but since buying my Mac I am a complete and utter convert. It just works well.

Neither balanced nor insightful, oh well...

Ask yourself some questions first:

Am I heavy windows user?
Am I bothered what the thing looks like?
Am I after a gaming machine?
How much cash do I want to splash?

I use computers a lot in my job, and I'm finding that I'm using a Mac more and more. I like Mac OS X, find it easy to use and like the options presented by the fact that, under the hood, it's Unix (to satisfy my geek tendencies). I also find the OS is a bit cleaner, less intrusive and less cluttered than Windows, though Windows 7 is something of an improvement. The needs of developers and geeks are well catered for as most of the important tools are free and included.

Macs are not utterly immune to viruses but they certainly don't suffer anywhere near as many issues as Windows on that score.

Windows installs either on a dual boot or running vmware or parallels, so if you do need Windows that's fine too.

In the end I think your major driver is cost. Many PC gamers, for example complain about the mac not being a great gaming platform. Fine. Buy a console instead. I think you do pay a premium for Apple products, but think that mostly comes down to design and build quality. It's a premium I was willing to pay and I'm fairly happy with the choice. And you don't need to join the cult of Steve to buy one either :)

Macs dont get viruses, dont break down every five minutes and are more aesthetically pleasing. After you get the Mac buy an Apple TV and stream hundreds of movies to your tv. I currently have around 1500 movies that I can play anytime I want.

If you get a Mac you are locked in to the proprietory Apple world - all at a premium. I just went through this debate and finally went for the more flexible, cheaper and totally open Windows world with loads of software available for it.

I think reliabity is down to the user. I have a mate who bitched and moaned about his high end sony laptop so bought an apple and now bitches and moans about that. He downloads all sorts of tat, randomly backs up stuff and had constantly has problems

I don't have problems with viruses I use a free avg software and don't open anything dodgy and have no problems with my pc.In the end they are just tools.

I think things like screen quality etc are probably most important. I think the enternal debate about this is by high end users most every day user don't benefit from the differences in their machines.If people are most majority of home users don't use the full potential of their machines.

If it's music you may benenfit from kit to get the music through to some decent speakers and of course plenty of hard drive space and perhaps budget for external hard drive to back up to.

Also big firms like dell do have second machine for sale (usual ex coprorate rental machines) which may not be the uppermsot spec but are normal good deals and ideal for the home user.
Oh and I may be the only person not to moan about vista can't see what the fuss was about works fine for me.

A relatively cheap way of switching from PC to Mac is to get a mac mini for about £500 and use your current monitor and keyboard.
Macs work better. Stuff’s easier to do on them. And things look nicer. (And if you think that’s gormless you should hear me talking about cars).

My terrible Inspiron Lap tap (called Les), has just had a health check by an IT friend this afternoon. Despite spilling a can of draft bitter over the keyboard last year, he still kind of works;although I have attached a normal keyboard to him as his original keys on are falling off as quickly as rotten teeth in diseased gums. There is also something rattling about inside of him. Apart from operating as slowly as the Royal Mail, Les still works if I bang and swear at him loud enough.I'm usually a mild mannered person until I sit down with Les on an evening, although he's behaving tonight. One day I hope too by a Mac, but need to get on the housing market first! I would post a picture of Les,but it would just be too embarassing. As you can imagine, I don't work in I.T.

Sorry to be the lone voice of dissent. After 20 years of using Windows based PCs, I finally bought a new swanky MacBook Pro from John Lewis about 2 months ago. I have had nothing but problems with trying to connect it to my wireless broadband network at home. I'm not too techie, but I know it's not my wireless or router, etc, as the PC I have connects no problem (and stays connected). I have already taken it back to the shop once and got a replacement. I've had a very geeky (Mac) mate round who has played with the settings of both Mac and broiadband, and he cannot find the problem (although he says there are known bugs in Airport and the operating system). No-one seems to know what the problem is and I don't want to spend forever on helplines or reading Mac User forums trying to find out what the problem is. I think this has put me off Macs for good.

'macs dont break down every 5 minutes" I meant if you are like me a computer novice. I started with a PC and got pissed off with it - I dont think it ever worked continuously for a fortnight without breaking down. Mostly it was me but the macs are easier to use for simpletons.

