The HDX 16 ships with the 64 bit version of Windows. It can utilize up to 8Gb.
It's actually a very nice machine. No glossy screen, a number pad on the keyboard, HDMI out, memory card slot. The RAM is a little slower, but it's also a LOT less expensive. If it ran OS X, I'd much rather have the HDX 16 than a Macbook Pro. It's nearly the same on the specs it shares, and has extra features that the Macbook does not, for half the price.
..
if it ran os x duh
thats the whole point
the hp may seem ok .. >
until you spend days getting rid of the bloat ware and un-installing vista or installing vista
more days getting some odd movie software getting up and running
all the while fighting off cold's viruses
you then wonder why nothing seems to work . the printer doesn't print
on and on
cool .. you finally make a movie . looks so good . and then crash .. all you data
is gone . you then make you 5 th tech support call in a week ...welcome to the 20 yr old wintel world .
by the way my movie i made on my newly opened mac book 13 in was done in 3 hrs from scratch including .
song clips from my music itunes file
photo's from my iphoto files
all of these things and more synced from the start
yes yes you may be a computer geek dude who can get a wintel box to work fast . sadly ypu are only one out of 99 who is not screwed badly by the windows world
So does that mean we shouldn't mention it is a point for the Mac?
It is a point, but more for battery usage than additional performance, but it is an impossible sell to people that have no knowledge of even the basics of computers. Getting into RAM variances is too advanced. If you can't easily market it the average is not going to care or understand, which is why I think the Apple Stores have done more advancing Mac sales than anything else. You can't explain why it's a better experience until you try it.
Why oh why must all these PC people end up with HPs? The chick walked right past a Toshiba. When she asked if the graphics card was gonna be fast enough, the sales dude says, uhhuh. As commercials go, it is just like the rest, pretty dumb. The chick is sorta cute, just as they planned. She is dressed to look like someone who wants to attend UC Berkeley, but can't afford it. From a pure sexist standpoint, nice enough legs, but no brain. Did I mention she walked right past, and even looked at the Toshiba? If she is a real film maker, she already has a Mac Pro. If she is your basic You Tuber, then the HP might do. The Apple ads are much better and get the job done in only 30 seconds. Much easier on the pocketbook when you are in the market to actually put the spots on TV. On the down side, Apple simply won't put their name on something average. If needed, I could use Windows, but enjoy OS X much more. It is unfortunate Apple doesn't built something middle of the road, so more people can afford to enter the wonderful world of Mac OS. I won't say "once you get Mac OS, you won't go back." I will admit, most will not want to without kicking and screaming.
Guess she's not "cool enough" to inexpensively upgrade it herself or venture onto the Apple online store.
Or knowledgeable enough? Mac OS X runs great on 2GB and it's more than enough for most and it's simple and cheap to install, but the average person doesn't know that. They only know that this has 2 and this 4.
From Best Buy (and we all know we can find better deals)
HP HDX 16: $1,149.99
Minuses: Screen size, DDR2.
Add: $110 for Sony Vegas/ACID for iLife like compatibility. Use Picassa and other free tools to replace iPhoto, iWeb. You can find free AV online too to protect yourself. AVG, Comodo, etc...
Total: $1260 (Add 150 for OS X if we wanted a hackintosh: $1410)
From Apple (and we all know that you can't find a better price that doesn't involve rebates)
MacBook Pro Basic: $2000
Pluses: Screen, DDR3, OS X.
Minus: $80 for iLife (to make comparable to Windows PCs with out that software)
Add: $30 for additional 2GB Ram upgrade. $90 for HDD upgrade to 500gb (assuming we do these upgrades ourselves)
Total: $2040
So yeah... I dunno. Remember, Macs and PCs use the exact same internals! Is your Apple really worth 700 dollars more? To me it isn't. $700 for a label and a sexy case. Keep in mind, I won't buy an HP either. If I were to buy a real laptop: Lenovo. Those are some durable machines!
All new Mac's come with iLife pre-installed. You don't need to buy it again.
The spots aren't deceiving, they're "deceptive". I don't believe anyone has been deceived aside from the account exec in Redmond who approved this "screw the public at any cost" jerkoff ad campaign.
Blu ray physical media is a dying technology. It was intrduced too late. The future (and ever-growing in the present) will be AppleTV-like devices that access online HD content. Wetstern Digital and Popcorn Hour already provide some of these solutions, though not every one includes wireless.
