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Any Mac Users Still Up? Question About Them...


Wxchic

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We are thinking of getting DD a Mac for her 20th birthday. Nothing fancy, just the MacBook with 1g...she doesn't run any special programs.

 

Does that MacBook come with Leopard? Does anyone know? And if you have a 1g macbook, are you happy with it or would you rather have 2g?

 

Did anyone get theirs at Best Buy? Did you get the extra Best Buy warranty?

 

Finally, if you are running Photoshop, would a MacBook be OK or is a MacBook Pro better?

 

Thanks! You guys are great!!

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Apple computers come with a 1 year warranty and that's all I have ever gotten. I have never had to take advantage of it either. I don't think I would trust anyone at the Geek Squad to fix a mac. Best Buy has only been selling macs for a short time and IF you had a problem, I suggest you go straight to Apple.

 

We have purchased all our our new macs directly from Apple [online] and have never had any problems.

 

I have only owned desktops, so I can't help with laptop info. All new Apples are shipping with Leopard.

 

Good luck on your purchase! So, you are slowly switching hubby over, hmmmm.

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I have just gotten a mac laptop, been a windows user for >15yrs. LOVE it so far. I would not get it from Best buy though, go through Apple. I am lucky enough to have an Apple store in town, did there "personal shopper" option. You can make an appt, go right in and have 1st rate access to "your" salesperson, who will answer all questions, show your software, compare models, etc. It was GREAT! (and I'm usually the one ducking the sales guys....) I got the macbook air though, so can't really offer opinion on the mac book, but I think (from my shopper) that the macbook pro is if she's doing stuff more graphics intensive (digiscrapping?!). Regular macbook should be just fine for college/or schoolwork, web, email, etc. I also saw the new versions have the upgraded processors too, so that should help things along.

Anyway, good luck and have fun! :)

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T,

Unfortunately I have no info about Macs, but a good friend of mine was on the Geek Squad at Best Buy and he does not recommend the extended warranty on computers.

HTH

 

also agree here - I have had these on some of my pc's, all they do is send it off to the manufacturer anyway, you lose it for 3 weeks or more. MAYBE get it fixed. better to get warranty from the manufacturer direct. my HP warranty got my complete motherboard replacement in less than 5 days (including shipping time)!!!!

For less money, i might add....

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All of the new Macs come with Leopard, and I think with the amount of memory that programs take up these days, it would probably be best to get 2 gb. She'll be wishing she had it in 2 or 3 years. I (meaning my parents..I get to buy a new one for the first time this summer) have never bought them from Best Buy. We always get them from Apple or CompUSA (though I had a problem with one from CompUSA and didn't discover it until I was studying in Italy). I have the Apple 3 year warranty that would not cover that problem (since I didn't report it within 90 days...because I was in Italy), and I have never had to use it.

 

If you're running Photoshop, a MacBook will work wonderfully, but if you have the money for the Pro, then I'd say go for it. I'll be buying the regular MacBook before grad school next fall. Right now I'm using the PowerBook.

 

I hope that helps!

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I'm a Mac convert...married into it and am thankful now. I have my DH's hand-me-down PowerBook G4. He has the newer MacBook Pro with the new processors. We (he) has only purchased from Apple. They have an extended plan called "Apple care", I believe, that is very comprehensive. We have used it before and been very satisfied (though who likes to have to be without a computer ever). I just got an e-mail from Apple this week touting the inclusion of Leopard with new MacBooks and MacBook Pro purchases (also the Intel Core 2 Duo processors). I would think that these should be able to run Photoshop without difficulty. I agree with the personal shopper option if you are near a store. The customer service is exquisite with Apple (from our experience).

 

That's the best I can do for you. My DH would be proud!

Debbie

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Hey T, nice to hear that there may be a Mac in your family soon. ;)

 

I discussed this with DH and here are his opinions:

 

MacBook is fine. Screen size is the only real issue.

 

Get the 2G.

 

Comes with Leopard.

 

Go directly to Apple, do not pass "Go". (You can't be all that far from MOA - they have a LOVELY Apple Store. Fun, fun, fun!)