PC for work, Mac for pleasure, but I MUCH prefer the Mac. I won't re-hash what has already been said above. I took the plunge about 3 years ago and wouldn't return to Windows.

Macs are okay, but Parkas are better for keeping the rain off. I'll get my coat.

do with their computers though, the way some people speak you'd think they run Cearn Hedron collider.

Most home users surf the net, watch the odd dvd, resize the odd photo, do a bit of word pro. I would think a mid priced mac or pc would do this no problem. Not sure what these problems that people go about which drives them into the arms for life of Mac or Pc I think like classic expats they over look the failings of their adoptive homes once they crop up.

I think spending you money on the fasets interney connection might often be a better bet as slow download speed for Iplayer etc is probably more of annoyance.

Also alot of the to and fro about is this often from people who have never used the other brand recently they are in general very similar for day to day use.

...and it was the best move I ever made. And I'm a computer professional by day so pretty demanding and hard to please.

Though you might end up paying a tad more than a no-brand or discount-brand desktop PC, you're getting so much more, and once the price is forgotten the quality remains...

A dual boot EEEPC running XP and Ubuntu, a 2-3 year old pre-intel G5 Mac desk top, and a dual boot OS 10.5/XP macbook. Oh and a 5 yo Toshiba laptop and a battered old mac laptop that is so old it doesn't have USB ports and can only run OS 9.3. I STILL use this latter machine to give powerpoint presentations, while the Toshiba is now taking about 6 minutes to boot up. I am not worried about gaming, etc and just find tht the MAC OS is so much easier to work in and very very rarely crashes. In fact I can't remember a OS 10 crash. A do like ubuntu too, so I guess Unix-based stuff just works better and longer.

I should emphasize that if you are just using office, DOCs etc can be opened easily in both platforms. I am constantly writing/editing stuff between the eeepc and the macbook and there is never any trouble

To generalise madly, I can see the advantages of a PC if you want to do work on a computer. But if it's all about music, DVDs, video and photo editing and general connectivity - get the Mac.

They are more expensive but the software that comes built-in is excellent. I've gone the whole hog and have three Airport Expresses and an Apple TV.

My music - all 10,000 tracks - now lives on an external disc for safekeeping. And copy of that library lives on the Apple TV.

The clever thing that it is the Apple TV that transmits the sound to my other stereo set ups in the house and I can control it all with my ITouch (or Iphone). My computer doesn't have to be on to do this.

If music is your main love, this is a great road to go down. I like the fact that such a system is much cheaper than it would have been just a few years ago when rich people spent a fortune to make their houses 'smart'.

I know you probably could do something similar with a PC. But it seems easier with the Mac and the focus is on what the technology does for you - rather than battling with the technology.

I don't understand why people get so defensive about this subject. A computer is a computer is a computer. If you pay too little you'll get a lousy keyboard and screen, if you pay too much you won't get what you paid for (unless you like little name badges). It used to be the case that Windows PCs were wildly unstable but, despite it's reputation, Vista is extremely stable - I reboot (as opposed to hibernate) my laptop about once a fortnight and rarely have problems even though I often install obscure utilities. If you like the look and feel of OSX then get a Mac PC, if you like the look and feel of Vista (or more probably 7) then get a Windows PC.

does freeware like audacity,flac,oggvorbis,monkey cdwav,bit torrent etc work as well on Macs?"

I just googled audacity. This is what I found

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/mac

My advice would be if you are recording music, manipulating video or doing anything related to graphic art, then a Mac is the absolute right choice.

If you're not but you want something that looks really nice and can afford to pay about £300 - £400 (at the lower end of the spec market) then buy a Mac. If you only want to spend £500 tops. Get a PC (but wait until the 22nd Oct and make sure that it ships with Windows 7 - the upgrade is a bit of a faff if not).

will depend on what media player you use Itunes is pickier than most as are Ipods but there are loads of alternative music players that use these formats.

...it's the zealous Mac-fans that I can't stand. Fuelled with a certainty that they're right and everyone else is wrong, they exhibit the fundamentalist tendencies that only minority groups with an axe to grind demonstrate. And Linux fans aren't far behind either.

