Why Buy A Mac for Photography?

[DonJuanMair]

My wife and I are just about to buy a new pc, however im giving a mac some consideration now, this is to anyone who made the transition from pc to mac can you tell me why you prefer it to a pc for digital photography. I use Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop CS2.

Thanks

[Yiskah]

That is a good question. I have researched just a little, but would like to know "real" opinions...

[Colorblinded]

Buy whichever one you prefer because you won't find any great difference in performance or stability between a well setup and fully functioning Mac or PC.

*now we wait for people who say crazy pro-Mac and pro-PC nonsense*

*someone points out that a Mac is a PC*

*someone rants about MACs and is corrected*

[DonJuanMair]

i only wonder because everytime i see a tutorial its usually in a mac! so it got me thinking :)

[Mark1]

Mac's used to be worlds ahead on the creative side of things. Now it is not that far ahead. But the reverse is also true. Windows used to be worlds ahead on the business side. They are still ahead here but they are losing the lead rather quickly. This 'legacy' still exists but more as a moot point than anything else.

I was looking at the Macs rather hard about 4 months ago. I could not find anything that could sway me to pay the extra for the Mac. Other than they are gorgeous machines. So I stayed with windows if only to eliminate the learning curve that would initially kill production.

[Colorblinded]

i only wonder because everytime i see a tutorial its usually in a mac! so it got me thinking :)
Tradition mainly IMO (and a lessened need for retraining or buying copies of software for another OS). Macs got off to an early start as the favorite for media related work and although there's been nary a difference for years now they're still favored by many.

[mattograph]

I own a 2.4 ghz macbook with 2 mg ram for my photography, and 2.0 ghz dell laptop with 2 mg ram for my day job. They cost about the same, but the mac runs much faster.

My mac hardly ever crashes -- my dell, well...

Battery life, my mac wins hands down.......

Monitor much better on the mac......

Dell is MUCH lighter (latitude 620)

but, at the end of the day, go with what makes you comfortable. I am "ambidextrous" when in comes to OS, but I wouldn't spend a lot of time learning a new system if it meant less time behind the lens.

Good luck!!!

[monochrome]

I bit the bullet and went Mac a year and a half ago. I've never looked back. I prefer the look and simplicity of the hardware. I like the support of the Apple Store. I prefer the OS. It came with software I like and use, instead of a pile of ads and viruses masquerading as software. The integration with .mac, now mobileme, ($99/year) allows easy sharing of content from all apps. It supports PDF generation out of the box. It's easier to maintain and keep clean without rebuilding (software-wise). The list for me goes on.

That said, there are people just as avid about PCs.

Ford/Chevy
Vanilla/Chocolate
Mets/Yankees

You're on your own.

[primoz]

With nowadays computers there's not much difference, it's just personal preference. I actually prefer Mac because it's Unix system and it has something I was always missing on Windows... decent shell. But then again, price is different. For laptop it's fine, and I'm happy user of Macbook Pro, which costs, at least around here, about same as decent Windows based laptop.
For office computer on the other side, I just don't find reasonable calculation. I'm not looking for something fancy and useless as iMac is (my opinon only ;)), but Mac Pro is so damm expensive, that nice Unix shell is just not enough to make it worth, even if it would be even more useful on stationary computer then it's on laptop.
But I probably look a bit different to this, since I look it through business point of view. That means if I spend extra 1000 or 2000eur for computer, which does almost same job as 1000 or 2000eur cheaper computer, I need to sell for 2000eur more photos to be on same place by the end of month. So I guess it's clear which way I go ;)

[Anke]

Learning the Mac OS takes about five minutes, its so user friendly. Just think of the time you'll save on never having to reboot, fix things, recovering from crashes or avoiding viruses and stuff.
Once you go Mac, you'll never go back. You'll be open-mouthed for weeks when you realise how beautifully engineered the OS is and how you lived without it. Do it!

[mattograph]

Learning the Mac OS takes about five minutes, its so user friendly. Just think of the time you'll save on never having to reboot, fix things, recovering from crashes or avoiding viruses and stuff.
Once you go Mac, you'll never go back. You'll be open-mouthed for weeks when you realise how beautifully engineered the OS is and how you lived without it. Do it!

Or, buy a mac, and run it as a windows machine!!!

[DonJuanMair]

yeah i saw that the mac has that option, boot camp if i ever want to run windows. Very Cool, I think ill take the plunge!

