Mac Book with Windows?

[ambandla]

@nagarjun. take aryayush's advise and wait till June. Apple's Leopard is coming in June and it's widely termed as "Vista 2.0 ". I think you understand the meaning of Vista 2.0.

Logically speaking, it's designed from scratch and makes best use of current hardware resources and will be future proof. There are couple of new apps and features, tighter integration with apple ecosystem.

 

[aryayush]

You will not get driver support for your hardware of macbook from Apple, if there isn't any right now, you will have to wait for them to make it

WTF does this mean! Of course, Apple will provide support for the MacBook.
What isn't there right now and what will he have to wait for?

 

[ambandla]

oh god. driver support for hardware of macbook? afaik, apple's hardware and software are tightly integrated. This is not Vista buddy, to have hardware software and firmware issues when released it. This is Mac OS. We need not wait for SP,2,3,4..... Mac OS is built around hardware that apple provides and the hardware that comes next is built/tweaked to work perfectly with the hardware. When they release a new hardware, they make sure that it integrates perfectly into apple ecosystem. This is the main reason for the extreme stability and rock solid nature of apple mac's.

 

[nagarjun_424]

Well, Aryayush, I went to the Apple Store yesterday evening. Bangalore prices seem to be abnormal! The 2ghz white model costs 77.5k! Can you believe that? Entry level is 67.5k! But I really fell in love with it.

It looks and functions amazingly. A nice salesman at the store was kind enough to demo the whole thing to me with patience and they also had a macbook running on xp for me to try.

Ive made up my mind. I will go for either one of the macbooks. I just have to wait a few weeks to buy it as I have to increase my budget to way over 15k!

They also assure me complete support and also said they will install xp free of cost for me if I give them the installation disk.

But what ever you said about all the features was true. I guess I will be the 2nd person to make the change from normal boring xp pcs to apple mac although i will be using both simultaneously.

 

[aryayush]

As I have been saying to anyone who cares to listen for a while now, it is really difficult to see a demo of a Mac and not fall in love with it. And I am glad that whatever I told you turned out to be true. After all, I've gone through this before.
Hope you can buy that Mac soon.

BTW, why don't you try purchasing it from Kolkata or New Delhi? The prices are bound to be a lot cheaper as I and Sourabh said.

 

[nagarjun_424]

@Aryayush - What are the prices of the entry level macbook and the middle model i.e. the one with the 2ghz processor in white in Kolkata and in Delhi?

Please could you tell me the exact price including tax so that I can decide where to purchase it from?

 

[Aberforth]

For Apple Mac fans please do not take it personally. Mac is great and good but I would like nagarjun_424 to have a few things to consider to be sure he is buying the right laptop. Unless he has big bucks, changing laptops too soon isn't possible and frustration a few months after a purchase isn't a good computing experience.

@ nagarjun_424 - I have experience with Macbook, Macbook Pro, Windows XP and I would suggest you go for Macbook Pro instead of normal Macbook. The first reason is as some have already pointed out, lack of dedicated graphics which could be a drag if you want the ultimate Vista experience. Graphics cards are the core of most new and high end games and so are they essential for effects in most new OSes. If you are the gaming and experimenting kind, you will feel the drag of not having a dedicated graphics card and you can't easily add a graphics card in a Macbook or a laptop.

If you really love Apple Mac and won't think of any compromise in this front, wait a few months, extend your budget and buy a Macbook Pro. This will ensure you have no regrets. If you can't wait and can do without Apple Mac OSX then you could stick to your current budget and go for an HP, Dell or Lenovo with nVidia GeForce Go 7XXX graphics card for that budget. You can try out Linux distros like OpenSUSE, Ubuntu etc. if you want a break from Windows. Thats my opinion, what you choose is up to you.

 

[nagarjun_424]

@Aberforth - Thanks for the advise. It makes a lot of sense. But, an entry level mac book pro costs a whopping 1lakh+! Do you really suggest I should wait and buy that instead?

Is there any way to install mac osx on a windows laptop as an alternative?

 

[aryayush]

Nothing legal (even if you buy Mac OS X) and you'll have hordes of compatibility problems.

The price of the MacBook is about Rs. 62,000 including tax. I hadn't enquired for the better MacBook, but I think it would be around Rs. 70,000. Visit this page, select your city and see the list of resellers. Call up a few of them and compare the prices. I bought mine from RSG Infotech, New Delhi. They gave me a really good deal. I am PMing you the number of a representative of their store.

And what is the urgency to buy the notebook now?

