PC to Mac: Thinking of Making the Change.

[Achán hiNidráne]

As I stated in an earlier post, my Gateway 400 Mhz is going long in the tooth and is just not suiting my computer needs anymore. I know I'm going to have to upgrade soon, but now I'm thinking that perhaps know would be a good time to look into a Mac. Since price is sort on an object right now, I'm seriously considering buying a Mac Mini rather than a full sized iMac. I've already got everything else I'll need (monitor, mouse, keyboard)

What do you guys think?

[geni]

I think linux is cheaper.

[BirdyBuddy]

A Mac mini is a fine place to start, as you already have all the other stuff. Will you have much to transfer, or you planning to start fresh? An external hard drive is about the only other thing I'd suggest for backup/extra storage.

[elgarak]

I say, go for it.

I got a MacBook last year, and I'm extremely happy.

Definitely get an external HD for backup. How large is your Gateway's HD? If it's large enough, you just need an external enclosure, copy your files off it, re-format, and use it as backup, like a Time Machine drive.

[Tsukasa Buddha]

There is a thread with over 2,000 posts of people waiting for the mini's update on a Mac forum. And about a year ago word was that they were going to EOL it. Now it seems to just linger on in a twilight of perpetually increasing insignificance...

But if you already have the rest of the stuff, and you want a Mac, then it would be your best value. If you are looking for best value overall, though, a PC would be better.

There has been the debate of people wanting a mid-range mac for people who don't want an iMac but who's power needs are between a mini and a Pro. They ussually end up going for a Hackintosh, like Pystar. Of course, that makes updating messy.

But is still a Hell of a lot better than 400 Mhz :p .

[elgarak]

True, the Mini hasn't been updated in a while. Hold off till tomorrow, at least.

That said, the Mini is definitely a large step forward from 400 MHz.

[Ysidro]

And yet another Jedi is redeemed. Don't go Mark! Stay with the Dark Side! We have cookies! And poorly thought out commercials with washed up comedians!

[rjwould]

Just keep your old computer and install Ubuntu on it. Mac was originally based on Unix anyway I believe, and thats what makes it better than windows. My daughters boyfriend has a Mac. She likes it and almost bought one as she is a professional photographer. I showed her Ubuntu and Goolge's Picasa, so she got herself a PC, ditched windows, had me install Ubuntu and Picasa, and she has not looked back since. She has saved a ton of money doing it that way.

Open source is the way to go...IMO.:)

[Almo]

I recently forked $3000 for a Mac Pro... I'm very happy with it. I even have a Win XP partition in case I need windows for something (like EVEMon). Obviously there are cheaper macs, like the iMac. But either way, they're very nice computers.

If you don't mind the need to tinker with your computer, a Linux solution might work for you as well. Unless you have a friend who will install it and get everything working for you.

[rjwould]

If you don't mind the need to tinker with your computer, a Linux solution might work for you as well. Unless you have a friend who will install it and get everything working for you.You really don't need to tinker with Ubuntu anymore than any other tech help for windows or mac. Everything just pretty much works these days.

[malbui]

I've long been running Windows and various flavours of Linux, but earlier this year I bought a second-hand Mac Mini (1.5GHz, decent spec) purely for handling digital video and playing with Garage Band. I find myself using that machine more and more and can foresee myself shunting everything over onto it (or a more powerful younger sibling) before too long.

[Almo]

You really don't need to tinker with Ubuntu anymore than any other tech help for windows or mac. Everything just pretty much works these days.

I would have to see it to believe it. I was told that before, and when shown by the person, it wasn't true.

[Tsukasa Buddha]

Yeah, Ubuntu can be good, depending on your needs.

I, for instance, need it to work with my midi keyboard, and believe me it is Hell to get it to even make the most basic tones.

[Eddie Dane]

Depends what you'll use it for, I suppose.

I tried Ubuntu. And I still run it on my old PC. It's great!
But I wanted to use it for editing video. The open source video editing software was horrid and unintuitive.

That is the only reason I forked out all this money for a Mac.
I would have stuck with Ubuntu if the music and video software had met my requirements.

If anyone could point me to some good software solutions for these, I'd still be interested. Suggestions welcome.

To answer the OP:
Apple is superior to an Ubuntu (or other open source system) on a number of points. Notably:
The hardware is quiet. That doesn't sound important now, but it's a luxury that I got used to very quickly.
The interface isn't good, it's great.
The programs are intuitive, solid and work out of the box.

If you use your box for office tasks and Internet, give Linux a go.
It might save you a lot of money.

Eddie

[lumos]

If price is an issue, you can buy a far more powerful PC for half the price of a Mac.

If you like the MacOS and Mac proprietary hardware and software, then pay the premium and buy a Mac.

Vista has been a good OS.

[Leftus]

I've never heard anyone use the phrase "money is an obstical" and "going with a Mac" together. If I read the specs right, you will likely need a new keyboard and mouse or dongles for them because I suspect yours aren't USB. But I could be wrong.

If you don't plan on upgrading and just replacing it in X years it's the right route. X being roughly the same amount of time you have had your current computer.

[OneDollarWilliam]

Just to play PC advocate for a moment: If money is an issue a PC might still be your best choice. Places like the Dell Factory Outlet ( dell dot com search outlet) have fairly high powered Dimension desktops (Quad Core processor, 4Gb RAM, 500 Gb HD, Etc.) for the same price as the Mac Mini ($599). It's not a Mac, but it is cheap, and if you are already familiar with Windows turning off all the new "features" in Vista is pretty easy.