[mattograph]

yeah i saw that the mac has that option, boot camp if i ever want to run windows. Very Cool, I think ill take the plunge!

I've never used it. My boss does, though, and he is fairly computer illiterate.

Good luck!

[stathunter]

yeah i saw that the mac has that option, boot camp if i ever want to run windows. Very Cool, I think ill take the plunge!

I made the move to Mac this year......and will never go back to a pc. I run parallels if I want to run windows in my mac. LOVE the mac I should have gone to a Mac sooner!

[Flo]

I made the move to Mac this year......and will never go back to a pc. I run parallels if I want to run windows in my mac. LOVE the mac I should have gone to a Mac sooner!

Ditto for me....the Mac is sleek and so user friendly..never a crash or slow down on the Mac side, for me anyway.
I was at out office the other day and looking at photos on a PC...what a difference in the final reslut on the screen compared to Mac.

But again,,whatever is an easy transition ;)

[td67mustang]

My pricey sony Viao of 4 years finally was sooo slow I could no longer bear with it. I went big with a MBP and couldnt be happier. Like most of the people above my has yet to crash, runs very fast, is light, tight and simple. PLus i plugged my 20D in first time and it worked rightaway. When I plugged my 20D in to my viao first time I had to download drivers ect.... I still use PC at the office but for personal use I prefer my MAC hands down! Best of Luck

[mattograph]

And here is how you keep a macbook clean. This stuff is AWESOME.

http://www.monstercable.com/productdisplay.asp?pin=4186

I have the "blackbook" which shows dirt quickly. One spray of this stuff, and its as good as new!!!

[stathunter]

My pricey sony Viao of 4 years finally was sooo slow I could no longer bear with it. I went big with a MBP and couldnt be happier. Like most of the people above my has yet to crash, runs very fast, is light, tight and simple. PLus i plugged my 20D in first time and it worked rightaway. When I plugged my 20D in to my viao first time I had to download drivers ect.... I still use PC at the office but for personal use I prefer my MAC hands down! Best of Luck

Agreed......no crashing with the Mac.....my pc crashes way too much.

[bubba zanetti]

Learning the Mac OS takes about five minutes, its so user friendly. Just think of the time you'll save on never having to reboot, fix things, recovering from crashes or avoiding viruses and stuff.
Once you go Mac, you'll never go back. You'll be open-mouthed for weeks when you realise how beautifully engineered the OS is and how you lived without it. Do it!
I couldnt have said it better. Ive been on a mac for about a year or so now after many years on a PC. I dont think the light comes on until you buy one & sit down with it.

[DonJuanMair]

so which mac would you go for then? im def going to get one now after all these positive posts, my pc is always crashing and struggling and its sooo annoying

[bubba zanetti]

so which mac would you go for then? im def going to get one now after all these positive posts, my pc is always crashing and struggling and its sooo annoying

My introduction is a 24" iMac as i have no use for a laptop. One look at the screen in the shop & i was gone. I am now looking at buying more for my family to elevate the amount of time i spend fixing their PC's (read kids & msn viruses)

[mattograph]

Blackbook for me. The glossy monitor and slower graphics card is often reported to be one of the downsides, but mine is spot on for printing and moves plenty quick. I like the way it looks. And its fairly light and compact for travel.

[DonJuanMair]

yeah i dont really want a lap top. 24inch sounds nice

[Tony-S]

so which mac would you go for then? im def going to get one now after all these positive posts, my pc is always crashing and struggling and its sooo annoying

I hate to break us such a nice lovefest, but here's the deal on Macs, from cheapest:

1. Mac Mini - built on notebook components, thus expensive relative to performance. However, it's a low energy, low footprint computer and will drive a 24" display at its native resolution (1920x1200). Great for photo work despite having 64 mb integrated graphics. Mem limit of 3.1 gb.

2. MacBook - Nice computer, but glossy 6-bit TN display. Be prepared to buy an external DVI matte display (which it can drive to 1920x1200) for photo work. Also has integrated graphics, a non-issue for most photo and video apps.

3. iMac 20" - Glossy 6-bit TN display. It, too, can drive an external 24" display.

4. iMac 24" - Glossy display, but at least it's an S-IPS (or some get H-IPS) panel.

5. MacBook Pro - 6-bit TN display in glossy or matte option. Will drive a 30" display at native resolution. Very nice computer, though.

