looking to buy a laptop for college

[Maluco]

so i've been saving up my past few paychecks and i'm looking to invest in a nice laptop. i would say my budget is around 1600...maybe 1800 depending on if i find the money worth it.

i've been looking into the:

sony vaio S 2011
macbook pro 15" 2011

the reason i don't really want to get the macbook pro is because it's overpriced for what it really is.

what are you guys using?

Get a macbook pro 15".. I'm sure you don't want to be dealing with windows crashing every time for no reason and windows likes to get infected (virus, spyware etc.)

Just get an apple and there will be less headaches..

Whoally fk :shock: on how much some people spend on laptops and Whoally LMAO on the crashing and infections thing!

I spent under $300 for a brand new emachines laptop (see specs-tacular below) and less than $40 for an external drive for backing up my files. I leave all kinds of apps open, hardly ever restart, surf mad porn and other crazy sites and here I am almost two years later with no problems.

Had an awesome time with the remaining $1200 as well, haha! If this shit crashes, trash and repeat step 1. :pimp:

Sheeeeeeeit.

There's a special right now where you get an Xbox 360 for buying a particular type of windows laptop. Saw something about it on the previews of the last movie I went to see. I'd still buy my emachine and then just go buy a 360!

[Wishno87]

I just dual boot my MBP. Best of both worlds.

[phreshkid]

Am I the only young guy that doesn't play video games? Last system I had was a ps1 and last computer game I had was counter strike CZ. 5 years ago.

[Moxie]

I know lots of PC guys will disagree with me, but I would highly suggest the MacBook. I know the specs on the Sony look better on the surface, but you have to keep in mind that OS X is much more efficient than Windows. For instance, when I switched to Mac, I went from a Vaio with a 2.5ghz processor and 1gb of ram to a powerbook that had a 1.5ghz processor and 512mb of ram. The power book GREATLY outperformed the Vaio.

Since I made the switch, I've worked in a mac lab (psychology) with my masters advisor and I now work in a PC lab again with my PhD advisor. The PC's (brand new Lenovos) are incredibly frustrating to work with. I actually just had to deal with a virus on our servers, and damn near wanted to shoot myself by the time it was dealt with. That's something I've never had to deal with on Macs.

Also consider that the MBP would be much more versatile. You get all the perks of OS X and you can still run Windows if necessary. I run Windows 7 all the time to program in visual studio using Parallels. Honestly I think it runs Windows as well if not better than most PC's. Apple also makes some incredible proprietary software (Final Cut, Soundtrack, Aperture, etc.). I'm not sure how concerned you are about backups, but time machine and superduper make making bootable backups MUCH easier than PC. Just a few things to consider.

Just keep in mind that you can always run Windows on a Mac, but not vice versa.

[element6]

Just keep in mind that you can always run Windows on a Mac, but not vice versa.

Wrong. This isn't something new either.. but the common computer user is going to continue to have the repercussions of this misconception for years.

You can load MacOS on a PC and you can load Windows on a Mac as long as it's Intel based.

You can even run VMware on both and run Windows inside MacOS in a window, or run MacOS within Windows in a window. (yo dawg, I heard you liked windows...) Although running MacOS within Windows using VMware doesn't comply with Apples EULA and therefore is not officially supported by VMware, it is 100% possible and functional and many do it.

Both systems go both ways. Same architecture since mid 2000s. PowerPC is dead. Traditionally, PC's as we commonly refer to them use x86 arch.



People will beat at this debate forever.. most people will argue about viruses not being on MacOS, better support, more people that get paid $10/hr at their local fruit store to pretend they can help you out.. etc, etc.

A solid foundation of computer knowledge isn't for everyone. For most people picking up a laptop, it's all about that polished aluminum status symbol with the glowing white apple and attention grabbing boot chime.

I have been an engineer for years.. I worked for Apple for a couple years, and no; not in their ridiculous stores. I certainly am not going to promote one manufacturer over another.. not even if they are paying me.


OP, if I was back in college and needed to make every dollar count, I'd honestly go with a used but very close to new laptop that was well cared for.. and that was exactly what I did. I had a 6 month old IBM (this was before Lenovo merger) at the time that I got every penny out of. It lasted me through school and until I had the money to buy what I wanted.

Be honest with yourself; are you going to school because you actually want to learn something that interests you and put your skills to good use? Or are you going so you can whip out that easily bendable piece of Chinese aluminum that is going to be in the trash in no more than 8 years?



Good luck with your new PC; good luck at school.