Blu ray players and Blu ray physical, movable media will soon be obsolete. It will go the way of physical sofware media. We get everything online now, donwnloaded. Just look at the App Store. That's the future, and it's already happening.
Yea, ok. Very few people I know have an Apple TV, and those who do say it's been mediocre at best and limited in functionality. Moreover, sorry to disappoint your ego, but Blu ray devices aren't going anywhere. They are the next logical step of read/write technology, as there are inherent limits to red laser devices. Same goes for Blue ray discs as opposed to other storage mediums. There will always be a need for physical storage mediums at even higher densities. The venerable CD is still around, and DVDs are alive and well too, so I would expect Blu ray discs to be prevalent for many years to come. Stop letting Apple's strange disdain for Blu ray cloud your judgment of the Blu ray medium.
until you spend days getting rid of the bloat ware and un-installing vista or installing vista
more days getting some odd movie software getting up and running
all the while fighting off cold's viruses
you then wonder why nothing seems to work . the printer doesn't print
on and on
cool .. you finally make a movie . looks so good . and then crash .. all you data
is gone . you then make you 5 th tech support call in a week ...welcome to the 20 yr old wintel world .
My wife has an HP laptop, and none of the things you list apply to it in the slightest. Software set-up took a couple of minutes, Norton AV was included, it prints over my Airport Extreme network without any issues. Unfortunately it runs Windows, so I'll stick to my iMac thank you very much, but she's very happy.
I play left4dead on my macbook pro all the time. it runs it better than my friend's $2500 dell gaming laptop even though his hardware is slightly better. it's not worth using in an ad, but the fact that dual booting windows on a mac keeps xp/win7 REALLY clean and in its best shape (since it doesn't accumulate frequent use decay that windows does) makes a noticeable difference when gaming.
These ads are effective, kudos to Microsoft. They reflect what I thought prior to switching to a Mac, and I think a lot of people think the same way. However, after trying a mac many people would see them in a different light. That is what Apple should focus on, they can't win a pricepoint war.
Weight, thickness, case material, ram type, backlighting type, light sensors, illuminated keyboards, slot loading drives, multi-touch trackpads, etc do not show up in a pricepoint comparision but they do add cost and they certainly add value. Apple specializes in the end user experience and it shows in the OS, the software, the hardware, and in the integration between all of those. Apple stores are successful because people can try out the hardware. I think Apple should focus on the user experience and promoting the Apple stores in their ads, that is where their strengths lie. Of course Apple gets a lot of free advertising, one of my friends got a mac, then I did, then 4 other friends did. I doubt many people use their friends HP and say "I have to get one".
Both machines suck for the money, though for free you can't beat that!
She SHOULD have bought an ASUS. I am very disappointed that the Fry's staff didn't sell her on an ASUS, which kills HP and Apple in performance and specs. Frys sells an extensive line of ASUS laptops.
Maybe she should have bought this model instead: ASUS G50V-XT
Faster CPU, Much better video card, 15", 7200 RPM hard drive, Expresscard/54 and a non-soldered CPU and battery..... $1299. Destroys the Macbook Pro in specs, except no multitouch touchpad (which trackpads suck anyway), no magsafe power connector and it's not alunimum. It does have a backlit keyboard though and it's $800 cheaper.
The Macbook Pro (hardware wised) is overpriced by a significant margin. She can just use Boot 132 and run OSX. There is support built into the OS for the 9800, as machines running EFI-X can run a 9800GT PCI-E video card with no issues.
Dude...have you checked the reviews on that thing? No less than 7 out of the 61 (11.5%) had it DOA or had major issues right out of the box. I didn't bother to count, but many of the 4 and 5 star reviews had issues with the speakers not working, or having to reinstall the OS within the first couple of weeks. With issues like that, I'm not sure why they would rate it a 4 or a 5?
I don't care how good the specs are on that thing, if it doesn't consistently work, I'm not buying. What a headache of a computer to own.
I've had exactly zero issues with my Macbook since I purchased in October. These people surpassed that number when they tried to turn it on!
Why thank you Sol. Yes, that's what I was getting at. My grammatical fortitude is not at its best today
The AppleTV is great at what it was meant to do. It's a very easy to use media extender appliance, but it certainly does lack in many areas if you want higher quality video and audio. I'd guess that the next version will be able to push 1080p, though the iTS won't carry it and even if they did the bitrate would still be well below that of an HD optical format. But it is an option and one that my parents find simple to use, convenient and of good enough quality to when they miss a TV Show or want to watch a movie.
