My Switch to Mac: Part 3, The Reckoning (or looking past the hype)

When looking at Apple machines, its hard not to admire their design. The alluminium and glass, the smooth finishes, the breaking away from tradition… To be honest I would probably not shift away from a Mac again just because the hardware looks so damn good…

In December 2008 I made a switch to a Macbook unibody of which I made reviews in terms of the hardware and the operating system. Well, its about 4 months later and I guess its time to come down from the hype cloud and tell things like it is. There are a few things about a notebook you just dont see when you are looking at it in a shop. You have to live with it.

I initially spoke about the hardware, so here is just a few things I noticed which people should know about. Firstly – the screen is not the greatest. True it is very bright, and the instant brightness of the LED backlighting is wonderful. But its viewing angles are not great. To anyone who has a Macbook currently – open up the RSS reader screensaver, preview it, and view the screen from a few angles, you will see what I mean. As long as you view the screen head on, there is no problems. The Macbook Pro and Air has none of these issues. So if your picky about your screen look at the other higher level machines.

I also said I had problems with the buttonless mouse – I could not have been more wrong. It is an absolute joy to use, and I really wish all other manufacturers will take note. I have a wireless Logitech notebook mouse in my backpack which I have not used in 3 months. The multi-touch features are intuitive and the first thing you miss going back to another notebook. I have not had any problems with the keyboard, but I have to say I would have a hard time saying its better than a Thinkpad’s.

The casing is sturdy and stiff. It is perhaps a little on the heavy side for such a small notebook (especially after having something like a Lenovo netbook in your hands). Only problems I have with the form factor is that the rubber feet on the bottom could stand to be few millimeters thicker. True, it looks cool with its thin profile, but the average person’s fingers just don’t fit in beneath it when you pick it up. Also, even though the magnetic closing mechanism is really nice, occasionally a person would smudge the top of the webcam just by opening the notebook. Picky, yes. But this is a Mac, and Apple would have you believe its perfect, even its latch.

All the ports on the left hand side does look a bit more classy, but there are too little USB ports, and they are way to close to each other. Try fitting in a flash drive and normal cable together – doesn’t work all that well. Also – and this a big downer – I really miss having a card slot. Every other machine I had in the past 5 years had a SD card slot. Welcome to 2009 Apple, get with the plan. I don’t want to bother with a cable connection everytime I want to download my photos.

The battery button is a really nice touch – and something which all other notebooks should gain. And its placed well – when my notebook is in its sleeve, its easy to just unzip, press the button, and know how much battery power you have.

But to be honest, all of these things are nitpicking (perhaps with exception to the SD card slot), and I have had a very good experience with the Mac. It is the type of notebook that a person can actually stand to use whenever, wherever. Its the right size, the battery life is great, it has brisk performance and its built well. What more do you want from a notebook?

PS: I will follow this up with a “reckoning” article with regard to Mac OS X.

Overall rating after 4 months: 4 out of 5

My Switch to Mac: Part 2, Operating System

First off: I am not partial to Mac. I actually like Windows very much, even Vista. In fact, I love Vista. Yes it might be slower than XP, but give it enough hardware to work with and it is actually a absolute pleasure to use. I have used it since it was released to developers as a Beta, and I have never looked back. But recently I purchased a new macbook, primarily for the hardware. I just believe Apple machines are better built and look really good. It might sound shallow, but for someone who works on a computer 10+ hours a day, I really dont want to vommit on my keyboard because my computer is so ugly. Case in point – my other machine is a Lenovo Thinkpad Z61m with 4gig ram and a decent fast Core 2 Duo processor. It goes like stink, but looks distinctly ugly. In fact a few people have asked me why I work on such a old computer, even when it was a month old. Doesnt say much.

But back to Mac OSX. I have used it for about a month now. First impressions – its fast. Much faster than Windows. Things actually react pretty quickly, boot up is quick and there is just a absolute feeling of speed, even with 2Gig RAM. Menus react quickly, pop ups occur instantaneously. Multitasking is much smoother – but my biggest issue with OS X is little niggles in the interface that a switcher has to get used to.

