Computers for Law School 2011 Forum

[kalvano]

but all PCs are not made equal.

But the answer for that changes little, if at all. Lenovo / Asus.

You're right, it's not like new models are being released all the time. I would go HP over Asus personally.

HP's been pretty crappy for a while. My wife has an Asus and I am mightily impressed with it. I wish I had gotten it instead of a Thinkpad sometimes.

And while they do release new models all the time, the basic hierarchy of manufacturers who make a decent product rarely changes.

[bk1]

I would go HP over Asus personally.

Ewwwww.

[PomasThynchon]

I don't know why people think these threads are needed every few months. It's always the same answer - buy a Mac if you like Macs, buy a PC if you like PC's. There is no material difference between the two. This hasn't changed in years.

Indeed buy a Mac if you want a Mac, but all PCs are not made equal. And some would-be Mac users need a little coaxing about how Parallels/BootCamp isn't a big deal if they need Windows

So because of this, you are inferring that every PC that is not functionally better than the Mac means that would-be purchasers of said PC should just go ahead and buy a Mac because a particular computer which is not representative of the whole is inferior? I fail to see how the logic works.

(Simplified: because some PCs suck, they should buy Macs?)

I don't see how you read that into the comment. Mac has a very slim product line, there are many, many more PC options than there are Mac. When people say Mac laptop, there's the Air, the Pro, and the base MacBook, with some customization options. Sony, HP, Asus, Toshiba, Dell each have fairly bloated product lines compared to Apple, so when you size up the Mac vs. PC thing, it's a handful of Mac options versus dozens upon dozens of PCs from different manufacturers. That's fairly obvious to me, at least. It doesn't mean Macs are better, but if you ARE deadset on a Mac, the bottom line is you have fewer options to consider.

[PomasThynchon]

Not as bad as Dell though. Asus has been pretty low-end until fairly recently. I haven't looked into PCs recently because I'm set on a Mac, but that might be tcr

[PomasThynchon]

I don't see how you read that into the comment. Mac has a very slim product line, there are many, many more PC options than there are Mac. When people say Mac laptop, there's the Air, the Pro, and the base MacBook, with some customization options. Sony, HP, Asus, Toshiba, Dell each have fairly bloated product lines compared to Apple, so when you size up the Mac vs. PC thing, it's a handful of Mac options versus dozens upon dozens of PCs from different manufacturers. That's fairly obvious to me, at least. It doesn't mean Macs are better, but if you ARE deadset on a Mac, the bottom line is you have fewer options to consider.

And even if you consider different processor options and adding an SSD, the various customization options for Macs pale in comparison to the plethora of PCs. Any Apple fanboy can compare a $400 Inspiron to a MBP and declare them better, sometimes it takes a few posters to help out on the PC front.

[absolutazn87]

Also, just to make sure this is in every recent thread about computers, Macs are no different than PC's, hardware-wise. You're paying extra for a fancy case and for a pretty OS that is better looking and more user friendly than Windows 7 (albeit not by much anymore), but not as functional or powerful.

Well, that and an awesome touchpad. I do miss that on Macs.

Yeah the trackpad on Macs is probably the main reason I can't imagine switching back to PCs

[bk1]

Not as bad as Dell though. Asus has been pretty low-end until fairly recently. I haven't looked into PCs recently because I'm set on a Mac, but that might be tcr

I haven't looked at ASUS laptops until recently so I have no idea whether they used to suck. Though Dell used to be a lot better than it is now. I will say that I was impressed with ASUS mobos prior to their laptops.

[bk1]

HP's been pretty crappy for a while. My wife has an Asus and I am mightily impressed with it. I wish I had gotten it instead of a Thinkpad sometimes.

I'm jealous of my gf's UL80, except for the touchpad because it is flush with the wrist rest and merely textured rather than indented. Though my Dell has been a workhorse for the past few years.

[PomasThynchon]

Also, just to make sure this is in every recent thread about computers, Macs are no different than PC's, hardware-wise. You're paying extra for a fancy case and for a pretty OS that is better looking and more user friendly than Windows 7 (albeit not by much anymore), but not as functional or powerful.

Well, that and an awesome touchpad. I do miss that on Macs.

You can't compare a general smattering of hardware without considering form factor, which Apple squarely beats in any "lower-price" PC.