Yea, ok. Very few people I know have an Apple TV, and those who do say it's been mediocre at best and limited in functionality. Moreover, sorry to disappoint your ego, but Blu ray devices aren't going anywhere. They are the next logical step of read/write technology, as there are inherent limits to red laser devices. Same goes for Blue ray discs as opposed to other storage mediums. There will always be a need for physical storage mediums at even higher densities. The venerable CD is still around, and DVDs are alive and well too, so I would expect Blu ray discs to be prevalent for many years to come. Stop letting Apple's strange disdain for Blu ray cloud your judgment of the Blu ray medium.
after watching hulu for free and screening itunes rented movies on my mac mini >connected to my hd set . . i do agree apple tv is not as good as a mac-mini set up . sadly blu ray has a lot of other great media soursces competing with it .
yet if bu ray comes down to $99 and lower price discs i would love to watch some great blockbuster movie's on my 1080p sharp i don't see why not . go with blu ray .
Comments
The HDX 16 ships with the 64 bit version of Windows. It can utilize up to 8Gb.
It's actually a very nice machine. No glossy screen, a number pad on the keyboard, HDMI out, memory card slot. The RAM is a little slower, but it's also a LOT less expensive. If it ran OS X, I'd much rather have the HDX 16 than a Macbook Pro. It's nearly the same on the specs it shares, and has extra features that the Macbook does not, for half the price.
..
if it ran os x duh
thats the whole point
the hp may seem ok .. >
until you spend days getting rid of the bloat ware and un-installing vista or installing vista
more days getting some odd movie software getting up and running
all the while fighting off cold's viruses
you then wonder why nothing seems to work . the printer doesn't print
on and on
cool .. you finally make a movie . looks so good . and then crash .. all you data
is gone . you then make you 5 th tech support call in a week ...welcome to the 20 yr old wintel world .
by the way my movie i made on my newly opened mac book 13 in was done in 3 hrs from scratch including .
song clips from my music itunes file
photo's from my iphoto files
all of these things and more synced from the start
yes yes you may be a computer geek dude who can get a wintel box to work fast . sadly ypu are only one out of 99 who is not screwed badly by the windows world
my first fraking post
urgg
So does that mean we shouldn't mention it is a point for the Mac?
It is a point, but more for battery usage than additional performance, but it is an impossible sell to people that have no knowledge of even the basics of computers. Getting into RAM variances is too advanced. If you can't easily market it the average is not going to care or understand, which is why I think the Apple Stores have done more advancing Mac sales than anything else. You can't explain why it's a better experience until you try it.
Guess she's not "cool enough" to inexpensively upgrade it herself or venture onto the Apple online store.
The software of course is another huge factor, and Windows isn't helping themselves by only showing one side of the coin.
-Nathanael... I'm a Mac, and I'm a satisfied artist.
Sheila: "It only has 2GB... of RAM"
Guess she's not "cool enough" to inexpensively upgrade it herself or venture onto the Apple online store.
Or knowledgeable enough? Mac OS X runs great on 2GB and it's more than enough for most and it's simple and cheap to install, but the average person doesn't know that. They only know that this has 2 and this 4.
Alright, lets do a price point comparison.
From Best Buy (and we all know we can find better deals)
HP HDX 16: $1,149.99
Minuses: Screen size, DDR2.
Add: $110 for Sony Vegas/ACID for iLife like compatibility. Use Picassa and other free tools to replace iPhoto, iWeb. You can find free AV online too to protect yourself. AVG, Comodo, etc...
Total: $1260 (Add 150 for OS X if we wanted a hackintosh: $1410)
From Apple (and we all know that you can't find a better price that doesn't involve rebates)
MacBook Pro Basic: $2000
Pluses: Screen, DDR3, OS X.
Minus: $80 for iLife (to make comparable to Windows PCs with out that software)
Add: $30 for additional 2GB Ram upgrade. $90 for HDD upgrade to 500gb (assuming we do these upgrades ourselves)
Total: $2040
So yeah... I dunno. Remember, Macs and PCs use the exact same internals! Is your Apple really worth 700 dollars more? To me it isn't. $700 for a label and a sexy case. Keep in mind, I won't buy an HP either. If I were to buy a real laptop: Lenovo. Those are some durable machines!
All new Mac's come with iLife pre-installed. You don't need to buy it again.
Excellent post.
Thank you, Quadra 610.
its shocking how deceiving these commercials are
The spots aren't deceiving, they're "deceptive". I don't believe anyone has been deceived aside from the account exec in Redmond who approved this "screw the public at any cost" jerkoff ad campaign.
