MacBook Pro or not!

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Basilrsa

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I must start off by saying that I do not want to start off a Mac vs MS war.

I just need some advice from the experts with the required experience to help me make an important decision.
I have been looking to replace my Acer Travelmate 5720G notebook with a MacBook Pro that I can purchase 2nd hand.
It is only 3 months old and is the latest 15" Unibody model.
Specs:
2.66 mHz Core Two Duo Processor
4 gb 1033mHz Ram
320 gb Hard Drive (5200rpm)
Dual graphics processors (Nvida 3400m & 3600 gt)
This laptop has a dual boot with Windows 7 also installed. (Good idea??)
Price: about R16000
The problem though, is that all my software is Windows based as well as MS Office Pro.
My hobby is Photography and need a decent monitor for editing, but this also means my Nikon Capture, Photoshop, etc cannot be used on the Mac OS system. The system must be portable and have a decent battery life. (up to 7hours on the MacPro using the Mac OS.)

Should I rather consider a good Dell, Sony or equal running Windows 7?
I know I can run all the MS software in Windows 7 mode, but is this not defeating the object in buying the Mac? ( this will also drastically reduce the battery life)

You input would be highly appreciated.
 
Basilrsa said:
My hobby is Photography and need a decent monitor for editing, but this also means my Nikon Capture, Photoshop, etc cannot be used on the Mac OS system. The system must be portable and have a decent battery life. (up to 7hours on the MacPro using the Mac OS.)
Click to expand...

Why can't you use Photoshop on OSX ? I also think there is Nikon Capture for OS X. Our project manager runs MS Office pro on his macbook in a VM, and he is way happier than using a pc.

But 16 000 rand can buy you quite a powerful laptop, there are some nice VAIO's out there. I have a 13" Unibody Macbook and I love it, would never settle for anything other than OS X (i do not do photo editing though, think bwana does play with photoshop tho, so maybe he can give u some input).

Edit: check out the following:
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/22168
and
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/drivers/nikoncapture.html
 
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If you like the design of the Macbook Pro, take it. Otherwise you can have a look at the Lenovo Thinkpad range.
 
I'm no fan of Macs. MacOSX is really excellent, but I find their hardware offerings a little too pricey.

However, I think at R16K you going to be hard pushed to get a notebook with 2 graphics cards if that's what you are after. Don't know why it needs 2; I hear one still has to switch between them and it requires a login/logout/reboot.

Since you'll be doing 2D stuff you don't need a massive graphics card in there. Maybe take the R16K, spend R12K on a new "PC" notebook and get another lens you want. :)

For you current Windows-based software you'll either have to cough up and get the Mac equivalent or go VM or run Windows mode.
 
Oh, so running Windows shorten battery life. Didn't know that. Is that because the drivers are missing.
 
I think it might be the VM that keeps it busy. Windows7 on its own seems quite efficient ... judging by the way it continually puts my colleague's damn network card to sleep! Silly thing. :D
 
Go for it - at that price, nothing beats it!

I've just gone through an evaluation process of about a month, and, while you can get cheaper, equally powerful Laptops in SA, they are just that - cheaper... Build quallity doesn't compare, components don't compare, and overall package falls far short of the MBP- especially on displays.

The only comparable laptop I found (that is readily available in the retail channel) is the Dell Studio XPS 1640. At around RK18 it is not cheap, and it is an awesome machine, BUT... it weighs about twice as much as the MBP you are looking at, it gets hot very quickly, and battery life sucks. As a desktop replacement it is just fine, but it is not practical as a portable machine.

Maybe also look at Parallels or VMWare - you can run Windows and any Windows app inside OS X.
 
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If buying the MBP, you should also get the OSX version of Photoshop. In addition you can get Aparture which is a really good app.
 
Thanks for the response

PeterCH said:
If buying the MBP, you should also get the OSX version of Photoshop. In addition you can get Aparture which is a really good app.
Click to expand...

I know I can get the OSX versions of Photoshop, but that costs a fortune!
I could also run my Windows version on the Win 7 with the dual boot system installed. But again my question: Is Windows 7 still that far inferior to the new Snow Leopard OSX system?
I would rather not mix OS systems on my laptop.

So is the Macbook Pro in reality really worth the price compared the Win 7 OS other makes?
 
I'd take that offer in a heartbeat but then I have the software to appreciate it (Aperture and Photoshop to name but two).

Buying a Mac just to run Windows on it is like pulling a car with a donkey. Stick with a PC - you'll be happier.
 
simp said:
Go for it - at that price, nothing beats it!

I've just gone through an evaluation process of about a month, and, while you can get cheaper, equally powerful Laptops in SA, they are just that - cheaper... Build quallity doesn't compare, components don't compare, and overall package falls far short of the MBP- especially on displays.

The only comparable laptop I found (that is readily available in the retail channel) is the Dell Studio XPS 1640. At around RK18 it is not cheap, and it is an awesome machine, BUT... it weighs about twice as much as the MBP you are looking at, it gets hot very quickly, and battery life sucks. As a desktop replacement it is just fine, but it is not practical as a portable machine.

Maybe also look at Parallels or VMWare - you can run Windows and any Windows app inside OS X.
Click to expand...


As I said I am not too clued up about alt the technical details.
Please explain what you mean by Parallells or VMWare.
Is this not not what this MBP has?
Apparently the owner installed Windows 7 Professional through "Bootcamp"?

