Desktops at university?

[implosion]

ecookman wrote:

Dell studio 17 review

I have the same laptop (except 1gb less RAM and 256 ded gpu, and the 17" screen) I added a blacklit keyboard and bluetoth.

Personally, i have no complaints about the laptop, it can play crysis at high spec no AA, (whit the better ram and gpu you could go a lot higher)

+'s
good speakers
good touchpad
manages heat well
touchpad buttons are a good size
keyboard is one of the best i have ever used (i prefer it over my G15)
media touch controls

-
screen is a little close to the keyboard, you will want to put a papertowel in between the screen so the keyboard doesn't become imprinted onto the screen.
fans are a little noisy (arent all of them tho)
battery life sucks unless yo turn off bluetooth, lower the brightness, and put a gigantic hold on the GPU (i set mine to like 20%)
i have the 6 cell battery and on powersaver i get upto 3.5 hrs of battery running IE, word, and listening to stuff through itunes.
touch controols can't be reconfigured
very....extremely BIOS...no tweeking here



all in all 3.8/5 only minor complaints.

p.s
get rid of vista as fast as you can!!!!

does it really make a big difference whether to get the 15 or 17 ?... i'm going to be living at home and pretty much using it as a main computer... but second year i'm going to try and trasfer somewhere else where i'dbe living in rez or off campus, away from home.. though i'd still paper and pencil my lectures... i don't do a ton of gaming (thats what my ps3 is for FTW =D)... if i were to play games it'd be halo or COD and i was thinking of getting a 9 cell battery... how long would my battery life be then ?... and on Dell's site if you get a 9 cell.. do you get both 6 AND 9 ?... and also on there site.. does that include taxes etc. ?

[x30Jx]

Thinking about it? I am SALIVATING about it.

See, that's why I love giz.
[quote=GIZMODO]
medium brightness, Wi-Fi on, keyboard backlight on low, H.264 movie
[/quote]

versus stupid reviewers, who do lame stuff like "Screen brightness : ultra low, wifi off, backlight off, displaying 5555 in text edit"

It's like WTF? Who does that, EVER?

Anyway, Just curious if anyone knows if today's Macbook Pro (15inch, 2.8 or 2.66, 500GB, 4GB RAM) will last from now, THROUGH my Grade 12 year, and THROUGH four years of university, or if I should wait until just before university.

Thoughts?


Also, thank you to everyone who is weighing in on this this, so much. It's nice to hear others thoughts on things.

[endless]

i think you would be safe buying a MBP whenever you want since they just came out last week, it will be a while until their next release of MBP's. although with only one laptop in the "MacBook" section now, it is expected that a new line of MB's will be released, possibly before the Snow Leopard release and probably at a lower price point than ever before.

but if you still have a year of high school left, its possible that there might be another release of MBP's before Sept. 2010, but i dont think it will really matter (i bought the 13'' unibody MB around october last year with no regrets even though it was cut short on the market)

in terms of longevity, it hasn't been long with the unibody macs, but if the macs carry on with their reputation for reliability, then it should last uni.

[Horus]

I might buy a laptop too.

from this post it seems MBP is the best.

but I'm a window user, I haven't used any mac computer since gr 8 in school. and those mac computers were a pain in the ass for me cause I just can't get used to the close button on the top left side, and it's so hard to navigate though. I never knew how to open another window of netscape properly, I usually have to go on a website that gives pops ad or something to get another window. Basically it took me at least 3 times longer to do a task on mac than windows.

I heard it's better now that you can have a setting that moves the close button to the top right side. but not sure about other stuff. Just wondering if mac can adjust to have those basic functions that I use everyday such as: alt-F4, alt-tab, window-D and etc.

Also some programs cannot run in Mac. (in fact a game I play can't run in Mac, though i should probably quit now that I'm going to university) just wondering if there's any program that I'll be using in university that cannot run in Mac.

[endless]

yes there is a download to move the buttons to the right side. i think you will find the switch to mac quite intuitive, i know i did. things like alt-tab are built into the trackpad by using a four finger swipe sideways.

there are programs you can get that you can use windows only software. though im not sure if you can rig something up to play wow on (if thats the game you're talking about lol).

if i recall correctly, you are going to UW for CS too? i remember reading somewhere (maybe here) that some CS profs recommend MacBooks for the program. definitely wont run into serious compatibility issues at uni, i think half of the computer labs at UW are mac.

[Euphoracle]

I have a small netbook and a desktop. Dunno if that matters at all.

[ssy]

What about the Dell Studio 14z? Is it a good laptop? Is it the same as Studio 15 but with a smaller screen?

[Prabhakar Ragde]

Horus @ Wed Jun 17, 2009 9:06 pm wrote:

but I'm a window user, I haven't used any mac computer since gr 8 in school. and those mac computers were a pain in the ass for me cause I just can't get used to the close button on the top left side, and it's so hard to navigate though. I never knew how to open another window of netscape properly, I usually have to go on a website that gives pops ad or something to get another window. Basically it took me at least 3 times longer to do a task on mac than windows.

It will only take you a few days to adapt, and if you can't adapt, you have bigger problems than your choice of computer.

[x30Jx]

Horus @ Wed Jun 17, 2009 9:06 pm wrote:

I might buy a laptop too.

from this post it seems MBP is the best.

but I'm a window user, I haven't used any mac computer since gr 8 in school. and those mac computers were a pain in the ass for me cause I just can't get used to the close button on the top left side, and it's so hard to navigate though. I never knew how to open another window of netscape properly, I usually have to go on a website that gives pops ad or something to get another window. Basically it took me at least 3 times longer to do a task on mac than windows.