Fact is that PCs, when looked after, are fine. You no longer need to be a geek to understand them, there is far more published (and supported, shareware fans) software than for any other platform, and they're a lot cheaper. If minimalist styling and black polo-necks are your thing then buy a Mac, but they do cost more. I write this on my 5th Dell laptop - no trouble so far. I have been considering a Macbook myself as it happens, but I might have done so much sooner if it hadn't been for the stigma...

any of the responses on here to be from Mac zealots. In fact, most seem to be users of both (or at least, former pc users) so give a fairly informed opinion on that basis. Black polo necks?

I switched to an iMac about 6 years ago when the kids came along and I decided I didn't have time to "tinker" with the PC and just needed to get things done. Never looked back. Since then I've switched my work notebook to a MacBook Pro (although I have got Windows running in a virtual machine for the some of the "corporate" stuff), my wife's added a MacBook and we've got a second iMac. The original iMac G5 that I got is still running perfectly well.

Most things you need (iTunes, Photo, Movie editing etc) are built in, most of the rest (e.g handbrake for ripping DVDs) can be obtained for free. The only software I've actually bought was MS Office for work related stuff (although you can use OpenOffice for that which is free) and Airfoil which allows me to stream Spotify to the airport express hooked into the room HiFi.

.... Yes!

My trusty 7 year old G3 iMac runs latest software fine, has had not one single problem with it one (honestly) still runs pretty fast on 2gb of RAM and anything i plug into it (hard drive, camera, iphone, toaster) just works straight away without having to install mostly cr*p 'needs upgrading' straightaway drivers etc...

PCS ok, just got fed up with constant major issue upgrades to help windows keep working, and the virus issue is a nightmare, when most Macs just dont seem to catch them!

It's two years old. Never been infected with a virus, only problem I've ever had was when my itunes was too full and eating up all the memory space, so I now need to use a drive.

Sometimes its a little slow, but the lack of operating hassle has been a godsend as I'm not very computer literate.

I don't really give a stuff about how it looks.

Also, as it's now out of warranty, you could replace the internal HD with a bigger one. It's a slightly fiddly job (lot's of little screws) but easy.

This site is brilliant for step-by-step Mac upgrade/repair tutorials

http://www.ifixit.com/

No. For what you appear to want to be able to do, you can buy a perfectly good machine to run Linux or Windows for several hundred pounds less than an equivalent Mac. Several hundred pounds that could be spent on all kinds of interesting things.

I jumped from the Windows system following the Vista debacle (recently described as a "train wreck" for Microsoft). I've never been happier with my iMac - it does the lot without fuss or bother. I can still run Windows software on the Mac (I use the excellent Parallels), but I'll never go back to Windows, it's just not worth the hassle. Mac is definitely the superior product.

I use Macs, have done for 15 years so no real experience of PC. The only complaint I have ever really had about any Apple product in all these years has been a succession of dead-on-arrival iPod Touches. There is a price premium but it is not as large as some think, the free apps you get with the Mac are generally miles better than the free stuff on a PC and - pending Windows 7 - the operating system is light years ahead.

However I do get a feeling that the Apple behemoth is getting a bit like the bully it always characterised Microsoft as.

the first 128k model in 1985. I've kept em all in a little 'Apple Museum' in the loft :-)

Consequently I'm not really in a position to provide an unbiased recommendation but I will say one thing; you never see a thread like the above where a list of people say that they've moved from Mac to PC do you?

used wisely, spec'd well and bought from a decent manufacturer, is perfectly good. Corporates would not use them if this were not so. They do, in their millions (that will be why HP is the biggest tech company in the world).

Part of a PC's problem is that they are cheap and easy to buy. So people who are not computer literate buy them and use them. Badly. Macs have a higher cost and higher spec and tend to be bought by people who know what they are doing. The people I know who own Macs who also own PC's tend to not get virus' on either machine (and also tend to back up and do sensible stuff like that as well).

Mac, all the way since 85, I shan't be swayed. I had an horrendous two year period without one - it was hell. Had to use a clunky IBM XZ sans mouse and the 'graphic' program we had (Jetsetter - OMG the hands are trembling now) was more primitive than both first editions of MacWrite and MacPaint. Thus I can see only apple shapes when I consider a new machine.

they just work 99.9% of the time, for a machine (which they are) who can ask for more?

