[amoda]

Hi,
I'm getting a laptop within a week and need help decided which model. I know this is a pro-mac forum but please try not to be biased. I've narrowed it down to two options, either a basic macbook pro or a dell inspiron 6400 with the following specs:

Processor - Inspiron 6400 Intel® Core™ Duo processor T2500 (2MB Cache/2GHz/667MHz FSB)
Operating System Genuine Windows® XP Home
LCD Panel 15.4 inch Wide Screen XGA Display with TrueLife™
Memory 1GB DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz, 2 Dimm
Video card- Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Hard Drive -100GB 5400rpm SATA
Network Card and Modem Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 6.0
CD/DVD Burner 24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
Wireless Networking Cards Intel PRO/Wireless 3945 802.11a/g Mini Card (54Mbps)
Battery- 80 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Hardware Support Services 1 Yr Return to Depot Service with 1 Yr Tech Support
Digital Imaging Corel Photo Album™ 6 Starter Edition - Organize and Edit your photos
Color Choice Charcoal Leather QuickSnap™ Cover

TOTAL:$1,700 including tax

The macbook pro im looking at is 2100$ canadian including student discount. Not including tax i assume. Money isnt the issue though.

[Brad]

The most important question you have to ask yourself:

Do you want to use Windows or do you want to use Mac OS X?

This is an important question and should be raised above all other minor hardware differences. After all, what good is the hardware if you would rather be using other software? The OS is the real deciding factor. You're not going to run Mac OS X and its software on the Dell (not legally and not without some serious hacking) and you're not going to run Windows and its software on the MacBook Pro (not yet, at least, without a closed emulator-like environment).

Make that decision and picking the machine becomes a no-brainer.

PS. I see you're new; welcome to AppleNova!

[Bryson]

Why ask here if you want unbiased advice?

But anyway...

There is a simple decision here. Do you want to run Windows or Mac OS? The rest of the specs are irrelevant. Which OS do you need or want?

PS: The Dell is so ugly, even Dell won't give you a decent picture of it....

EDIT: Brad types so much bleedin' faster.

[julesstoop]

If you prefer OS X it's a no brainer. The MacBook comes with iLife and Xcode!

[Luca]

If you want a Dell, get a Latitude, not an Inspiron. Inspiron = consumer grade sh*t. Latitude = business grade, actually acceptable build quality. The same goes for a lot of PC companies - you should avoid their crappy consumer-oriented laptops because they're poorly constructed and meant to save the company as much money as possible. Business laptops may look like they cost a lot on paper, but they're often really very high quality machines.

Actually, if you really want a PC notebook, I'd go for either a Lenovo Thinkpad T-series or an HP nx6125. But those cost almost as much as the MacBook Pro, and they don't run OS X.

Also, you should get a 3-year warranty.

[FFL]

A simple but very important question - What do you want to accomplish using the laptop you will buy? What will you use it for?

[jeffgtr]

I own an Inspiron 8100 and I own a Mac. You'll receive horrible service from Dell that is for sure. The service I have received from Apple has been excellent. I use both windows and osx on a daily basis, unless for some reason you must use windows I would go with the Mac. If you must go with windows I'd look at one of the IBM notebooks, they seem to be well built.

[Banana]

I have a Dell Latitude.

It's perfectly servicable for what I need to do- which is caddying which unfortunately are windows-only.

With some modifications to my system to keep out 95% of reasons why Windows suck green big donkey balls, it's working pretty well.

I did seriously consider about hacking OS X or the cad programs but ultimately caved in because

1) it's suppose dto be a tool for what I'm doing
2) I don't have the time to self-support whatever problem I may have with my own hacks
3) I have several timeline-intensive assignments and I can't just trust my half-assed implementations


However, I'm keeping a close eye on development of interoperability between OS X and Windows apps, and will definitely switch over when I have assurement that I can successfully run my programs off OS X. Realistically, it won't be another year or two, though.

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by jeffgtr If you must go with windows I'd look at one of the IBM notebooks, they seem to be well built.

Just thought I should note, they're not IBM anymore, they're Lenovo (IBM sold their PC business).

[jeffgtr]

My bad. Yes Lenovo would be the one to go with then. Friend of mine has one of the IBM's very nice for a windows machine

[Barto]

IBM for the win. Like everyone else has said, first you need to figure out if you want Windows or OS X. Assuming you want Windows, IBM/Lenovo or HP (the corporate HP notebooks, not the consumer shite). The nx6125 that Luca mentioned has a dull screen, so you may want to consider an nx8220 instead (which has a 15.4" widescreen).

Avoid Dell.

And of course if you want to run OS X on a new 15.4" widescreen there isn't a choice - it's MacBook Pro or MacBook Pro.

[Luca]

Wait, Barto, when you say "a dull screen," do you mean boring or literally dull (dim)?

Yes, the stock screen it comes with is a 15" XGA, which is pretty craptacular. However, there's an option to bump the resolution up from 1024x768 to a super-sharp 1400x1050. Still not a widescreen, but I wouldn't say it's that bad.

Widescreen is still cool though, and actually more practical in many cases (the shape is more useful and compact during normal use). Laptops with large 4:3 screens tend to be very TALL when they're fully open.

[Barto]

Dull in terms of brightness (at least for the XGA model). In person it seems dull and in a lot of reviews it gets marked down for a dull screen. The 1400x1050 model may be better but we don't get that one in Australia.

Personally a 15.4" widescreen is too big for me and even a 14" widescreen is getting a little wide for my STM backpack. 14" standard is my current favourite size, I'd get a 1400x1050 T42 if I could afford it (which I can't).

[Franz Josef]

Hi amodo and welcome.The key issue is the point Brad makes:

Originally Posted by Brad Do you want to use Windows or do you want to use Mac OS X?

If you need to run Windows then you no doubt should but if you have a choice (as the vast majority of people do) then buy a Mac and enjoy OS X - it's an infinitely better user experience. Re bias, I should just say that most people on AppleNova use both WIndows and Macs so I'd like to think we're in a good position to compare and contrast. On hardware point, I've used Dell laptops for a number of years and in my experience build quality and finish are better on the two Apple PowerBooks I use regularly.

I'd go so far as to say that if you end up buying a Mac, you won't regret it for a single day and you'll wonder why much of the world settles for using Windows.

[chucker]

The Inspiron comes with a FREE! outdated version of Adobe Reader, which is a huge plus.

In all seriousness, as others have pointed out, Inspiron is the low-cost serious of Dell laptops. Latitude is much higher-quality, but it appears it doesn't come in a Core Duo variant yet.

Of note, that particular Inspiron model you're showing has no dedicated graphics chip, nor a DVD burner, nor Bluetooth, nor many of the premium extras you would get in the MacBook Pro, such as the backlit keyboard.

If only Samsung finally exported laptops to North America, I could recommend their X series to you. Thus, the only true alternative to Apple in North America is IBM/Lenovo, whose design I can't stand. There's HP, but the brand irks me, not to mention I haven't found any Core Duo laptop on their site either. Unless you want something specialized like Panasonic's rugged "Toughbook"s or Toshiba's corporate-style notebooks, few options are left.

As others have pointed out, it would help if you could specify your OS preference, software needs, etc.

[amoda]

Wow thanks for all the replies and info! After reading all the posts and borrowing a friend's macbook pro for a day i've decided to go with the macbook, it's just way too good to pass up.

Thanks again for all your info. and help!