kelty
New member
hello im going to buy a lap top computer most of the students in photogaphy at usu like apple lap tops because of it ease of use and fire wire any opinions out there??????? kelty
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lap top
- Thread starter kelty
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Candy Tate
Well-known member
I here apples are great for photo work, but I haven't personally used one. I have a Toshiba and it has firewire also. I've been very happy with it.
CandyT http://www.pbase.com/candyt
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CandyT http://www.pbase.com/candyt
I know I'm gonna get creamed for this, but I have a HP Pavilion that kicks butt, and runs like a charm after eight months. I do mainly photo editing and my kids, who are the REAL 'techies' tell me that they would never have apples for themselves, although the use them exclusively at school. And these are kids that build their OWN computers, LOL.
Oh. and one more thing. Don't get excited and buy compulsively. Look around and get the most for your $$. Also, while I like Hewlett-Packard, they recently acquired COMPAQ, which I would never, EVER buy again. My Compaq desktop, which I paid a lot of money for and was 'loaded', was trouble from day one. Good Luck whatever you do!
Regards,
Willa
http://www.pbase.com/willa
Oh. and one more thing. Don't get excited and buy compulsively. Look around and get the most for your $$. Also, while I like Hewlett-Packard, they recently acquired COMPAQ, which I would never, EVER buy again. My Compaq desktop, which I paid a lot of money for and was 'loaded', was trouble from day one. Good Luck whatever you do!
Regards,
Willa
http://www.pbase.com/willa
R
Roy F.
Guest
I agree that a Mac sounds better for you than an IBM-type PC. I'm a PC
person, and I find that you need to be a computer expert (or have easy
access to a computer expert) with a PC. With a Mac you can concentrate
more on being a photographer and less on being a computer expert.
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Roy F.
Darren Young
Well-known member
Kelty --
Here's a little clue for you: Probably 95% of the graphic designers/PhotoShop rocketeers that I know use Macs. I have had 5 of 'em since '90, and have also used PC's. Don't get ANYwhere as P.O.'ed at a Mac as I do at a PC. Currently I have an iBook (fantastic, but use OS 9, not OS X yet), an older iMac (400mHz) and an old Quadra 605 chugging along at 66mHz at the office for writing and bookkeeping.
The iBook is my recommendation; lightweight, fast, EZ to use, even "looks" cool... If you want a REALLY big screen and can handle the hit to your wallet, the Titanium is very nice (but it's just too big for my personal schlepping needs).
'When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.' -- Hunter S. Thompson
kram105249
Forum Enthusiast
I'm quite happy with my Compaq 1711T. It's thin and light, reasonably fast, and does have one Firewire port. I love the 1400x1050 screen...
One tip if you decide on a "PC" rather than a Mac- the P4-M's clock speed is not comparable to the P3-M. In other words, a P4-M 1.6 ghz is hardly any faster than a P3-M 1 ghz. They do put P4 desktop chip in some laptop, but battery consumption and heat are the drawbacks. Personally I'd recommend a P3-M 1.26 over a P4-M 1.8. Avoid anything with the name "Celeron" on it.
One tip if you decide on a "PC" rather than a Mac- the P4-M's clock speed is not comparable to the P3-M. In other words, a P4-M 1.6 ghz is hardly any faster than a P3-M 1 ghz. They do put P4 desktop chip in some laptop, but battery consumption and heat are the drawbacks. Personally I'd recommend a P3-M 1.26 over a P4-M 1.8. Avoid anything with the name "Celeron" on it.
It all depends on your needs. If you are going to be lugging it around alot... go with the ibook... Its small light and much better battery life.
I use a PC at work (Dell Pentium 3) and Macs at home. I prefer the Mac, but can get along with the PC (I also have a Vaio Pentium 3 at home). I use the iBook for travelling - lighter, reasonably fast, built-in CD burner, better battery life, built in ethernet for those hotels/resorts that have ethernet. -Dan-
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Oly E100RS, Canon EOS D30, Oly D-550, Canon S30, eyeball
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Oly E100RS, Canon EOS D30, Oly D-550, Canon S30, eyeball
Juli Valley
Forum Pro
I agree with Willa. Apples may be great for photography and desktop publishing, but PCs have so much more software advantages. Also it is my impression that addon for Apple products are more expensive.