If you are not particularly interested in gaming, I do not think you have any need to think about the MacBook Pro. MacBooks come with "Intel GMA 950 graphics processor with 64MB of DDR2 SDRAM shared with main memory" which is sufficient enough to support Vista's Aero interface, if I am not wrong. I might be, however.

You might also consider buying the previous generation MacBook Pros. The specs are all the same as of the current generation MacBook Pros but they come with Core Duo processors instead of Core 2 Duos. The prices are almost half.

I would still very strongly recommend you to wait till June. Leopard will be worth it.

 

[Aberforth]

@Aberforth - Thanks for the advise. It makes a lot of sense. But, an entry level mac book pro costs a whopping 1lakh+! Do you really suggest I should wait and buy that instead?

If you really, really want a Mac, can wait and you are sure you can afford a Macbook pro later then you can do that. I could do without a Mac so I chose Hp instead for better gaming experience, more power and it was way within my budget of 65K compared to a Macbook (features) or Macbook Pro (price).

Your need is different so you will have to look around, talk with people who have good experience in both and check out the models to arrive at a final decision. Macbooks (not Pro) are not the kind you want to go for, considering you are serious about computers and technology, are a guy which means most likely you are a gamer or at least a gaming enthusiast.

If otherwise, you want a laptop now, want cheaper replacement parts (accidents do happen and Apple spares cost a bomb) go for PC laptops from Dell, HP or Lenovo, you could get a decent and powerful one in your budget.

Is there any way to install mac osx on a windows laptop as an alternative?

There are some methods but I have never tried it. You could look around in the Tutorial section of these forums and run a Google search to know more about it. I am not sure about the legal stance though.. I like Mac but I never missed it and I use Novell's OpenSUSE 10.2 (Linux) which I find a good break from the monotony of Windows and a very good, easy to use and stable OS.

I am not an avid gamer but I like one game (MS Flight Simluator 2004) and I found quite a drag and slowdown in my girlfriend's Macbook and this is one thing I couldn't compromise, whatever I get, I want 100%. FS 2004 is peanuts compared to some modern games like Doom, GTA San Andreas, Half Life 2 so it didn't make sense for me to choose Macbook. Your needs, as I said are different so you need different things to consider.

You might also consider buying the previous generation MacBook Pros. The specs are all the same as of the current generation MacBook Pros but they come with Core Duo processors instead of Core 2 Duos. The prices are almost half.

This could be one option you might want to explore if it comes in your budget. Take your time, look around for a month all the options and make sure you made the best decision. Touch and feel the laptops before you buy them, pictures can convey a thousand words but not the experience.

 

[goobimama]

The Macbook runs Windows Vista in all its glory (Aero included). It has been tried and tested and it works flawlessly.

But you better had wait a while. The upgrades to the Macbooks are 'rumoured' to be arriving in May, and they will have the X3000 graphics onboard, a DirectX 10 card is it?

 

[Sourabh]

X3000 graphics chip on the Mobile 965 Express chipset (GM) may or may not be dx10 compatible. No information is available as such.

I was just wondering, if nagarjun already has a laptop and doesn't need it for mobility - mac mini could make a good choice.

 

[aryayush]

The Macbook runs Windows Vista in all its glory (Aero included). It has been tried and tested and it works flawlessly.

There you go, confirmation from a person who has actually tried it.

But you better had wait a while. The upgrades to the Macbooks are 'rumoured' to be arriving in May, and they will have the X3000 graphics onboard, a DirectX 10 card is it?

You might want to take this with a grain of salt though. Apple rumours are seldom true and it really makes no sense for Apple to release a new line of MacBooks just a month ahead of WWDC with Tiger installed.

I was just wondering, if nagarjun already has a laptop and doesn't need it for mobility - mac mini could make a good choice.

Yeah, and it will be something totally different from whatever you and your friends have seen till date. You can carry your entire CPU around with you. And at just Rs. 35,000, it is damn cheap.
Have a look here.

 

[goobimama]

But ever since Apple has gone intel, the predictions have been more or less quite accurate. The move to 965 chipset is quite inevitable don't you think?

 

[gxsaurav]

So many confusions yet hardly any mac user is clerifying it

WTF does this mean! Of course, Apple will provide support for the MacBook.
What isn't there right now and what will he have to wait for?

If you are using Windows XP on Macbook & have problem with your printer or some other hardware, who will you call for tech support? Apple...well, they don't provide support for Windows releated problems. Microsoft Tech support, well they don't support hardware driver or problems on Macbook due to it's locked nature

oh god. driver support for hardware of macbook? afaik, apple's hardware and software are tightly integrated. This is not Vista buddy, to have hardware software and firmware issues when released it. This is Mac OS. We need not wait for SP,2,3,4..... Mac OS is built around hardware that apple provides and the hardware that comes next is built/tweaked to work perfectly with the hardware. When they release a new hardware, they make sure that it integrates perfectly into apple ecosystem. This is the main reason for the extreme stability and rock solid nature of apple mac's.

