Mac laptops

S

St3wie the Saint

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Oct 9, 2008
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Before I go to college in the fall, I am getting a lap top to take instead of hauling my desktop. How good are mac laptops in terms of gaming and how powerful do they need to be? I got a flyer from the college that gives me special offers and discounts on some laptops and am curious if its a good deal or if I should just try to get one off newegg.
 
it really depends on which one if you want to game with it any of the macbook pros should do because they got some nice nvidia chips in them but i belive the noraml macbooks olny have intergrated intel graphics.

os x has very few games so if you want to game on it you can use boot camp to duel boot it with xpl, vista, 7 or whatever you use.
 
Which gen? The current gen of macbooks has these specs for GPU:

White Macbook: NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
Silver Unibody Macbook: NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
Silver Unibody Macbook Pro: NVIDIA GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT with 512MB (Non-SLI)

I'm sure you could run some source based games on the Macbooks, but anything more might need a more powerful graphics card. Macbook Pro's could maybe do a little bit more, but neither of them are built for gaming. Mac's are not gaming computers, they are student/photo/video computers. I suggest getting a PC though.. better deal, better components.

Macbook Pro 17":
2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB
320GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm
MacBook Pro 17-inch Hi-Resolution Glossy Widescreen Display
SuperDrive 8x (DVD?R DL/DVD?RW/CD-RW)
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT with 512MB
For $2,799

Now, a nice Battalion 101 M571TU II (From IBuyPower)
Battalion 101 M571TU-U 17" WUXGA 1920X1200 Widescreen LCD TFT Notebook screen
Intel? Montevina Core 2 Duo Mobile P9600 Dual-Core Processor (2x 2.66GHz/6MB Cache/1066FSB)
4GB [2GB x 2] 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM [Notebook Memory] Corsair
DDR3 1GB Nvidia GTX280
500 GB 5400rpm Serial-ATA-150 Super Slim Notebook Hard Drive
8x Dual Format DVD?R/?RW + 16x CD-R/RW Combo Drive [M570TU]
All for $2,179

Alright, lets see...
Same processor
Same Memory (Assuming Apple uses Corsair)
Macbook Pro has has a smaller hard drive
Macbook pro has a terrible GPU compared to that of the Battalion

Ok, so you get a smaller hard drive, and a worse GPU, and you pay $620 for it.

Now, lets see what you could add on to the Battalion to make it better, and the same price as the Macbook Pro...

Ok, look at this: Add a....
Intel? Core 2 Extreme Mobile X9100 Dual-Core Processor (2x 3.06GHz/6MB Cache/1066FSB)
and a
128 GB 2.5 inch SATA Gaming MLC Solid State Disk (Nearly Instant Data Access Technology)
AND THE Macbook Pro IS STILL $10 MORE!
 
Deimos is extremely correct.

ALTHOUGH... Macbooks are extremely user friendly, but if your looking for gaming laptop, dont go with a Macbook
 
Mac's arent that good for gaming or that much known for it because not many games support the Mac. If you are looking to game you should get a real laptop from ibuypower or newegg. But Mac's are user friendly :]
 
I have a Macbook and a PC desktop. The PC is for gaming. The Mac is for everything else. Very user friendly, very durable, and the best part? Show me a virus that infects Macs.
 
Deimos=spot on
warning although macs may look shiny don't be tempted to buy
purchasing will only bring them closer to you and make them even more angry

this has been a public service announcement, thank you for listening
 
it depends how much money do you have? if you got the dough u can pay 2 grand/2 and a half grand for a macbook pro -they are very user friendly and also if u pay that much u will get a fairly good macbook pro. Mac just can't afford to put their prices low because they are a much smaller company then pc. PC can afford to make things at low cost so really you cant be surprised macs are much more money. Now if you are in more like a 750 to 1500 budget you can get good hp's ibuypowers, and other laptops for good prices. For school though as much as i love pc's macs are easier and more convenient for school :) just my thoughts plus if u got a desktop u dont need as much stuff as diemos said just get a cheaper one instead of putting more stuff just cause u got the money!
 