I think if one looks at the value of the deal it sounds great!
The best price on the SA sites for this MacBook Pro is R20500 plus one must add the value of the Windows 7 Professional DSP.
All this for R16500.
BTW. I would also like to run my Samsung T260 screen at times from it. It's a pity that Mac has not fitted Blueray players to their range. But when the Ext versions become available I guess one could add it then, as the fitted graphics cards are up to it.
 
TheRift said:
I'm no fan of Macs. MacOSX is really excellent, but I find their hardware offerings a little too pricey.

However, I think at R16K you going to be hard pushed to get a notebook with 2 graphics cards if that's what you are after. Don't know why it needs 2; I hear one still has to switch between them and it requires a login/logout/reboot.

Since you'll be doing 2D stuff you don't need a massive graphics card in there. Maybe take the R16K, spend R12K on a new "PC" notebook and get another lens you want. :)
For you current Windows-based software you'll either have to cough up and get the Mac equivalent or go VM or run Windows mode.
Click to expand...

Well I found you don't get much in the way of a Laptop for R12000 and my lenses usually cost up to R20000 each.
My present Acer Travelmate 5720G beats the specs of most offerings at that price. Just Battery life really sucks and it has an 8 cell version!!!
 
bwana said:
I'd take that offer in a heartbeat but then I have the software to appreciate it (Aperture and Photoshop to name but two).

Buying a Mac just to run Windows on it is like pulling a car with a donkey. Stick with a PC - you'll be happier.
Click to expand...


Or I could keep my present Acer laptop and use the Windows 7 DSP on it. Then I could have the best of both worlds but seperately.
My laptop has the following specs:
Core 2 Duo T7700 processor (2.4Ghz, 800 MHz FSB, 4 MB L2 cache)
15.4" WXGA LCD
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600 HyperMemory(up to 1280MB)
4 GB DDR 2 800mhz memory
250 gb HDD (Maybe increase capacity)
DVD - Super Multi DL
802.11 a/b/g/Draft-N WLAN
Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR

So maybe the MacPro is just an expensive toy.
But I must admit I love my IPhone 3Gs and that turned me into a Mac Fanboy.

Is the Mac so much better, all things considered?
 
Basilrsa said:
Is the Mac so much better, all things considered?
Click to expand...
For me, yes - I prefer Aperture to Lightroom. I've had my current MacBook Pro for three years now and I'm not even considering upgrading it yet.

If you do get and want to have windows then there's no point not loading W7 or XP onto it as well. Bootcamp places it on a separate partition which some of the virtualisation software (Parallels and Vmware) can access from within OsX.
 
Basilrsa said:
[/B]

As I said I am not too clued up about alt the technical details.
Please explain what you mean by Parallells or VMWare.
Is this not not what this MBP has?
Apparently the owner installed Windows 7 Professional through "Bootcamp"?

I think if one looks at the value of the deal it sounds great!
The best price on the SA sites for this MacBook Pro is R20500 plus one must add the value of the Windows 7 Professional DSP.
All this for R16500.
BTW. I would also like to run my Samsung T260 screen at times from it. It's a pity that Mac has not fitted Blueray players to their range. But when the Ext versions become available I guess one could add it then, as the fitted graphics cards are up to it.
Click to expand...

Parallels and VMWare are third party virtualisation software packages for OS X. In simple terms, it allows you to run a full installation of the Window flavour of your choise inside OS X, i.e. you don't have to reboot into Bootcamp to use your Windows applications, as they appear to run as part of Snow Leopard. You can even launch Windows apps from the dock. Bear in mind that you will loose some performance in the Windows apps (although the latest versions of VMWare and Parallels are reportedly improved in this area). Whether you'll notice this performance drop, will likely depend on how "hard" you push your machine.

EDIT: I don't think Windows 7 is inferior to OS X - just different. Like buying a car, it is very much a personal choice.
 
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Hmmm. 16K...

Look here, new...

http://www.comx-computers.co.za/Buy...-Elitebook-8530P-Series-Notebook-lp-23453.php

HP NA800ES 8530p Elitebook Notebook, Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 2.4Ghz 3MB cache 1066Mhz FSB, 2048MB DDR2-800 SO-Dimm memory (1x2048), 250GB SATA 5400rpm Hard Drive, DVD+-RW SuperMulti Double Layer Lightscibe writer, 15.4" WSXGA+ WVA (1680x1050 resolution) TFT LCD Display, intergrated camera, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 with 256MB dedicated graphics, Intel 802.11a/b/g Wireless LAN, 56k modem, 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN, Bluetooth, Fingerprint reader, Microsoft Windows Vista Business Edition 32/64, Windows XP CD's included, 3-3-0 (3-year standard parts and labour warranty)​

R 15798
 
Slower CPU, 2GB less RAM and smaller HDD and with Vista. The Mac is still a better option.
 
Basilrsa said:
I know I can get the OSX versions of Photoshop, but that costs a fortune!
I could also run my Windows version on the Win 7 with the dual boot system installed. But again my question: Is Windows 7 still that far inferior to the new Snow Leopard OSX system?
I would rather not mix OS systems on my laptop.

So is the Macbook Pro in reality really worth the price compared the Win 7 OS other makes?
Click to expand...

Adobe PS CS4 Std is USD 689 + USD 70 for FedEx shipping. You'll need to pay VAT here.
www.toolfarm.com

You could also contact Adobe for a cross-grade deal from Windows to Mac.

I think Extended is $999. Same shipping. If you don't need certain scientific functions, Std will suffice.

Apple Aperture is $195 + USD 70 shipping.
 
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