I heard it's better now that you can have a setting that moves the close button to the top right side. but not sure about other stuff. Just wondering if mac can adjust to have those basic functions that I use everyday such as: alt-F4, alt-tab, window-D and etc.

Also some programs cannot run in Mac. (in fact a game I play can't run in Mac, though i should probably quit now that I'm going to university) just wondering if there's any program that I'll be using in university that cannot run in Mac.

A few thoughts:
If people can expect an Eighth Grader to be able to use one, then surely an undergrad at university can operate it . And yes, you should eventually get used to the close buttons being where they are, but in the end, it does not really matter.

There is a difference between 'basic functions' and 'Windows shortcuts'. Yes, Mac does have those very same shortcuts, but they are a little different: alt-F4 = Command + Q, alt-tab = Expose or Command + Tab (scroll through applications backward) or Shift + Command + tab (same, but forward), and Windows + D = Expose, Option + Command + M (Minimizes all windows, so exact same), or three- or four-finger swipe up (depending on mac model and user setup) Furthermore, the mouse can be setup to do all of these functions without keyboard funtions at all (word for the trackpads). And yes, even I occasionally fumble up ant try to Control-V instead of Command-V, but I am getting better.

Programs in Mac: I am shocked that none of us Mac|Nerds have shoved this down your throat yet. Virtualize using VMWare Fusion. Virtualize using Parallels. Reboot into Windows via BootCamp. Emulate using CrossOver (only some programs). So to answer the question, no, there is no program built for Windows or Mac that cannot run on a Mac.

So now I am set on a MacBook Pro. Final two issues: Which size and when? I think I will be forced to wait until at least next summer to buy a laptop by my Mom, so possibly the new MacBooks will launch by then (I still think I will stick to the MacBook Pros).

But what size? 13 has no 9600M, and only one audio jack that you must manually switch twixt mic and headphones. 13 has but one fan, and 15 has a pair. Both are laid out extremely well on the interior (points to iFixit Teardown), not to mention the exterior.

Looks like the 15 inch MacBook Pro is for me.

[Milamber]

There are actually some good deals right now on "last-gen" unibody 15's with the 9600. If I remember correctly the only difference between the two is a slightly faster processor in the new ones and a bit more ram, a non-removable battery and an sd slot instead of expresscard. However, for the price difference these changes are negligible. I think you can get a "refurbished" (clearing out old stock) 15 inch for around $1500.

I'm actually trying to decide between a refurb 15 and a Thinkpad T400 right now.

For those of you that have lived in University how much effort is moving around a monitor with you if you bring one?

[jernst]

Milamber @ Thu Jun 18, 2009 9:00 am wrote:

For those of you that have lived in University how much effort is moving around a monitor with you if you bring one?

It depends on what type of monitor you have an how much care you want to give it. if you have a really nice lcd, then you will need lots of care to prevent it from getting scratched or broken. If its a junker old crt then you can pretty much throw them around and not worry about them

[wtd]

x30Jx @ Thu Jun 18, 2009 9:13 am wrote:

Anyway, Just curious if anyone knows if today's Macbook Pro (15inch, 2.8 or 2.66, 500GB, 4GB RAM) will last from now, THROUGH my Grade 12 year, and THROUGH four years of university, or if I should wait until just before university.

Speaking as an Apple technician (though not directly employed by Apple but rather a third party service center), any Mac will be viable as long as AppleCare coverage lasts.

Aside from things like RAM and hard drive, replacing any part on a Mac will cost significantly more than the AppleCare price. If it fails out of warranty, even in a small way, you're probably going to be thinking about buying a new one instead of fixing it.

[DemonWasp]

wtd @ Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:08 am wrote:

Aside from things like RAM and hard drive, replacing any part on a Mac will cost significantly more than the AppleCare price. If it fails out of warranty, even in a small way, you're probably going to be thinking about buying a new one instead of fixing it.

...or, fixing it yourself. My girlfriend's MacBook (1,1 revision) lost its hard drive a while ago. It made a wonderful scraping and not-spinning-up sound, then displayed a flashing folder icon on the screen - I guess that's the equivalent of "hal.dll not found" in Windows. We replaced the disk and installed Ubuntu (while the new hard disk was in the mail, she ran entirely off the LiveCD). There are some lingering issues - webcam needs some sort of proprietary driver, I haven't had time to make mouseemu do right-click and middle-click correctly - but overall it's working out well for her.

[delparnel]

Definitely go with the Macbook Pro.

I've had my Macbook Pro for over 3 years, and have had very few issues with it.

It managed to get dust behind the LCD somehow... but this is a very rare issue, and Apple fixed it without question.

I can't stress enough how important it is to get AppleCare though.

-dkl

[wtd]

DemonWasp @ Fri Jun 19, 2009 12:16 am wrote:

wtd @ Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:08 am wrote:

Aside from things like RAM and hard drive, replacing any part on a Mac will cost significantly more than the AppleCare price. If it fails out of warranty, even in a small way, you're probably going to be thinking about buying a new one instead of fixing it.

...or, fixing it yourself. My girlfriend's MacBook (1,1 revision) lost its hard drive a while ago. It made a wonderful scraping and not-spinning-up sound, then displayed a flashing folder icon on the screen - I guess that's the equivalent of "hal.dll not found" in Windows. We replaced the disk and installed Ubuntu (while the new hard disk was in the mail, she ran entirely off the LiveCD). There are some lingering issues - webcam needs some sort of proprietary driver, I haven't had time to make mouseemu do right-click and middle-click correctly - but overall it's working out well for her.

Yes, hard drives can be quite inexpensively and easily replaced. Now, imagine something borks up on the motherboard? Even if you're comfortable doing the repair yourself, getting the part is going to be probably in the realm of $900.