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pros and cons of macs?

bill4588 said:
... my mom's cool with it too, but my dad is being stubborn and needs to know why a mac is better than a PC ...
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Is dad going to be paying for it? If so, maybe pick out a PC laptop that is acceptable to him and you pay the cost difference between that and the iBook/PB you would like. You can explain you are "growing up" and if you make a bad decision you'll just live with it and be much smarter next time around.

On the business side, larger businesses (and govt offices) would rather buy cheap computers and just replace them every 3-4 years. Most Macs stay functionally useful for a home user much longer than that. Try to put it in $$ per year of useful computing with less likely stability or virus issues.

Check for Mac computer groups at the school you're attending ... and maybe check with the school's IT dept to see if they support Macs to some degree. This would maybe convince you dad there are others to help you if you do have a computer issue.

Edit... plus you can load up on software at the student discount rate ... sidesteps the argument that Mac software tends to be more expensive (which it is for the most part).
 
thanks for all the advice. I will def. edit the thread (so I will have some chance of getting a mac lol) and let him read it.
 
jhu said:
why don't you get a used laptop? they're powerful enough and cost less
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Because you're at the mercy of the seller. Its not under warranty so when something does go wrong, its very costly. College kids are poor and the very worst thing that can happen to a college kid is a computer where a hard drive goes because during its previous life span, it was dropped and the sell didn't tell you that part.
 
I am a decently skilled pc user. I have had somewhere estimated around 30 viruses attack my system. Luckily, I turned off system restore, ran in safe mode, cleaned out the corrupted registry, and rebooted. If you don't know what I am talking about...get Mac. If I didn't know how to clean my pc from the viruses, some tech guy at a pc repair shop would have taken advantage of my bewilderment. In return you could pay more than a price of a nice mac laptop.
 
Macs are more expensive - when you buy the computer.

Most Mac users don't need to buy many (necessary*) applications at all, after they buy their machine. Most can get by on the included apps and freeware/shareware apps.

People can buy cheaper computers when they first buy one, for example, you can buy a $400 Dell. But after a year, many PC users end up paying tons of money - Microsoft Office, Norton Antivirus and spyware/bloatware programs, having the computer fixed when the hardware craps out on you, and other related expenses. PC's last a lot less time as well. You can buy an $800 PC every two years or a $2,000 Mac every six. For instance, my sister's Dell laptop (which cost her $1300 ;])crapped out on her after one year. She talked to Dell and they had no records of her ever having a warranty - even though she DID buy a three-year warranty. She had to buy a new laptop. My brother's had a $1,000 iBook for three years now without a problem.

Americans tend to think of the start of things - not the end. Macs are better because they're cheaper at the end. Though they're more expensive because of their higher quality hardware, they're much better.

Also, Macs have amazing preinstalled software. Most people, when they consider computers, don't look at this install and blow off Macs completely because of their initial price. iLife is just amazing and all the other little apps are amazing as well. If it weren't for Macs, I would have never had such amazing productivity software and would've never even known all the amazing things that's possible with a Mac. Try finding iLife equivalents - it would cost you thousands upon thousands of dollars.
 
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