[gman005]

My old HPis dying. Time for a upgrade. What are the pros and cons of each one?

[ponchjoe]

I went to a Mac many years ago and struggled with short cuts and understanding (I’m not real IT savvy)
My recommendation is if you’re used to Windows, stick with it

[kingbuzzo]

- MACs are generally more expensive
- both equally competent
- MAC can provide some benefit if you already married to the Apple walled garden ecosystem; ie: Iphone, Apple TV, etc
- Windows has more software and accessories available
- Windows has many more form factors and touchscreen options are available
- Surface line very luxurious but HP & Dell also competitive

[RA66GTO]

If you are 'tech' savvy I would personally recommend a good mid level laptop and dual boot Linux.
I gave up on Windows back during Vista, but have to maintain a version for my Diagnostic Software... other than that I use Linux.

[OG68]

I have the Apple trio. Watch, phone and laptop. As mentioned previously they all work together. Whatever notes, photos or files I download on one are available on the others.

After I fell off a ladder when no one was home except the dog and he’s not Lassie��, my daughters bought me the watch for the 911 function

After 20 years of window products I switched to Apple mostly for better virus protection.
Since I’m retired I use my trio mostly for emails, texts photos and internet access. Nothing fancy.

[Gator67]

I’ve been a Mac guy for 20 plus years…job involves writing, statistics, presentations, etc. I can’t ever remember not being able to do my job because of a computer crash or anything like that. Having sad this, I need to buy a windows based laptop to be able to tune my new Holley EFI setup.

[LastoftheThinkers]

If you are tech savvy at all Linux is the way to go. I highly prefer Windows to Macs though, for a multitude of reasons.

[carbking]

KIngbuzzo above pretty much nailed the pros and cons.

I would suggest using what you are currently familiar with.

Jon

[burd]

Mac. No comparison

[vertigto]

Agree with @kingbuzzo also...I have both.

[Shiny]

We have both in our house. They both work, both have strengths and weaknesses as Kingbuzzo summarizes.

IMO, Apple makes it "easier" to work with files, the cloud, and other devices, but they demand a big price premium and are the best at locking you into an exclusive and equally expensive hardware environment.

Both have a steep learning curve if you are changing worlds so give that strong consideration. If you don't have help, and will rely on Ghostbusters, changing could be frustrating.

[tooski]

Microsoft changes their Windows platform 'occasionally'. I found the jump from '98 to XP to be the most beneficial. From XP to 7 a little less feature wise but a higher learning curve than '98 to XP. (8 and vista were short lived as they were troublesome; too many bugs could not be fixed). I really liked 7 but support was gone a while ago when 10 took over. Again, personally, I did not find 10 to have better features than 7, but probably the biggest learning curve as it emulates what people do on cell phones and tablets. 10 went to calling programs 'apps'. A couple of years ago a friend bought a new laptop with Windows 11. It just looks like another big learning curve to use. I have a desktop and laptop still using 7, and two laptops with 10 on them.

[68ragtop]

For personal use I am a macbook fanatic. Microsoft is loaded with a dozen trials of programs and antivirus subscriptions, etc. They seem like a marketing vessel. Macs do not have anything marketed unless its changed recently? Macs are not immune to viruses, but its not an issue like windows seems to be so prone too. Personally I think windows could do a better job at that, but they seem to push having you subscribe to somebody for an extra layer of protection. Macs do not, & dont seem to need it, & they are so rock solid. You pay more for the machine but no subscriptions or update costs.

Now at work its all windows because of the programs that are needed. but for just email & internet browsing at home its hard to beat a mac. just my opinion of course.

EDIT: the new macs with the M series processors seem to work more like an iphone or ipad. I have an older macbook pro that has been excellent. using it right now, & a macbook air with the M1 chip. it seems more like an iphone the way the apps function. Not sure how to explain it, they are just a little different. Probably worth watching some videos on whats really different from the intel to M1 & M2

[kingbuzzo]

Thats great you like yer mac but opinions can be dangerous...

OEMs subsidize their hardware sales by including tird party software...if you want a clean windows experience try a surface::

https://www.microsoft.com/en-CA/surf...b4434d365c6d13

I wouldn't say prone but having a much larger marketshare makes windows more popular in good and bad ways:

https://www.pcmag.com/news/which-des...cos-or-windows


Windows has had a very effective built in antivirus for years (defender):

https://www.av-test.org/en/antivirus...11/april-2024/

The new snapdragon based pc's are on par or faster than the MacBook...not yet Dad's intel:

https://www.digitaltrends.com/comput...configurations

A competitive market is better for everyone.

Good luck with your choice - choice is good!

