iMAC vs PC (Windows)

I have had MacBook Air for 10 years and use it while travelling, - and when I need a laptop outdoors etc and it has never failed me. In the other hand it seems any Windows based desktop becomes unusable in about 3-4 years and need to be replaced. Does anyone have experiences with iMac (Mac desktop version)? It uses the same operating system as MacBooks, so it should be solid, + it comes with 24 inch super clear screen.

 

Mrs. Hays and I are both Mac users: iMac for her, MacBook Pro for me. Quite pleased.

 

Thanks. I will go with the iMac. MacBook pro would be nice, but twice the price + I already have the MacBook Air.

 

I have an M1 iMac. It's been great. I got it when my M1 mini was giving me display problems, in fact. The screen would go black for seemingly no reason on that and the problem only came up with that system (the display works great with everything else). Anyway, I can join Jack in vouching for the iMac.

 

I got the iMac 27 inch version. I use it parallel with the old PC until I am confident I can handle everything with the Mac. I know Mac has a version of Microsoft Works, which is a must for me, but I haven't tried it yet. The migration tool they have to bring data from PC to Mac worked fine.

 

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I got started with my MacBook Air several years ago when some Air Force neral mentioned to our PM that he'd like to have our data display on his iPhone - since none of our team was conversant on developing for Mac we got a online course from Stanford and proceed to work through the course on a single MB 'Air. I got tired of that and bought my own Mac; the fact my windows laptop was on death's door influenced the decision as well.

I've used MB Airs ever since -upgrading when my first was no longer of taking OS updates.

 

You mean Office? I do use that as well for my work, and for the most part I can't complain. I use the 2021 version rather than paying a subscription for 365.

Maybe I can help if you have questions or issues, being the Mac and PC enthusiast that I am.

 

Never have I owned or used a Mac. Except for mobile, I have zero experience with ios. I have a very few folks I’ve worked with over the years that do Macs at home and swear by them. No way a msft pc will last as long as I’ve heard Macs can still work.

 

I use LibreOffice suite. Available for free - all the usual apps; writer, spreadsheet, presentation, and database apps. Compatible with MS Office.

 

Compatible to an extent, yes. I tried very hard to avoid MS Office and use LibreOffice instead, but there are issues when it comes to the finer points of compatibility and formatting features. That was also when I was using Linux instead of Mac OS or Windows, back when Apple's hardware was under-powered, overpriced Intel-based stuff and I didn't want to support them because of it.

 

Interesting, I haven't encountered anything major. Some spreadsheet functions are approached slightly different.

I suspect some of the differences are to avoid breaking patents, etc.

 

Libre Office is plenty close enough to good enough. Especially since msft has made the current version of Excel such a s-show. This is the winner of the app wars on the app that the pc was founded upon. And its, msft’s copilot is an outstandingly typically botched rollout. Geaux Linux. Geaux Libre Office.

 

And that was my experience years back, so maybe it has improved since. I know it's good enough in most respects and I'm certainly happy that it exists at all. I do make sure to install it and keep it handy in case I want/need it for something.

Incidentally, anyone with a spare Apple Silicon Mac could install Linux on it now thanks to a project called Asahi. I have it, specifically the "Fedora Asahi Remix", on my M1 mini. It's really nice for something that's only been in development for a few years, past ARM Linux work aside. Some hardware is not fully supported yet, but it's already stable and can handle 2D graphics acceleration very well, so the interface is smooth and you can watch videos on it. No Netflix, though. Seems DRM content isn't supported on it yet.

 

I don't allow Apple products in my house but I agree that the cheap Windows laptops I buy are only good for about 3 years. Most of them fail at the charging connection. I use a laptop all day, though, so I'm certainly harder on them than most people.

 

I was an ET in the Navy, years ago (long before laptops and PCs) and I try and keep up with electronics by listening to Lou Rossman's videos (https://www.youtube.com/@rossmanngroup) who is a computer repair tech, and he is very good. He says the Mac laptops, circa early 2010's were good, but past that, they are terrible, he says. He repairs strictly Apple products but he is no fan of them. But, listen to his videos on macs, and see what you think: I will say this, the GUI on apples/macs are beautiful and elegant, but that's not what I need out of a computer. I'm so used to the Windows universe, I wouldn't know what to do on a mac. The only thing I ever owned that was apple manufactured was an IPOD, a long time ago. My last desktop I purchased in 2005, and it lasted to 2018.

 

I think it is fair to say that all laptops have been cheapened over the years and none of them are very reliable. The ones I have bought for the past few cycles are made by Acer because they had a more robust charging connection than the other brands. That ended with the one I am using at the moment which has the same garbage connection as the others. So from now on I will just buy discontinued models from whomever is cheapest. My recommendation is to buy inexpensive laptops. The fancier ones aren't more reliable. If one is into gaming or some other computer intensive application, a desktop computer is the way to go. I have a small network of 6 business desktops that have been running for many years. I used to replace the hard drives every three years or so but now they all have solid state drives so they just run and run. They are pretty bulletproof, particularly if you build your own like I do.

 

I would seek a second opinion. I and other MacBook owners swear by them.

 

I swear at them. I don't even allow Apple products to enter my house. Visitors are allowed to keep them in their cars. Purely personal. Best of luck.

 

My M1 MacBook Air simply uses USB-C to charge, so no issues there.

As for performance, it is the same CPU they put in their desktop machines, which they can do because it is so power-efficient compared to x86 offerings, so you give up little if any performance (depends on cooling to a certain extent, as well as how much RAM you get if you're doing something that takes a lot). Apple Silicon is so good that Qualcomm is trying to compete with similar ARM-based processors for PCs, and Windows for ARM is already a reality. Qualcomm should be coming out with competitive chips fairly soon now, too. Bottom line there is laptops are finally moving towards the kind of lightness and power efficiency seen in tablets and mobile phones, and the end product can be very nice indeed.

 

Yeah, I had to chuckle when I read that bit earlier. I don't know why you would have such strong feelings about their products, but you're opting to miss out.

 

When I started my career, everything that I worked with was DOS and many of the applications as well as the hardware (for instance engine calibration consoles in test bucks) were custom built. That's always seemed to be the make/break decision between PCs and Apple in industry- tightly integrated and largely unhackable software in Apple vs. the ability to customize the whole package for industrial tinkering with PCs.

Always worked for me (and continues to work for me as I moved into another industrial automation job in 2 weeks) and as far as I can remember, I've never touched an Apple product.

 

I had two Apple sales reps try to get me fired - twice in two separate companies. I have held a grudge for decades. I have never owned or used an Apple product. Purely personal. If it is superior then I don't care. Just don't bring one of their products into my house.

 

No thanks.

 

Then you don't really have much to contribute to the discussion, do you? You're not critiquing the products, just expressing a personal vendetta of sorts against the company over something two sales reps allegedly did a very long time ago. That is not helpful here.