Before you criticize me for being some angry PC guy; you should know that I am writing this on my MacBook Air running Win7.
I also own and use a Mac Pro desktop, iPad, iPod touch, the newer iPod nano, AppleTV, an Android phone (HTC Speedy), and tons of other consumer electronics.

Partial apple lineup:


You know what I use the most though?

This PC:



Old picture from before I moved.

When I am at work, it's RedHat and Solaris 70% of the time.. the other 30% is Windows Server.. not many people in the real world running those Apple Xservs anymore. One of my sites actually has a stack of 15 of them waiting for auction I guess. They're worthless now, but I really did like them upon introduction. I find the good in everything; trust me.. I wouldn't be in this industry if I didn't like most of the stuff I see.

[selturk]

Come on Maluco.. comparing emachines to MacBook is like comparing BMW to Honda lol..
This is basically what you are saying "Why not buy a Honda for half the money and keep the extra cash in your pocket. It's reliable and good on gas etc..."

:)))

[Bimmerman325i]

Here's what I did: built a pretty baller desktop instead. I had a hand-me-down 4yr old laptop that I used when needed, but as an engineering student, the times I truly needed a laptop are exactly none. I had no problems using the computers in the labs (they are all PCs fwiw).

I got much better value for my money going with the desktop and not carting around a laptop. You really don't need a portable computer in college as much as you think you do. Get a nice desktop for doing work on and if you really want, get a $300 netbook or a used laptop to supplement.

[element6]

comparing emachines to MacBook is like comparing BMW to Honda

That would be a good point.. but it doesn't apply to laptops. It would work if say, BMW used Honda drivetrains, electronics, etc in their cars, but they don't.

To the same accord, nearly every laptop for sale out there has the same exact innards.


Here's an example;

Acer owns Gateway, eMachines is a subsidiary of Gateway. Acer is a client of Foxconn; which manufacture all of their printed circuit boards. Foxconn manufactures eMachines.

Apple is a client of Foxconn. Foxconn manufactures and assembles nearly EVERYTHING that Apple "produces."


Those two laptops came from the same place, with very similar inner components and different shells. They could have been manufactured only a few thousand feet from each other.

Hope that clears some things up ;)

Wish I had more reference material; but here you go:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foxconn#Clients

http://www.thedoah.com/voices/excuse-me-i-can-t-help-but-notice-the-blood-on-your-keyboard-1.2486835

[imsotyerred]

Get a macbook pro 15".. I'm sure you don't want to be dealing with windows crashing every time for no reason and windows likes to get infected (virus, spyware etc.)

Just get an apple and there will be less headaches..

how does steve jobs's dick taste?

[delatlanta1281]

I just bought an HPG72, 17inch 500 gig for @ 500 bucks. Go to office depot and look at their open box buys.

[87e30]

Logical debating aside, I've had my MBP for over 2 years and still to this day just using it makes me happy. It works so easily and it doubles as artwork.

PCs are a better value, but sometimes you pay for that intangible feeling you get from something. (And a company which I like to support)

[Kershaw]

I just bought an HPG72, 17inch 500 gig for @ 500 bucks. Go to office depot and look at their open box buys.

how do you like carrying around your 9+ pound desktop replacement?

i think a lot of people miss how important WEIGHT is in a laptop. weight is what makes things easily PORTABLE. which is one of the main criteria of a good laptop. the other is battery life. those 2 are probably a laptops most important criteria. because if you really start caring too much about the cpu and hard drive speeds you should just get a desktop. i'll take my 5 and a half pound laptop over your 9+ dead weight any day, i dont care if have a faster cpu or a 7200rpm hard drive.

to make matters worse (for your argument) its a macbook pro imitation.

[gearheadE30]

I use (and am using as I type this) a Dell Studio 15 1558, with the intel core I7 820m, better screen, radeon 5470 graphics card, 6 gigs of ram, 500 gig hard drive, 9cell battery. So far it's been a great college computer. Plenty of power for 3d modeling if you're going into engineering, and enough gpu power to run Crysis reasonably well. It's not terribly heavy, and I get about 2 hours of battery life under normal use.

[Kershaw]

2 hours, omg. and that's with the extended battery?

lol.

[Moxie]

Both systems go both ways.

False. You need pretty specific hardware to get OS X to run reliably. You can't just go trying to install Snow Leopard on any old PC. True, you might be able to do some kind of hack something to a virtual machine software and run it in a virtual environment. But as I stated... with Mac, you can ALWAYS run Windows (reliably and legally), but on a PC, you cannot ALWAYS (as in 'necessarily') run OS X. I did not (and this was intentional) state that it CANNOT work both ways. It CAN work both ways, but again not always, and not always reliably if it does.