Purchasing decision - Mac vs PC (no trolling please)

[AfricanTech]

My daughter's MacBook (2009) is getting a bit long in the tooth now (Yosemite didn't help) so I'm looking to replace it.

Thing is she's equally comfortable with OSX and Windows and when I look at the price of equivalent hardware, a decentish Windows 8.1 machine (eg Lenovo i5) comes in 7-8k cheaper than the low end OSX machines.

The difference in price is quite remarkable...

What are your guys views? Is it worth going for a Mac given the use can below? (15k saved and set aside specifically for this purchase - just not sure if value for money is being realized).

Use case: school student, non-gamer, Internet, YouTube, has IPad and iPhone

 

[Hamster]

For a school student the difference between Mac and PC should be trivial. That said - I use 8.1, it's nice but it is the first time in a very long time that I will upgrade to the next Windows release as soon as it is available.

 

[Arthur]

It depends.

If there's no specific requirement or strong user preference for a Mac, why get one? As you know, you can get a lot more Wintel for the same bucks.

 

[koeksGHT]

Price speaks, a PC is just cheaper for better specs. If you don't really care about spending more and just use the computer for Facebook,email,web,typing documents then a mac will be fine

 

[Rickster]

Mac's should only be really bought if you are using it for a specific purpose IE, video editing, PS.

Save yourself the bucks and get a laptop and format the crap W8.1 for W7 (personal opinion).

PS: If you are looking to giveaway that old Macbook, think of me first

 

[skimread]

Does she require long battery life then go with 13" Macbook i.e. varsity student working without power nearby otherwise save the money and go with a mid range Win laptop

PS. whats the old macbook specs. putting in a ssd will probably give it a few years more

 

[SauRoNZA]

Considering you are referencing a machine that is 5 years old that should say it all.

After 5 years it's still going and will probably keep going if the need for newer/better/more didn't arise.

Stick to it and ans the new one will give you another 5.

The Windows ones might be cheaper but they'll be flat within three years so it all balances out.

 

[SauRoNZA]

Mac's should only be really bought if you are using it for a specific purpose IE, video editing, PS.

Save yourself the bucks and get a laptop and format the crap W8.1 for W7 (personal opinion).

PS: If you are looking to giveaway that old Macbook, think of me first

Nonsense.

It's a system with an operating system like any other and not much more than a preference in the modern world.

Companies now make decent versions of all their photo editing and video editing tools on both platform, so unless you desperately need Apple's own Final Cut Pro you can do just about anything.

I work on a Mac every day and so does almost my entire office. We are an IT Telecoms company.

 

[Rickster]

Considering you are referencing a machine that is 5 years old that should say it all.

After 5 years it's still going and will probably keep going if the need for newer/better/more didn't arise.

Stick to it and ans the new one will give you another 5.

The Windows ones might be cheaper but they'll be flat within three years so it all balances out.

By flat do you mean underpowered?

I doubt a well maintained 2014 laptop will struggle with Youtube and the internet within 3 years. I would agree if gaming was a factor, but its not.

 

[Rickster]

Nonsense.

It's a system with an operating system like any other and not much more than a preference in the modern world.

Companies now make decent versions of all their photo editing and video editing tools on both platform, so unless you desperately need Apple's own Final Cut Pro you can do just about anything.

I work on a Mac every day and so does almost my entire office. We are an IT Telecoms company.

More than often ive seen software thats been optimised for OS X rather than Windows, but im sorry if you buy a mac just to do spreadsheets, emails and youtube its so foolish.

 

[ads]

Unless she has been using a PC regularly for all her daily tasks, and has got used to all the idiosyncracies of a particular version of Windows, and can navigate her way around it comfortably, get a Mac. It's really hard to go back to Windows once you are used to the consistency, stability and ease of use of OS X, particularly if you are a normal user. A new Mac will perform spectacularly better than any five year old machine, although as has been noted, it's testimony to the design that a machine that old is still quite usable. Don't ignore the advantage of the integration with the iPhone and iPad, especially now with Yosemite and IOS 8.

 

[ozziej]

My vote would go for the Mac. Try sell the older machine and get a 13" retina. For a student, it will be great for battery life, low weight and being compact. Ive got a 3 year old MacBook Pro and still get 6-8 hours of battery. Considering that she already has the iPad and iPhone , it does make things easier. Continuity in OS X Yosemite is bloody useful moving between the devices.

 

[PostmanPot]

Mac. OS X. The best. Better value in the long term too, especially if you find a mint second hand one. Very little depreciation too.

 

[SauRoNZA]

By flat do you mean underpowered?

I doubt a well maintained 2014 laptop will struggle with Youtube and the internet within 3 years. I would agree if gaming was a factor, but its not.

I mean the batteries are dying and the machines are starting to have little issues etc.

I taken this based on experience of buying and replacing hundreds of laptops and machines for big companies.

Macs simply last longer.

 

[SauRoNZA]

More than often ive seen software thats been optimised for OS X rather than Windows, but im sorry if you buy a mac just to do spreadsheets, emails and youtube its so foolish.

I use it as the best Linux machine around.

But even that being said I have no issues if people buy them for emails and YouTube. They are easy to support, very stable and the battery life trumps everything especially if you travel a lot.

 

[kingrob]

I work on a Mac every day and so does almost my entire office. We are an IT Telecoms company.

Neotel??

 

[icyrus]

It should come down to user preference really, but I find this quite remarkable:

when I look at the price of equivalent hardware, a decentish Windows 8.1 machine (eg Lenovo i5) comes in 7-8k cheaper than the low end OSX machines.

What Lenovo is that because I can't believe the price difference you'e quoted.

 

[CataclysmZA]

Thing is she's equally comfortable with OSX and Windows and when I look at the price of equivalent hardware, a decentish Windows 8.1 machine (eg Lenovo i5) comes in 7-8k cheaper than the low end OSX machines.

Use case: school student, non-gamer, Internet, YouTube, has IPad and iPhone

If you're replacing it with an Ultrabook, then definitely consider getting a Windows machine along with a subscription to Office 365. At the very least, if you've got that amount of money stashed away for it, something with 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD should be more than enough for her needs.

If she has an iPad and iPhone that are fine with running the latest version of iOS, then consider a 13" Macbook Air and the upgrade to Yosemite when it hits the ground. There's a lot to like about the symmetry and OS tie-ins that Apple's going for and it's an ecosystem with which she's already familiar.

 

[msm]

Thing is she's equally comfortable with OSX and Windows and when I look at the price of equivalent hardware, a decentish Windows 8.1 machine (eg Lenovo i5) comes in 7-8k cheaper than the low end OSX machines.

IMHO a lowish end new Macbook Air with SSD will have very similar "real world" performance to a mid-range Windows machine given what you're using it for. Don't compare apples to apples with hardware (excuse the pun) when you have a (flame suit on) more efficient OS (flame suit off) on top of it.

 

[cerebus]

It should come down to user preference really, but I find this quite remarkable:
What Lenovo is that because I can't believe the price difference you'e quoted.

Yes I'm also struggling to rationalize that price difference. Which models are you comparing? Macbook Air, Pro w/retina screen? A 13" Macbook Air with 128gb SSD is R11,400. A Lenovo Yoga 13" is R13500, with some better specs and some worse, and doubtfully the same build quality as the Mac. Not that Macs are cheap becase you can get some much cheaper Windows laptops, but for the level of quality they have, they tend to be equivalent price to something else in their class. The Lenovo you're looking at is probably twice the weight, half the battery life, much worse build quality, etc. (In some products they are actually better value for money than anything else, such as the 5k retina iMac which costs the same as a Dell monitor of the same resolution).