Macbook Pro And Imac

[The Annoying Guy]

I am planning to buy a MacBook Pro or an iMac.

The 2011 entry level models (13" MacBook pro and the 21" iMac) costs around 160-170k at dealers.

As my budget fits only to these models, I feel like the 13” MacBook is a bit small and the 21”iMac seems in need of more performance tuning. (IMHO)

As most of us use pirated software and stuff, how is the practicality of an Apple computer in a country like Sri Lanka? Can you live with the set of applications which are pre-installed in the machine or do you have to pay and get even a small app like a calculator? (Would like to get opinions from Apple users on this)

Are there any good places/dealers to buy them other than BT and FutureWorld?

And are there any other good laptops/desktops that you guys can recommend instead which I should check out before buying an Apple computer?

Thank you.

[Watchman]

As my budget fits only to these models, I feel like the 13” MacBook is a bit small and the 21”iMac seems in need of more performance tuning. (IMHO)

And are there any other good laptops/desktops that you guys can recommend instead which I should check out before buying an Apple computer?

Firstly before you ask which is better, why dont you explain what you intend to use your PC (or "computer" to be politically correct ) for... Your question(s) are so vague and generalized there is no possible way you'll get an answer that'll help you...

Edited February 22, 2012 by Watchman

[Ripper]

I am planning to buy a MacBook Pro or an iMac.

The 2011 entry level models (13" MacBook pro and the 21" iMac) costs around 160-170k at dealers.

As my budget fits only to these models, I feel like the 13” MacBook is a bit small and the 21”iMac seems in need of more performance tuning. (IMHO)

As most of us use pirated software and stuff, how is the practicality of an Apple computer in a country like Sri Lanka? Can you live with the set of applications which are pre-installed in the machine or do you have to pay and get even a small app like a calculator? (Would like to get opinions from Apple users on this)

Are there any good places/dealers to buy them other than BT and FutureWorld?

And are there any other good laptops/desktops that you guys can recommend instead which I should check out before buying an Apple computer?

Thank you.

obviously you are clueless about macs!

things like calculators are built in to the basic set of apps that are bundled with the OS

The 21.5" imac can be custom configd to a point and it's good enough to run 3d apps. I know people who do cg on them.

So for you to "performance" tune them means you must be wanting to do some super high end computing!

BT/FW/MacPC/Epsi all does macs. But you should get a mac for the right reasons!

I know folks who bought them just to get on the bandwagon and ended up selling them for cheap after a while!

I use a 21.5 imac at work and and 17macbook pro for personal use. Both custom configd.

And both run high end cg software like mudbox, cinema4d, modo etc.... Obviously some software are off torrents!

[ferrarif50]

I use a 21.5 imac at work and and 17macbook pro for personal use. Both custom configd.

And both run high end cg software like mudbox, cinema4d, modo etc.... Obviously some software are off torrents!

are you into 3D stuff? just asking ....

Edited February 22, 2012 by ferrarif50

[shanX]

I have a MD313LL/A, this might be the entry level one you're talking about. There are loadz of freeware, if you know how to search. And yes, there are torrents too. Don't buy one of these if you are into gaming. Anyway imo, having a pc as a secondary computer is recommended.

[The Annoying Guy]

obviously you are clueless about macs!

things like calculators are built in to the basic set of apps that are bundled with the OS

The 21.5" imac can be custom configd to a point and it's good enough to run 3d apps. I know people who do cg on them.

So for you to "performance" tune them means you must be wanting to do some super high end computing!

BT/FW/MacPC/Epsi all does macs. But you should get a mac for the right reasons!

I know folks who bought them just to get on the bandwagon and ended up selling them for cheap after a while!

I use a 21.5 imac at work and and 17macbook pro for personal use. Both custom configd.

And both run high end cg software like mudbox, cinema4d, modo etc.... Obviously some software are off torrents!

thanks, indeed i am clueless about macs always wanted to have one because i like the design and the build qulity.

btw, what are the audio outputs in the iMac? can it be connected to a 5.1 ?

Edited February 22, 2012 by The Annoying Guy

[The Annoying Guy]

I have a MD313LL/A, this might be the entry level one you're talking about. There are loadz of freeware, if you know how to search. And yes, there are torrents too. Don't buy one of these if you are into gaming. Anyway imo, having a pc as a secondary computer is recommended.

Thanks man, im not much of a gamer anyway...

Edited February 22, 2012 by The Annoying Guy

[Ripper]

are you into 3D stuff? just asking ....

I'm into advertising. Get 3d stuff done by production houses but know a bit of 3d stuff myself

it's good to know anything and everything in my line of work

thanks, indeed i am clueless about macs always wanted to have one because i like the design and the build qulity.

btw, what are the audio outputs in the iMac? can it be connected to a 5.1 ?

All newer macs have an optical digital output. The normal headphone out socket doubles up as a mini tos output.

Find a mini tos to tos cable and you can hook up your sound system to it. The signal is full DTS when playing DTS media.