6. Mac Pro - The mean machine (and price to go with it).

[cosworth]

And here is how you keep a macbook clean. This stuff is AWESOME.

http://www.monstercable.com/productdisplay.asp?pin=4186

I have the "blackbook" which shows dirt quickly. One spray of this stuff, and its as good as new!!!

Part of the world dies when you spend money at monstercable.

[Dermit]

6. Mac Pro - The mean machine (and price to go with it).

I had been a PC user for 15 years. Switched to Mac in March of this year. I have a professional photography business. High volume, large files, etc. Yes, the Mac Pro is big(er) bucks if you only account for the actual direct cash you will pay for the hardware. But. The amount of time I save for not having to deal with crashes, antivirus, antispam, etc. more than pays for the extra bucks I've shelled out. I've been more productive in less time than ever before, directly attributed to the Mac platform. Of course this is my own personal experience, YMMV.

[mattograph]

Part of the world dies when you spend money at monstercable.


That's actually kinda funny. In the electronics business, we call them "monster coin". But only behind their backs!:)

[zerovision]

I have been around PCs for years and until recently never considered a mac. I used to work in the computer industry and when Vista arrived, I had to have it, but it caused me big headaches. A drink was spilled on my laptop frying the motherboard and I decided I would replace it with the Mac. I have no loyalty to either Mac or PC, but I recently bought a PC desktop simply because of the different options it provided for current and future storage.

I won't go into detail, but both are equal, to me, regards to being user friendly. Somethings I still don't know how to do on the Mac, but I have no problem using it. Price difference is huge. My PC desktop was $899.0 and the Mac with similar hardware is close to $2,700.00. Neither with a monitor. I know the Mac's main component ( the processor chip) is twice as fast, but at three times the price? If I could afford it, I would have bought the Mac for $2,700.00 because of the power you can add later surpasses anything offered by PC, but the price of a fully loaded Mac stand alone desktop is the same price as my Honda Accord. I kid you not!

Anyway, If you can afford a Mac you will be happy with it. Either way you go, try to invest in Adobe Photoshop CS3 and lightroom 2.0. If you get a Mac you might look into Aperture 2.0, but I am having a hard time finding software that I need to transition back and forth between Aperture and Photoshop. I might post that question soon.

[neil_g]

I own a 2.4 ghz macbook with 2 mg ram for my photography, and 2.0 ghz dell laptop with 2 mg ram for my day job. They cost about the same, but the mac runs much faster.

My mac hardly ever crashes -- my dell, well...

Battery life, my mac wins hands down.......

Monitor much better on the mac......

Dell is MUCH lighter (latitude 620)

we run 620's at work, you should be seeing approx 4 hrs on battery depending on load and your power settings

[mattograph]

we run 620's at work, you should be seeing approx 4 hrs on battery depending on load and your power settings

In the beginning, yes. With a year on the extended battery, I get 2 1/2 now.

[neil_g]

is it worth having 1 big mac or windows thread that is full of facts and the mods delete any rubbish hehe..

okay, my 2 pence worth (again. broken record anyone?) supporting macs and pcs in a work environment i have to say we have more hassle with the macs. saying they never crash is an understatement, they can and do especially when pushed to the limits. yes windows does crash also, it can also be made extremely stable (XP) with very little work.

the statement about going from a 4 year old vaio to a new MBP is a bit of a non-argument. going from a 4 year old macbook to a MBP or even a new windows laptop will show a huge difference.

macs used to have the upper hand with media work, pcs have since closed the gap and are equally capable these days. imho its the older generation of media workers who are now managers that is keeping them in action. from an IT systems and support point of view itd certainly make our day easier especially integrating with mainstream windows networks lol.

ive got nothing against osx, i use it daily. it does what its supposed to as does windows but in a different wrapper.

[neil_g]

In the beginning, yes. With a year on the extended battery, I get 2 1/2 now.

hmm. generally we had more problems with the 600 and 610 batteries, the 620 and newer 630 have been pretty good. certainly my 820 battery has been going for ages now and i still get 3 hours out of it. maybe some are better than others, batteries arent an exact science after all..