First off, closing something doesnt actually close it. You have to manually stop it by quitting. I find it a little quaint, and no, I believe it is a stupid principle to have everything running all the time in the background. Apple really has to identify this as a key issue for switchers.

The dock sometimes also doesnt always make complete sense. Some apps can be restored on screen by clicking its app icon, others you have to actually click on the window on the right side of the dock. I would like more consistency.

Also, the menu bar on the top takes some getting used to. I suppose it is not a worse system, but it can be difficult to use at first for a switcher.

However, most of these issues are negated by other great little features. Something as simple as expose makes a giant difference to yor workflow. Windows Flip 3D is eye candy, but doesnt actually carry much use. Expose is a much better system. Take notes Microsoft.

Unfortunately for Apple, most technical users cant be a complete Mac user in this day and age. I had to get VMWare Fusion, because there are too many apps I cant move away from.I had to install a XP virtual machine, because Vista was really sluggish. Even something as boring as Office 2007 is unparalleled on the Mac platform. I also run Office for Mac 2008, but it is absolutely shocking compared to 2007. Never thought I would say it, but I really miss the ribbon interface. I actually find myself opening most documents through the Windows version of Office. I would actually like to dabble with iWork, maybe its better than Office for Mac. In fact, I even think that OpenOffice will be better than Office for Mac.

If Apple is smart, they would consider making VM a built in feature of Mac OSX Snow Leopard. VMWare and Parallels is currently probably selling like hotcakes.

Overall I am very happy with the shift, but I am most definately not going to make a complete shift to Mac. VMWare is still my friend, and I will definately upgrade to a Vista or Windows 7 machine as soon as I can get 4 gig DDR3 memory. Laptop DDR3 memory is really expensive, so that will have to wait.

I find Mac OSX a very good OS, and I am sure it is a much better OS for someone new to computers. In fact, I wish my parents had a Mac, maybe I would get less tech related calls. I will revisit this topic over time, but for now I am not yet completely sold, but luckily I love trying out new software, so maybe over time I will change my tune.

My Switch to Mac: Part 1, Hardware

(Photos from AppleInsider)

About a week ago I got myself a new Macbook 13inch. Yes, it is absolutely one of the most beautiful computers ever made. Every single millimeter is well thought out and built to perfection. It feels rock solid, and is actually a perfect size for a laptop. I got the following configuration:

Intel Core 2 Duo P7350 2.0GHz (which is a low voltage part btw)
2 Gig DDR3 1067 MHz RAM
160Gig 5400 rpm SATA drive (would like to upgrade it to 7200 rpm however)
13 inch screen
Nvidia 9400M integrated graphics card (which impressed me hugely)

It comes in a box not much bigger than the notebook itself which very much resembles the iPhone’s packaging style. The notebook is held in plastic tray with all the manuals and software in a neat package underneath. The laptop is smaller than you expect, especially if you come from a 15.4 inch screen. The macbook has some heft to it – not that it is heavy, but it feels very solid in your hand. I would recommend a sleeve for it, because it flops around most laptop bags because it is really thin.

After coming from a Thinkpad (which is not bad at all) the macbook is just built to another standard. The hardware is stunning, there are small little quirks that you just come across and ask – “why doesnt everyone do this?!?!”.

Case in point – the power adapter – has two little hooks that flip out neatly giving you a place to wrap the cord around. Simple and so effective. The lid clips closed magnetically. Simple. The back of the machine is not awash with useless stickers. Simple again. The machine sleeps and wakes instantly in MacOSX. Why cant Vista be this simple?

The keyboard and trackpad takes a lot to get used to. The keys are completely flat, but they are firm to press and there is no sponginess like in some cheap notebooks. Must have something to do with metal grid in which they are placed. The trackpad has no buttons (or it is actually one big button). Its a “look at the monkey” feature – I dont see why its better. After a few minutes a switched it to tap to click in the system preferences. Like a normal trackpad.

