five years...

I have a ton of PC software, though some may be needed to upgrade to work on Vista.

If you have an XP license, load XP on the MBP, away you go, no incompatibilities...

More Mem (2 G vs. 1 G)

MBP ships standard with 2gb, don't know where you got your info.

More Video Mem (256 m, but MAY be shared, I do not know)

See above guys who've commented better than I ever could.

More HD (160 vs 120)

You can get a 160 - In fact, I do. Please, my company makes that 160 - buy lots - tell your friends...

To my eyes, the HP screen seems more evenly lit than the Apple. Maybe its me, but I do not think the MBP is as even...

Possible, but the MBP has the brightest on the market, with some really stringent polarization filters, so it's up to you...

Wireless N

and a, b, g, too.

Faster Processer (2.16 vs 1.66)

I'll bet a good portion of the difference in price is here - what is the HP's proc? A duo?

Backlit keys

Wellll, neat feature, especially if you're troglodyting code in the dark, but to me just a nice-to-have...

Let me add a few...

Magsafe. Trip on the cord, so what. Also it feels really cool ripping the cord out of the 'book whenever I'm moving it.

Built-in Camera

Built-in media center functions

Loooong battery.

It gets chicks.

It would be nice to move away from MS, but do I want to pay THAT much for the privilege?

You won't understand me now, but you wouldn't regret it.

 

[patrick0brien]

Do you know if this card fits in flush, or if it sticks out?

Thanks

-The General

Flush. But I don't leave mine in for dust reasons.

 

[e12a]

this could be one plus for the mac...it has bluetooth

does the HP?

 

[jsw]

MBP ships standard with 2gb, don't know where you got your info.

Not the 2.16 GHz base model.

 

[patrick0brien]

Not the 2.16 GHz base model.

-jsw

Huh! Learned something. My apologies for doubting you carfac.

I do have another to add though.

Great fargin' speakers!!! Wide sound - prolly learned something from the iPod HiFi

 

[The General]

Thanks for the tip Patrick. Makes sense. Now I probably won't leave mine in either.

What ever happened to the iPod Hi-Fi, anyway? Seems like it lasted for about a month and they discontinued it.

One more question, on the matter of dust. Sorry that these are off topic, but they just aren't important enough to make a whole thread about ...

On my MacBook Pro, where the speakers and light sensors are, there is that mesh with little tiny holes. There are specs of stuff in the holes and I can't seem to get them out.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

 

[ero87]

-The General

Flush. But I don't leave mine in for dust reasons.

if it's flush, how do you get it out?

doesn't it look like this?

 

[The General]

^ I'm pretty sure that's just for show ... so that you can see it's a Griffin 5-in-1 ExpressCard/34 card reader.

But I think the way it works, is it locks in, and to get it out, you push it in and it pops out.

 

[SuperCompu2]

It gets chicks.

G3 Clamshells are exceptional at this...