Mac vs PC - Let's Keep it Civil.

[InfinitusEquitas]

So a quick search revealed an old Microsoft vs Apple thread, but I thought this would be more appropriate, as having a pc no longer means windows. Most often it does but not always.

So what do you guys think, which is better and why?

Personally I'm on the PC side. Admittedly I haven't touched anything Mac or Apple in many years, but my experience with Mac was a nightmare. It was one of those all in one setups with a tiny almost flat keyboard, and the nightmare hockey puck mouse which Steve Jobs proclaimed to be the best mouse ever. Apples' business practices also leave much to be desired.

Since we are talking about multiple platforms feel free to go into the iOS vs android as well

 

[Asherz]

This thread is just going to end in a massive flamewar, theres no real answer people use the platform they prefer most, there's no point in trying to discuss something that is COMPLETELY down to personal taste, especially when people always feel the need to carry on "discussing" until the other party either agrees with there point of view or just stops discussing the matter, hence a never ending argument of personal taste begins.

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

Not really looking to start an argument, simply curious why people pick one over the other. The personal taste usually has an origin, and that's what I'd like to figure out. If someone prefers a mac over a pc, or a pc over a mac... I really don't see a problem with that. I just want to know what created the preference.

Edit: What did you use to post?

 

[ped]

Ok, a civil start.

Macs = +'s ,design, build quality , feel , allmost bombproof OS
-'s software support , price

PC's +s , cheap , versatile , build you own, software support
-'s , get hacked to death, virus's.

 

[Ears and Eggs]

Since we are talking about multiple platforms feel free to go into the iOS vs android as well

I've had both an Android phone (HTC Desire) and an iPhone (iPhone 3G). I found they both had their advantages and disadvantages. I am not a really advanced user when it comes to phones though and that might shift my experiences somewhat. I find the iPhone was much easier to learn to use and can do just about anything I wanted, it looked really good and has a great user interface. The lack of flash was sometimes annoying, but I never found it a show stopper cause there was almost always an app or mobile version of the page. My only major dislike with the iPhone is that you have to use iTunes. If the iPhone could be drag and drop loaded like the Android I would not have switched from it. I find the Android (HTC Desire) I have now was harder to learn to use and has a much less intuitive interface. It also came with TONS of crapware apps that could not be deleted. On the other hand it has flash and can be loaded and unloaded of files with a simple drag and drop. No need for a cumbersome program. I have since installed the Cyanogen mod to combat the crapware issue.

 

[davidspano]

Theres bound to be bloodshed by starting this thread!!

 

[Ash]

All of my male friends that are into serious gaming build their own PCs.

All of my female friends that only know how to turn a computer on and check email/facebook use Mac (Apple).



I also find that:
Android > iPhone

 

[jeffd]

Im pretty big into smartphones, Ive owned/used pretty much all of the high end android phones as well as the iphone 4/3gs. And hands down iOS beats android. iOS is just so much smoother and more polished. And the apps/games on iOS are so much better developed. There is no comparison to the quality of the appstore versus the android market place.

The only thing I like better about android is the big selection of phones running it. Although none that ive used has felt as nicely put together as the iphone 4.

 

[v33]

One is not better than the other. It all depends on user preference and intended use. The only reason to get a Mac over a Windows machine is style or the need to run a piece of Mac specific software.

 

[icecruncher]

Ok, a civil start.

Macs = +'s ,design, build quality , feel , allmost bombproof OS
-'s software support , price

PC's +s , cheap , versatile , build you own, software support
-'s , get hacked to death, virus's.

that's pretty well put. I have one or two programs that I have to run in emulation because of pc only (like my LPM software).

I've been a mac/apple person since apple started, but what's sad is that apple will out run pc's for a while and then vice-versa. In the mid 90's when Sculley was in charge, macs were not great. Patching an old OS to deah.

Problem now is it's become "preppy, hip, etc." to have a mac nowadays. That's bad for mac, it means they will devote more time in development to "look an feel" and "bells and whistles" than to the "nuts and bolts".

Who knows, I could jump ship, I've heard alienware makes killer machines for the pc side!