[Colorblinded]

okay, my 2 pence worth (again. broken record anyone?) supporting macs and pcs in a work environment i have to say we have more hassle with the macs. saying they never crash is an understatement, they can and do especially when pushed to the limits. yes windows does crash also, it can also be made extremely stable (XP) with very little work.
Basically my experience as well. Give me any inadequate Mac or PC desktop and it will be sluggish and possibly unstable should I desire to do any significant amount of work. Other than that I have had no serious stability issues from OSX (after the very first version I believe), Win 2k, XP or Vista 64. They are all stable and quite fast, and viruses are a small problem under Windows but it's seriously so simple to avoid them that I am constantly baffled by the problems some people seem to have.

the statement about going from a 4 year old vaio to a new MBP is a bit of a non-argument. going from a 4 year old macbook to a MBP or even a new windows laptop will show a huge difference.
Again 100% true. A 4 year old computer is a 4 year old computer. It is slower than what you can get now and regardless of OS as long as the install and the hardware aren't defective and no crappy drivers or programs have been installed on top (which I've seen affect both systems but there seems to be more crap out there for Windows) then your new computer will seem like an amazing experience compared to the 4 year old one.

macs used to have the upper hand with media work, pcs have since closed the gap and are equally capable these days. imho its the older generation of media workers who are now managers that is keeping them in action. from an IT systems and support point of view itd certainly make our day easier especially integrating with mainstream windows networks lol.
Basically!

Ease of use, appearance and layout are all personal matters so if you find one preferable then you should use it! If you dislike both then explore the Linux options.

Hardware wise there are some big questions as well though. The biggest drawback for me with Apple is generally in their hardware options and configurations. I'd certainly have OSX on my bootlist on some of my computers if it were a simple, legal and affordable matter of buying and installing it to its own partition or drive.

[amscher]

For me, the choice came down to cost. I use macs often, at school mostly and would have loved to have one, but when it came time to buy a new laptop it would have cost me around $1000 or more extra to get a mbp with similar specs. And to when i purchased my pc (hp 9700) there weren't any macbooks that could hold two hd's, maybe now, there are.

[alexg]

ya... i've been a pc user for 15 years... swtiched to mac book pro last year... one month later i switched back. Couldn't stand the dumb limited finder, impossibly to configure printer divers (which i still cant get to work on a mac and don't care too waste my time)...

oh ya, if you intention is to use mac book in any way what so ever on you lap, you can forget it... you can literally get burned by it... the thing get so hot to touch it's literally painful... and it gets hot and starts fanning itself from just surfing the web and watching youtube.

I have 3 macs (ibook, macbook pro and mac mini) and 4 pcs in use at my place. I'm not bias and do recognize when things work well for me, i have 6 ipods in my house... but I can't stand OSX and absolutely hate most every mac book because of how hot they get.

[Mike55]

There's really no difference. If you buy junk, you get junk. I build my own machines(like many who would build a stereo system with fine components of different brands) and *never* have crashes.

As we enter the "new economy", people aren't going to be so willing to pay an extra $500-$1000 for a computer just because of the name.

[Colorblinded]

There's really no difference. If you buy junk, you get junk. I build my own machines(like many who would build a stereo system with fine components of different brands) and *never* have crashes.
Same on both accounts!

[JimLittle]

I never have lockups with my pc's----work just fine---Dell desktop and laptop both have met my expectations including photo processing----

[Right Cranium Imaging]

As we enter the "new economy", people aren't going to be so willing to pay an extra $500-$1000 for a computer just because of the name.

I would disagree with this 100% I work for Apple and on a Monday Tuesday or any other day especially a weekend, our stores are shoulder to shoulder with people looking at and buying computers.

I am not going to join in this debate as far as Mac vs PC, obviously I love Macs for my own reasons, I just wanted to disagree with this specific statement. Our store is located in a mall and the mall can be empty and our store is packed. If there is less than 20-30 people in our store at one time, its a slow period.

[mson]

To the OP, be sure to factor in software cost as well. Adobe did us all a great service by making Lightroom dual use, you can use your copy on Windows or OS X. We are not so lucky with Photoshop, if you switch you will need to buy another copy of PS. I'm not sure if you can just buy an upgrade or if you have to buy the full version.

[Mike55]

I would disagree with this 100% I work for Apple and on a Monday Tuesday or any other day especially a weekend, our stores are shoulder to shoulder with people looking at and buying computers.

I am not going to join in this debate as far as Mac vs PC, obviously I love Macs for my own reasons, I just wanted to disagree with this specific statement. Our store is located in a mall and the mall can be empty and our store is packed. If there is less than 20-30 people in our store at one time, its a slow period.


So you are saying Apple charges a premium for a computer with the same stats as a PC just for the name?