[bk1]

Also, just to make sure this is in every recent thread about computers, Macs are no different than PC's, hardware-wise. You're paying extra for a fancy case and for a pretty OS that is better looking and more user friendly than Windows 7 (albeit not by much anymore), but not as functional or powerful.

Well, that and an awesome touchpad. I do miss that on Macs.

You can't compare a general smattering of hardware without considering form factor, which Apple squarely beats in any "lower-price" PC.

When most of my time on a laptop is spent plowing away at the keyboard I find the form factor difference (heck even the track pad difference) between the two very marginal.

[geoduck]

Also, just to make sure this is in every recent thread about computers, Macs are no different than PC's, hardware-wise. You're paying extra for a fancy case and for a pretty OS that is better looking and more user friendly than Windows 7 (albeit not by much anymore), but not as functional or powerful.

Well, that and an awesome touchpad. I do miss that on Macs.

Well it really is a PC... just well built and purdy with an exclusive OS. And OSX itself is only less powerful than Windows 7 for gaming purposes really. The video drivers aren't tooled for FPS. Thanks to OpenGL and OpenCL, it does just fine for most other purposes. Of course this is coming from a video editor who doesn't have tools that are only compiled for Windows or have been brought over via shoddy ports.

[Baylan]

Also, just to make sure this is in every recent thread about computers, Macs are no different than PC's, hardware-wise. You're paying extra for a fancy case and for a pretty OS that is better looking and more user friendly than Windows 7 (albeit not by much anymore), but not as functional or powerful.

Well, that and an awesome touchpad. I do miss that on Macs.

You can't compare a general smattering of hardware without considering form factor, which Apple squarely beats in any "lower-price" PC.

You can certainly compare a smattering of hardware without considering form factor if form factor is irrelevant to you.

My computer could be pink for all I care, if it does the job that I need it to do well.

[Marionberry]

Thinking of pulling the trigger on a T410 for $799, is this a good enough deal to go ahead and do it?

[kalvano]

T410 is a badass machine.

[PomasThynchon]

Also, just to make sure this is in every recent thread about computers, Macs are no different than PC's, hardware-wise. You're paying extra for a fancy case and for a pretty OS that is better looking and more user friendly than Windows 7 (albeit not by much anymore), but not as functional or powerful.

Well, that and an awesome touchpad. I do miss that on Macs.

You can't compare a general smattering of hardware without considering form factor, which Apple squarely beats in any "lower-price" PC.

You can certainly compare a smattering of hardware without considering form factor if form factor is irrelevant to you.

My computer could be pink for all I care, if it does the job that I need it to do well.

Because form factor has no effect on the operation of your hardware...

[Marionberry]

T410 is a badass machine.

I can get a refurb X201 from Lenovo for $900, the T410 is actually gonna be $749 after a coupon code. Is the X201 gonna be any less tough as a result of being lighter? Do you think the weight of the T410 is gonna be too much to carry around comfortably. I'm not a small dude, but I don't want to be lugging heavy shit around all day either.

[kehoema2]

T410 is a badass machine.

I can get a refurb X201 from Lenovo for $900, the T410 is actually gonna be $749 after a coupon code. Is the X201 gonna be any less tough as a result of being lighter? Do you think the weight of the T410 is gonna be too much to carry around comfortably. I'm not a small dude, but I don't want to be lugging heavy shit around all day either.

Hate to grub, but I was also interested in this question... Figured this would be an easy way to track more information

[Marionberry]

T410 is a badass machine.

I can get a refurb X201 from Lenovo for $900, the T410 is actually gonna be $749 after a coupon code. Is the X201 gonna be any less tough as a result of being lighter? Do you think the weight of the T410 is gonna be too much to carry around comfortably. I'm not a small dude, but I don't want to be lugging heavy shit around all day either.

Hate to grub, but I was also interested in this question... Figured this would be an easy way to track more information

Nah, I appreciate the bump. Was also wondering, as I won't possibly need a faster/better machine than this, is it worth it to go ahead and buy it now, rather than waiting for similar deals on better machines in a few months?

[deathviaboredom]

.

[PomasThynchon]

I'm not saying looks are everything. I would never buy one computer over the other *just because* I think it's prettier. I'm fairly satisfied with my HP Pavilion dv2500 hardware-wise, and it's been as reliable as you could ask a laptop to be, but ergonomically speaking it's a nightmare.

[geoduck]

WRONG.

I've had my crappy, cheap, MacBook pro with nothing but extremely minor kinks since I got it in 2008, except for one overhaul of the bottom case/keyboard because I spilled Snapple on it.