NEVER get a Mac if you want to game.
They are ALL overpriced anyways, Deimos is spot on m8.
 
Mac just can't afford to put their prices low because they are a much smaller company then pc.
Click to expand...

False. Mac holds their OS hostage so that they can way overcharge on the components. Ibuypower is WAYYYYY smaller than Apple, and they can afford to sell the parts for less, so we know the argument about Apple being a smaller company that can't afford prices is definitely not true. It's the reason they won't let HP or Dell make a computer that comes pre-loaded with OSX. They want to hold on to their huge profit margins on the hardware.

Don't get me wrong, I would much prefer to do things like photoshop, flash, video editing, etc. on a Mac (provided I don't have to use one of their infuriatingly terrible mice), but don't say they are some small company, because they aren't. They are the 103rd largest company in America (Microsoft is 44th) with annual profits of $3,496,000,000. They simply choose to sell less computers at higher prices, as opposed to Microsoft who just sells the OS to other computer makers. It is a different business model.

/rant off

That being said, if you want to game, you want a pc. I'm in the same dilemma with a school/game laptop for law school this fall, and I'm pretty sure I'm going with the laptop below. I do have a desktop for the majority of gaming, but would like to play TF2 and some other stuff on the go. I think it's pretty much the best deal right now for a $1k laptop.

ASUS N80 Series N80Vn-X5 NoteBook
 
Basically, I just need a computer that works for school(ie word/powerpoint/excell for example) that also can run games decently. By what it looks like, ibuypower seems like the better choice for both correct?
 
Ibuypower, dell, hp and a few others. I priced an Ibuypower laptop and they are relatively competitive price wise.
 
i own several computers and one is a macbook pro and personally I find that the hardware and the different operating systems are better for different things like I use openSUSE for my main os and general work because i can customize the OS to run how I want it to which is duel booted on my macbook pro with OS X Leo which I only use for adobe apps, FinalCut and pro tools HD when im recording because i find especially when it comes to audio OS X is the best platform and for gameing I got a custom built desktop with XP and 7 beta on it that I only use for gaming
 
Idol I hate to say this but there are plenty of "Items in Question" that affect the Mac but they are very low compared to the Windows variant. There are some great articles in Tomshardware if you all want to check them out.

BUT! Macs are GREAT educational computers and general surfing rigs PERIOD!

I wish they would spend more dev time in relation to gamers and now that they sold their sole to Bill, maybe they will do it.

PC is the only way to go for gaming. But if you are only playing steam games in college, a MacBook Pro MAXED out (take out second morgatge) then it will play TF2 & DODs ok.
 
KrzyMoke, I understand that nothing, not even Mac, is 100% safe. Should you ignore basic internet security protocols, Mac will not protect you from your own stupidity. However, once you are practicing basic infosec, the amount of general maintenance you need to perform, the frequency of scans and AV updates you'll need to stay on top of, and the overall mal-ware threat level; all are substantially reduced just by using a Mac.

By way of comparison, no vehicle is 100% safe. However, if you are a good (as in aware and responsible) driver, which is the better choice? 2008 Volvo or 1976 Pinto station wagon? That's my point.

But, if you primarily want to game - PC is the better option.
 
As always I will give the same laptop recommendation: Lenovo's Thinkpad. It's mostly up to personal decision, but something from ibuypower is going to be heavy and essentially a desktop replacement. Thinkpads can be gaming machines even with the integrated chips (look the info up for what you want specifically). Plus they are rather light, as a laptop should be. Macs are also user friendly and light. So, it's all based on what you want.
Personally, I would grab a Thinkpad x300 for it's size and awesomeness. But then again, I don't use my laptop for gaming.

Edit: I forgot the best part. As a college student you will drop your laptop or hit it with something, and Thinkpads are the most durable laptops I have ever come across.
 
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