Friend needs a new laptop.

Dave****

Dave****

Dave****

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Hello Apple Hardware sub-forum! I have never been in here before so please be gentle :p

I have also posted this thread in the Laptop & PDAs sub-forum but I thought I should post it in here too to get two sets of opinions, because some people just don't like Apple!

My friend needs a laptop for work as his last one has died a death so he needs one ASAP.

He creates music via cubase and uses all sorts of stuff like that which I have no clue about if I'm honest, he asked me for help on purchasing a laptop that will let him do that, so obviously I come here for advise :)

At the moment he uses a desktop rig to do the musicy shizz but wants to be able to do it on the move now.

He seems to think that he needs to get a mac book pro as "that is what all musicians use because it doesn't crash". Now, since I know nothing about macs or music I have to accept what he says on that.

He was looking at a mac book pro on the apple site but it was quite expensive even for the lowest model (not sure if I can link to it or say the price) which was these specs:

13-inch: 2.3 GHz
2.3GHz dual-core
Intel Core i5
4GB 1333MHz
320GB 5400-rpm1
Intel HD Graphics 3000
Built-in battery (7 hours)2

MagSafe power port
Gigabit Ethernet port
FireWire 800 port (up to 800Mbps)
Two USB 2.0 ports (up to 480Mbps)
Thunderbolt port (up to 10Gbps)
Audio line in
Audio line out
SDXC card slot
Kensington lock slot

He can afford the price of it but it will leave him "skint and stressed" for the next 3 months.

He asked me if I could find an alternative so I went straight to OcUK and had a look there!

I found this http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=LT-029-MS&groupid=959&catid=1828&subcat=

- Screen: 17.3" HD+ (1600x900)
- CPU: Intel Core I5 460m (2.53Ghz)
- Memory 2x2Gb DDR3 1066
- HDD: 320Gb
- Optical: DVD Super Multi
- VGA: Intel HD Graphics
- O/S: Free DOS
- Warranty: 1 Year Collect & Return
- Web Camera:1.3m

But it has no O/S !!!

So the cost of win 7 would have to be added to it which would make it £632.

Then I saw http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=LT-038-MS&groupid=959&catid=1828&subcat=

Specification:-
- Screen:15.6"(1366 x 768) HD Ready
- CPU:Intel Core i5 460m (2.53ghz)
- Memory 2x2Gb DDR3 1066
- HDD: 500Gb
- Optical: Blu Ray Combo
- VGA:Nvidia GeForce G310M Optimus
- O/S:Windows 7 HP
- Interface - 2x USB,1x USB/eSATA, 1x HDMI, 1 X VGA
- Warranty: 1 Year Collect & Return
- Web Camera:1.3m

This does have an O/S, it has a bigger HDD, better GFX and BluRay but it has a smaller screen.

I assume the "Interface" of the 2nd set of specs is the same for the first one as there isn't an "Interface" for the 1st set.

The smaller screen is putting him off because he would like the room for wave files and such. But it is obvious that the 2nd laptop is the better one of the two.

He also likes the fact that the Mac has the firewire port because transferring massive music files slowly is a pain and costs him precious time.



What are your thoughts on this?

Should he get a mac because they are brilliant for music like he seems to think and be out of pocket for a few months?

Will all this software work just the same on Win7 as it does the mac and "never crash, because macs never crash"?

Are there any alternatives to the laptops I have suggested?



TL;DR

Mate needs a new laptop to create music on with cubase, wants a mac but they are too expensive, should he starve himself to get it or should he just get a windows laptop for almost half the price, will it works just as well as the Mac would or not?


Thanks for reading and any suggestions you might have.
 :)
 
If it's going to make him skint and cause him stress, tell him to get a PC. Any software he thinks he might need is available on Windows (there's actually more available for Windows, particularly trackers). VST support is also better on Windows from my experience and I personally find Apples VST and components system annoying. And there's a much bigger selection of Windows only VSTs available than OS X only VSTs. It's a nightmare trying to find decent 8 bit synths that don't cost an arm and a leg.

That said, OS X has better screen management than Windows. You can throw programs off to seperate desktops avoiding clutter when he WILL eventually have several applications open and chained together.

USB3 is faster than firewire, so the PC beats the transfer of files there unless he gets a Mac with thunderbolt.

Just some things to think about.
 
Last edited:
That's just the advice I was looking for! Thanks!

Reading that myself (no offence) but all I see is windows blah blah mac blah blah which I assume he will understand.

I understand the screen management and USB3 bit though :p

Again, thanks :)
 
Personally I agree with what Brian has said - Windows is completely fine and will do whatever you need it to do. Reliability has not been an issue since windows 2000.

However... I would save money and buy the mac or a refurb or even second hand. I am completely rational and no gushing fanboy but macbook pros are just so far ahead of every other laptop I've ever seen in terms of build quality and design and with Mac OSX they are an utter pleasure to use. I doubt very much he would regret buying it.
 
likwid said:
However... I would save money and buy the mac...
Click to expand...

I didn't say this in my original post but I think I should have mentioned it; he cannot afford to be without a laptop as he uses it for the business side of his work (invoices, accounts, writing lyrics etc.). So he needs one NOW. If he could afford to wait then I'm sure he would go for the Mac too. He didn't really want to buy a new laptop first anyway with the coin he had saved he wanted to get some uber fancy keyboard but because his laptop has died needs must and all that..

I'll show him this thread later though so he can read all you opinions himself.
 