The screen is stunning. Very bright, instantly on due to the LED backlighting. OK, the resolution is not great, (1280 x 800) but for a 13 inch screen I doubt I want more. Bigger problem is the way to connect a external screen. The new displayport plug is silly, and I find it stupid that I should buy a whole adapter to connect it to another screen. I honestly dont see the problem with DVI, why go and change it?

Battery life is great, in MacOSX I get about 4 hours+, but in Vista (fresh SP1 install in Bootcamp) it is a completely different story – got about 2hours 15 minutes. Goodness, didnt know a OS can make such a difference?

One big problem is that the machine runs on DDR3 1067 MHz RAM, which is expensive to upgrade at this stage. I know its fast, but it is ridiculously expensive compared to DDR2. The machine only comes with 2Gig RAM, which I would like to increase so that VMWare Fusion would work a little smoother. (Must be pointed out though that the RAM gets a 5.7 rating in Windows Experience Index, which is quick).

Graphics from the integrated Nvidia card is really impressive. Granted, I am not the greatest gamer – I use my Xbox for that – but the machine played games quite well, provided you dont set the detail to the highest settings. Spore played awesomely.

I have always been a Vista fan (I actually believe its a wonderful OS, and yes, Windows 7 is going to run on the same kernel, haters/sheep…), but Mac OSX is actually OK so far. My next post I will talk about how that is going.

Talking about Vista, here is Windows Experience Index for the Macbook 2.0GHz Late 2008 version:

Processor: 5.0
Memory: 5.7
Graphics: 5.6
Gaming Graphics: 5.4
Primary Hard Drive: 5.9

Talk about impressive for a laptop. Overall I am very happy with it, albeit its little trackpad quirks. It truly a pleasure to work on. About that – I still have to learn to use Mac OSX effectively.

(Photos from AppleInsider)

iSkin Revo2 iPhone 3G silicone case

When I got my iPhone I bought a cheap little simple silicone sleeve which did not really protect the phone fully. The screen was exposed, and the silicone started to stretch somewhat which led to the case starting to fold over the iphone corners.

So I decided to take the plunge and buy a decent case for my expensive toy. I decided on the iSkin Revo2, (the black one) which was quite pricey at R400 ($40). The overall feel of the case is much better, and the silicone has much higher quality look. It also looks really good. It is also quite stiff silicone, and the front of the iPhone is much better protected. The earpiece and home button area is decently covered. The screen can be covered with a clip on hard plastic cover, which I doubt I will keep on using. It can be removed and clipped on the back but it is not an ideal solution.

The dock connector and earphone port is covered with decent clip on rubber pieces which simply fold over when they are in the way. A screen anti glare film is included, but I havent had a chance t use it yet, seeing as I have a film on already.

Overall the phone is very well protected without adding unnecessary bulk, which is in my opinion all I want from a case.

Would I recommend it? Yes, but take at the look at the just released iSkin Fuze. But it does look expensive as well…

Time for a upgrade…

Living in SA has its quirks = for example, Apple computers cost about 20 percent more than in the US. So that puts me in a predicament. I need to choose my next machine – it has to be something powerful and needs a nice big screen. I have narrowed it down between a Thinkpad Z Series and a MacBook Pro version.

I think I have to go for the Thinkpad even though I absolutely crave a Macbook Pro…

Z61P Widescreen ThinkPad: Intel Centrino Duo (Intel Core 2 Duo T7200) 2.00GHz, 2GB, 100GB, ATI Mobility FireGL V5200 256MB graphics, 15.4″ WUXGA (1680 x 1050), Multi-burner Dual Layer, Modem, Gigabit, Intel 3945 11a/b/g Wireless, IEEE1394, Bluetooth, Security Chip, FPR, Windows Vista Business, 3 Year carry-in warranty.

This will cost me the same as the lower end Macbook Pro…

Vicious right? Niiiiicce…