...each time i went to the apple shop in the mall, it all felt a bit like scientology... with all these spooky films about "product" being played in the shop.
(Listen to Me. Listen to Me. Listen to Me.)

i got a virus and the staff didn't know how to fix it, and then just couldn't be bothered as it was embarrassing them.

scary stuff... i'll stick to windows and not give a sh*t about how the equipment looks.
at least with windows, if it breaks... i can fix it myself, for free... and not have to go to the poseur shop to ask an "expert".

...and i don't have a ponytail!

....Charlie Brooker on the Mac PC debate -
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/sep/28/charlie-brooker-micr...

(tho' I am a mac monk myself)

perfectly OK, but then comes that little phrase: "as long as..."

With Windows you're fine "as long as" you:

Keep your antivirus, spyware, adware and malware software up-to-date all the time and leave it running every time you use the machine, or at least when you're on the 'Net;

Re-install the Operating System 2 or 3 times per year to counter the system-rot as mentioned by Fraser.

Now a lot of people don't mind that, which is fine, but for me it's time wasted that could be spent doing other things, be it making a DVD, mowing the lawn, playing with the kids, whatever. So I can't be arsed with pratting around making a computer work when I really shouldn't have to.

With a Mac there is no "as long as"; you switch it on (or wake it up) and use it. No sweeping for nastiness, no OS-rot, no kernal-panics (unless your RAM's gone faulty), just pure usage and enjoyment. If an individual application crashes (and oh, they do!) then a force-quit just leaves all other apps running and your OS untouched. Hardware issues can of course arise like with any computer, so always back up. Other than that however, just enjoy getting stuff done and forget about the computer underneath.

That's my experience over many years and many machines.

And OS X doesn't get "fewer" viruses, or is "less susceptible" to infection. There are *no* viruses in the wild for OS X in any of its forms. None. Nada. Zip. After 9 years. And this is nothing to do with market-share, as although that may account for far fewer issues, it doesn't account for the current state of none at all.

Complacency/smugness is a bad thing though, so I do hope I don't end up with virtual egg on my face in the near-future.

that MS Office is actually worth having?

I would recommend an iMac. I use both and far prefer the Mac despite the fact that mine has recently developed a rash of annoying one pixel wide lines running down the screen.

If you live near an Apple shop thaqt's another reason to get one. The Genius Bar system is fabulous.

Richard

While you have been debating whether to buy a Mac, they've only gone and updated the iMac and Mac Mini !

http://www.apple.com/uk/

Anyone considering a new Mac might want to check the Apple web site - they've just re-launched pretty much the entire product line today

And my other half still hates the current PC we had to buy due to funds not stretching to a Mac.

However I still feel sore for the cost of repairing our last Mac, especially as when a PC goes wrong I can fix it. I kept a Windows 98 machine going until earlier this year until finally the power supply gave up the ghost. But even the stuff I can't fix I can find somebody who could and at a reasonable price.

But Macs...ouch...new mortgate time!

PCs at work and Macs at home.

I much prefer the Mac, the OS just seems far more intuitive and the whole system much more stable.

I also don't think they're that much more money than an equivalently specced PC. What Mac don't really do is compete at the budget end of the market so they don't offer a £500 laptop.

There's a decent article on the price differences here, although it's a little out of date the principle still holds

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9023959/Mac_vs._PC_cost_analysis_...

If you do decide to get one make sure you download Flip4mac, it's a tiny program that runs in the background and lets you play WMV files in Quicktime.

Another absolute must program for Mac users is Iplayer Grabber. It downloads pretty much any radio or tv show from BBC Iplayer in MP3 or Quicktime so you can watch/listen later with no time limit either on your computer or ipod.

but...

PS. I is Mac all the way

I think I'd rather Mac

I don't think this one will *ever* end, for the reasons Umberto Eco nailed so beautifully:

The fact is that the world is divided between users of the
Macintosh computer and users of MS-DOS compatible computers. I am firmly of the opinion that the Macintosh is Catholic and that DOS is Protestant. Indeed, the Macintosh is counterreformist and has been influenced by the "ratio studiorum" of the Jesuits. It is cheerful, friendly, conciliatory, it tells the faithful how they must proceed step by step to reach - if not the Kingdom of Heaven - the moment in which their document is printed. It is catechistic: the essence of revelation is dealt with via simple formulae and sumptuous icons. Everyone has a right to salvation.

