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Best Used Bang for Buck if I Finally SWITCH ?

I have recently started to use iTunes in a windows environment. Despite some problems, I would ultimately like to back up and/or collect music in an uncompressed format although this project is off to a slow start.

For many years I have used windows just to more easily integrate with the office, but now I have just had my SECOND Sony VAIO laptop die in < 12 months, which is particularly tedious at home where I am unable to check emails, surf audigon and other critically important things over the weekends and at night while I wait to have it shipped off and repaired.

With hopes of a more stable operating system, I am thinking of switching to a Mac, thinking that my music and photos etc should also live on the home machine and I can transfer documents if really necessary on a portable USB chip.

Could any of you please advise me if you have successfully switched over to Apple?

Have you had greater reliability with both hardward and software?

For a good all around at home PC for general purposes and primarily internet access, which used Apple would you suggest to get started?

I am not doing any CAD, heavy number crunching, video editing etc, but like any self respecting agoner, would like the highest performance with the most extraordinary discount from original retail price.
cwlondon
faugusta
27 posts
 
For the taks you've described I can't imagine you would find yourself in a position wherein you regret dumping MS.

I switched to Mac about six months ago and have yet to look back.
In six months of daily use, I have not once rebooted, defragged, despammed or despied. In fact the only "de" I have faced is de-light. As in, I have seen it.

Tradeoffs? Less bang for your buck from a hardcore performance standpoint with general software (limited to the context of MY iBook), less diy upgradeability, less support for older products. All imo, of course.

I would feel nervouse about buying used, but I don't have to pay your bills.
chadnliz
3,736 posts
 
Any of the mac "G"3 and up would do good, MAC is much better than PC, if your over 15 and not a Gamer..MAC is by far the best format (I have windows now because of wife) but as a past manager of a printing company we used MAC's in our network and only has windows because so many that dont know computers accept that windows is better...its not.
s7horton
1,077 posts
 
Both platforms have their uses. I use PC everyday, but not by choice. I was raised on mac and that's where I did most of my video editing, digital imaging, and web design. Macs perform these functions better than PC. Mac don't crash nearly as much, atleast in my experience, and they seem to be much more user friendly. They are laid out quite a bit better than a PC. More expensive? Maybe a little, but I feel you get what you pay for. Especially if you are going for photos and music, I'd take Mac all day long. Another great thing, if you are on line, is that most viruses written, are written for PC, not mac. Compatability between mac and pc is very high. ALmost every type of file format is usable on both platforms. ALl the music files (especially if read by itunes), and all photo formats are transferable. So if you ever decided to go back to a pc, you could, without much trouble.
wstritt
170 posts
 
After a hard drive crash on my wife's PC, we decided to replace it with an iMac G5. She has been quite happy with it although, after using a Windows PC for a decade, the interface took a month or so to get used to. Maybe Apple is more intuitive but if Windows has become second nature, it does take time to switch. In particular, the standard one button Apple mouse has been quite annoying and probably should be replaced by a PC standard scroll mouse.

All important files readily transfer. Software tends to be somewhat more limited and expensive I assume due to smaller installed base. Only problem we have had is with bluetooth keyboard/mouse which I would not recommend. All in all, we are glad we bought it.

I would tend to agree with Faugusta about buying used. If you are on a budget, given what your stated use is, you might consider a new MacMini for $499 that you can use with your existing keyboard and monitor.
rosstaman
455 posts
 
In my former life, I used to direct statewide projects in the public health arena. We had 4 Macs and three PC's in the office. Everyone I hired was predominantly a PC user, and every single one of them eventually preferred the Mac. Yes, for those PC users it was a learning curve to adjust to the Mac's easier interface, but once they did. they no longer were interested in using the PC's in the office. The Mac is the "Toyota/Honda" of the computer world. We never had a single problem with any of the Macs in 7 years, but the PC's all fell apart, had numerous bugs in the software, and were plagued by viruses. There's a good reason why Mac users are so dedicated about their computers.
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