Without a doubt! My frustration is with Dell's business warranty administration. I can accept that hardware breaks, but when it breaks down as much as these machines have the next-day on-site service doesn't mean much.

As far as the OS goes, I'm still running XP and have never had a crash, it's actually a pretty stable OS, just clunky. I'm sure that Apple products breakdown too, although their warranty service can't be any worse.

Thanks for all the replies (and validation).

 

McAfee and Norton are a waste of money

I'm using Microsoft Security Essentials - It's free, light and no problems thus far

I had a Mac Pro for a year and sold it. Wanted to do a lot of video editing. Software selections were limited, Video cards were limited and EXPENSIVE. There is more user/knowledge support through Windows users for video encoding/editing. I had VMware Fusion with Windows on it and it worked pretty good. Wouldn't run MS Flight Simulator through VMware or Boot Camp nearly as good as the PC. Just didn't find it was worth the money for the limitations I had.

I built my own PC with Windows 7, overclocked the CPU, configured it with the parts I wanted, for much less money and no limitations. Been using it for 6 months, no problems at all. I like Windows 7.

It's not that hard to build a PC. There are lots of tutorial videos for building PC's on You Tube. If you can fly a jet, you can build a PC. Probably the most important aspect of building a PC for a newbie is making sure you get the right components that work well with each other (motherboard to CPU to RAM to power supply) to avoid issues. There's lots of message boards for help. Once you can build your own, with quality components, suited to your needs, for less money, you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner. Best of all you don't have all the crapware programs that Dell, HP, Acer etc. load up their computers with and slow the thing down.

After you research how to build a PC, get the parts for it here
http://www.newegg.com/
http://www.tigerdirect.com/

I have my Mother using an iMac and it's been a good setup for her. Works great for internet and email. For someone with limited knowledge of computers and unable to deal with the slightest glitch, it's a good way to go.

 

Actually, that has been the part that I have been most impressed with Apple - their customer service, at least in the store.

USMCFLYR

 

I have never had to find out what Dell customer service is like in ten years of using it simply because none of them ever broke, honest not once. Microsoft software has had some trouble with viruses over the years, but they have online support for every conceivable problem so on those few occasions when things were not going right I just googled up a solution. Sometimes I even had to dig using the Microsoft forums to get a remedy, but the sheer number of users guarantees someone out there has had the same issue and found a solution. If Dell and MS were not working for me I would jump ship in a heartbeat. The only times I have been tempted to go with Mac is when I was into graphics, computer simulation, or when I wanted to impress someone. Not having ever given in to that temptation I know nothing about them but I see them like German cars- they run and look great and people really like them but parts are hard to get and everything costs too much.

I went to a public speech this evening given by Buzz Carpenter the former SR-71 pilot. His slide show was nice, but what I took with me was his comment that Kelly Johnson did not like unreliable cockpit instruments so the SR-71 panel was filled with off the shelf instruments.

 

I've had the same Dell computer for 6.5yrs. I upgraded the vid card right away, and then this past year I went ahead and went from 512 RAM to 2Gig. I'm getting ready to switch from McAfee to Norton, but that's it, my BIL has a hook-up on that is my main reason.

I currently use an iPad for our IAP's/etc... and do like the functionality. I just don't know if I'd go for buying a Mac just because. If it was time to replace this computer, I would consider it with all the other options out there. I just use things until they crap out, or on the verge of it.

 

I hae he inerface of he Mac.

I sill freezes like a PC all he ime even houh mine is 18 monhs old.

Several hins aou i annoy me rih down o he power cord ein so lare ha i can' fi in some oules.

One oher hin ha really us me is ha afer jus 18 monhs of his piece of crap, aove a cerain emperaure I lose funcionaliy of several keyoard keys which you can see in his pos.

Really a piece of junk in my opinion. I mean I lierally can' even ype his pos correcly.

 

Dell....Sitting on floor with cables wrapped around it. I came close to hanging up on Dell when I bought it....wished I had now.

Not to mention it seems like I could have bought a 2009 Beechcraft G36 Bonanza instead of the all the ink for my Dell printer.


HP...In use.

 

I have a Mac that I bought last spring. It has not been without some issues, much to my dismay. I do like it overall, but I don't think it will replace the PC based computer(s) for the reasons Rick stated.

I still use a cheap HP notebook that I bought 4 years ago when I'm on the road. It's a slow / clunky Vista based machine.

If the Mac were the same price, it would be a better machine. At almost double the price, it's a good machine at a premium price.

It integrates well with the iPhone, of course.

 

Imagine that
Ask for opinions and they come out almost 50/50%.
Some have good experiences with PCs, others love their Macs.
There are problems with both and each have their own experiences.
This is about like watching those interesting (and funny) commercials!

Sounds more like a personal preference than being able to nail down solid goods and others.
Tough decision.

Maybe this is similiar to what I had to do when I was trying to decide between the iPhone and the Droid.
Eventually you can make yourself go crazy trying to compare and you just ending up going with one and then making it work.

USMCFLYR

 

I would suggest anyone wanting to invest in a new computer look the subject up in Consumer Reports magazine at the local library. They gather a lot of data on computer purchases, and they are not funded by the manufacturers. Customer feedback on large websites such as Amazon is also pretty useful given enough responses.