;)

[cosworth]

I would disagree with this 100% I work for Apple and on a Monday Tuesday or any other day especially a weekend, our stores are shoulder to shoulder with people looking at and buying computers.

I am not going to join in this debate as far as Mac vs PC, obviously I love Macs for my own reasons, I just wanted to disagree with this specific statement. Our store is located in a mall and the mall can be empty and our store is packed. If there is less than 20-30 people in our store at one time, its a slow period.


Wow so people aren't buying phones or iPods? Well I had better sell my Apple stock then. No sense in having stock in a company that JUST sells computers.

[Tony-S]

So you are saying Apple charges a premium for a computer with the same stats as a PC just for the name?

No, Apple uses the newest components (except for the Mini) that are at the top end. If you compare a MacBook Pro to a Sony laptop built on Santa Rosa/Penryn, you'll see that they cost just about the same. Where PC builders save money is by using less expensive (and oftentimes older) technologies.

[Mike55]

No, Apple uses the newest components (except for the Mini) that are at the top end. If you compare a MacBook Pro to a Sony laptop built on Santa Rosa/Penryn, you'll see that they cost just about the same. Where PC builders save money is by using less expensive (and oftentimes older) technologies.

It's the other way around. Apple had to switch to Intel because they were getting left in the dust in terms of high end performance.

I agree there are some junky PC systems out there, but there are some weak Apple ones too.

[Tony-S]

It's the other way around. Apple had to switch to Intel because they were getting left in the dust in terms of high end performance.

The switch to Intel was made because of IBM's interest in the server market and not the desktop market. But this is beside the point. Apple uses Santa Rosa/Penryn for its iMacs, MacBooks and MacBook Pros. If you compare prices of PCs built on this chipset/cpu combo, they are nearly identical in price. This combination is currently the top in its class (until Montevina/Penryn displaces it). The Mac Pro is built on server-grade logic boards and cpus that use the highest quality consumer memory you can get (and thus its high cost). Again, if you price out Win PCs with this hardware you'll find they are similar in price.

No one says that you can't build a PC for less, but you do get what you pay for in terms of the technology used.

I agree there are some junky PC systems out there, but there are some weak Apple ones too.

The only weak one is the Mini. The others are pretty much in line with PCs built on the same chipset/cpu combinations.

[Mike55]

The switch to Intel was made because of IBM's interest in the server market and not the desktop market. But this is beside the point. Apple uses Santa Rosa/Penryn for its iMacs, MacBooks and MacBook Pros. If you compare prices of PCs built on this chipset/cpu combo, they are nearly identical in price. This combination is currently the top in its class (until Montevina/Penryn displaces it). The Mac Pro is built on server-grade logic boards and cpus that use the highest quality consumer memory you can get (and thus its high cost). Again, if you price out Win PCs with this hardware you'll find they are similar in price.



No one says that you can't build a PC for less, but you do get what you pay for in terms of the technology used.

Yep. I can whip up a PC with server grade MB's and HQ CPU's, so it's not really an issue though. The only advantage is the perceived advantages to whatever O.S. you prefer. PC's do have a real advantage though in terms of software and upgradability.


The only weak one is the Mini. The others are pretty much in line with PCs built on the same chipset/cpu combinations.

I question all "built into the monitor" computers personally, especially in terms of airflow and upgradability.

[primoz]

The switch to Intel was made because of IBM's interest in the server market and not the desktop market. But this is beside the point. Apple uses Santa Rosa/Penryn for its iMacs, MacBooks and MacBook Pros. If you compare prices of PCs built on this chipset/cpu combo, they are nearly identical in price. This combination is currently the top in its class (until Montevina/Penryn displaces it). The Mac Pro is built on server-grade logic boards and cpus that use the highest quality consumer memory you can get (and thus its high cost). Again, if you price out Win PCs with this hardware you'll find they are similar in price.

