iBook or Windows Laptop?

[Billabong81 0]

I have recently been thinking of buying a laptop for school work & stuff, aka everything besides gaming :lol:. I have been looking at an ABS Mayhem G3 or an iBook. If the system I wanted was to be used strictly for work & movie/graphics editing, which would you suggest? They are both in the same price range (read: expensive :lol:), so I want to make sure I am putting my money towards the product that will better suit me . I am in 9th grade and am hoping to get a laptop that will last until the end of 12th grade, so in this aspect which would be better for me as well? Thanks in advance guys!

BTW, if this is too OT for OT, feel free to lock it. I did a search also, but didn't find any results .

[denoir 0]

If you intend to carry it around, go with something small and light ( I can recommend the IBM Thinkpad X series).

If you intend to use it as a real workstation on its own - without an external monitor, then IMO you should consider a real stationary desktop computer.

In my opinion most laptops on the market are too large to be convenient to be carried around while at the same time they don't have a large screen enough to use as a primary work platform.

[der bastler 0]

If the system I wanted was to be used strictly for work & movie/graphics editing, which would you suggest?

Strictly for work? Do you need any special apps?

Generally I'd say IBook.

[EiZei 0]

If its not for gaming id go IBM or apple. Apple has mac os x, easier to use than windows and stable as a rock.

But then again, who am I to say since I just bought 11-year-old AST ascentia (486/75MHz) for 35e for remote SSH sessions and such.

[Billabong81 0]

Quote[/b] ]If you intend to use it as a real workstation on its own - without an external monitor, then IMO you should consider a real stationary desktop computer.

In my opinion most laptops on the market are too large to be convenient to be carried around while at the same time they don't have a large screen enough to use as a primary work platform.

I already have a desktop I use for all my gaming purposes and such (built it myself in January ). This laptop will strictly be for school work, graphics editing, and movie editing (we get movie projects & such all the time). I'm looking for something that is preferably under 8lbs max.

Quote[/b] ]Strictly for work? Do you need any special apps?

The only special apps I would need would be Microsoft Office (Word, Powerpoint, etc). You can get these at the apple store.

Another question if you guys don't mind . Can anyone verify the battery life of either model? After reading some reviews, it seems like the ABS laptop's battery only lasts for 1-3 hours max. Anyone know how long the iBook battery lasts? Thanks for all your help guys .

[eisa01 0]

I have a 3 year old iBook, the battery lasts 3-4 hours, but was rated for 5. The new iBooks are rated for 6 hours, so I believe you should get 4-5 hours out of them. For school work you really want a laptop with a long battery life, so you don't have to bring the power adapter with you. But since you're going to do video and graphics work, I don't know if the iBook fits you, as it only has 1024x768 resolution. If you should choose it however, I would recommend the 12" model.

And an extra 512mb chip never hurts

[Billabong81 0]

I have a 3 year old iBook, the battery lasts 3-4 hours, but was rated for 5. The new iBooks are rated for 6 hours, so I believe you should get 4-5 hours out of them. For school work you really want a laptop with a long battery life, so you don't have to bring the power adapter with you.

Yep, that was a concern of mine with the ABS laptop.  It seemed to be a lot like Alienware laptops in terms of crappy battery life because they are so powerful .

Quote[/b] ]But since you're going to do video and graphics work, I don't know if the iBook fits you, as it only has 1024x768 resolution. If you should choose it however, I would recommend the 12" model.

1024x768 should be fine.  I won't be doing any intense graphics/video work, just simple stuff.  I also have my desktop if I need to do any really serious stuff .

I just realized Apple has more than 1 line of notebooks !  It seems like a powerbook would better suit my needs, as it can be configured to have a DVD burner, comes with iLife preinstalled, and more .  What do you guys think of this configuration for my needs?  Has a 64mb Mobility Radeon 9700, 80gb HD @ 5400RPM, 1280x854 resolution, and more which should help in terms of graphics/movie editing .  Here is the comparison, in specs & price:

[Colossus 2]

If the system I wanted was to be used strictly for work & movie/graphics editing, which would you suggest?

Strictly for work? Do you need any special apps?

Generally I'd say IBook.

Same here, nothing like a system that doesn't hang up or crash like Windows do all the time.

But Mac is still missing a good replacement for Mircosoft Office.

[Billabong81 0]

They have Office for Macs...it's just outrageously priced .  MS Office 2004 for Macs.  $500...could get a PC for that type of money .