 

We have only had to have one of our Macs worked on once (and we have owned several for MANY, MANY years) and it was taken care of fast. None of this three week business. And the people I've talked to in Customer Service were just awesome. No extended warranty needed.

 

What a nice gift! Care to adopt me? I'm going to need a new laptop in the not-to-distant future and it's not in the budget. ;)

 

Have fun shopping!

~Zaz

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Thank you all! The last question was purely for selfesh reasons because I will be playing with this machine before handing it over...and if I like it?!? Who knows! The main thing is I got dh to LOOK at them and AGREE to get one for his daughter...Tralalalala

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What a nice gift! Care to adopt me? I'm going to need a new laptop in the not-to-distant future and it's not in the budget. ;)

 

Me too! My DH swears the new mac has replaced him since i've had it the last 2 weeks. HMMM, we'll see! Just kidding! But now I want to replace my desktop to a mac too.....so if there's any room left up there for adoption after Zaz.....

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T - do you happen to have a NAPP membership? If so, you get a discount at Apple. Something like 8% I think from the web. The store actually gave it to me in person too, I brought my card to my shopping session just in case. Just a thought, cuz every little bit helps!

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Oh, and one more question...

 

Office vs. iWorks? Comments?

 

yet one more comment - I got iWorks, been an office user since the beginning, have the latest version on my pc, but I questioned some reviews on the mac version on the apple site. Also, iworks was $50 less the office home/student version. Since there is enough compatibility to read documents, etc, I opted for the apple versions. But a note (again from my personal shopper, who told me she had both programs on her mac) if your DD is going to use for school, some professors are very strict about typeface/fonts, etc, and she said she uses word (for example) if they expect a particular typeface so she is sure they are looking at the exact same thing she is looking at. Since that kind of thing didn't apply to me, I opted for the apple programs.

(can you tell I LOVED my personal shopper - especially when she moved some kids off a laptop so I could have some "hands on" time - hee hee)

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Actually, the college discount works out to be more than the NAPP...but thanks for that reminder! I'll remember that when (if) I get myself one! (tee hee)

oops forgot about that, mines not there yet and I'm too far gone......

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I do recommend the warranty - but like others said, buy direct from Apple, NOT Best Buy.

 

If something like the motherboard goes on (main circuit board) for example, that's SPENDY to fix and with a laptop you cannot do it yourself even if you have the computer know-how. The warranty will cover that. Power surge? Covered. They really do pay for themselves QUICK when things go wrong.

 

And for the 1G vs 2G - I always say go for the most memory you can afford... but that IS something upgradeable later so it's not the end of the world if you go with the 1g now.

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Hey there! Didn't see this question until today but I can chime in too. I have a MacBook with 1 G. It is 1 1/2 years old and I started wanting 2 G less than a year into having it. I say go for the 2 G. I run both PS and PSE on my MacBook with no problem so I don't think you need to go with the Pro unless you would just like to spend a little more money :-)

 

I have had many Macs and I always get the AppleCare with it. It extends your warranty for 3 years and also gives you phone support for anything you need Mac related. I have used it a ton whenever I have had a question. I think it is really worth it. Especially if you, or your DD like to be able to talk to someone to figure things out. Although I have used the AppleCare mainly for tech support I did have to use it on my MacBook when my iSight camera stopped working. I don't live near an Apple store so I had to send it off or take it to an Apple Certified repair place. I took it to the Apple Certified place a few towns away and got the machine back in 3-4 days.

 

I can't say enough about my Macs. Have both desktop and laptop and I wouldn't trade them for anything. Have fun playing with it before giving it to DD!!

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Theresa, I was just going to add that I have a Macbook and I remember when I was researching online, a lot of people did say that the Macbook would work just as well as the MB Pro with the screen size being the only thing to keep in mind.

I started with 1 gig but will be upgrading asap. I haven't yet used mine that often as I still mostly use my iMac but there are times when I do some designing on the Macbook and I use Photoshop and Illustrator and it works out just fine.

 

Good luck, I know she'll be very pleased!!

