New Machine Opinions

there have been a few bad customer service stories regarding apple on here, but eventually had good outcomes.

As if there aren't for every single large company? If you only bought items where there were never any bad customer experience reports about them, you would never buy anything.
 
Does your PC match his Mac exactly in specs, with straight out the box windows?
No, but that was exactly my point ;) People say their macs are wonderful, but spend £2k in upgrading from a £300 5 year old PC. Of course it will be very fast by comparison.

The CPU is just as important in games. If you have a crap CPU it will bottleneck everything else.
Yes, but framerate is 99% graphics card not CPU. Gamers will pay to get the best graphics card (or cards), but given most games aren't multi-threaded, lots of cores doesn't mean best performance.
 
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No, but that was exactly my point ;) People say their macs are wonderful, but spend £2k in upgrading from a £300 5 year old PC. Of course it will be very fast by comparison.

He gave his own opinion on his own computer, it didn't say he spent 2k on his Mac, and upgraded from a £300 PC. "People say their macs are wonderful" - people do the same for PCs. From other posts you've made, I've got the impression your computer is pretty high spec, and most Macs are not top of the range high spec 2k machines.

You can't try and imply his opinion is wrong because you like PCs more, if you want to say Macs are slow - get bench test figures not "my pc boots at the speed of sound."

The point of me quoting you on it, is because you were implying his opinion was wrong - whether intentional or unintentional - with no actual evidence or argument.

Yes, but framerate is 99% graphics card not CPU. Gamers will pay to get the best graphics card (or cards), but given most games aren't multi-threaded, lots of cores doesn't mean best performance.

Providing the engine is running fine etc, game performance is not all down to the GPU. I didn't say more cores = better performance, but the CPU is important as if your CPU is old, even with the most amazing GPU, it will just bottleneck. Gamers don't only buy amazing GPUs - hardcore gaming PCs have the best set up they can afford in every respect.
 
neil_g said:
there have been a few bad customer service stories regarding apple on here, but eventually had good outcomes.

That's the point right - all sorted in the end? Not sure you'd get the same response from Dell and the like?
 
had some very good service from dell actually :)

I've had some very good service with Dell (when I quoted the law at them...), but I'm not aware/haven't used any other tech company where you walk into a shop and they will replace parts on the spot.

I've also always liked the simplicity of buying stuff in an Apple store. When I was with someone when they bought a Macbook, it took about 3 minutes in total before we were walking out with it. It was certainly a change from the PC World sales method that I've experienced.
 
I've had some very good service with Dell (when I quoted the law at them...), but I'm not aware/haven't used any other tech company where you walk into a shop and they will replace parts on the spot.

true, thats the good bit about apple having stores though. i imagine if more computer manufacturers had dedicated stores theyd do the same. although the next day on site support from dell etc is worth the money and you could argue its comparible to the apple premium.

It was certainly a change from the PC World sales method that I've experienced.

amen to that, on the rare occasion i have to go there these days i try not to speak to any sales staff :lol: luckily it takes just as long to drive to novatech.
 
neil_g said:
had some very good service from dell actually :)

Cool, it was just an example, not sure a 'PC ' company would replace a logic board on a 2-3 yr old laptop due to a graphics card failure... ie. Third party Maybe they would...?
 
Next day support from Dell is good, and too their credit they have never put up too much fuss over out of warranty computers when I've been annoyed at them.

I have a personal dislike of Novatech - but literally based on the fact I used to know one of the family members who owns it. :lol:
 
No, but that was exactly my point ;) People say their macs are wonderful, but spend £2k in upgrading from a £300 5 year old PC. Of course it will be very fast by comparison.

That's just a wee bit patronising for my taste. I've been into advanced image editing as long as there have been home PCs and digital editing. Why would I buy a £300 machine?
 