[TMiguel]

It is impressive how often on a debate mac vs pc the linux is mentioned. I would just want point out how inappropriate a misinformed a person must be to make this obvious mistake.
Linux us an “operating system” that you mostly will run on a Pc, not a computer of its own. On a Mac vs Windows, yeah Linux could pop out but it clearly says Pc, so he is talking about computer policy and not the program managing it.
And yes Mac has a computer policy is completely rubbish, you are essentially stuck whit the standard sold equipment, whiteout a great capability of customizing the characteristics. You will basically run into a major deal of trouble if you try to use external hardware, and if you are thinking on upgrading the machine, on mac it means essentially throw the old one in the trash can and get a completely new one, capability goes straight down the drain.
If you want a universal machine (which is the essence of a computer) the pc will deliver just that, and it is pretty pointless to have a mac.

[jwwalker]

Mac was originally based on Unix anyway I believe, and thats what makes it better than windows.

Mac OS X has a foundation derived from FreeBSD Unix, but the Mac OS has a history way before then, which hasn't all been discarded.

The main reason I might think twice before buying a mini is that I have a need for 3D graphics, and the mini has the lousy Intel integrated graphics rather than a real video card. I have a Mac Pro at work and a MacBook Pro at home.

[jwwalker]

And yes Mac has a computer policy is completely rubbish, you are essentially stuck whit the standard sold equipment, whiteout a great capability of customizing the characteristics. You will basically run into a major deal of trouble if you try to use external hardware, and if you are thinking on upgrading the machine, on mac it means essentially throw the old one in the trash can and get a completely new one, capability goes straight down the drain.

Some Macs are more customizable than others (with the mini, mentioned by the OP, being one of the least customizable). But what do you mean about external hardware? There's certainly no problem using external hard drives, printers, monitors, pointing devices, and keyboards.

[TMiguel]

Some Macs are more customizable than others (with the mini, mentioned by the OP, being one of the least customizable). But what do you mean about external hardware? There's certainly no problem using external hard drives, printers, monitors, pointing devices, and keyboards.

Definetively not external hardrivers! Nor new hardware.

[geni]

It is impressive how often on a debate mac vs pc the linux is mentioned. I would just want point out how inappropriate a misinformed a person must be to make this obvious mistake.
Linux us an “operating system” that you mostly will run on a Pc, not a computer of its own. On a Mac vs Windows, yeah Linux could pop out but it clearly says Pc, so he is talking about computer policy and not the program managing it.

I doubt it since in terms of harware PC is the obvious choice. It's the software on top of that that means the descision is more than nominal.

[TMiguel]

I doubt it since in terms of harware PC is the obvious choice. It's the software on top of that that means the descision is more than nominal.
That makes no sense.

[Wudang]

It is impressive how often on a debate mac vs pc the linux is mentioned. I would just want point out how inappropriate a misinformed a person must be to make this obvious mistake.


No, since money was an issue the person who raised linux quite sensibly suggested that installing linux might squeeze a little more performance out of his PC as linux distros can be quite lean.

[jwwalker]

Definetively not external hardrivers! Nor new hardware.

Huh? I have a bunch of external hard drives (FireWire and USB), and no problem with them. And what specifically do you mean by "nor new hardware"?

[TMiguel]

No, since money was an issue the person who raised linux quite sensibly suggested that installing linux might squeeze a little more performance out of his PC as linux distros can be quite lean.

It is still a pc ain't it? not a completely new thing.

For jwwalker:
Probably I have extremely bad luck of trying several usb pens on several different Mac machines and only few of them worked.

[Wudang]

It is still a pc ain't it? not a completely new thing.

I presume there's some sort of point lurking in there? It's a possible solution to the opening post.

[GreyICE]

I presume there's some sort of point lurking in there? It's a possible solution to the opening post.

He's just our latest in a long line of foreign trolls who want to show off. Think Matteo or Oliver.

[TMiguel]

He's just our latest in a long line of foreign trolls who want to show off. Think Matteo or Oliver.
Great, 2 days here and I already have a stalker.

[OneDollarWilliam]

I really think it's just a syntax confusion. TMiguel is speaking strictly in terms of hardware while the rest of us are speaking of the software. TMiguel is correct as far as his thought goes e.g. Linux and Windows run on the traditional Intel/IBM platform (aka PC), and OSX runs only on Mac hardware (which is of course ALSO intel based these days).

[rwp]

Mark,

Do you have the confidence to build your own PC? You can have a lot more power for a substantially smaller price. In addition, you only add and pay for what you need and can add new components at any time.

You can install both Linux and Windows in a double-boot configuration and see which one meets your needs by testing them over a long period of time.

If you're curious about Mac, then find a place to try it out for a while. Find out if all of your software is available for Mac and keep in mind that you will have to buy all new software unless you only use the OS pre-installed software anyway.

What's your budget for your new computer?

[elgarak]

Mark, in case you are still interested in the Mac Mini:

Rumor has it that Apple will announce/release updated Macs on October 14th. There seems to be indication that the update will include the Mac Mini.

[elgarak]

Double post.

[Wudang]

:crowded:I really think it's just a syntax confusion. TMiguel is speaking strictly in terms of hardware while the rest of us are speaking of the software. TMiguel is correct as far as his thought goes e.g. Linux and Windows run on the traditional Intel/IBM platform (aka PC), and OSX runs only on Mac hardware (which is of course ALSO intel based these days).

Nah, the rest of us are just are trying to help the guy with some friendly suggestions.

[HarryKeogh]

Mark, in case you are still interested in the Mac Mini:

Rumor has it that Apple will announce/release updated Macs on October 14th. There seems to be indication that the update will include the Mac Mini.

Good advice.

here's the page to the Macrumors.com buyer's guide (http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/) where they tell you if it's a good time to buy. They recommend to hold off on the Mac Mini

Product Mac mini Recommendation: Don't Buy - Updates soon Last Release August 07, 2007 Days Since Update 401 (Avg = 188)