AboutBobbert Expertise General purchasing questions, in areas regarding price to performance ratios and future expansion, drawing from roughly a decade of experience and numerous unique situations for customers and myself, I'm willing to help you get the best computer for your money.
Experience I have been an enthuiast of PC's for many years, and can answer most questions about purchase of a new computer from personal knowledge or experience through other online Q&A services in advising on the same topic.
Question Hello, we have used Dell and IBM clone PC's for 15years. Our current system is a Dell, and we are becoming frustrated with the poor performance, constant updates, crashes etc. And yes I try to keep as much crap off of the hard drive as I can and defragment frequently.
I have a colleague that swears by Macintosh, and claims it will run Windows programs faster than a PC. My question is - is this true? As I said we have a lot of history with PCs, the kids have some older games they will want to continue to play etc.
So we are considering the Mac, but have compatibility concerns.
What do you think?
Mike
Answer I honestly won't get too invested in the debate between Mac and PC, although I can say that a properly built and maintained PC will be just as capable as a modern Apple product (especially since we're talking about essentially identical hardware). The claims that an Apple product is somehow faster than a "PC" (an Apple computer is actually a PC as well) are simply hype and marketing, there is no truth there, there are Apple workstations that are faster than the average desktop system, but there are "PCs" (lets say non-Apple computers, as all personal computers classify as a PC, which includes Apple, Dell, HP, and so on, running a variety of operating systems (be it OS X, Windows, Ubuntu, etc)) equally fast, if not faster, so the arguement is a mute point.
As far as what the best option is, the top issues I see user's complaining of are two of those that you've listed, namely:
"Poor Performance"
"Constant Crashes"
Neither of these should be an issue with any home computer, regardless of operating system, if the machine was built properly, and is maintained properly, in other words, good browsing habits, use of a constantly updated (this is a reality of the world we live in) anti-virus and anti-spwayre product (or products), and ideally, a good firewall (if not a router with a firewall). For the Windows platform, I would suggest the following:
-Leave Automatic Updates On (in some form, either fully on, or have it ask to download or install)
-Download, install, and use Windows Defender
-Enable Windows Firewall, or install a good 3rd party alternative
-Have a good and up to date anti-virus application (I always suggest AVG-Free for home use, due to its good quality and free availability)
-Install a 3rd party browser (I suggest Opera 10, due to its excellent compatability, and high level of security)
-Install a solid 3rd party anti-spyware application (I suggest Spybot S&D)
With all of this done, you shouldn't have an issue with viruses or other issues, unless there is a legitimate hardware problem, in which case the issue lies with the hardware in your system. This is NOT a "Mac vs PC" debate, this is more likely a "cheap vs expensive" debate, consider that Apple currently wants something in the neighborhood of $2500 (starting SRP) for the Mac Pro tower, and Dell currently wants something in the neighborhood of $500 (out the door price) for their current promotion of the month. This doesn't mean Apple is higher quality overall, but that you're just comparing one brand's absolute highest end to another brand's absolute lowest end (and I've seen many people fall prey to the arguement that Apple is better based on this arguement's premise, although there are plenty of high end non-Apple vendors with comparable, or better, hardware relability figures, comparable, or better, customer service (and likely a lower price to boot)).
Honestly I would need to know more about your existing system, and your current needs, but suffice to say, I'd leave the ideologic concerns at the door, there is nothing wrong with non-Apple hardware (and honestly, most modern Apple hardware is 100% identical to what you'll find in Dell, HP, or Gateway boxes, the markup is just higher, and the box just looks fancier).
If you could provide me with a more concrete list of your needs, or what issues you're having, I'd be happy to help.
