I'm a Mac
I've been using Macs exclusively for a little over a month now, and am very happy to say that I have no plans to ever go back to using Windows. I will happily pay the "Apple Tax" in order to receive what's proven to be superior hardware, software, and support. These are things that you just can't find with PC makers, no matter what you're willing to spend.
My initial introduction to my new Mac was with a MacBook. I picked it up at the local Apple store and opened it up immediately after getting home. I was pleasantly surprised to be up and running and ready to go in under 30 minutes. That's with Firefox downloaded, addons installed, email accounts configured... everything. Wow. I'm continually impressed by the boot time, shut down time, and 0verall performance of my Mac on the OS level. It's reliable as hell, too. I've managed to get World of Warcraft and Firefox to crash, but can easily recover by using a force quit, instead of holding down the power button as I was used to with PCs.
After about a week of usage, I decided that I just needed something bigger. I was originally drawn to the MacBook by the size, thinking it would be nice to carry around and all. It was, but I just wanted a bigger screen for World of Warcraft. After packing up my MacBook, I walked into the Apple store where I was easily able to pay the difference and swap out my MacBook for a MacBook Pro. They even waived the restocking fee. That's just awesome. I've had a harder time returning broken products to other retailers, though I imagine Apple was easier because I was giving them more money. With that said, they were great with all of the replacement iPhones that I had to go through a few months back.
Since I've been using a Mac I've had an awesome time playing around with the software included in iLife 09 which is free, of course. iWeb is a blast and I've had fun with Photo Booth (not part of iLife, I know). It's a great value to get this for "free" with a Mac, but it's not something that I'd buy if it didn't include.
The quality of the hardware itself is right up there with the quality of the operating system in terms of "making it worth it." Having an aluminum unibody makes me very confident that it will be able to withstand tons of usage, and even some bumps. Not having those wear spots from where your hands sit on traditional plastic laptops is a huge plus, and having a glass trackpad means that it won't show wear either. My previous laptop definitey showed signs of usage after having it for just a couple of years. I don't think the MacBook Pro will have the same issues, which makes it worth its weight in aluminum (which is actually surprisingly light).
Macs are much more expensive than comparable PCs, for sure, but I feel that the impressive quality of the hardware and the operating system and software, bundled with the fantastic phone and physical support at the Apple Store make it well worth the investment. I used to be happy with using Windows, until I got a Mac. I can't imagine going back at this point. After using a Mac for a bit over a month now, I've learned to live without the annoyances that I had learned to try and work around in Windows. Hassle-free computing for the win. I'm a Mac, and I used to be a PC.
My initial introduction to my new Mac was with a MacBook. I picked it up at the local Apple store and opened it up immediately after getting home. I was pleasantly surprised to be up and running and ready to go in under 30 minutes. That's with Firefox downloaded, addons installed, email accounts configured... everything. Wow. I'm continually impressed by the boot time, shut down time, and 0verall performance of my Mac on the OS level. It's reliable as hell, too. I've managed to get World of Warcraft and Firefox to crash, but can easily recover by using a force quit, instead of holding down the power button as I was used to with PCs.
After about a week of usage, I decided that I just needed something bigger. I was originally drawn to the MacBook by the size, thinking it would be nice to carry around and all. It was, but I just wanted a bigger screen for World of Warcraft. After packing up my MacBook, I walked into the Apple store where I was easily able to pay the difference and swap out my MacBook for a MacBook Pro. They even waived the restocking fee. That's just awesome. I've had a harder time returning broken products to other retailers, though I imagine Apple was easier because I was giving them more money. With that said, they were great with all of the replacement iPhones that I had to go through a few months back.
Since I've been using a Mac I've had an awesome time playing around with the software included in iLife 09 which is free, of course. iWeb is a blast and I've had fun with Photo Booth (not part of iLife, I know). It's a great value to get this for "free" with a Mac, but it's not something that I'd buy if it didn't include.
The quality of the hardware itself is right up there with the quality of the operating system in terms of "making it worth it." Having an aluminum unibody makes me very confident that it will be able to withstand tons of usage, and even some bumps. Not having those wear spots from where your hands sit on traditional plastic laptops is a huge plus, and having a glass trackpad means that it won't show wear either. My previous laptop definitey showed signs of usage after having it for just a couple of years. I don't think the MacBook Pro will have the same issues, which makes it worth its weight in aluminum (which is actually surprisingly light).
Macs are much more expensive than comparable PCs, for sure, but I feel that the impressive quality of the hardware and the operating system and software, bundled with the fantastic phone and physical support at the Apple Store make it well worth the investment. I used to be happy with using Windows, until I got a Mac. I can't imagine going back at this point. After using a Mac for a bit over a month now, I've learned to live without the annoyances that I had learned to try and work around in Windows. Hassle-free computing for the win. I'm a Mac, and I used to be a PC.
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