[ProbablyProdigy]

Right now i currently own an HP Envy DV7. It's a great laptop that has been running greatly for a couple years now. It has 8GB of RAM, Radeon HD Graphics, fingerprint reader and an AMD A10-4600M APU. I'm no computer-phile but i know my way around Windows 7, viruses, and un needed programs very well. I am looking to finance or save up for a new computer. I really like Apple computers but i understand you could get more for your money with PC and i will have to learn an entirely new operating system because I've never really played with an Apple computer for more than a few minutes. I don't and wont own an iPhone or iPad so the continuity features of iOS and Mac OS would be useless. I would be interested in the 128GB, 256GB Flash 13 inch Macbook Air if i went with Apple. As far as a PC goes, I think touchscreen is dumb, i think the tablet/computer hybrids are dumb, i think the rearlid screen thing is dumb. One of the reasons why i am thinking of going with Mac, I cannot stand Windows 8 and its getting hard to find a computer without it. And PC has too many useless dumb ideas that will never fit my needs so it makes it very complicated for me to find a PC that i would want to purchase. Anyway, if anyone could possibly help me figure out whether or not i should buy a Mac or do my research on a good PC that fits my needs. I use my PC daily, typically for average computing but i do run Photoshop, Sony Vegas Pro, and Adobe Illustrator often. My very max budget that for some reason I'll consider is $1200. I do not game but if it could, i might start?

 

[Darthmullet]

1) Do you absolutely need a laptop?
 
2) Windows 10 will be coming early next year and will be noticeably more traditional than Windows 8. Also keep in mind your Windows license is still yours - you can install a new Operating System on a new Windows 8 laptop and go back to 7 for no charge. Just something to keep in mind. (if you go this route, you just need to make sure you have your Windows key or have the copy registered on your Windows account and create a bootable Windows 7 usb drive or disc before proceeding, it is really pretty simple)

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Right now i currently own an HP Envy DV7. It's a great laptop that has been running greatly for a couple years now. It has 8GB of RAM, Radeon HD Graphics, fingerprint reader and an AMD A10-4600M APU. I'm no computer-phile but i know my way around Windows 7, viruses, and un needed programs very well. I am looking to finance or save up for a new computer. I really like Apple computers but i understand you could get more for your money with PC and i will have to learn an entirely new operating system because I've never really played with an Apple computer for more than a few minutes. I don't and wont own an iPhone or iPad so the continuity features of iOS and Mac OS would be useless. I would be interested in the 128GB, 256GB Flash 13 inch Macbook Air if i went with Apple. As far as a PC goes, I think touchscreen is dumb, i think the tablet/computer hybrids are dumb, i think the rearlid screen thing is dumb. One of the reasons why i am thinking of going with Mac, I cannot stand Windows 8 and its getting hard to find a computer without it. And PC has too many useless dumb ideas that will never fit my needs so it makes it very complicated for me to find a PC that i would want to purchase. Anyway, if anyone could possibly help me figure out whether or not i should buy a Mac or do my research on a good PC that fits my needs. I use my PC daily, typically for average computing but i do run Photoshop, Sony Vegas Pro, and Adobe Illustrator often. My very max budget that for some reason I'll consider is $1200. I do not game but if it could, i might start?

 
If you already using Win PC on a daily bases, then just stick to Win PC.
With Windows 8, you can install a free program called Classic Shell, makes Win 8 look and function like Win 7 (Or Win Vista or Win XP).
Day after Thanks Givining, should be some great deals on new PCs.

 

[ProbablyProdigy]

Awesome, thanks for the info. For a PC i would be wanting something thin and light, an ultrabook? My DV7 has a 15 inch screen and although most of the time its great, i would like to shave a couple inches off as it can get rough carrying around my big ol' computer bag. I have also looked into the new Windows 10 and it looks to be that they might make a come back since 8. I will be looking into a PC, thanks!

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Is it purely for listening or are you going to listen on it while working, and also using other sources? Because if it's purely for listening you have other options like Android. A miniPC can be set-up to run as a headless server (ie you set it up once, then after that you use a compatible tablet to run its interface), or you use a touchscreen Android device as a server with USB audio (through an OTG adapter), like so:
 

 

[Darthmullet]

  Is it purely for listening or are you going to listen on it while working, and also using other sources? Because if it's purely for listening you have other options like Android. A miniPC can be set-up to run as a headless server (ie you set it up once, then after that you use a compatible tablet to run its interface), or you use a touchscreen Android device as a server with USB audio (through an OTG adapter), like so:
 

 
I don't think this was really an audio question

 

[ProtegeManiac]

 
I don't think this was really an audio question

 
Forgot I was in Gear-Fi 

 

[lbbef]

Thin and light and powerful don't really come together.
You have to decide which parts of the laptop is going to be the most important for you.
For example, performance or display quality, etc...
 
Here are some of my basic comparisons for some of the options that you can consider:
 
1) Apple MacBook Air
Thin. Light.
Very long battery life.
Lack of discrete graphics.
Display not very good. 1440x900
Limited hardware customisability.
 
2) Clevo W230SS
Not that thin and light.
Decent battery life.
NVidia 860M
Full HD decent display. 1920x1080
Many hardware customisability options.
 
3) Microsoft Surface Pro 3
Thin. Light.
Long battery life.
Lack of discrete graphics.
Excellent display. Factory calibrated. 2160x1440
Limited hardware customisability.
 
4) Various Ultrabooks
Thin. Light.
Decent to long battery life.
Lack of discrete graphics.
Excellent display. Factory calibrated. Various resolutions.
Limited hardware customisability.