EDIT: Wow, just found a benefit to still being a student! MS Office 2004 for Macs...Student Edition!. $150

[crashdome 2]

Getting good battery life out of a PC laptop requires one that uses either the Centrino or another power saving cpu like Transmeta or something... I'm not sure about iBooks but the they seem similar - more cpu = more power consumption. You will find a laptop battery to be your worst problem. Unfortunately, you require sufficient power to do movies/graphics so your gonna end up w/ a battery life of about 1-3 hours depending.. personally, I wouldn't waste the money. I did buy a laptop for taking to school (University) about 3 years ago and I only had about 3 hours of classes each day and found it a logistical and power nightmare. It sat at home all the time after the first 9 months and now it is an underpowered PoS that is only good for checking email and writing papers. In either case, I still must plug it in to the wall because the battery now has about 20mins of life on a full charge. Oh.. and expect to pay BIG money for extra/new batteries. All-in-all I found laptops to be more hassle than worth... but that is just my experience. Others may say differently.

[eisa01 0]

I just realized Apple has more than 1 line of notebooks ! It seems like a powerbook would better suit my needs, as it can be configured to have a DVD burner, comes with iLife preinstalled, and more . What do you guys think of this configuration for my needs? Has a 64mb Mobility Radeon 9700, 80gb HD @ 5400RPM, 1280x854 resolution, and more which should help in terms of graphics/movie editing . Here is the comparison, in specs & price:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/hooahman/forumstuff/compare.jpg

Yeah, if it's within your budget it'll be better with a powerbook. But keep in mind that the battery does not last as long, and the iBook is better value for money. The iBook line should see a refresh in it's lineup pretty soon, so you might wait a bit to get a better deal.

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

[Billabong81 0]

Yeah, if it's within your budget it'll be better with a powerbook. But keep in mind that the battery does not last as long, and the iBook is better value for money. The iBook line should see a refresh in it's lineup pretty soon, so you might wait a bit to get a better deal.

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

Hmm...thanks for the tip and the link. There is so much to consider before I make my purchase...I can't decide .

[Colossus 2]

They have Office for Macs...it's just outrageously priced .  MS Office 2004 for Macs.  $500...could get a PC for that type of money .

EDIT:  Wow, just found a benefit to still being a student!  MS Office 2004 for Macs...Student Edition!.  $150

I see

Sry, I haven't done my homework on this.

[EiZei 0]

And then there's appleworks..

http://www.apple.com/appleworks/

Or hell, one might want to go even cheaper and choose openoffice.

[Colossus 2]

And then there's appleworks..

http://www.apple.com/appleworks/

Tried, not good

It's a start but it ain't good.

[crashdome 2]

Or hell, one might want to go even cheaper and choose openoffice.

Bah.. last resort for me... I have a single license for MS Office and it's on the crappy laptop of mine (so my wife and I can do work on it away from my game machine.. hehe)

[begin Rant]

I installed Open Office on my game machine so I can do work when she's on the laptop... and I must say it is awful (my opinion). The interface is a terrible copy of MS Office and most of the useful functions are nowhere near the toolbar. (I'm actually writing a slide show right now for a presentation I am going to do tomorrow and I had to quit using OO and switch to the laptop just to get some work done)

I could gripe about more, but it is a cheap copy of MS Office and my productivity on it is way below average in comparison to when I am at work or on the laptop and using MS Office. Bear in mind I hate MS Office with a passion due to it's sluggish operations and persistant crashes so I am not a fan-boy, but I will choose it over Open Office anyday.

[End Rant]

Stick with the Mac version of MS Office..

[brgnorway 0]

I'd go for the ibook - especially if you are planning on doing a lot of movie- and photo editing! I use Pinnacle systems on my pc and it works relatively well apart from the fact that the pc fucks up every now and then despite relatively good specs.

When you buy ibook you get something called ilife which among other things provides you with the basic tools for editing etc. I've heard it's working very good although a bit basic. If you get serious about it you could always buy better editing tools - and apple's final cut/pro etc. are top notch stuff. Just remember to up the ram the moment you decide to buy the ibook.

Next time I buy a new computer it'll be Mac all the way! For all purposes except playing ofp I deeply regret buying a pc!

Regards and good luck

Christian

[der bastler 0]

The interface is a terrible copy of MS Office and most of the useful functions are nowhere near the toolbar.

Which functions?