That's just a wee bit patronising for my taste. I've been into advanced image editing as long as there have been home PCs and digital editing. Why would I buy a £300 machine?

i think andys point was that most people go from a crud spec PC to a mac and then rave about how great they are when infact even going to the latest crud spec PC would see some performance gain. going to the same spec PC as the Mac with all the latest intel processors and windows 7 would have the same affect.
 
i think andys point was that most people go from a crud spec PC to a mac and then rave about how great they are when infact even going to the latest crud spec PC would see some performance gain. going to the same spec PC as the Mac with all the latest intel processors and windows 7 would have the same affect.
Thank you Neil - at least someone got my point ;) Assuming the same spec, they will run the same (which is what PS/LR effectively are on the two machines) applications equally quickly/slowly.

The reason I picked up on CT's original post was that the benefits he mentioned are all down to the underlying hardware - something a windows machine of the same spec is just as capable of ;)

@someguy: yup, I have a powerful PC (i7-2600k o/c to 4.3GHz, 16G DDR, Nvidia GTS450, 90G OCZ Vertex SSD, 1Tb user drive). Not surprisingly, it runs PS/LR much better than my last machine (E8400/8G)....
 
I've had some very good service with Dell (when I quoted the law at them...), but I'm not aware/haven't used any other tech company where you walk into a shop and they will replace parts on the spot
Apple stores are all part of the image and are important to ensure the buyer will not just like their purchase but love Apple.

The reason they can do it is because there are so many loyal fans who are prepared to spend the money.

In the Windows PC business everything is done at near cost. There's no money to spend on what Apple does.

What you have to decide is whether £1k extra on the price is worth it for the service you believe you get. Noting that Apple Stores aren't primarily for service, but for sales of other items which is likely to occur with Apple owners who will be happy to buy further Apple products.

Now I don't mind paying for service, but there's a limit to how much I'll pay! I also don't like being told what I should buy and what I can and can't buy.

Personally I just see computers as a device to do the job. I have no faith, love and loyalty to a brand and I don't see why it should be necessary.
 
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Thanks for all the comments, good to see peoples opinion on it.

So if you took a Pc and a mac of identical spec would the speed difference be negligible when using PS or LR?
 
Pretty much yes, it's just down to personal preference. The only thing to watch though is the quality of the monitor if you are buying a new PC, i.e. is it an IPS panel?
 
Firstly: No, there is no "most people", thats you making something up. Unless you have proper stats that actually suggest that, there is no reason to believe that at all. Most people I know who have macs, went from equally expensive PCs. That does not imply everyone who buys a mac goes from an equally expensive PC.

No facts = not a fact.

First benchmark I saw: (The two computers were not equal to be fair, the PC was higher spec and more expensive - Both OS used were not the current latest. Vista and Leopard, both have had major updates since.)

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/tests/4258725

My internet is playing up, so I can't get any more recent ones right now.

Edit:

More recent Benchmark - Windows 7 v Snow Leopard.

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-31012_7-10319612-10355804.html

The mac has better performace in general - the PC has higher framerate in games, faster 3d image rendering. Not really massively unexpected.

Two identical programs on two different operating systems, will NOT run exactly the same. The difference may well be minimals, but the OS's handle applications differently.
 
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eh? last i checked adobe prices for example were identical for OSX and Windows. also software you dont need? if you dont need it, dont install it..

alot of people wont buy adobe though, alot will wont somthing like iphoto or apature, also i works is alot cheaper than microsoft ofice

And yes i only have the software i need, but youd be amazed at the amount of people who do just download so much rubbish beacuse they think it might be better


seriously, you dont need to pay for anti virus. Avast and MSE are 2 of the top end rated software and both are freeeeeeee.
agreed i use avast or avg on my computers (thouse not using linux) but at the same time alot do buy the antivirus you pay for, for me its not an issue but alot dont feel it will be as good if its free :thumbs:
 
agreed i use avast or avg on my computers (thouse not using linux) but at the same time alot do buy the antivirus you pay for, for me its not an issue but alot dont feel it will be as good if its free :thumbs:

Same applies with a Mac though. They still get malware, and you will get the exact same mix of free and paid AV programs. Having a Mac doesn't mean you are immune, but thinking you are could lose you money.
 