 

[mvyrmnd]

As a guy who's day job is as a certified Apple, HP, Dell, Tech (read, I pull these things apart on a daily basis) I can only tell you this. Don't buy consumer-grade HP gear. Their Pro/Server stuff is excellent, but they've cheaped out so badly with their consumer stuff these days that it's all become utter crap.
 
If you have to buy a PC, buy a Dell. Their XPS systems are good.
 
If you want to buy a Mac, do so. You might not get every specification matched for the money, but you get far superior build quality and a metric buttload of bundled software. Never mind for-life free OS upgrades.
 
If you do decide to go Mac, hold out for a few months. The rumored Retina MacBook Air is going to be a ripper!
 
Also. don't buy anything with an AMD APU in it. Bang for buck, you're wasting your money.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

  As a guy who's day job is as a certified Apple, HP, Dell, Tech (read, I pull these things apart on a daily basis) I can only tell you this. Don't buy consumer-grade HP gear. Their Pro/Server stuff is excellent, but they've cheaped out so badly with their consumer stuff these days that it's all become utter crap.

 
Nuts, they have a touchscreen convertible for $600 and I was looking into those, but all for work (MSOffice) and photo editing this time (my current 15.6in laptop was bought with Crysis and Warhammer in mind). Thanks for the tip.
 

  Also. don't buy anything with an AMD APU in it. Bang for buck, you're wasting your money.

 
Yep, I have one and I'd have to say it works nice if you have Crysis (or for now, Warframe) in mind (ditto Warhammer). After I eventually got too busy to casually play for breaks instead of smoking I've realized that beyond those games the only thing this thing has going for it is a few seconds faster in Lightroom over i3 processors, at the cost of battery life. If I use just word processor, WiFi off, no other programs running, etc I can do six hours easy; but then my friend with a similar i5+discrete NVidia GPU can sit there with Foobar running and still get around 4hrs+ off of it (although he paid nearly triple, so there's that). I run Foobar or MediaMonkey, and damn the battery dies within two hours (I don't have to test it on the same IEM, it's not like I'm listening at over 10% of Windows volume).

 

[mvyrmnd]

Yep, I have one and I'd have to say it works nice if you have Crysis (or for now, Warframe) in mind (ditto Warhammer). After I eventually got too busy to casually play for breaks instead of smoking I've realized that beyond those games the only thing this thing has going for it is a few seconds faster in Lightroom over i3 processors, at the cost of battery life. If I use just word processor, WiFi off, no other programs running, etc I can do six hours easy; but then my friend with a similar i5+discrete NVidia GPU can sit there with Foobar running and still get around 4hrs+ off of it (although he paid nearly triple, so there's that). I run Foobar or MediaMonkey, and damn the battery dies within two hours (I don't have to test it on the same IEM, it's not like I'm listening at over 10% of Windows volume).

 
I'd suggest that there are deeper factors at play - for example the actual capacity of the battery, vs. the exact type of i5 CPU (there are MANY variants each with different power requirements and TDP's) The MacBook Air can get 10 Hours from a comparatively small battery, while by MacBook Pro can get only 4 from a battery at least 25% bigger. They both have a Core i5 CPU.
 
If you want performance and battery life, one of the best ways is to have an SSD. You have to pay for it, obviously, but once you've used one you'll never go back to spinning drives.
 
PC Gear is very much like Audio gear. You can buy cheap, and it will do it's basic job - it'll make sound. Or you can buy good. Many folks are happy with their $5 earbuds, just like they're happy with their $600 PC. They're both missing out

 

[ProtegeManiac]

   
I'd suggest that there are deeper factors at play - for example the actual capacity of the battery, vs. the exact type of i5 CPU (there are MANY variants each with different power requirements and TDP's) The MacBook Air can get 10 Hours from a comparatively small battery, while by MacBook Pro can get only 4 from a battery at least 25% bigger. They both have a Core i5 CPU.
 
If you want performance and battery life, one of the best ways is to have an SSD. You have to pay for it, obviously, but once you've used one you'll never go back to spinning drives.
 
PC Gear is very much like Audio gear. You can buy cheap, and it will do it's basic job - it'll make sound. Or you can buy good. Many folks are happy with their $5 earbuds, just like they're happy with their $600 PC. They're both missing out

 
I actually have an SSD in this thing already. It's really when it runs several apps that the battery life dwindles, but even then I didn't really realize how far behind the power management is vs Intel, although of course there are a lot of other factors at play. That said, my cousin has an i5 Sandy Bridge laptop, and he envies how smoothly Crysis and Warframe run on my laptop, so there's a trade-off for everything.

 

[mvyrmnd]

   
I actually have an SSD in this thing already. It's really when it runs several apps that the battery life dwindles, but even then I didn't really realize how far behind the power management is vs Intel, although of course there are a lot of other factors at play. That said, my cousin has an i5 Sandy Bridge laptop, and he envies how smoothly Crysis and Warframe run on my laptop, so there's a trade-off for everything.

There's always a compromise. You just have to decide what you're willing to compromise on Personally I don't play games, so that decision is made a little easier for me

 

[3rdear]

  As a guy who's day job is as a certified Apple, HP, Dell, Tech (read, I pull these things apart on a daily basis) I can only tell you this. Don't buy consumer-grade HP gear. Their Pro/Server stuff is excellent, but they've cheaped out so badly with their consumer stuff these days that it's all become utter crap.

 
Was considering the new HP 2 in 1 after not being in the laptop market since 2009 with the advent of purchasing a macbook pro. That is until I saw the 90 day limited warranty. I thought one year was standard. 

 

[Eurobeat]

   
Was considering the new HP 2 in 1 after not being in the laptop market since 2009 with the advent of purchasing a macbook pro. That is until I saw the 90 day limited warranty. I thought one year was standard. 

MY Dell laptop was 3, extended to 5 I believe.