New Macbook Pro?

[realityhack]

This is the spec I'm looking at:

2.2GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7
8GB 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x4GB
500GB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm
MacBook Pro 15-inch Hi-Res Antiglare Widescreen Display


Comes to £2,128.99 inc VAT. Obviously on the flat rate scheme you can claim back the VAT so it comes to £1,774.16.

Sounds like a nice bundle. Question... Why spend £160 on a 4GB stick from Apple when Crucial sell them for ~£35? Is there any difference? Not upgrading to the 2.3GHz? Does it really make that much difference?

Ok that was 4 questions, just thinking aloud.

[realityhack]

I still have no idea what you lot do to your windows installations to make them such focal points of hate.

Anyway - For the price it actually seems pretty reasonable BUT does that include Apples on site support cover or any Accident and Theft cover for anything more than 12 months?

WMMS. Sort of.

I have to use Windows in the office. It's not that I think the designers of the UI in general and the specific design patterns used, as well as the technical writers of, and those responsible for the consistency of the progressive visual specifications through the generations of Windows OSes should be - lined up, beaten, sprayed with acid, then petrol, showered with live African army ants, poked with sharp sticks, lectured by Gordon Brown, stared at by Cherie Blair, fondled by Graham Norton and then set ablaze, before being doused with a fiercely strong alkali solution, then showered with white phosphorous, finely-ground magnesium, ignited again briefly before being machine-gunned below the knees, then attended to by leprous doctors and nurses - or anything. Not at all.

I just think OSX is marginally better.

I have insurance that covers articles such as these in or out of the house.

I forgot about the sanding. Sanding their skin off - and finely ground rock salt. Or maybe soda crystals. Hmm.

[Bunk]

Sounds like a nice bundle. Question... Why spend £160 on a 4GB stick from Apple when Crucial sell them for ~£35? Is there any difference? Not upgrading to the 2.3GHz? Does it really make that much difference?

Ok that was 4 questions, just thinking aloud.

To answer the last 2 questions first, I doubt the 0.1 GHz speed increase makes much difference. The faster processor also has an 8MB level 3 cache instead of 6MB which probably makes more difference but I'm still not convinced it's worth £200 extra. As for the RAM, there probably isn't any real reason to pay Apple's premium instead of getting it from Crucial other than if I'm paying 2 grand for a new laptop, I can't be bothered upgrading it myself as soon as I get it.

[realityhack]

To answer the last 2 questions first, I doubt the 0.1 GHz speed increase makes much difference. The faster processor also has an 8MB level 3 cache instead of 6MB which probably makes more difference but I'm still not convinced it's worth £200 extra. As for the RAM, there probably isn't any real reason to pay Apple's premium instead of getting it from Crucial other than if I'm paying 2 grand for a new laptop, I can't be bothered upgrading it myself as soon as I get it.

Fair dos. Just curious.

[Bunk]

Fair dos. Just curious.

I've been researching it a bit the last couple of days. The other option I'm undecided about is the hard drive, 750GB 5200rpm, 500GB 7200rpm, for the same price, or a SSD, but then I'd want at least the 256GB, but is that enough? And it's starting to get really expensive by then.

[realityhack]

I've been researching it a bit the last couple of days. The other option I'm undecided about is the hard drive, 750GB 5200rpm, 500GB 7200rpm, for the same price, or a SSD, but then I'd want at least the 256GB, but is that enough? And it's starting to get really expensive by then.

I'd like someone's take on that. I'd be more inclined to go for the faster drive, as much of my digital life is archived off the lappy anyway.

Isn't there an issue with SSDs? I've heard about a limited lifespan, it can only handle so many read/write cycles (or something like that).

[NickFitz]

I still have no idea what you lot do to your windows installations to make them such focal points of hate.

One doesn't have to do anything to them. Windows (all versions) is shoddy goods right out of the box. It really is an appalling crock of tulip, and each new version simply confirms that you can varnish, polish, and adorn a turd - but all you'll end up with is a turd that looks nicer than the last turd.

Seriously, Windows IS THAT BAD. I don't often shout, but if you need to ask the question, I'm not sure how to counter the fact that you haven't realised this basic truth yet other than by shouting. Sorry.

[NickFitz]

FWIW, here's Matt Gemmell's take on obtaining a MacBook Air recently. (If you haven't heard of him, fair enough because he isn't famous, but he's a highly respected Mac developer and generally good chap. [*])

tl;dr: here's the section relating to storage usage:

As mentioned previously, I opted for the 128GB SSD (the maximum size available with the 11-inch model at time of writing). If you’re worried whether that’s going to be enough room for you, here are some useful figures.

• With the default as-shipped Mac OS X installation (including iLife preinstalled), there’s 106.82 GB free on disk.
  
  
• If you then add iWork 09 and the Developer Tools with the iOS SDK, you’ll have 93.67 GB free.
  
  
• If you then add Microsoft Office 2011 Mac, and Photoshop CS5 Extended, plus a few small assorted apps like Adium, Hibari and BBEdit, you’ll have about 89.25 GB free.
  
  
• If you then cheekily add a 30 GB World of Warcraft folder, you’ll have about 60 GB free.

I don’t keep photo or music libraries on the Air at time of writing; those will potentially have a large impact on available space. Since the 11-inch Air is presumably intended as a travel machine, I’d advise keeping your essential listening on your iPhone and/or iPad as I do, or on an external USB drive if you really must keep it all with you during a trip for some reason.

[*] Looks like he checks his referrer logs too...

[d000hg]

Macs can run Windows either natively or through virtualisation, so there's no loss involved. (Windows 7 still sucks donkey knobs compared to OS X though.)

One doesn't have to do anything to them. Windows (all versions) is shoddy goods right out of the box. It really is an appalling crock of tulip, and each new version simply confirms that you can varnish, polish, and adorn a turd - but all you'll end up with is a turd that looks nicer than the last turd.

Seriously, Windows IS THAT BAD. I don't often shout, but if you need to ask the question, I'm not sure how to counter the fact that you haven't realised this basic truth yet other than by shouting. Sorry.

It's a shame when someone you respect for their technical expertise comes out with such tripe as this. It's like a politician who has spent 20 years doing a wonderful job letting slip they believe they've been visited by aliens.

I can be subjective too... it's NOT crap. For a typical user, Windows is BETTER than Linux. Now where does this personal opinion get us... nowhere.

[Spacecadet]

I have insurance that covers articles such as these in or out of the house.

I forgot about the sanding. Sanding their skin off - and finely ground rock salt. Or maybe soda crystals. Hmm.

Having the insurance is one thing, having the cover with Apple is another as I'm sure you would want it fixed ASAP should anything happen