I'm thinking of making the switch...

Windows is driving me mad with it's constant crashing so I'm seriously considering a Mac Book for my next laptop. As a total Mac novice (not used one since school), what spec features should I be looking for? How much memory for instance?

I'm thinking the Macbook Pro - 15.4" model, and plan to use it for light photo and video editing - nothing particularly challenging.

Any help and advice would be much appreciated! [y]

[y][y][y]

[HighFlyer]

Go for it! I have the 2.4GHz MBP with 2GB RAM as my work laptop (and standard MacBook at home). All Macs now ship with at least 1 GB, 2GB for MBP. I find 2GB to be fine for what i use the Mac for, and i do use mine heavily. I'd happily recommend that model. You can spend a small fortune on customisable options. If you do want more memory and are competent at installing the DIMs yourself, don't get them from Apple, order them from a company called Crucial. They are a lot cheaper!

Thanks,
Sarah

p.s. Welcome to the light side [y]

Go for it. You won't regret it. I have a MacBook (just the cheapy 13.3 inch one, and an Intel iMac. I love 'em.

You might want to wait a day or two before buying, to make sure you get the latest version of OSX (leopard) which is being released this Friday.

David

Thanks for the advice guys - I'd heard a new OS was due imminently - what version should I look for?

Thanks

[preiffer]

10.5 - Leopard. It's released at 6pm on Friday

Any system bought since October 1st can be upgraded for £5.95 - here. Beyond that, rumour has it that all new MBP/MB/M boxes are being stuffed with 10.5 ready for Friday anyway...

Yeah pickup a Mac after Friday and you'll get Leopard pre-installed.

I'm the same as HighFlyer in that I use a MBP at home after having the MacMini, iMac and Macbooks over time. They really are a joy to use.

And why your at it, treat yourself to an iPod touch! [:I]

[Darren Wheeler]

I have to confess to looking at Macbook as a travel laptop rather than my bulkier Dell. It's small enough to slip into my camera bag and should have enough grunt to run photoshop. Just need to find £600 from somewhere.

Hmm. UCS ticket or Mac????

[RichardMannion]

£600 for a UCS ticket? Where is that sale?

I switched to the MBP just over a year ago, and found the whole iPhoto and iDVD very easy to get to grips with.
The ease of use is a major attraction for many people I work with, and the Apple's are becoming the standard here.
I second Sarah's advice on upgrading the memory from Crucial.

There is a downside to bying a Mac, is that you might get sucked into buying a Mac Mini, Apple TV and iPhone.

So, a 2.4GHz 15.4" MBP would give me a decent (and somewhat future proof) notebook?

[4GB RAM max right?]

i have two laptops and one desktop windows xp machines & 1 macbook. i always pick up the macbook first so much quicker than windoze and comes preloaded with just about all you need. Mac or PC it's a no brainer for me!

[preiffer]

NS - yes. I have 4GB in mine, and it's GREAT for running Windows and OSX at the same time. [y]

I use Orcalogic for memory upgrades only because they are top quality and don't have the variable pricing like Crucial do. 4Gb for a MBP is just £116 delivered.

http://orcalogic.co.uk/asp/prodtype.asp?prodtype=31359&ft=M&ph=search&keywords=macbook&recor=31&SearchFor=any

[HighFlyer]

Originally posted by preiffer
NS - yes. I have 4GB in mine, and it's GREAT for running Windows and OSX at the same time. [y]

Show off! [ii]

Thanks,
Sarah

[preiffer]

... if only it could talk to my 55kHz CPU watch. [:p]

OK. I'm convinced. I'm going for it. Need a laptop for our Oz trip anyway.

So, what's this 'glossy' screen about? Do I want one or not?

Originally posted by mdvipond

So, what's this 'glossy' screen about? Do I want one or not?

Personal preference really. The glossy screen makes colours much more vidid so its a joy to use for photos/video etc. You only really need the matte screen if you need 100% accurate colour representation like if your were a pro photographer. The glare isn't an issue with the glossy, at least I've never noticed it.

Best bet is to go to an Apple Store or maybe John Lewis and have a look at the matte and glossy together. Bet you pick the glossy! Thats what I have [8D]

[Pete]

I have a glossy too; but one word of warning, if you're ordering from the Apple Store, 'glossy' is considered a build-to-order item or of the far east, therefore delaying your delivery quite considerably over a stock item held in Ireland.

[preiffer]

Yup - my glossy one took an extra 3 weeks to come through as a result.

So, is anyone else holding a copy of Leopard in their hands right now? [:w]

Originally posted by preiffer
Yup - my glossy one took an extra 3 weeks to come through as a result.

So, is anyone else holding a copy of Leopard in their hands right now? [:w]

had it, installed it by 6pm (it came delivered about 12pm) and now in the process of removing it. Its good, mind you, VERY good, but some of our programmes don't work with it without a VERY expensive upgrade, so will wait for a while. [:(!]

[Pete]

Originally posted by Juliet

had it, installed it by 6pm (it came delivered about 12pm) and now in the process of removing it. Its good, mind you, VERY good, but some of our programmes don't work with it without a VERY expensive upgrade, so will wait for a while. [:(!]

I feel I may need to quiz you about this later...

[preiffer]

Indeed. What's busted J? Mine's all doing fine (Time Machine's a little temperamental when it's doing its first full backup, but otherwise all good)

Having said that, other than (erggghhhh) Office 2004, I only have Universal Apps on here now. [:?]

We use Vector Works, and it will now only work with a newer version.... We have been loyally paying for upgrades for the past 12 years and now have to shell out ANOTHER £450 to be able to use it!!! Oh, and of course i-life needs to be bought, where we had it included previously (although we all knew that was coming...). But I agree that its really quite a Sexy programme... Leopard that is.

[preiffer]

Looks like they MIGHT consider an update, as long as your version's not older than 12.5.2, Juliet? Not sure I'd be too keen on waiting for an unknown length of time for it though [:0]

Having said that, not sure I'd be too keen on paying £450 for a product I've paid "maintenance" on either [:0][n]

I think we'll actually KEEP leopard, and use the other disk as a tiger boot to use Vector works, but that will get annoying in time....