That is something what big companies like Apple, Cisco, IBM... want you to believe. In reality things are different. I can't say for Apple, but I can say for Cisco for sure. Years ago original Cisco 8MB ram for router was around $800. This ram was made for Cisco by Kingston, which was selling exactly same ram, just without fancy 30x20x5cm paper box with Cisco name on it, for less then $100. And things didn't change much until now either, so I hardly believe that Apple is using so special memory, that 2GB of memory would be worth $500. Here I can get exactly same ram, with exactly same specs and probably by same manufacturer for less then $200. ;)

[primoz]

When reading this, and similar threads about benefits of Mac, I'm starting to wonder if I'm just so lucky or what. With Mac you can forget about crashes, you will never lose time recovering from blue screens anymore etc etc. I sure do agree that blue screens were normal thing back in Win95 days. But with XP, I don't remember when I saw blues screen for last time.
After we switched to Macbook Pro for laptops here in agency, I can say I had to reboot it just as many times as I had to reboot my previous Windows based laptop, because it didn't want to wake up from sleep after I closed laptop without shutting it down. As I wrote before, I like MacOS X, but mainly because of unix shell, not because it would work so much better then Windows does.
If someone has constant problems with PC crashing, I'm sure he or she will have just as many problems with Mac crashing. Afterall... if Mac wouldn't be crashing and it wouldn't have problems, I'm sure there wouldn't be bunch of webs like "Fixing Mac". ;) And one more thing... you can't compare stability and performance of sub $500 pc, and $5000 Mac Pro ;)

[René Damkot]

Apple had to switch to Intel because they were getting left in the dust in terms of high end performance.

AFAIK it was also because the G5 used so much power (and thus produced so much heat), it was impossible to build a G5 based laptop...

[Bobster]

and the cost of the CPU from IBM

[neil_g]

and the cost of the CPU from IBM

that doesnt suprise me with the cost of (non-intel) IBM kit..

[Anke]

To the OP, be sure to factor in software cost as well. Adobe did us all a great service by making Lightroom dual use, you can use your copy on Windows or OS X. We are not so lucky with Photoshop, if you switch you will need to buy another copy of PS. I'm not sure if you can just buy an upgrade or if you have to buy the full version.

I have read of people transferring their licenses across OS's but you'll have to enquire with Adobe. You might be lucky. Although seeing as its CS2 it might be easier/or necessary just to pay a small upgrade fee for CS3.

[Colorblinded]

I question all "built into the monitor" computers personally, especially in terms of airflow and upgradability.
I'm not much of a fan of that form factor either. Apple really needs to release the "Mac" tower using standard Intel Core 2 Duo and Quad processors.

When reading this, and similar threads about benefits of Mac, I'm starting to wonder if I'm just so lucky or what. With Mac you can forget about crashes, you will never lose time recovering from blue screens anymore etc etc. I sure do agree that blue screens were normal thing back in Win95 days. But with XP, I don't remember when I saw blues screen for last time.
After we switched to Macbook Pro for laptops here in agency, I can say I had to reboot it just as many times as I had to reboot my previous Windows based laptop, because it didn't want to wake up from sleep after I closed laptop without shutting it down. As I wrote before, I like MacOS X, but mainly because of unix shell, not because it would work so much better then Windows does.
If someone has constant problems with PC crashing, I'm sure he or she will have just as many problems with Mac crashing. Afterall... if Mac wouldn't be crashing and it wouldn't have problems, I'm sure there wouldn't be bunch of webs like "Fixing Mac". ;) And one more thing... you can't compare stability and performance of sub $500 pc, and $5000 Mac Pro ;)

Exactly the same thing I am always saying. People seem to have accepted the hype from Apple's ads but I've never seen a difference in stability to be honest. Before OSX and Win 2k both operating systems were awfully unstable in my experience, from that point on (barring stability problems people had with ME and many people seemed to have had with Leopard) they both have been very solid.

[Doobsy]

iPhoto that comes with a Mac is awesome. You don't really need any more software (unless you're a full pro).
Other options are Aperture and you can still get all the Adobe software.
I used PC's forever and have recently switched.
There are some slight differences but once you get used to something slightly different, you realise they're SO much easier to use really.
PS. I've just joined so please don't think I'm an apple plant but to not have to download software for either of my Canon's or my printer or anything to consolidate the process of setting up my new hobby/love is just really cool.
Plus they look awesome.

[mattograph]

iPhoto that comes with a Mac is awesome. You don't really need any more software (unless you're a full pro).
Other options are Aperture and you can still get all the Adobe software.
I used PC's forever and have recently switched.
There are some slight differences but once you get used to something slightly different, you realise they're SO much easier to use really.
PS. I've just joined so please don't think I'm an apple plant but to not have to download software for either of my Canon's or my printer or anything to consolidate the process of setting up my new hobby/love is just really cool.
Plus they look awesome.


