Mac vs PC or Apple vs Microsoft

7
Posted on 3 September 2008 Reviews

Go search on Google and you will find over 2 million results. The debate will never end, but after reading Gary’s post on buying a Dell and his subsequent comments, I thought I’d post my 2 cents here.

I made the switch over to Mac (by buying a Macbook Pro) about 2 months ago. That being said, I still own a pretty powerful desktop PC that dual boots XP and Vista that my Fiance uses or I use on the odd occasion when my Macbook is out of reach.

My thoughts

I honestly think that Apple’s OS is a lot easier to use and navigate for an end user than both XP or Vista. I also think that Apple hardware is a lot more robust and is prone to failure a lot less than any PC / laptop brands – Dell, HP, Acer etc. It’s not the sexiness factor that sells, its the simple things that make a huge difference – like the magnetic power connection – ever had someone trip over your power cable? With a Mac, the cable just snaps out. On a laptop? Hope and pray that when you pick up your laptop from the floor it still works.

But what about when your Mac breaks? All laptops and Macbooks come with a warranty, and after that, yes a Mac is more expensive to fix, but refer to my previous argument – Apple’s hardware failure rate is way less than any other brand.

How about the software?

Macbooks run Apple OSX and laptops run Windows XP / Vista. A Macbook can also run XP / Vista. So that pretty much covers all the software you think a Mac doesn’t have. But before you go running to parralells or Bootcamp, search the web for mac equivalents to your favourite software. In all cases I have found that the application has a mac version, or there is an alternative on a Mac (that are far sexier and easier to use!)

That being said, I have absolutely no need for any software that runs exclusively on Windows – desktop software is dying (Google Chrome anyone?), and all I really need is a browser and an internet connection.

@Gary – Pastel will run on a Mac, and who actually uses that software that comes with a Canon digital camera? Use iPhoto / Photoshop / Flickr. :-)

All of this being said, if you make your money from Windows desktop software, or are a .Net developer, sure, stick with Windows. They own the OS market and make companies and software developers tons of cash. I’ve worked for 2 companies that did just that – so I’ll never knock Windows development. I also think .Net is an awesome programming language that kicks some serious ass on desktop and the web. Ask Acceleration or Blueworld. ;-)

In the end, stick to your bread and butter. But if you are an individual that emails, writes documents and surfs the web, or a web developer that programs using PHP, Rails, Python or most open source languages, or a graphics designer, or a video editor, consider trying a Mac.

And for those of you that haven’t tried using a Mac (and playing with one in an iStore doesn’t count), can you really write something off you haven’t tried?

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  • http://www.lesleydean.com Lesley Dean

    Hey Jason,

    I agree with most of what you say, though I have never had the opportunity to use a MacBook. :(

    Thanks too for the Acceleration link! My team was just saying the other day how we want to trade in our HP Laptops for Apples, and run XP / Vista on a Virtual Machine for development! We reckon that would be far more stable! :)

    Cheers,

    Les.

  • http://www.strategyonline.co.za/blog Gary James

    Hi J,

    We agree to disagree then. :)

    As you say, if you use a computer to surf the internet and write emails, then I’m sure Apple is okay. But if you’re a grown up then you’ll probably need a real computer that runs Windows.

    (Tongue very much in cheek…)

    I know of one guy who did buy an Apple and then installed Windows onto it, and as Les says – you can run Windows as a VM. But what’s the point? It’s going to be slower and a lot more expensive. Granted, it will look pretty.

    Gary.

  • http://www.lesleydean.com Lesley Dean

    Hey Gary,

    As far as I know, a MacBook is not that much more expensive than a top of the line Dell / HP / etc. The point is, that is it way more reliable and stable. So, the only things you’d be running on your Windows VM would be Clarion and Visual Studio. For the rest, you work in a stable (and sexy ;-) ) environment! I don’t think the speed would be a problem.

    Look, I’ve never owned a Mac, and have only ever put up with M$ / PC equipment, so I can’t do a valid comparison. I am not likely to get a Mac anytime soon either, but it would be interesting to try one, even for Windows development, and see what it’s really like.

    Les.

  • http://www.jasonbagley.com Jason

    @Gary – If I had a spare Macbook, I would loan it to you to try out. :-) You perception would definitely change. But I do see where you are coming from – M$ paid for that roof over your head – and I ain’t going to argue about that!

    @Les – The stability and reliability is definitely true – but as I have said all along, if you a M$ developer, stick with your bread and butter. That being said, I hope M$ have learnt from Vista and when Windows 7 comes out, it will be the “next XP” ;-)

    I wonder if there are any .Net / M$ developers out there using an Apple? Would be interesting to hear about how that actually works out.

  • Anonymous

    I have found that your notice that PC Computers crash is biased on extremely old knowledge that should be updated.

    I also find that Mac computers are horrible at large networking situations. Where I once worked they used Mac computers and you could hear people speaking of the “Spinning Wheel of Death” cubicles away.

    I have unfortunately been unable to work on individual Mac computers a numerous amount of times, so I cannot speak of any large amount of lag.

    I have used Virtual PC on Mac and I find that this is a slow and time consuming process. I would suggest getting a PC and downloading Ubuntu or another Linux distribution. They are free.

    I have also found that it is pretty easy to emulate the advantages of Mac computers. I love the dock that allows quick access to applications, although I have one on my Windows Vista using laptop.

  • Devin Kooker

    I like Windows XP and Vista better, because Macs sometimes can be alot slower, and i think Windows computers work better, and sometimes, on Mac, when you actually are connected to the internet, but then open an internet browser, like Safari, it will say that you are not connected to the internet. I am a PC.

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