Ofcourse it is good, for MacOS X only & it's own drivers

@Aberforth - Thanks for the advise. It makes a lot of sense. But, an entry level mac book pro costs a whopping 1lakh+! Do you really suggest I should wait and buy that instead?

Is there any way to install mac osx on a windows laptop as an alternative?

Macs have always been over priced. If you go for Macbook with GMA 950 then forget about runing Vista with aero, without aero....there is no use buying a new Laptop for runing Vista, other then if u r bleeding money.

Abeforth is correct, it makes a lot of sence to stick to your computer right now or buy one from HP or Dell. The HP DV6137TX is rock solid C2D Laptop with Geforce go 7400 graphics card.

If you however want to go with Mac then go for Macbook pro, pay More then Rs 1 lakh for a Macbook pro with Radeon X1600 & run Vista on it along with MacOS

There are a few hacks actully,check out OSX86 project via google. It is not legal though. I have myself used MacOS X 10.4.4 on a PC runing Pentium 4 3.06 GHz, Geforce FX 5900XT & 1 GB RAM, do remember that it will wipe out your harddisk compleately as it does not recognise Windows partitions

It makes a lot of sense. But, an entry level mac book pro costs a whopping 1lakh+! Do you really suggest I should wait and buy that instead

Don't know about him, but atleast I won't suggest it, cos u intend to run Vista on it. Oh comon.....solid Vista ultimate certified laptops are available for 55K max, then why r u paying nearly 100% more for MBP. Atleast I don't find it justified cos you already have a laptop

There you go, confirmation from a person who has actually tried it.

Gobbimama, have u tried it yourself? or just seen on the net? Do remember like i said above, Macbook cannot run Vista with aero (due to 64 MB Shared RAM) but MBP can run vista due to Radeon X1600, however...be ready to pay lots of money for it for performance that u can get in other PC laptops for much cheaper price.

Move to 965 chipset is obvious yaar

 

[goobimama]

I don't personally own a Macbook, but my apple dealer has installed it on one of the demo machines. I'm not sure which macbook model, but they all have GMA950 isn't it? Aero runs smoothly including the useless Flip3D.

A point to mention is that they had some trouble installing it, as in the default drivers did not work. Some kind of different drivers are needed, I can ask them and find out if you want. It was the RTM version...
__________
Edit: May have been the RC2 release, I'm not sure.

 

[aryayush]

Yes, all of them have GMA 950 and it works just fine. The must have had trouble with the audio. It is easy to fix.

If you are using Windows XP on Macbook & have problem with your printer or some other hardware, who will you call for tech support? Apple...well, they don't provide support for Windows releated problems. Microsoft Tech support, well they don't support hardware driver or problems on Macbook due to it's locked nature

Microsoft will provide support for it if any of your peripherals do not work irrespective of the machine's hardware. The company the peripheral is from will also provide support. It goes without saying that any trouble with Mac OS X will be supported by Apple.
If you have any trouble running Windows, which you won't because Apple themselves provide the drivers, the reseller you bought the machine from will help you out. As nagarjun_424 has already inquired, and as I had already pointed out before, they will even install Windows properly for you.

Macs have always been over priced.

And Ashish Nehra is a great batsman.

 

[gxsaurav]

Yes, all of them have GMA 950 and it works just fine. The must have had trouble with the audio. It is easy to fix.

As stated by sourabh, macbook are locked to only 64 MB graphics memory. Now the requirment for aero is 128 MB DirectX 9b based graphics card atleast, so Macbook will not run aero, without using some firmware hack

It's proved many times, & just proved above how much Macs cost, a similarly configured PC laptop will cost maximum 75k while MBP costs Rs 1 lakh +

 

[aryayush]

Here is official proof:

"Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950" is "Ready for Microsoft Windows Vista".

I hope, though I know it is practically useless, that you think (or at least visit Google) before posting in future.
__________
It runs Windows Vista whether you like it or not - not that it is one of the notebook's best traits.

 

[goobimama]

Forget about the requirements. It works doesn't it? No firmware hacks required...

On the other hand, I do believe that Apple's hardware is a bit expensive, but not as expensive as it used to be. Maybe a 10k premium (The cheapest Core 2Duo Dell machine is 53k or so, that too the 1.66 Ghz proccy, 533Mhz RAM). While the Macbook starts at 62k for a Core 2 Duo 1.83Ghz.