The only thing I have ever read that seems to cause folks problems when they use aperture or iphoto concerns new cameras. Since Apple runs their software upgrades through system updates, its been reported that they are slower at getting RAW support updates out to their users. So, if you buy a recently introduced camera body, like the 5D MK II (we can hope!) you may wait longer than the adobe users for the software to recognize the RAW files.

[neil_g]

I'm not much of a fan of that form factor either. Apple really needs to release the "Mac" tower using standard Intel Core 2 Duo and Quad processors.

i'll eat my toggin' hat if that ever happens.. they like to keep control over their products too much imho..

to not have to download software for either of my Canon's or my printer or anything to consolidate the process of setting up my new hobby/love is just really cool.

native XP drivers for canon stuff do actually work a lot of the time. i use the native 20D driver and it hasnt failed me yet.. :)

[Colorblinded]

i'll eat my toggin' hat if that ever happens.. they like to keep control over their products too much imho..
Apple does a lot of stupid things, this is but just one of many!

[Tony-S]

...so I hardly believe that Apple is using so special memory, that 2GB of memory would be worth $500. Here I can get exactly same ram, with exactly same specs and probably by same manufacturer for less then $200. ;)

The Mac Pros use PC6400 ECC RAM, which is why it's more expensive than typical RAM. But all their other Macs use plain ole vanilla 200 pin chips. Even then, Apple still screws people on the prices.

BTW - I'm planning to make it to Slovenia in a few years. It's my paternal homeland...

[Tony-S]

I'm not much of a fan of that form factor either. Apple really needs to release the "Mac" tower using standard Intel Core 2 Duo and Quad processors.

I doubt this will happen (which is why I built my own Mac). Apple is into quiet, compact computers (other than the MP). This is why all their other computers are built with notebook chipsets - to minimize heat and thus minimal fan noise. My 24" office iMac has a fan in it, but I've only heard it come on a few times in the year and a half that I've owned it. The fan on my MBP, on the other hand, makes quite a bit of racket when it comes on (Aperture really pushes it).

[Colorblinded]

I'd have to respectfully disagree about the quiet bit! Apple laptops sound like airplanes taking off when their fans kick in which they seem to often, same with my MacMini.

[mattograph]

I'd have to respectfully disagree about the quiet bit! Apple laptops sound like airplanes taking off when their fans kick in which they seem to often, same with my MacMini.

Indeed. Not to mention the vacuum loaded dvd drives!

[Colorblinded]

Oh yeah, definitely not a fan of slot loaders.

[Tony-S]

I'd have to respectfully disagree about the quiet bit! Apple laptops sound like airplanes taking off when their fans kick in which they seem to often, same with my MacMini.

Please re-read my post about my MBP.

[Colorblinded]

Please re-read my post about my MBP.
I did read it, you contradicted yourself.

[Tony-S]

No, I just noted it was an exception.

[Right Cranium Imaging]

So you are saying Apple charges a premium for a computer with the same stats as a PC just for the name?

;)

To a certain extent yes. Apple is very big on presentation. Even Apple bags are high quality as strange as that sounds. The iPhone 3G bag was special made just for the release. Even the tickets that were handed out for iPhones were embossed with the silver iPhone 3G logo. This all comes at somewhat of a premium cost. Sure for a lot of people it is unnecessary, but there are many many people who have no problem paying for it. Its like Nordstrom they have cotton t-shirts that are 40-50 dollars. Cotton is cotton, you are paying for the customer service experience and the name. Other are fine with target, ultimately it is still just a t-shirt. I have seen many people come in with a laptop box for a laptop 4-5 years old still in mint condition. We had people come back for the iPhone bag After they already had their phone because we ran out. Some Apple people are just strange like that. I will tell you one thing though, it is awesome to work for a company that has such a huge dedicated following. Sure there are people that come in with issues and problems as with any electronic device this is going to happen. However, 90% of the people I work with are amazed by our products and excited to use and learn them. When they come in with friends their friends are over excited to show them this or that feature. It makes for a much better day when you love your job and your customers, to see so many people leave so excited. Is it for everyone, no obviously not, but all major companies us a customer service/company satisfaction rating called NPS or Net Promoter Score. The average score for a company is between 35 and 45% Apple as a company is between the 70 - 80% mark consistently. That has to say something about the product and the service.

[Right Cranium Imaging]

Wow so people aren't buying phones or iPods? Well I had better sell my Apple stock then. No sense in having stock in a company that JUST sells computers.