J
Jim T
Guest
I'm a PC user with only minimal experience with MAC's (mainly negative experience). My Father-in-law was convince the MAC would be the better computer for a retiree starting out on his first computer. My personal opinion is this was a disaster. Every couple of months he's had to take the Mac into the service centre an hours drive away for something. It seems like an excellent machine, but he has next to no personal support available. I could talk him through just about anything on a PC over the telephone and there are numerous resources for him in his town that could also work with him.
My recommendation is to go with what you feel comfortable with and what you have the most support. It sounds like your classmates and possibly your instructors will mostly have Mac, so the support may be with the Mac. You can't underestimate the value of fitting in as well.
There you go either one will work, but being part of the class may be the deciding factor.
My recommendation is to go with what you feel comfortable with and what you have the most support. It sounds like your classmates and possibly your instructors will mostly have Mac, so the support may be with the Mac. You can't underestimate the value of fitting in as well.
There you go either one will work, but being part of the class may be the deciding factor.
Steve Colquhoun
Forum Enthusiast
The software advantages of a PC over a mac are very minimal. Everything that you do on a PC has a counterpart within the Mac platform. You can run all Adobe products, Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, etc.) a nice new version of Internet Explorer, and...whatever other things you need can be done with various software titles or shareware. There is nothing that I can think of that a PC user can do that I can't on my Mac....other than games. If gaming is your thing, there are many more game titles for PC than Mac, yet some of the very best are for both. Edutainment titles are usually Mac and PC on the same disk.
In regards to peripherals, most hardware is USB which the Mac has supported for quite some time. If the hardware piece is from a large company, most times they have Macintosh drivers for them. I dare say that I use a Microsoft (ackk!) scrollmouse with my Mac, and it works beautifully. One thing you CANNOT expect is to be able to pick up that no-name scanner for $19.95 after rebate at Staples and think it'll work on a Mac...then again, you wouldn't expect very good results from a $20 scanner anyway. As far as adding RAM, Macs take standardized chips which are dirt cheap.
If you do consider a Macintosh do not ever compare mhz between the two machines. Since they work on completely different architecture, a 1 ghz PC is not faster than a 800 mhz Macintosh. Best bet is to compare the top-of-the-line chip speed from a PC and look at the chip speed of the top-of-the-line Mac. They will run about the same speed.
There is a difference in price of the machines themselves. Apple computers are usually more expensive than your average PC. However, I think they are worth it.
Whatever you choose, Mac or PC, buy the most computer you can afford, but never the latest, fastest, & most expensive....it'll be half that price in 6 months!
Just something to consider.
Steve C.
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Proudly shooting with an Olympus c4040
Steve Colquhoun
Forum Enthusiast
I agree. Support from a friend or family member is crucial. Whatever computer you buy, you will have trouble sooner or later. When you do, you don't want to be have a PC in a group of Mac people, or vice versa.
Steve C.
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Proudly shooting with an Olympus c4040
Love my iBook!! CD burner;DVD; firewire;
Great little traveling companion. I have OS 9 and OSX. I do most of my editing using OS9 and PS Elements. Apple online support is great. Lots of freeware and shareware available at Versiontracker.com.
Stan Powers
Senior Member
Kelty,
I have a G4 Powerbook (Titanium) 667 and if you can afford this it is a superb machine. The screen alone is reason to buy it. It is my fourth Apple Powerbook (over 10 years). You will not regret this purchase. On weight: I ride a bike to work (have done so for 12+ years and lugged a variety of powerbooks) and the 5lb Titanium powerbook is very thin and light in my backpack.
OSX and PS7 are in heaven on this machine.
If you go this route:
Buy a sceen protector:
http://eshop.macsales.com/Catalog_Item.cfm?ID=3814&Item=OWCLSPTIG4
Buy a svelte zipper case:
http://eshop.macsales.com/Catalog_Item.cfm?ID=4085&Item=OWCTIG4BAG
Backpacks can be a hostile environment.
Also, agree that iBook is nice (my wife has the 12" ice version) but again for photo work the big screen on the Ti is a Killer!
Good Luck!