Originally Posted by 68ragtop

For personal use I am a macbook fanatic. Microsoft is loaded with a dozen trials of programs and antivirus subscriptions, etc. They seem like a marketing vessel. Macs do not have anything marketed unless its changed recently? Macs are not immune to viruses, but its not an issue like windows seems to be so prone too. Personally I think windows could do a better job at that, but they seem to push having you subscribe to somebody for an extra layer of protection. Macs do not, & dont seem to need it, & they are so rock solid. You pay more for the machine but no subscriptions or update costs.

Now at work its all windows because of the programs that are needed. but for just email & internet browsing at home its hard to beat a mac. just my opinion of course.

EDIT: the new macs with the M series processors seem to work more like an iphone or ipad. I have an older macbook pro that has been excellent. using it right now, & a macbook air with the M1 chip. it seems more like an iphone the way the apps function. Not sure how to explain it, they are just a little different. Probably worth watching some videos on whats really different from the intel to M1 & M2

[Verdoro 68]

I'm firmly in the Mac camp. They last forever. Our main household laptop is a refurbished MacBook Pro I bought last year and my son's school computer is an older 13" MacBook. Agree about the marketing on Windows, it's very hard to use and tests my patience Windows after spending time on a Mac. I have a couple cheap Windows laptops, but rarely use them. They're slow and overrun with upsells from the manufacturer and always require updates. There's very little that's PC-specific these days, especially with all the Web apps, but when there is (my printer RIP software is Windows only) Parallels works great to run Windows on my Mac.

[68ragtop]

That was one of the other things I was going to mention is windows machines seem to get bogged down as you install more programs where macs never seemed to do that. I have never timed it opening programs but it sure doesn't seem to have lost anything.

I am sure not trying to talk anything into anything, Its just my preference. But now these machines on both sides are getting so fast that might not as big of a deal like it used to be. My 4 year old windows thinkpad work laptop was fast but now has so many propgrams its pretty slow & I swear its doing a windows update everytime I want to use it. Lol. I could not tell you the last time I have had to reboot my mac. its more like an appliance, I just open the lid & it works. I'll bet its been months since it was rebooted. not sure.

Many websites though are really starting to hog power. My older macbook pro gets a little lethargic on website like weather.com where there are 14 pop up adds at once. the new macbook air has zero issues with that.

To the point made above. They both have their place, I could not use a mac at work & I would never want a windows machine for personal web & email stuff at home

[kingbuzzo]

[QUOTE=Verdoro 68;6540641]I'm firmly in the Mac camp. They last forever.

They are both manufactured out of the same components except apple just started making their own processors recently.

Be careful running an older MAC (or any computer) if they stop supplying security updates. They have a support lifecycle and internet threats are continuously evolving so the security mechanisms of an older operating system cannot compete.

If you buy a cheap computer you get what you pay for. You could always uninstall any unwanted software - done.

[kingbuzzo]

[QUOTE=68ragtop;6540662]That was one of the other things I was going to mention is windows machines

If you are getting security updates that's a good thing. That means you are getting protection. I'd be worried if my leaky pontiac stopped leaking oil lol.

Software can be a double-edged sword. They can install services that run on startup that you may not even need. Windows can be tuned like anything else and there is also a reset feature that puts it back to stock - wish my car had that. Nobody writes software for MACS so they are immune to this issue.

Like software some advertising laden sites can really drag down yer bowser. You could avoid sites like that, use a weather widget or a modern bowser with the blocker extension.

At the end of the day its personal preference and budget in this economy.

[68ragtop]

I agree with pretty much everything above.

[HoovDaddy]

It's like asking the best engine oil or tires. I had a couple Macs in the '80s because they were easy to use. Unless you knew DOS, PC's could be challenging but that all changed with MS Windows in the '90s. Since the '90s I prefer PC's. I still have a Mac, along with a recent iPad and the wife has an iPhone but only for Facetime. The Mac works best for me to backup her iPhone pics and convert them to jpeg format so I can save them on the PC.

Apple wants to bring you into their "walled garden" and trap you with their range of products that seamlessly communicate with each other, but I disagree with their marketing tactics. For example; Apple allows iPhone users to send high-quality photos and videos to one another, but the same texts to Android phones are slower and grainy. iMessage also fails with large group texts to Androids. Apple publicly stated "if you want to text to iPhone users, buy an iPhone, I'm out.

Apple was very strong with graphics early on, but PC's have very good software and performance.

If you have a reliable VPN on a PC, it is no more susceptible to viruses than a Mac. The theory that Macs don't get viruses is quite old, they do.* Todays PC's can communicate with a wide range of devices just like Apple can, but the difference is, you decide if you want to share and with what device.

I think you have more freedom staying outside of the walls.