Nice work on assuming what I was saying, your sarcasm is much appreciated. The iPhone has only been out for a month and it was like that long before the iphone, sure people are buying ipods but honestly, I sell 2-3 computers for every iPod.

[mattograph]

Nice work on assuming what I was saying, your sarcasm is much appreciated. The iPhone has only been out for a month and it was like that long before the iphone, sure people are buying ipods but honestly, I sell 2-3 computers for every iPod.

That makes sense. A consumer has many places to go to pick up an ipod. In most markets, if you want an apple computer, you can go to the apple store, if you have one, best buy, or maybe a local authorized reseller.

And while we are on the topic, can you tell somebody at apple to start stocking firewire card readers!!!!:)

[cosworth]

http://www.geocities.com/oldhome1898/GACommendationMedal.JPG

[Colorblinded]

No, I just noted it was an exception.
I was saying I don't think there are that many exceptions. Once you start using Macs, most of them get fairly noisy in my expeirence!

[Right Cranium Imaging]

And while we are on the topic, can you tell somebody at apple to start stocking firewire card readers!!!!:)

Agree with that! :)

[neil_g]

all their other computers are built with notebook chipsets - to minimize heat and thus minimal fan noise.

i seem to remember there being an issue with mb's and/or mbp's running hot? or am i thinking of something else?

[ViciousCircle]

Just piping in here with my opinion (not sure what it's worth though). I use both, and I still prefer my pc's. I use both pretty equally throughout the day, and right now, I tend to have to reboot my mac more than I do the pc. I have PC's running both XP SP3, and Vista SP1, and they are far more stable than pc's used to be.

The other advantage of a pc, to me at least, is the ease with which I can change out components if they go bad, or if I want to upgrade them.

[Colorblinded]

And while we are on the topic, can you tell somebody at apple to start stocking firewire card readers!!!!:)

Wait, why does Apple have to stock them? You know you can buy them elsewhere, right? ;)

i seem to remember there being an issue with mb's and/or mbp's running hot? or am i thinking of something else?
A lot of their laptops run pretty damn hot... not sure if there was anything in particular about the MB or MBP models.

[mattograph]

Wait, why does Apple have to stock them? You know you can buy them elsewhere, right? ;)




Oh yeah.....

Never mind!!!

And another thing.......

Can we get some hotties working in the Louisville, KY store. Seriously, all the folks that work there are stubby, tubby, bald guys -- if I want to deal with that, I'll go home and shoot some selfies!!!:)

[primoz]

Welcome to Slovenia, even if in few years :) Let me know when you will be around :)

[wrussi]

i just bought a imac 24in. while i paid a little over 200 bucks for a similarly spec'd pc the mac has OSX which IMO beats vista hands down ( im not talking about xp because thats a different story they are both at the same level IMO but xp is gone now) it looks cool and its just a breeze to work in. while its true that you wont get spyware or viruses i agree that the mac will freeze if you overwork it so to the people that say a mac never freezes they havent used it for heavy duty work but of cousre it doesnt freezes as much as windows thats for sure! and the best thing is that i got a free ipod touch! so if you count the ipod's 299 price i got my imac for about 100 dollars less than a similarly specd dell XPS with a high def 24 in screen.

[ohtoberich]

There are so many different configurations, so it's difficult to compare the platforms. An iMac and a Mac Pro are pretty different machines! I have some friends who are big fans of Aperture, which is Mac only.

By the way, Lightroom 2 runs 64 bit on Mac 10.5 and Vista x64 (so you might be more likely to be running 64 bit on a Mac).

[bomzai]

Agreed......no crashing with the Mac.....my pc crashes way too much.

Wow... makes me wonder what are you doing to your PCs...

Then again, if Mac has simpler interface and you only need to run a handlful of programs, I can see the benefit.

[Mike55]

i just bought a imac 24in. while i paid a little over 200 bucks for a similarly spec'd pc the mac has OSX which IMO beats vista hands down ( im not talking about xp because thats a different story they are both at the same level IMO but xp is gone now) it looks cool and its just a breeze to work in. while its true that you wont get spyware or viruses i agree that the mac will freeze if you overwork it so to the people that say a mac never freezes they havent used it for heavy duty work but of cousre it doesnt freezes as much as windows thats for sure! and the best thing is that i got a free ipod touch! so if you count the ipod's 299 price i got my imac for about 100 dollars less than a similarly specd dell XPS with a high def 24 in screen.

Nice deal.