I wish you luck on such a purchase I am no expert on what is out there any more since things have changed so much.....but it seems that you are getting some sound advice from experts.

Daryl H

Alrighty,  I used to be a PC Tech at Circuit City (and I foresaw many moons ago the company's crashing... but that's neither here nor there.... )

I can say that when I worked on customers' PCs all day long and dealt with almost every problem in the book, it was great to come home to my Mac and have it just WORK.

If you're an artsy, creative person (aren't we all on this board?!) then you'll probably love the sleek graphical interface.

As Shawn mentioned, they have numerous programs built in to get you started editing video and pictures, as well as audio.  Also, when comparing specs - remember that a PC and Mac use two different operating systems... so they use their hardware much differently.  That's why 2 GB of RAM in a Mac will go MUCH farther than in a PC; same with the processor.

Also, Macs don't need to worry about viruses!

Now, having sung the praises of Apple, let me say:  definitely consider getting their "Applecare Protection".  My laptop has eaten 3 hard drives (almost like clockwork, and it's due for its 4th.......).  The technical support Apple has is impressive; whenever I've called to get service I speak with a well trained support tech in the USA.  If my laptop needs repair, the whole process is usually completed in under a week.

If you have any questions, let me know!

One thing you need to know if you have programs that work for windows it will not work on a mac and many programs are not Mac usable....that is why I am hesitant to switch because I have programs that I love and they are not capable or have a program that works on a Mac.....just a thought before considering a mac switch up......if you have no programs that you care about then a Mac is a nice way to go but will have to do some training to get use to it.....I also think if you buy a Mac they will train you for free on how to use it at the place that you purchase it......that is a nice thing about getting a new Mac.

I agree artists seem to go more for Macs than PC's.........

Daryl H

Billy,

Apple Mac is best & tackles viruses very well...all professional
designers use Mac in India. My friend in California is happy
with her mac that she got last year. Do you want to speak with her?
I will give her tel number if interested. Her hubby is a computer
Engineer.

If you want to store lot of files then invest in an external hard drive
so that your main system will be safe. I am using compaq/HP for the
last 4 yrs & satisfied. I use even for web chatting.

All the best for the right purchase.

Bhanu

Billy this video will help answer all your questions on the best computer...... .

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https://youtu.be/uLbJ8YPHwXM
Daryl H

Thanks Daryl that was just way to cool. The heck with the computer.................... I want one of those robots now. That was like a scene from Star Wars. Nice find !!!!!

Billy D.

The new Mac computers are able to run both the macs OS and windows.  This means that any program that run run on a PC you can run with a Mac. Ask you Mac sales person and they'll explain how it works. I've always bought PCs because they cost less but my next computer will be a mac. I think the extra quality is worth the extra $$$.

Thanks Jon.................... I am so glad I posted this here on the forum. It is so good to here the opinions of each of you............... and yes I will talk to a salesperson about a Mac and maybe test one out.
Decisions Decisions Decisions 

Billy D.

That was some incredible animation in the short film!  I tell you what it made me believe.

Mac is one of the best when its come on graphic and sound, besides non viruses problem when you are on-line (But sometimes slowdown when you updated "Download", its a must). Still a great computer.
PC instead is more easy to operate, but with new operation system (Vista) crash a lot (A lot of glitches). And for the viruses on-line problem you have to get a really good antivirus(The best is NOD32), and still you not 100% protected (Worse with the hackers). To give maintain to PC is more accurate than MAC, and to upgrade, I guess PC is easiest than MAC.

The specification that you gave for the PC before is great. When we talk about Desktop PC, the brand is not really important, but the capacity, but is quite different when we talk about PC Laptop: The best brand in laptop is Sony VIOS(Of course with a big capacity), and secondly HP, follow Toshiba, Dell, then Acer, last (Still good) Gateway. But remember, all depend on the capacity (More on the memory RAM)

That was my two cents

Miguel!