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Should I switch to Mac?

"40% more expensive"
"3 times the price for 2/3 the functionality"

What a load of bologna. There is nothing you can't do on a Mac that you can on a PC, and that includes running Windows or Linux, natively or in a VM. If anything, the ability to run OS X in addition to Windows and Linux means you're getting more functionality with a Mac.

As for the hardware -- if you bother to price out the same high quality components, you'll find that the prices are very similar between Macs and PCs.

You simply can't go wrong with a Mac. It can meet every need.
 
When it comes to browsing the internet, listening to & editing music, and watching & editing films, Macs are by far superior. My Powerbook (2005) shit the bed on me in January, but I'll be purchasing another Mac in a few months because this is what I need it to do.

I really can't agree with that. I've had this Macbook Pro a few weeks now and I love it. I've used my PC desktop fairly rarely since I got it. But browsing the internet... I'm using the same software. iTunes is nice I suppose but I still prefer a light player like Winamp on the PC. And for watching movies I'm using VLC on my Mac just as I do on the PC. When it comes to editing video, that isn't something I do that often anymore but the software available on PC is just as robust as what you find on the Mac.

As a software platform, Macs are certainly not superior. Nor are they inferior. They're just different. For some people, the sort of workflow you find on a Mac works better for them so for them it works out better... but that's really all you can say.
 
^^
It's true that much of the software is the same. But itunes is an Apple product, and I find it works better in OS X than on a PC (I'm on a PC right now, and it's not as slick). Internet browsing is smoother because the overall computer is smoother, and because you're less vulnerable to viruses. Video editing is a matter of opinion, but I've grown used to Final Cut and wouldn't want to switch over to Vegas or Avid. This tilts the software in Apple's direction-- to this user.

The best thing about Macs, really, is that everything is designed to be simple. This may not please everyone. But I don't want to be bothered with having to tweak my computer all the time as I have to on the PC I'm using now, which is why I've grown to like Macs more. YMMV.
 
As for the hardware -- if you bother to price out the same high quality components, you'll find that the prices are very similar between Macs and PCs.
That depends.

On the one hand, it is true; if you try to buy a pre-packaged PC with the same components and service, you end up with the big names, and it's usually almost as expensive (promotions notwithstanding).

On the other hand, if you know how to build a PC, you can get the same quality components for less then half the price. But you can't build your own Mac: you can limit yourself to components that have proven to work with that modified version of OS-X, but then you can't take advantage of cheaper prices; it'll be almost as expensive as just buying a Mac, not to mention having no freedom of choice to buy better components.

If they would let OS-X be installed on any PC, the market-share of OS-X would probably become much bigger. But then, they'll need to support (drivers and such) all those components, too, so that'll never happen. Not to mention that it's the overpriced hardware where they're actually getting their profits from, even though OS-X is expensive as well.
 
If anything, the ability to run OS X in addition to Windows and Linux means you're getting more functionality with a Mac.
PCs can run OS-X too so long as they have compatible hardware, I once knew a guy who quadruple booted XP, Vista, Ubuntu and OS-X on his Dell laptop. There is nothing that a Mac can do which a PC can't also do and vice versa, it just depends upon whether you prefer the more open yet less reliable platform of PCs or the proprietary yet stable platform of Macs.
 
Not to mention that it's the overpriced hardware where they're actually getting their profits from, even though OS-X is expensive as well.

Have you seen a Windows price sheet? Even the crappy, crippled version costs more than OS X.

Yes, but that doesn't make OS-X cheap; perhaps only in comparison. Do remember that you should compare OEM prices, since you are not legally allowed to install OS-X on a computer you built; every OS-X license is essentially an OEM license, they have to be installed on the Mac you bought; that makes Windows less pricey. Still, most Linux distributions are free, so that makes both pricey.
 
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Well, I didn't read all the posts, and I don't have any real experience on a mac, but my husband uses his mac more than his pc, and he loves it!

He switched so that he could do video editing and things of that nature. Works much better than a pc, doesn't bog down as much.

He also uses Parellels to run his windows/pc stuff on his mac. he is very happy with that program. And Frontline, he suggested that Parellels would probably run the Autocad program. He hasn't used it personally though.
 
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