New laptop

[Onwuma]

Well.. i've been thinking about buying a laptop for a long time, but i've got many many questions. I've never owned a Mac, but i would like some insight. I have designed two notebooks, one through Alienware and one through Mac. I'm looking to spen dabout 4 grand, and i'll use it for photography and video games. Here's what i've got...

MacBook Pro, 17-inch, 2.16GHz Intel Core Duo
$3,100
2GB 667 DDR2 - 2x1GB SO-DIMMs
2.16GHz Intel Core Duo
ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 with 256MB GDDR3 memory
MacBook Pro 17-inch Glossy Widescreen Display
100GB Serial ATA drive @ 7200 rpm



Aurora m9700 17-inch, 2.4GHz AMD Turion
$3,300
2GB Dual Channel DDR SO-DIMM at 400MHz - 2 x 1024MB
AMD Turion™ 64 Mobile ML44 2.4GHz 800MHz FSB 1MB L2 Cache
Dual 512MB NVidia® GeForce™ Go 7900 GS (Big fan of this)
17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD with Clearview Technology
120GB Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 5,400 RPM w/ 8MB Cache
Internal 802.11b/g WiFi Card w/ Airgo MIMO Technology


Does anybody have any comments about either of these two machines, or advice? Anything would be appreciated, even if you're calling me a moron for wanting an alienware ;)

Thanks,
-Rob

[JaGWiRE]

If you can afford a Mac like that, in my opinion I'de take it over any machine. I'm a computer enthusiast and build my own machines, but my next laptop will be a mac. I don't care just about statistics such as processor speed and benchmarks. I want a mac for other reasons such as the operating system, the fact that software made to run on it will not have hardware conflicts, and the fact that they are built pretty good in my opinion.

[Fureinku]

Macbook Pro 15.4 2.0GHZ here, i love it, sold all my windows machines, use it exclusively now... 90% OSX, 10% XP Pro

[Onwuma]

Ok so.. my next question(s)....
Can the Mac run my windows programs?
And what if i want the Dual GeForce cards, does anyone know if the macbook accepts Nvidia cards?

[Fureinku]

as long as you use bootcamp, have a licensed copy of home or pro sp2.. you can partition the mac, two hard drives essentially, one with osx, one with windows, press the option key when you boot, select which to boot into...

[rhys]

Everybody I know says their next laptop/PC will be a Mac. I've been saying that for years. Now that OSX and Windows will run on the same hardware...

Of course - maybe if OSX comes out so that it'll run on the Windows platform...

[Morgandy]

And what if i want the Dual GeForce cards, does anyone know if the macbook accepts Nvidia cards?

There isn't a slot inside where you can swap or add video cards. You might be able to find some sort of solution using the external ExpressCard 36 slot.

Of course - maybe if OSX comes out so that it'll run on the Windows platform...

That's unlikely to happen at this point in time -- at least as an end-user purchased box of software. That would require Apple to provide technical support and I doubt they're willing to do that right now. However, if Apple provided an OEM version of OSX that sold with the box (such as Dell, HP, etc.) where the OEM supplies the tech support, that would probably happen sooner. At this point there are no rumors to either one happening.

[Onwuma]

Thanks for all the help Fureinku, but i've got one more question for you. Using bootcamp, can i use files interchangably between MacOS and Windows, or do i need a transfer program? Basically, can i save my photos to the internal hard drive using Windows, and access them in MacOS?

[JaGWiRE]

Thanks for all the help Fureinku, but i've got one more question for you. Using bootcamp, can i use files interchangably between MacOS and Windows, or do i need a transfer program? Basically, can i save my photos to the internal hard drive using Windows, and access them in MacOS?


I'm a little confused. You want to acess files in Mac OS X that are saved on your hard drive, but in the Windows Operating system? If so, I would think it is possible because I know in Linux you can do so by mounting your NTFS or FAT partition.

[MDJAK]

Can't help you on the techincal front, but here's my opinion for what it's worth.

I've used only Windoze computers for years for business and pleasure.

I too considered going to Mac for a couple of years now.

Finally took the plunge about six months ago and haven't looked back.

I got basically the 17 inch you described above, with 2gb or ram. I do wish it held 4gb and it should. And I got the 7200 rpm 100gb hd. That is not available directly from an Apple store, to my knowledge.

Also, I don't know much about the express slot, but lack of a pcmcia slot is a big drawback as far as I'm concerned. I have a Verizon wireless card for my Stinkpad that I use for work, and can't use it on the Mac. That just stinks.

My first Mac had a blown speaker out of the box (something well documented and reported on in Mac forums) and the trackpad died the first night. I returned it the very next day and was given a new one which has been fine ever since.

Besides Bootcamp, there is a program called parallels, I believe, that enables windows to be run on the Mac. Don't know of its pluses or minuses.

I had a Dell Ultrasharp 24 inch flatscreen. The monitor on the 17 inch macbook pro is so good, I gave the Dell to my daughter. Just didn't need it.

One other drawback to the Mac as I see it is no docking station. I use mine primarily as a desktop replacement and rarely take it out. It's not ony unsightly, but a PIA to have to pull all the cords out if you do want to take it out.

The new magnetic power cord is a cool design, but the wire seems to be quite thin and fragile.

The keyboard is excellent. May be the equal to, or a close second to, my Stinkpad which is renowned to have the best keyboards going.

For now, Photoshop CS2 could run faster. The next version will be native and will, hopefully.

All in all, I love the Mac. If I had to do it again, I would get it again.

mark

[MDJAK]

Just reread your specs above.

first off, your price seems a bit high. Check B&H.

Second, I personally don't like the glossy screen. It gives off just too much room reflection.

If you check the BH website, you'll see the regular screen is often out of stock, whereas the glossy is usually available, for that that's worth.

mark

[fi20100]

Well, the Macbook Pro is a sweet machine, but it is hardly a gaming rig. But if you use bootcamp and run Windows XP (or maybe Vista later) you'll probably be able to play with it as well :)