[denoir 0]

Bear in mind I hate MS Office with a passion due to it's sluggish operations and persistant crashes so I am not a fan-boy, but I will choose it over Open Office anyday.

Indeed. I did not know what true hate was until I started using MS Word.

I hope that one day the Office development team will pay for all the suffering they have inflicted upon millions. I can't wait to see the day until the ICC charges them with Crimes Against Humanity. And when the revolution comes, the Office team will be first against the wall.

Having said that, OpenOffice is a bad clone of a terrible program. It is an excellent and horrific demonstration of the old saying that "Two Wrongs Don't Make A Right".

I am using the MS flavour and silently plotting my bloody vengeance against the scum that have forced me to use that vile piece of software.

[brgnorway 0]

.....but don't forget that he's planning on doing not only writing but also editing. Unfortunately this is a much harder task. That is also probably the best reason for him to choose Apple since its solution is better integrated than a third party programme will be. As I said I use Pinnacle which is the better system out there and I do A LOT of editing, but still - Apple's own editing tools are almost bomb proof as long as you have enough ram.

[crashdome 2]

I am using the MS flavour and silently plotting my bloody vengeance against the scum that have forced me to use that vile piece of software.

Word

Quote[/b] ]Which functions?

Various "Insert..." functions and the Footnotes come to mind.

Yeah, especially the footnotes... used to be a single keystroke in Word and was easy to access from the Insert menu. In OpenOffice it took me forever to find it (buried deep in submenus) and when I found it, it had half the flexibility of the one in Word.... oh and some sort of bug kept changing my fonts repeatedly after inserting a footnote.

But I digress.. this isn't the best place for this maybe...

[der bastler 0]

Various "Insert..." functions and the Footnotes come to mind.

Ah, Ok, I don't use Office for footnotes, long texts and the like. That's something I do in LaTeX/PDFTex (finishing my project doc atm)... Kile is very nice...

I use OO for letters, various sketches (for the LaTeX-doc mentioned above) and some spread sheet work for which I don't want to start MATLAB...

Edit: I had my never-again event with MS Word last year, when I was writing a longer report for my internship on my work station (company PC with Win). At some point I could not save my work any longer... "Ah, that's a known bug, try this..." "No, doesn't work" "And that?" "Neither. Hm, That did it!"... Ctrl+A, Ctrl+C, opened Notepad, Ctrl+V. Saved as text, next day brought my notebook and finished a fine pdf report in LaTeX...

[Akira 0]

If you are a student or know someone who is a student, get them to get you the special priced software. My wife works for UT and I was able to get MS Office Pro 2004 for $10. Got Mac Office for $15. Got a full version of WinXp Pro for $10. Can get OSX for $20-$70. Can get Adobe Creative Suite for $300. Going to buy Adobe Audition for $70. Can get Macromedia Studio MX for $125.

I've got some software to buy!

Makes crappy software much more bareable when you hardly paid anything for it.

EDIT: Should mention in the US of course.

[crashdome 2]

Student software prices are unbeatable but sometimes come with odd licensing requirements. Thats how I got my MS Office license for my laptop.

http://www.creationengine.com/ is a good place for US students.. although I am unsure of licensing for highschool students....

Too bad hardware didn't have the same deals or this laptop decision would be much more bearable for hooahman!

[Billabong81 0]

I wish Apple would make their site and tech support more clear.  You can get student rates on their site for hardware & everything, but it is unclear if this is for students and teachers or teachers only.  I e-mailed their tech support and they basically outmanouvered the question .  I have no clue whether I am eligible for the discount or not .  I sure hope so, because I am leaning towards a powerbook right now and it would be nearly $250 in savings .

EDIT: Here is how the educational discount is worded on the Apple site:

Quote[/b] ]Those eligible to purchase from the Apple Store for Education Individuals include faculty, staff and students as follows:

K12 - Any employee of a public or private K-12 institution in the United States is eligible. In addition, school board members who are currently serving as elected or appointed members are eligible. PTA or PTO executives currently serving as elected or appointed officers are eligible.

Higher Education - Faculty and staff of Higher Education institutions; and students attending, or accepted into a Higher Education institution are eligible to purchase. Purchases from the Apple Store for Education Individuals are not for institutional purchase or resale.

I am a student in 9th Grade, so I fall into the K-12 part.  It does not mention students, but above that it does.  Can anyone clarify this, as Apple's tech supprt answer sucked?

EDIT #2: Nevermind, found out I am NOT eligible for the student discount .