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T,

Office, DEFINITELY, but only because you can get the whole shebang for your DD in college for $60!!!! Here are the totally legitimate links to Microsoft.com so that you can investigate for yourself. They are calling it the ULTIMATE STEAL, and rightly so. The MS Office package includes EVERYTHING!

 

Microsoft Promotions

 

The Ultimate Steal

 

HTH

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For an office suite, just to throw this out there, I have been using Open Office.org. It is free and includes a whole suite of programs similar to Office. It even will save as and read Office files. I haven't had much of a chance to play with it yet or convert all my files. I just wanted to list this as an option.

 

I recently got a MacBook, the black one with 1GB memory. I would like to have 2 GB, but so far I love this machine. And I switched from PC. I'm loving Apple so much, I refuse to use anything by Microsoft.

 

Happy shopping, playing, and I hope your DD enjoys the new mac!

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I use Office for Mac, Education version, only because the machines at my school are all Windows PC's and the Word (as well as Excel and PowerPoint) documents I create at home on my Mac will open on the PC just fine--I can open, edit, print, save as new files, etc. The same is true for things I create at work--I can save the files on my flash drive, take them home, and use them with no problem on my Mac. There's never been a "translation" problem! The Office suite wasn't overly expensive with an educator discount. I'm sure you can get a similar discount for a student.

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I have used Mac's for years. I would buy through Apple, Mac Warehouse, or Mac Mall (both online) If you are purchasing a laptop, I would buy the apple care package--just because the screens on a laptop take a lot of abuse. I would also go with more memory. You know you can never have enough memory. (Many times, Mac Warehouse and Mac Mall will offer free memory with purchase.) We have had so many Macs over the years and have only had one that had problems. Love those Macs! However, Apple should love us...Macs of all kinds, iphones, ipods...We will probably have little glowing apples on our heads soon.

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Oh, and one more question...

 

Office vs. iWorks? Comments?

 

Another poster already mentioned this, but I thought that I would second it: try OpenOffice.org. It's a completely free office suite very similar to Microsoft Office, and can even save and open Office documents. I have also been using NeoOffice, which is a Mac port of OpenOffice (which is also completely free). I haven't checked out OpenOffice lately, but I had originally switched to NeoOffice because some of the menuing in OpenOffice wasn't very Mac-like and annoyed me. It also seemed a little cludgy (word?) when printing; the interface for printing was not at all like the normal one on a Mac. For all I know, they have changed that, but that's why I use NeoOffice now, and love it.

 

Ok, so that was incredibly long-winded, but short response: maybe try OpenOffice or NeoOffice if you'd like a complete free office suite.

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I'm not sure if you have gotten the macbook yet, but I have the macbook pro and I quickly upgraded to 2gbs soon after I got it. Then I had to get the Mac Pro desktop because there just wasn't enough power in the macbook to run PSCS2 and aperture and hold all my files. I still use my macbook pro when we go out of town on the weekends. Your DD may not need as much power but make sure you get one that has room to upgrade RAM at least.

 

I also wanted to mention that if you have a store near by they have a program where if there is something wrong with your computer you can make an appointment and a tech will help you with it. They have an annual membership for a fee which includes free annual maintenance on your computers no matter how many macs you have. I have three so it works great for me to do every year and get my machines tuned-up.

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My 2 cents on memory, and hard drive space is always get more. You can never have too much of either. As for iWorks vs. Office, I've only used office. The only thing I would keep in mind is the ability to have document portability. If iWorks only stays in iWorks, I'm not sure it would be worth it especially since the educational discount on the Office suite is good. Good call on the Mac, they are awesome and the OS X operating systems can't be beat.

 

Couple questions I have for current MacBook users: I have a G4 right now and desperately want a MacBook or MacBook Pro. When I looked at the specs for the MacBooks it claimed n protocol for the internet. It said nothing about 802.11g. I know n is the wave of the future, but I only have a 802.11g router on a FiOS connection. Do you have any trouble connecting to the internet on your notebook? Is anyone running older software on the MacBook? I haven't upgraded my Photoshop (7) and I'm wondering what it will run like on MacBook since it is not written for duo processors.

 

:dunno:

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