Pretty much yes, it's just down to personal preference. The only thing to watch though is the quality of the monitor if you are buying a new PC, i.e. is it an IPS panel?
That's a very good point - factor in the cost of a 27" IPS monitor with a resolution of 2560 X 1440 which my iMac comes with as standard and suddenly the Mac doesn't seem so expensive.

I've really got no allegiance either way - we're still running an 18 month old high end PC which Jan plays a lot of demanding games on. I'm not a gamer so the Mac suits me perfectly.
 
Same applies with a Mac though. They still get malware, and you will get the exact same mix of free and paid AV programs. Having a Mac doesn't mean you are immune, but thinking you are could lose you money.

yes i agree, and i never said having a mac makes you immune, but i does dramatically reuce your chances. But viruses a far more about awarness than anything else, you can be on a PC with no AV and never get a virus if Your clever and only go on trusted stuff, :)
 
but i does dramatically reuce your chances.
For now. The professional malware now seen on windows systems took a long time to develop, give Macs a few more years and professional malware will become a much larger threat.

But viruses a far more about awarness than anything else, you can be on a PC with no AV and never get a virus if Your clever and only go on trusted stuff, :)

Yes. However, by only going on trusted stuff, you do of course exclude Google, Facebook, any site with adverts.... oh wait.

That only works if you are constantly monitoring every process, every registry alteration, and every network connection. If you know your computer inside and out, and would be aware of every single alteration that happens then you are safe.

Look up the Sony Rootkit, it was discovered by a world expert already on his system - not as it was installing or before.

Yes, you can avoid malware using common sense, but not running AV for any user is highly inadvisable.
 
Yes that’s true but tbh if you do mainly go on sites you now there is a significant drop in risk, and im not saying common sense in place of AV but alongside with, and atm with a mac common sense will probably be ok 99 times out of 100.

And as you say the longer macs are around, the more market share they get the more viruses will be made, especially because of the attitude of the users, if you think you can’t get it you are a very easy target and often people who own mac's will be richer it makes it all the more worthwhile hacking there systems to find out important data.
 
Firstly: No, there is no "most people", thats you making something up. Unless you have proper stats that actually suggest that, there is no reason to believe that at all. Most people I know who have macs, went from equally expensive PCs. That does not imply everyone who buys a mac goes from an equally expensive PC.

i put "most" in italics for a reason. its was implied as "generally" or "more than a few".

Two identical programs on two different operating systems, will NOT run exactly the same. The difference may well be minimals, but the OS's handle applications differently.

identical enough for most not to notice id wager.
 
Firstly: No, there is no "most people", thats you making something up. Unless you have proper stats that actually suggest that, there is no reason to believe that at all. Most people I know who have macs, went from equally expensive PCs. That does not imply everyone who buys a mac goes from an equally expensive PC.

No facts = not a fact.
And I stated it as fact when? I was making the point that people upgrade from a comparatively old and relatively slow machine to a top of the range spec Mac and then say it's wonderful. The reason for the increase in speed for PS/LR isn't Mac OSX, but the underlying hardware. I really have no problem with people buying Macs because they like the UI environment, but please don't try and justify it as Macs being something special under the bonnet. They aren't. A Mac is just a (high spec) PC running a particular set of software....

Two identical programs on two different operating systems, will NOT run exactly the same. The difference may well be minimals, but the OS's handle applications differently.
The OS may handle apps differently, but once the app is running, it will implement its own algorithms and will just be compiled code. Unless it uses a lot of library code from the OS, that code will work exactly the same on a variety of OS's. From the PS benchmarks I've seen, a PC and Mac of the same spec are pretty equivalent.
 
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