May 10, 2007 11:37 PM
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This is my FRIST ever Mac and I just have one word to describe it - Awsome
*For the Impatient Reader :
Go for this one if
1)You want something portable at an affordable cost
2)You are tired of bad battery life on those mid-range laptops and cant afford a Sony Vaio - TX series
3)Looking for great software out of the box for almost all everyday tasks like browsing, working with some photos of travel/outings/family occasions and managing your music
4)You are a developer looking for a Unix Core and the user friendlyness of Windows !!
Minor Problems you may face :
1)Making the change if you have always been a Windows User : Keyboard layout is slightly different
2)Finding the Mac OS Version of the Apps that you use on Windows.
Full Review :
Lets start right away : I am a Geek : and I have worked on so many operating systems starting from the good old DOS to Early Windows, to QNX to Linux and now Mac OS and to be very frank Nothing Beats the stability of Mac OS X. Its got the Stability of Unix and the User friendly interface of Windows.
*Hardware and Build:
*The MacBook looks awsome. Its the most beautiful laptop out there. Nothing can possibly beat it.Nothing. But thats not all it comes with a 1.83 or 2.0 GHz Core 2 Duo (64 Bit) Processor from Intel and an excellent Intel 950 Graphics chip. By default the 1.83 comws with 512 MB and the 2 GHz comes with 1 GB of Ram. Both have 2 USB, 1 FireWire, Ethernet, Mini DVI and line in, line out plugs.
Added to it all is the MagSafepower source. It holds on to the macbook with a tiny magnet and just unattaches itself is you trip or yank the power chord. Apple just thinks of every possible thing !
Its got a Combo/Superdrive and the best - A camera on the lid. so no need to carry an extra webcam for the chat sessions.
*Software :
*All MAcBooks come with Mac OS X Tiger and a host of applications like iPhoto, GarageBand, iMovie etc preinstalled. And I use all of them to the Max. I would like to mention here that the most used application on my Mac is GarageBand.. I love to make music on it. Its almost professional by features.
You may find a little trouble though looking for other alternatives. Some of them mentioned below
1)Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel): Microsoft separately markets a version of Office for Macs only.
2)An IDE if you are a developer. Although most of them already have mac OS versions some like the Nokia IDEs and some for QNX may still be difficult to find.
3)Games.. if you are a lot into games.. consider buying an iMac or a Mac Pro or just settle for a Windows PC.
*Final Conclusions :
*1) Contrary to what all may sao or read in the Internet articles.. No OS is superior or Inferior. Go for Mac OS only if you feel comfortable with it. Try is first is what my suggestion is.
2)Its a superb tool for developers. Nothing beats it . I have run IDEs like Eclipse and Sun Studio with absolute ease and much much MUCH lower Hang Ups and Glitches than on Windows.
3)Its great for Graphic designers.. its fully loaded with an excellent photo editor (iPhoto), a Movie Editor (iMovie HD) and even a Music Editor (GarageBand). I would like to add that Garage Band allows you to do multi track recordings from a MIDI compativle instrument like a synthesizer, You may even add your own male/female voice sound track !!! and its so smooth- a breeze
4)Not that great a tool for gaming though.. consider an iMac or Mac Pro or PC if you are a hard core gamer.
5)Mac offers the Cheapest Price per Feature : you may not believe it but thats the fact. Buy a PC with similar configurations as the MacBook and you may end paying more than a MacBook !
That said and done..
Enjoy it .. its worth the money
*Final Summary :
*Price in India : 50 K + Dealers Margin - Your Bargaining
Weight : 2.4 Kg
Looks : Killer
Battery Life : Killer
Features : Superb
(And last but not the least) Sex Appeal : Will surely get a second.. third.. probably even fourth look !!!
