Another IT guy here - I agree with most of the above ... Especially about Windows 8pcgizzmo wrote:Been an IT guys (network admin) for going on 20 years. Said I would never go to a MAC. I'm typing this from a Mac Book Pro as we speak. The MAC as others have stated is the best of both worlds. I run Windows and the Mac OS on the machine at the same time and can switch between them seamlessly using a product called Paralells or there is also VMWare View.
My opinion is.
1. Windows 8 is the biggest piece of crap MS has ever put out unless you have a touch screen then it's just OK. Whatever you get don't get it.
2. A Mac is intuitive and you may pay more for the hardware up front but you don't have to pay $100 for every OS upgrade more like $15
3. The hardware is top notch, reliable and can take a beating.
4. You can configure the Mac OS and Mouse so it acts just like Windows. Right click etc..
Once my PC desktop at home goes out it will be replaced with a 27 inch IMAC.
My response to this question when customers ask is :
Do you ever have to use software mandated by work ? Your work or others ?
If so then that software will likely be PC only. Maybe its VPN software or finance package or whatever. Do you expect to use an older hardware with it ? Printer ? Scanner ? There may not be Mac drivers for the hardware. That kind of thing drives my customers crazy when they choose a mac. Over the years its gotten better but ....
You CAN run windows on a Mac and I do. BUT you will need some guts, disk space and experience to dual boot your Mac and you will need to pay for a retail copy of windows.
Apple does make good hardware and in my opinion the quality and the support make it almost worth the cost. My Apple support story is this:
I was trying to setup Windows 7 on my mac using VMware fusion and ran into a gotcha. I had apple care and called figuring it couldn't hurt - all they could says is no we cant help. The lady on the phone was a doll and helped me figure out the issue with the 3rd party app and 3rd party Operating system. Then a few years later I wanted to take the same mac on an international trip. The battery was old and held about 50% charge - I took it to the apple store to buy a new battery. Since its an older battery they keep them in the back. The genius bar employee hooked up a ipod to the mac ran some tests from the ipod - the ipod showed a red code and he handed me a battery. No charge.
Even though I make 90% of my living supporting Windows machines I would by another macbook. Trouble is the one I want is $3000. And I cant justify it till this one dies... Some day Ill have a screaming fast new mac with a huge SSD drive and dual boot it again... Some day ...