Personally, in that situation I would borrow someone's laptop until I could afford the mac. Also, if either of you know a student you can get a hefty discount, buying over the phone and claiming to be a student apparently works without id.
 
likwid said:
Personally, in that situation I would borrow someone's laptop until I could afford the mac. Also, if either of you know a student you can get a hefty discount, buying over the phone and claiming to be a student apparently works without id.
Click to expand...

Interesting! :D Thanks. I suppose he could borrow my laptop in the mean time...
 
likwid said:
Personally, in that situation I would borrow someone's laptop until I could afford the mac. Also, if either of you know a student you can get a hefty discount, buying over the phone and claiming to be a student apparently works without id.
Click to expand...

Even if you shop around on the bay, you can get very large discounts. You just have to keep searching. If you look on the well known river you can save loads. In May 2011 I saved £277 on the top 15" MBP with 750gb HD and the faster graphics card. Also be aware because it is apple the support is just the same from Apple UK, no matter where you bought it. You get 90 days full support, and they answer any simple software queries. I pondered for months on what to do. My MBP really flies and it is faster than my Windows 7 x64 gaming machine (i7 920) that I have over clocked to 4.0ghz.

Spit said:
What about the MacBook Air 13"?
Click to expand...

Yes. That is a good machine, but not as robust as a MBP, and the last time I looked there was no DVD. You could use a portable one. The guy really does need to visit an Apple store to get a feel for each machine.
 
Last edited:
Davola said:
Hello Apple Hardware sub-forum! I have never been in here before so please be gentle :p

I have also posted this thread in the Laptop & PDAs sub-forum but I thought I should post it in here too to get two sets of opinions, because some people just don't like Apple!

My friend needs a laptop for work as his last one has died a death so he needs one ASAP.

He creates music via cubase and uses all sorts of stuff like that which I have no clue about if I'm honest, he asked me for help on purchasing a laptop that will let him do that, so obviously I come here for advise :)

At the moment he uses a desktop rig to do the musicy shizz but wants to be able to do it on the move now.

He seems to think that he needs to get a mac book pro as "that is what all musicians use because it doesn't crash". Now, since I know nothing about macs or music I have to accept what he says on that.

He was looking at a mac book pro on the apple site but it was quite expensive even for the lowest model (not sure if I can link to it or say the price) which was these specs:

13-inch: 2.3 GHz
2.3GHz dual-core
Intel Core i5
4GB 1333MHz
320GB 5400-rpm1
Intel HD Graphics 3000
Built-in battery (7 hours)2

MagSafe power port
Gigabit Ethernet port
FireWire 800 port (up to 800Mbps)
Two USB 2.0 ports (up to 480Mbps)
Thunderbolt port (up to 10Gbps)
Audio line in
Audio line out
SDXC card slot
Kensington lock slot

He can afford the price of it but it will leave him "skint and stressed" for the next 3 months.

He asked me if I could find an alternative so I went straight to OcUK and had a look there!

I found this http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=LT-029-MS&groupid=959&catid=1828&subcat=

- Screen: 17.3" HD+ (1600x900)
- CPU: Intel Core I5 460m (2.53Ghz)
- Memory 2x2Gb DDR3 1066
- HDD: 320Gb
- Optical: DVD Super Multi
- VGA: Intel HD Graphics
- O/S: Free DOS
- Warranty: 1 Year Collect & Return
- Web Camera:1.3m

But it has no O/S !!!

So the cost of win 7 would have to be added to it which would make it £632.

Then I saw http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=LT-038-MS&groupid=959&catid=1828&subcat=

Specification:-
- Screen:15.6"(1366 x 768) HD Ready
- CPU:Intel Core i5 460m (2.53ghz)
- Memory 2x2Gb DDR3 1066
- HDD: 500Gb
- Optical: Blu Ray Combo
- VGA:Nvidia GeForce G310M Optimus
- O/S:Windows 7 HP
- Interface - 2x USB,1x USB/eSATA, 1x HDMI, 1 X VGA
- Warranty: 1 Year Collect & Return
- Web Camera:1.3m

This does have an O/S, it has a bigger HDD, better GFX and BluRay but it has a smaller screen.

I assume the "Interface" of the 2nd set of specs is the same for the first one as there isn't an "Interface" for the 1st set.

The smaller screen is putting him off because he would like the room for wave files and such. But it is obvious that the 2nd laptop is the better one of the two.

He also likes the fact that the Mac has the firewire port because transferring massive music files slowly is a pain and costs him precious time.



What are your thoughts on this?

Should he get a mac because they are brilliant for music like he seems to think and be out of pocket for a few months?

Will all this software work just the same on Win7 as it does the mac and "never crash, because macs never crash"?

Are there any alternatives to the laptops I have suggested?



TL;DR

Mate needs a new laptop to create music on with cubase, wants a mac but they are too expensive, should he starve himself to get it or should he just get a windows laptop for almost half the price, will it works just as well as the Mac would or not?


Thanks for reading and any suggestions you might have.
 :)
Click to expand...

Sent you a long email about the subject,hope you find it useful. :)
 
As unfounded as it sounds, go on get a mac... (pc's are rubbish or something)

Realistically the mac laptops all now have sandybridge so performance really wont be an issue, just down to preference and software, and if he likes shiney things
 
Personally, I would invest in the Mac from personal experience and stories from my friends, Macbooks tend to last longer, their builds are just of a higher quality, but if he's going to be absolutely skint? then maybe it's not the best idea to invest a few hundred extra.

I'd still buy the MBP, but if he's worried about the money side of things, go for that second option.
 
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