 

[lasersbee]

This has already been discussed to death on the other Thread...
All you need to do is read the other Thread to get a good idea
of what the LPF community think...
You will get the same answers here as we got on the other
Thread...

Bottom line.... each has its Pros and Cons...
What is best for you.................Only you know...



Jerry

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

Interesting. I've heard from many people that iOS is much more intuitive than android, and this is another confirmation.

Personally I went from blackberry to android, and I have to say I do take issue with some of the exact things 2007Revolution mentioned. There is bloat/crapware that I can't delete. For example I don't need Amazon mp3 service running all the time, or DRM service running... yet I can't delete them. Lack of customization somewhat annoyed me as well, although I'm not sure whether to blame samsung for their overlay for android itself.(I'm using the Samsung Epic 4G on Sprint) - I don't want to root my phone, but the inability to kill some of the crapware bugs the hell out of me.

In the Mac vs PC arena, there is no question that there are some very well built Macs out there, what has always bugged me is the attached price tag, when comparable systems running windows or linux can be built for a lot less.

In gaming, the serious gamers do tend to always build their own systems and typically run windows...

The spyware/virus point is certainly valid - there is a lot less issue with macs in this regard. Unfortunately I don't think this has so much to do with superior security as it does with the fact that there are simply fewer mac users, and as a result less incentive for virus/spyware developers.

OT - Aside from cyanogen are there any good apps to kill of crap on android? Also is there an app to completely customize ringers and notifications? Thanks for advice on this

 

[iskor12]

Who knows, I could jump ship, I've heard alienware makes killer machines for the pc side!

Not really....they are just an overpriced Dell
Go with Ibuypower instead.

 

[laser_freak]

Whatever floats your boat. I don't have any opinion of which one is "better" only which one is better suited for certain tasks. I currently have a Unibody MBP from late 2008 that has recently started to degrade at a surprising rate. Many of the keys intermittently work, the trackpad mouse gets stuck down in the "clicked" position, and worst of all it has overheating issues. When I opened it up, there was too much heatsink compound on all of the heatsinks. While it was open, I also found out that one of the RAM sticks was not seated correctly. I later found it was due to a broken plastic piece.

I should also mention this is the second replacement I have had. Both replacements occurred during the first year of ownership and were both because of faulty GPUs.

Despite this experience, I plan to buy a new MacBook Pro soon. Although I have considered buying a PC, I need OS X to develop applications for both OS X and iOS.

Now, let the uncivil flame ware begin :eg:

 

[Asherz]

Not really looking to start an argument, simply curious why people pick one over the other. The personal taste usually has an origin, and that's what I'd like to figure out. If someone prefers a mac over a pc, or a pc over a mac... I really don't see a problem with that. I just want to know what created the preference.

Edit: What did you use to post?

Fair enough

I own a macbook air 2nd gen which I use on a day to day basis, just because it starts up instantly, reliable looks sexy and I like OSX. I also love browsing the net and being able to use the trackpad to navigate, backing/forward through pages is so easy and scrolling is effortless. Whilst I don't think I'd go for an Apple desktop computer unless I could afford the tower (too expensive) because that's when the hardware becomes an issue, the laptops are some of the best out there for the reasons I mentioned above regarding navigation using gestures, startup time and not to mention I can run starcraft and counterstrike without lag on the macbookair.

I think that's where companies like asus let them selves down, they've seen that people are purchasing the macbook airs and think lets make a super thin laptop as well, they only ever pickup on parts of the good parts of Apple computers, yes the hardware design is nice but it's not the only thing that makes the laptop superior.

I also have a PC I built running windows 7, it's a nice power house for playing games and running heavy duty software, but it's noisy and takes a while to startup like most PC's.

Phone wise I use a HD2 flashed with android, personally I think androids alright, lots of features but you just can't beat iOS's smooth scrolling, looks and just generally a pleasure to use, whilst on paper android might be better the way Apple puts both their software and hardware together IMO is second to none.

I hate that I entered into this discussion

I think what Jerry said, and my first post pretty much sums up the entire argument for both sides.

 

[Trevor]

I use a PC for all my development, since I do primarily C#.

I'd like to get a Macbook Pro as a daily laptop, just for internetting and email and stuff. Dat battery life...

I run Linux for my servers.

-Trevor