DOS is Protestant, or even Calvinistic. It allows free interpretation of scripture, demands difficult personal decisions, imposes a subtle hermeneutics upon the user, and takes for granted the idea that not all can reach salvation. To make the system work you need to interpret the program yourself: a long way from the baroque community of revelers, the user is closed within the loneliness of his own inner torment.

I think Linux has rather taken the place of DOS nowadays for those really keen on free interpretation, while Windows is at least Catholic in appearance ...

[yes,I know I posted it before, but the Name of the Rose Hitmaker can write a bit, eh ?]

I'm a teacher & do a great deal of work with music, photos and digital video, using my own iMac & MacBook (no, I can't really afford them...)

If I had to use the substandard PCs, and pathetic software available in most schools I would never be doing such work, which enhances learning greatly.

As for Charlie Brooker's (very funny) "Fisher Price Activity Centre for Adults' interface" comment, well what do you want - something you have to fight with, or something that works? I used to teach kids with severe learning disabilities and the Mac interface was a great enabler for them - they would never have dealt with 'Windows' & using a computer would have been a closed world to them.

Macs rule :-)

...is my abridged answer. For what it sounds like you want to do, Macs are great.

I'm pretty much the least biased person you could hope for when it comes to this argument; I honestly don't give two hoots what I'm using as long as it works, and my Mac does 'just work'.

That's not to say that it never crashes, or causes annoyance (it does), but in general it's a lot less stressful for everyday use than my Windows PC's.

I wrote a post about it here if you're interested in some pros and cons.

when using a Mac is the ancient Apple strapline

"It Just Works"

of the 27" iMac was interesting, as was the comparison with the HP touchscreen PC

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2354661,00.asp

@ the OP, yes it is most definitely worth buying a Mac

I just acquired 2G of RAM for a seven year old G4 that has been cranking along merrily, if slowly, for all that time with 256k of RAM. The speed boost is quite breathtaking. I'm also running Leopard 10.5.

Just get one man/woman!

...you'll probably like it. At the risk of the (inevitable?) flame war....

If you can afford the premium, fine. If you think all you need is the Apple supplied software, go for it. But if you need particular software, you had better check it is available. If you already have a copy of Office for Windows, you'll probably have to buy a new copy for a Mac rather than use your existing one. If you think you'll be installing Windows in a Bootcamp partition, you'll (probably, should) be paying extra for that. But look for the Home/Student versions.

If you think Macs are going to remain secure through obscurity, carry on deluding yourself - how long do you think crims will ignore rich deluded people (flame on). If you want to stay up to date, be prepared to buy MacOS upgrades (and be forced to upgrade) at the major release points (probably 20-30 quid every year or two) as they only provide support patches for the last couple of releases (same for Linux), and you have to upgrade through each step. And once you drop off the support twig you're open to any attacks exploiting those old holes. At least Microsoft supports their stuff for 10 years, for security at least.

I know enough Windows to get by, and at least it's consistent. I also know Unix and don't really want to live that world at home, just want an appliance as far as possible. As the partner of a mac fan/fascist, we got an iMac and I can attest as the designated support staff that with MacOS, once you have got past the group of settings and error handling that they thoughtfully lay out for you with a warm and cuddly UI, other serious problems require serious non-Apple sourced research (e.g. Mac Black Book purchase and read through, Internet forums etc), and I'm pretty sure it will happen. We ditched the Mac eventually. Vista had it's issues, but I've never found it as bad as the media makes out. Win7 has been a lot better too.

And while the freeware options might give you some compatibility with Office, ask yourself this - what are the consequences of freeware-X corrupting my document, spreadsheet or slide deck in any way, e.g. stuffing up a total in a financials spreadsheet. If it's not going to affect you, go for it. If it's job- or life- threatening then you might want to check them out a bit more thoroughly. www.zdnet.com has had some articles about this recently.

I think we deserve an update from Sootymangabey. So, what's it to be - Mac or PC??

Excellent choice, sir. I'm sure you'll both be very happy together.

Good to see another nail in Microsoft's coffin (I'll never forgive them for Vista!)