This is something that I am finding is becoming more and more common, which is better a PC or a Mac?
Firstly for those pedantic people out there I will confirm that a Mac is a PC … for those wondering what I am on about. PC stands for ‘Personal Computer’ and a Mac is / can be a personal computer. However it has become the norm for people to refer to a Microsoft PC as ‘A PC’ and an Apple PC as a ‘Mac’ .. so for the purpose of this post and to prevent confusion (hopefully) I will stick with what has become the norm.
Those that know me will know that I am a Microsoft fan, my main machine is Windows and I have been using Microsoft software for years and the vast majority of my clients are running Windows in one variety or another. Whilst between friends I will argue the side of Microsoft and never admit that Mac’s are good at anything here I will try to be more impartial and hopefully write something useful because Mac does seem to be gaining a bigger market share and is becoming far more common which for Mac users is a good thing.
Let’s begin
Firstly I will say that I don’t think that PC’s are better than Mac’s or Mac’s are better than PC’s I personally think that they both are generally as good as each other as these days they can do pretty much the same tasks so in some respects it comes down to what you are used to and how deep your pocket is .. we will come back to that later.
Because Microsoft have the largest market share in desktop computers I will still recommend that every day users and certainly general business users go for PC’s, not because of compatibility so much anymore although that is still the case but not as much as it used to be but more because it is what other people know and if they need to ask the help of their colleagues then it is good to stick with the operating system that the office personnel know. If of course there is a strong Mac user base or a clear need for a Mac then Mac’s would be recommended.
For this post we are going to compare pretty much the basic out of the box systems, not taking into account lots of software because most software these day’s is available for both systems and therefore isn’t relevant in choosing the best machine for you.
Which should I choose for me?
If you are buying a machine for the first time and are not experienced in Mac or Microsoft and are not influenced by Work or Education then it really comes down to the following
- What are you going to use it for?
- How much have you got to spend?
- Do looks count?
Let’s work through those then What are you going to use it for?
Gone are the days when you create something on a PC and it won’t work on a Mac because you can get Microsoft Office for Mac now and that was one of the biggest issues from my experience. Mac to PC there are still issues because things like iPages does not have a native Microsoft equivalent that a Microsoft user can work on that document as well … so that isn’t a deal stopper but is something to be aware of if you are going to work on documents across platforms.
Creativity, weather that be music, photos or video then Mac in my opinion still has the edge, the iMovie software that comes with a Mac is much better than the Windows Movie Maker equivalent, as is iPhoto so if you are really wanting it primarily for a creative purpose and don’t want to spend a lot on software then a Mac it is.
If you are really just in it for Office applications like letter writing, spreadsheets, emails and internet then I would say a PC is the way to go (you can still download digital photos and edit/print them), why I hear the Mac users shouting … which brings us nicely to number 2, How much have you got to spend? there is no way around it, a Mac is expensive compared to a PC. Let’s compare the iMac … the cheapest one is £999, an equivalent all-in-one PC would cost £500-£600 and be technically a better specification. So if you don’t need the creative functionality that I believe out of the box a Mac brings over a PC then why waste the extra £400-£500 ?
So what’s next? Do looks count? or is what’s on the inside more important … ? Personally I think Apple products are a fashion accessory for many people, let’s face it no one can deny that a Mac looks considerably better than most PC’s. This is where it gets personal, is saving £400 more important than what people will think if you have a Mac? For the same money you would get technically more inside than a Mac, you might argue that the included software on a Mac warrants the extra money, and to some extend I agree but not £400′s worth!
To sum up …
Ok so this was a bit shorter than originally planned but there we go…
Buy a Mac if you need creative functionality out of the box, are minted or if you are more worried about what people think than what you spend on it .. sorry that sounds harsh but in my humble opinion it is what i think!
By a PC if you want to save a bit of money, don’t care what it looks like but just want access to emails, internet, basic documents, simple digital photo management and printing.
This advice is for those buying a computer for the first time and have no external influence such as work, school, family etc. Obviously you are best to go for what friends and family can help you learn.
Please feel free to add comments, correct me etc. But if anyone comes up and says ‘but a Mac just works and a PC doesn’t’ then their comments will be removed but PC’s also just work! ;-)
Did this help? Who knows … but I got it off my chest all the same :)
[what about linux] …
This bit is for those who have heard about that free Operating System called ‘Linux’ … this comes in a variety of flavours such as RedHat, Fedora, Mepis, Ubuntu, openSuse and yes it is free, so is it better?
Linux has got much better in my opinion over the last few years and is becomming more and more user friendly and less aimed at the geeks. Technically speaking it is possibly the best (or has the potential to be the best) operating system out there but it is hard to argue that
- It isn’t as compatible with as much hardware as a PC or Mac
- It is even less common than a Mac and so finding friends to help you when you get stuck is hard.
- Installing your common applications such as Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop, Accounts software, games, etc isn’t easy or in some cases possible.
Because of those three things alone I don’t think it is yet the operating system to recommend to any everyday user for their main computer. There is however a very good case for it to be used on Netbooks. These are machines that only access internet and emails and therefore using Linux would be ideal, it’s free, fast and reliable so there is no hesitation in my mind that this should be considered.
The Pro’s for me with Linux are
- It is free
- There are many different versions so you can find one that suits you
- It is quick, maybe because there is less to start up when you turn it on but it is a faster operating system.
- With Ubuntu particularly I have found that it works straight out of the box and is easy to get on the web, setup your emails and even connect to twitter, facebook and google chat!
I don’t see it taking the place of Microsoft or Apple any time soon, but it does have it’s place in the mainstream market and will grow I am sure.
Bye
