MacBook hardware is definitely better than Windows laptop hardware, especially around that era (2007). Consumer windows laptops were extremely crappy. As far as vulnerabilities, no OS connected to the Internet is immune. Your system could be connected to a command and control server, and most people would never know they were compromised.

For someone like my wife, a MacBook is a colossal waste of money. I could buy her a decently speced laptop and a spare. As far as myself, I get company laptops, my current one is a Dell precision which is more powerful than a lot of desktops. If I had a MacBook, I would end up using Parallels and running windows on it anyway

 

that definitely qualifies as a cheap (inexpensive, ha) laptop, and sure it will do what she wants. my issues with using something like that are several but here's a few.

1) the screen won't be great. sure it can display windows, youtube, etc., but the color, brightness, and contrast aren't going to be great, but of course many users don't know that or don't care. it's 'good enough'.
2) the touchpad is small and off center because the keyboard has the cramped numeric pad smushed on the right side.
3) for her 'use cases' she would be far better off with an ipad which is lighter, fast, simpler, can be cheaper, more convenient to carry around, no need to mess with admin/standard users, adding antivirus software, etc.

i just got a docking station for my macbook pro that cost almost as much as your wife's new laptop, lol.

 

I have been using Mac laptops since 2009, I really don’t see any difference in build quality. The MacBook airs and the last gen MacBook Pro are much thinner and lighter, which I suppose could make them feel less solid, but the latest MBPs are thicker and even more sturdy feeling.

I would never even consider going back to Windows

 

Yes, I had a Sony VAIO with the Windows system, and two Apple Mac Airs. Absolutely no comparison. The Macs blew it away...IMHO the best laptops on the market.

 

And even if the new windows laptops became incredible quality I wouldn’t want to go back to Windows

 

She has an iPad, never uses it. It's been sitting for a couple of months. She prefers a laptop. She will use the Acer for about 4 years or so, then I'll replace it. I'm glad Macs work for you, but she doesn't like MacOS, and she doesn't like the Apple interface.

I totally agree that Apple hardware and software is superior, but it's just not for everyone

 

Have you tried the iPad with the laptop case?

And just to be sure you realize the irony, I sense your frustration with arguing with someone who says her preferences are wrong or backwards. Why do I sense it? Because it’s the same frustration I feel when arguing with Tesla fans about my preferences

 

Are you talking about a case with a keyboard? No, she hasn't, but I have. She already has a new laptop, she won't go to the iPad. She's a creature of habit. I'll probably start using the iPad LoL

 

iPad/iPad OS and the magic keyboard with touchpad makes for a fantastic laptop alternative. Apple Silicon powered iPads are extremely fast and extremely capable.

 

I’ve struggled with using an iPad personally…

 

FOr me it's not about build quality that you can see, I mentioned in a previous post it's durability and reliability. Not durability of the case, but internal. A battery in a laptop is a wear item, yet still they glue the battery to the top case. To replace it you have to replace it and the whole top case, costing hundreds of dollars. There are many examples but just giving you an idea.

Their cases, materials, LCD, touchpad are top notch. Their keyboards are decent but not close to being as good as others on the market.

If you love Mac os though it's your only option and dont fault someone for not liking windows.

 

Same, like others say this thing is a beast performance wise.

 

I just haven’t had any issues requiring repairs. When the batteries wear out I just replace the MacBook. 5+ years…plenty of life. Hundreds of dollars to get years more life out of a $1,500+ MacBook also sounds fine to me.

 

I don't even really use a laptop for personal use anymore. I have my company issued Thinkpad for work. It works flawlessly for business purposes.

For personal use, I built my own desktop PC that I use for gaming. This is where Windows absolutely gaps Apple. A Mac would cost significantly more for a similarly specced desktop and still not be able to run most games natively. It's also fun to tinker with and upgrade components over time, though I'm probably now at the edge of what I can do without jumping to a DDR5 compatible motherboard.



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It's pretty much a matter of preference. My company's network is a mixture of Windows Server, Linux and Cisco/Meraki switches and firewalls. A few years ago I switched to a Mac, and ended up having to run Windows on it anyway to run Windows server tools, and there was a lot of other third party management software that wouldn't run on MacOS. So for me, using a Mac is more work to get it setup to properly manage my companies network. If I just had Linux servers, than Mac would work fine as I could just Terminal to manage those. The companies IT Manager who manages the desktop side uses a Mac, so it's easier for him as he doesn't have to manage the systems I do, but I've still had to setup a virtual Windows 10 VM that he RDP's into for managing user accounts.

At home I bought an Apple TV because I saw at my friends house the quality, but I found out quickly that it couldn't be managed properly without a Mac. I use a third party application called "Kodi", and first of all I would have to jailbreak the Apple TV to use it, and secondly I would have to have a Mac to "sideload" it, as it's not in the Apple store, although it's freely available in the Google Play store. So I returned it, bought an NVidia Shield (an amazing streaming device) which can be managed by Windows or Mac, and never looked back.

As I've said previously, Apple hardware and software is pretty amazing, but I don't like getting sucked into the Apple ecosystem, which can get expensive