It has AMAZING battery life, is QUICK as hell, gets no viruses, and is SUPER reliable as well as pleasant to use and navigate.

Just sayin'

Ooh - and tech support for Macs is GREAT. WIndows does not parallel.

Also, you need good PEROFRMANCE otherwise your computer is SLOWWWWW. Imagine running, as I do on my mac, Word, OneNote, three internet browsers, a calendar.

Put down the crack pipe. You don't just shout out words like wrong and liar... what are we, Republican congressmen? I'd also love to know where you got a crappy cheap MacBook Pro... a line that's never been priced for less than a thousand.

By the by, "perofrmance" is important... to a point. Anything with a proper chip (read: not a netbook) can pass your "perofrmance" test easily. Talking just about Macs, there isn't one sold now that doesn't pass it... and it's pretty easy to get a PC with similar hardware specs to a Mac.

[frijoles99]

LOL Really? You think running word, Onenote, a web browser, and a calendar app at the same time is taxing to a machine? Maybe in 2000. Most machines, including netbooks can run all of that easily. I ran chrome, firefox, opera, one note, a word processor, google calendar, and played music all at the same time. I should know I used a netbook exclusively for an entire year 2009. Today you can purchase a netbook for 200-300 dollars and you can purchase an apple macbook for 1k. They will both run all the apps you just mentioned at the same time with relative ease. So with the Snapple spill how much did apple charge you for the repair. I won't lie going to an apple store is certainly convenient in terms of going there. But I had to go 16 times. And many of the times we had to leave the machine there for days . Do you want to have an out of commission machine for days? Personally, I would use the squaretrade warranty because they just fix it quickly or pay you back for the laptop.

edit:
Wait I just did that on my smartphone. I am now running chrome, firefox, and dolphin hd, taking notes with my google docs processor. Opened up evernote and am staring at the calendar. No hiccups so far.

[Marionberry]

LOL Really? You think running word, Onenote, a web browser, and a calendar app at the same time is taxing to a machine? Maybe in 2000. Most machines, including netbooks can run all of that easily. I ran chrome, firefox, opera, one note, a word processor, google calendar, and played music all at the same time. I should know I used a netbook exclusively for an entire year 2009. Today you can purchase a netbook for 200-300 dollars and you can purchase an apple macbook for 1k. They will both run all the apps you just mentioned at the same time with relative ease. So with the Snapple spill how much did apple charge you for the repair. I won't lie going to an apple store is certainly convenient in terms of going there. But I had to go 16 times. And many of the times we had to leave the machine there for days . Do you want to have an out of commission machine for days? Personally, I would use the squaretrade warranty because they just fix it quickly or pay you back for the laptop.

You seem knowledgeable. T410 w/ 6 cell battery for $745 shipped from Lenovo. Am I gonna find a cheaper one within the next 6 months?

[kalvano]

T410 is a badass machine.

I can get a refurb X201 from Lenovo for $900, the T410 is actually gonna be $749 after a coupon code. Is the X201 gonna be any less tough as a result of being lighter? Do you think the weight of the T410 is gonna be too much to carry around comfortably. I'm not a small dude, but I don't want to be lugging heavy shit around all day either.

The 410 is the standard for damn near unbreakable, but I've got an Edge and it's fine. The T410 is kind of overkill. However, I am wary of "refurbished" computers. I'd rather have the new T410. Or, conversely, I paid about that much for the 14" Edge.

[Marionberry]

T410 is a badass machine.

I can get a refurb X201 from Lenovo for $900, the T410 is actually gonna be $749 after a coupon code. Is the X201 gonna be any less tough as a result of being lighter? Do you think the weight of the T410 is gonna be too much to carry around comfortably. I'm not a small dude, but I don't want to be lugging heavy shit around all day either.

The 410 is the standard for damn near unbreakable, but I've got an Edge and it's fine. The T410 is kind of overkill. However, I am wary of "refurbished" computers. I'd rather have the new T410. Or, conversely, I paid about that much for the 14" Edge.

Well, I realize that this T410 is overkill performance-wise, so it's reasonable to assume that the practical benefit of getting a higher performing machine for the same price in a few months, if that were even possible, would be nil? I mean, at this price the T410 is $100 more than I paid for my Acer timeline two years ago. The acer still runs, but it will probably end up in the hands of the fiancee mostly.