[CARBON B4]

For the price u pay for a MacBook Pro you could get a really high end Hp or Dell.

I agree the apple may have a better build quality, but the average lifespan of a notebook is 3 years and you have a much better version , so its not worth spending soo much unless u are going to use if for a specific reasons like Ripper.

[Ripper]

For the price u pay for a MacBook Pro you could get a really high end Hp or Dell.

I agree the apple may have a better build quality, but the average lifespan of a notebook is 3 years and you have a much better version , so its not worth spending soo much unless u are going to use if for a specific reasons like Ripper.

macs are more than a mere product. it's a lifestyle. And generally pc users dont tend to "get" it

there's a lot of integration between their lineups and once you're hooked....you're never going back.

i used to love pc's a good 10years ago until apple launched OSX and the imac! And i was hooked.

My wifey use a pc notebook and if one try to compare the two...everything from the smoothness of the touchpad to aesthetics to performance...the mac is leagues ahead. Aslo newer macbooks have a pretty long run time on batteries.

But price is a huge problem. I paid almost 300k for my macbook little over an year ago. Could have bought two high end pc's for that price.

But i wouldn't be as happy as i am with the mac

And in sri lankan context...3 year life span of the notebook thing is not really happening.

I know people who are quite well off sticking with their old macbooks well into 4+years of usage. If at all you'd need a new dvd drive, hdd and batteries.

[The Annoying Guy]

macs are more than a mere product. it's a lifestyle. And generally pc users dont tend to "get" it

there's a lot of integration between their lineups and once you're hooked....you're never going back.

i used to love pc's a good 10years ago until apple launched OSX and the imac! And i was hooked.

My wifey use a pc notebook and if one try to compare the two...everything from the smoothness of the touchpad to aesthetics to performance...the mac is leagues ahead. Aslo newer macbooks have a pretty long run time on batteries.

But price is a huge problem. I paid almost 300k for my macbook little over an year ago. Could have bought two high end pc's for that price.

But i wouldn't be as happy as i am with the mac

And in sri lankan context...3 year life span of the notebook thing is not really happening.

I know people who are quite well off sticking with their old macbooks well into 4+years of usage. If at all you'd need a new dvd drive, hdd and batteries.

Well said...

I quite envy you now for using the highest config of MacBook pro... <<<respect>>>

BT seems to have the lowest pricing compared with other dealers. Have you got any experience with their after sale service?

[Ripper]

Well said...

I quite envy you now for using the highest config of MacBook pro... <<<respect>>>

BT seems to have the lowest pricing compared with other dealers. Have you got any experience with their after sale service?

thanks but my machine aint the highest config. dint have enough moolah for that

BT wont install pirated stuff. at least that was my experience with them.

MacPC tend to be the most friendliest chaps. I happen to know the owner too so that always helps.

HAL computers was like the original mac suppliers here and MacPC was created by a breakaway group of HAL

So these guys do really know their stuff.

Also...Macs dont need that much of attention compared to PC's

The OS is rock solid, little to no issues from viruses etc

The issues i've had over the years is hardware failures like dvd drives going bust and HDD going bust!

I bought my macbook off amazon. they were the cheapest. you get one year apple care warranty that can be extended upto 3 years if i'm not wrong.

Edited February 22, 2012 by Ripper

[Ripper]

repeat

Edited February 22, 2012 by Ripper

[riddle]

as ripper said,you sould be quite specific on what mac you need.

and judging by your comments,youre just buying them for how they look and feel.so you would be okey with base models.

and if you still care about pirated softwares and windows you can always have the dualboot option with mac and windows.

I myself use a 15" pro and have a custom built PC(windows) for high-end gaming, and at the end of the day i always am with the MAC!

[maersk]

Aban*s also do Apple products. There was a full page advertisement including prices on last Sunday paper, not sure which one.

All Apple products are over priced, IMO, not just here but anywhere in the world.

Mine is a 13' Mac-book Air bought about 6 months ago. I paid $1418 including California recycling fees etc...

Singapore is one of the cheapest place to buy Apple products, even Cheaper than US if you compare prices on the net.

You might need Windows office for Mac, which is starting from 12k lkr. You can do everything much easier & better than PC with Apple, if you know how to do it.

I'm still learning & so far I'm very happy about my decisions to go for Apple.

Better compare prices with everyone, as when I checked before I bought mine, there was about 10k-15k difference between re-sellers in SL.

I wouldn't compare Apple with a PC, as they are two different kind of breeds.

[Ripper]

Aban*s also do Apple products. There was a full page advertisement including prices on last Sunday paper, not sure which one.

All Apple products are over priced, IMO, not just here but anywhere in the world.

Mine is a 13' Mac-book Air bought about 6 months ago. I paid $1418 including California recycling fees etc...

Singapore is one of the cheapest place to buy Apple products, even Cheaper than US if you compare prices on the net.

You might need Windows office for Mac, which is starting from 12k lkr. You can do everything much easier & better than PC with Apple, if you know how to do it.

