So many opinions, but thanks for all the insights.
Mac OS X and iOS caused havoc (and thousands of Apple fanboys swarmed to support forums in frustration) and I then found that the Macs in my home worked better when using a Google account than when using iCloud. At the time, we lived where Internet was sketchy at best, so we really needed the former Apple USB sync.
We have moved meanwhile and our ISP mada date much cheaper, as a bonus, so that we can now use cloud options.
Our Linux Mint experience is that hardware that had worked before updates also work well after updates. Apple really did lose credibility in that department and, at the cost, one would have expected better service. We also had sufficient joy from Windows 8 and it is up to the user to decide what is nice and what isn't.
After all, as we now are using cloud-based office solutions, any machine that can run a good browser with ease is good enough. Now why the interest in Mac? OK, we already bought two and a third or fourth (even a good used one) won't come amiss. That is part of the answer, but sentiment aside, that backlit chicklet keyboard is a boon, especially in low light conditions and some of us here don't enjoy the sharpest eyesight around.
I have been running Linux Mint 17.1 64-bit for a while now, as a live session booted from USB, on a MBP i5 2.5Ghz 9Ivy Bridge) and only experienced bliss. Everything just works, perhaps because it is Mint, which is a more "complete" distro. It even goes to sleep and wake up without any hiccups and it can run forever without even needing a reboot. It connects to other devices more easily than Mac OS and therefore it is so much more enjoyable. As it uses very little RAM, Mint does not tax the MBP's resources at ll.
The Linux festish only exists because we also have OLD computers here and Linux is the ONLY operating system that van be brand new AND run well. Honestly, our Mint installations always have been problem-free. We have tried other distro's but those all offered their share of frustration.
I did have a look at other brands offering backlit keyboards and HD displays, these all cost about the same as a 13" MBP Retina. There is a Dell Inspiron 7537 i7 dual 2.0GHz with a Geforce GT750M+2GB and 16GB DDR3-1600 on-board, 15.6" HD display, 4 USB 3 ports, also made of aluminium at about R1k cheaper than the 13" Mac and it has a 3-year on-site warranty. And it has that backlit keyboard that had become essential. Offerings from Asus and Lenovo also look good, in the same price range, and then there are MSI and Gigabyte, brands I do not really know well in terms of notebooks.
Our Mac's still on Mavs and not Yosemite; afraid to update & upgrade anything Apple after the disasters of 2013 and 3014. It were wireless connectivity, USB sync, then iCloud %$@#& up user data...the list is long and endless. Let us not go there again!
I had a little Dell i3 with just 2GB RAM and Windows 8 that really performed well above expectations and a Samsung i5 on Win 7 that is tedious at best, despite a format and clean install. Windows 7 seems to be laggy and not good on a mere i5 2.5GHz.
So, if anything can run Chrome in a stable way and has a backlit keyboard, that's all that is really needed (as long as we have internet!)