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srp
D-340R, C-2100UZ, A-200
http://www.pbase.com/akasrp
I have a G4 Powerbook (Titanium) 667 and if you can afford this it is a superb machine. The screen alone is reason to buy it. It is my fourth Apple Powerbook (over 10 years). You will not regret this purchase. On weight: I ride a bike to work (have done so for 12+ years and lugged a variety of powerbooks) and the 5lb Titanium powerbook is very thin and light in my backpack.
OSX and PS7 are in heaven on this machine.
If you go this route:
Buy a sceen protector:
http://eshop.macsales.com/Catalog_Item.cfm?ID=3814&Item=OWCLSPTIG4
Buy a svelte zipper case:
http://eshop.macsales.com/Catalog_Item.cfm?ID=4085&Item=OWCTIG4BAG
Backpacks can be a hostile environment.
Also, agree that iBook is nice (my wife has the 12" ice version) but again for photo work the big screen on the Ti is a Killer!
Good Luck!
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srp
D-340R, C-2100UZ, A-200
http://www.pbase.com/akasrp
I love my Vaio notebook, my friend loves his Vaio notebook. Whatever you decide on, you can use this site to help compare prices: http://www.salescircular.com
Ian Yates
Senior Member
..you said, "There is a difference in price of the machines themselves. Apple computers are usually more expensive than your average PC. However, I think they are worth it. "
usually? how about always?
Apples ease of use is second to none!
Wintel based machines are horribly complicated and the average user will break it or something in it in less than a year. You know what I mean
"My CD rom doesn't play CD's anymore" or "the sound no longer works" or
why is it so slow?"
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C2100UZ, D600L and that 1.45x & 3.0X teleconverter lens(fits both cameras)
usually? how about always?
Apples ease of use is second to none!
Wintel based machines are horribly complicated and the average user will break it or something in it in less than a year. You know what I mean
"My CD rom doesn't play CD's anymore" or "the sound no longer works" or
why is it so slow?"
--
C2100UZ, D600L and that 1.45x & 3.0X teleconverter lens(fits both cameras)
Steve Colquhoun
Forum Enthusiast
When Apple has their expos, they usually drop the price of their current machines. Some of them get pretty low, and can actually be less than some of the more expensive Wintel machines...yet still compare in regards to speed.
Timing is critical. I would suggest only buying a Mac after the Macworld expos, One in the beginning of January and in the beginning of July. A couple of years ago, a top of the line Mac on the day before the expo was $3,600. At the expo, they announced a newer/faster machine, and that same unit dropped to $1,800. Quite a change in 24 hours...hope those folks kept their receipts!
C.
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Proudly shooting with an Olympus c4040
kelty
New member
hello thanks for all your replys i am comvienced mac is the guy.... some one said to buy after apples expo where? thanks -kelty-
Steve Colquhoun
Forum Enthusiast
The Macworld Expo New York is in the beginning if July and te Macworld San Francisco is in the beginning of January of every year. Since the one in NY happened just a few weeks ago, you may still be able to reap some benefits. I'm not sure of which new computers were announced, but anything that was currently out before the expo has most likely been reduced in price. Right now may be a very good time to act on a Macintosh. Shop around...in the US, many have had good results with MacWarehouse. Note that with many items, you can haggle with them on price.
Steve C.
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Proudly shooting with an Olympus c4040
Darren Young
Well-known member
Some interesting stuff re: clock speeds....
One of my super-tech friends let me in on "the dirty little secret" about processor speeds: Megahertz speed is only half the equation. The other half is something called (if I'm remembering the term) "gate volume" or something like that. Simply put, it's how big a chunk of data the processor can move at whatever it's speed rating is. The guy metaphorized it like a water pipe -- you can have water moving though one pipe at a given speed, but if you have another pipe twice as big in diameter, you're gonna move a lot more water at the same flow speed. He sez the Mac's bit chunks are 2.8x bigger than a Pentium's, i.e., a 500mHz Mac chip will run at an effective Pentium speed of 1.4gHz. At least, that's as far as my foggy brain could understand what he said....All I know is, my iBook RIPS compared to this here 350mHz iMac....
Anyone else know about this technobabble?
'When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.' -- Hunter S. Thompson
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