I'm still learning & so far I'm very happy about my decisions to go for Apple.

Better compare prices with everyone, as when I checked before I bought mine, there was about 10k-15k difference between re-sellers in SL.

I wouldn't compare Apple with a PC, as they are two different kind of breeds.

Cali recycling fees are the most expensive. and i think there is a sales tax too.

I got amazon to ship mine to a friends place in Indiana. No recycling fees there And at the time, US was cheaper than sing, malaysia, dubai cos i checked all those options.

[maersk]

Cali recycling fees are the most expensive. and i think there is a sales tax too.

I got amazon to ship mine to a friends place in Indiana. No recycling fees there And at the time, US was cheaper than sing, malaysia, dubai cos i checked all those options.

Recycling crap was only $6. Actual price of the Machine was $1299. Rest everything ($119) were taxes.

Yeah I see now, without taxes, US is cheaper than Singapore.

[The Don]

I don't see why you need to have a PC for gaming if you have a macbook pro with a fairly decent graphics card. All you need to do is install windows via bootcamp and boot into than if you want to play a game.

But to be very honest if you are really into gaming, I think its a lot cheaper to buy a gaming console and then chip it rather than trying to play on a pc though I do concede there are certain games where the pc experience is better than a console.

I guess I must be one of the few people who switched back from a macbook pro to a pc, mostly because I know my way around a pc inside out, and I develop applications on the Microsoft platform so I spend a lot of time on windows, so to me a PC made more sense (so handed back the 15" macbook pro I got from the company). In the end everything depends on what you use it for. For example my PC isn't particularly top spec, Its an i3 but I have got 4GB of Ram and a SSD HDD, and for the type of work I do on it, it is more than adequate (I don't play games).

[jdnet]

thanks but my machine aint the highest config. dint have enough moolah for that

BT wont install pirated stuff. at least that was my experience with them.

MacPC tend to be the most friendliest chaps. I happen to know the owner too so that always helps.

HAL computers was like the original mac suppliers here and MacPC was created by a breakaway group of HAL

So these guys do really know their stuff.

Also...Macs dont need that much of attention compared to PC's

The OS is rock solid, little to no issues from viruses etc

The issues i've had over the years is hardware failures like dvd drives going bust and HDD going bust!

I bought my macbook off amazon. they were the cheapest. you get one year apple care warranty that can be extended upto 3 years if i'm not wrong.

*cough* fanboy *cough*

[The Stig]

Are there any good places/dealers to buy them other than BT and FutureWorld?

Did you try Epsi computers on galle road ? Also there used to a shop called "Mind Head" but dont know if its still around.

[Ripper]

*cough* fanboy *cough*

ha ha ha...wont deny that mate

[SeanD]

Agree with Ripper, once you Mac you can't go Back.

But don't buy a Mac from SL, the premium is just criminal. It would be cheaper for you to get an Air Asia ticket to Singapore or wherever in the region it is cheapest. Got mine through a friend in the US, who got it from an Apple Store during a sale, so got a hefty discount and payed less than a similar spec Dell/HP/Whatever. Totally satisfied.

There are also the factory refurbished ones that are available through Apple online or authorised dealers in the states. Not sure how the warranty works, but there is a huge cost saving there for what is essentially a brand new machine twice over. And I do recommend the 3 year apple care.

Edited February 22, 2012 by SeanD

[The Annoying Guy]

Did you try Epsi computers on galle road ? Also there used to a shop called "Mind Head" but dont know if its still around.

ya machan, Epsi prices are bit higher... the lowest for now is BT

[The Annoying Guy]

thanks but my machine aint the highest config. dint have enough moolah for that

BT wont install pirated stuff. at least that was my experience with them.

MacPC tend to be the most friendliest chaps. I happen to know the owner too so that always helps.

HAL computers was like the original mac suppliers here and MacPC was created by a breakaway group of HAL

So these guys do really know their stuff.

Also...Macs dont need that much of attention compared to PC's

The OS is rock solid, little to no issues from viruses etc

The issues i've had over the years is hardware failures like dvd drives going bust and HDD going bust!

I bought my macbook off amazon. they were the cheapest. you get one year apple care warranty that can be extended upto 3 years if i'm not wrong.

there is a brandnew mackbook for 120k (13.3 Inch/2.4ghz Intel Core 2 Duo/2gb Ram/250gb Hard)

I think this might be a 2010 model (not sure). is it worth the price?

[KAL]

ha ha ha...wont deny that mate

HI,

I'M ALSO USING A MACBOOK PRO. I'M REALLY ANNOYED THAT I HAVE TO GO A INTERNET SHOP EVERY TIME I NEED TO USE "WORD" OR "EXCEL". IS THERE ANYWAY I COULD GET IT DOWNLOADED TO MY MACBOOK?? CAN I GET A FREE VERSION ONLINE? OR IS THERE AY PLACE OVER HERE WHERE I CAN BUY IT??