All new Mac's come with iLife pre-installed. You don't need to buy it again.
He removed the $80 from the $2000 price of the MBP because Windows doesn't ship with a similar product.
Makes no difference, really.
Blu ray physical media is a dying technology. It was intrduced too late. The future (and ever-growing in the present) will be AppleTV-like devices that access online HD content. Wetstern Digital and Popcorn Hour already provide some of these solutions, though not every one includes wireless.
Blu ray players and Blu ray physical, movable media will soon be obsolete. It will go the way of physical sofware media. We get everything online now, donwnloaded. Just look at the App Store. That's the future, and it's already happening.
Yea, ok. Very few people I know have an Apple TV, and those who do say it's been mediocre at best and limited in functionality. Moreover, sorry to disappoint your ego, but Blu ray devices aren't going anywhere. They are the next logical step of read/write technology, as there are inherent limits to red laser devices. Same goes for Blue ray discs as opposed to other storage mediums. There will always be a need for physical storage mediums at even higher densities. The venerable CD is still around, and DVDs are alive and well too, so I would expect Blu ray discs to be prevalent for many years to come. Stop letting Apple's strange disdain for Blu ray cloud your judgment of the Blu ray medium.
..
the hp may seem ok .. >
until you spend days getting rid of the bloat ware and un-installing vista or installing vista
more days getting some odd movie software getting up and running
all the while fighting off cold's viruses
you then wonder why nothing seems to work . the printer doesn't print
on and on
cool .. you finally make a movie . looks so good . and then crash .. all you data
is gone . you then make you 5 th tech support call in a week ...welcome to the 20 yr old wintel world .
My wife has an HP laptop, and none of the things you list apply to it in the slightest. Software set-up took a couple of minutes, Norton AV was included, it prints over my Airport Extreme network without any issues. Unfortunately it runs Windows, so I'll stick to my iMac thank you very much, but she's very happy.
They are the next logical step of [optical] technology, as there are inherent limits to red laser devices.
I corrected that for you.
I corrected that for you.
Why thank you Sol. Yes, that's what I was getting at. My grammatical fortitude is not at its best today
she can play left4dead on it.
I play left4dead on my macbook pro all the time. it runs it better than my friend's $2500 dell gaming laptop even though his hardware is slightly better. it's not worth using in an ad, but the fact that dual booting windows on a mac keeps xp/win7 REALLY clean and in its best shape (since it doesn't accumulate frequent use decay that windows does) makes a noticeable difference when gaming.
All new Mac's come with iLife pre-installed. You don't need to buy it again.
I was subtracting it from the price to dumb it down to windows, not adding.
My wife has an HP laptop [...] but she's very happy.
And that is all that matters.
Weight, thickness, case material, ram type, backlighting type, light sensors, illuminated keyboards, slot loading drives, multi-touch trackpads, etc do not show up in a pricepoint comparision but they do add cost and they certainly add value. Apple specializes in the end user experience and it shows in the OS, the software, the hardware, and in the integration between all of those. Apple stores are successful because people can try out the hardware. I think Apple should focus on the user experience and promoting the Apple stores in their ads, that is where their strengths lie. Of course Apple gets a lot of free advertising, one of my friends got a mac, then I did, then 4 other friends did. I doubt many people use their friends HP and say "I have to get one".
Both machines suck for the money, though for free you can't beat that!
She SHOULD have bought an ASUS. I am very disappointed that the Fry's staff didn't sell her on an ASUS, which kills HP and Apple in performance and specs. Frys sells an extensive line of ASUS laptops.
Maybe she should have bought this model instead: ASUS G50V-XT
Faster CPU, Much better video card, 15", 7200 RPM hard drive, Expresscard/54 and a non-soldered CPU and battery..... $1299. Destroys the Macbook Pro in specs, except no multitouch touchpad (which trackpads suck anyway), no magsafe power connector and it's not alunimum. It does have a backlit keyboard though and it's $800 cheaper.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834220483
The Macbook Pro (hardware wised) is overpriced by a significant margin. She can just use Boot 132 and run OSX. There is support built into the OS for the 9800, as machines running EFI-X can run a 9800GT PCI-E video card with no issues.
Dude...have you checked the reviews on that thing? No less than 7 out of the 61 (11.5%) had it DOA or had major issues right out of the box. I didn't bother to count, but many of the 4 and 5 star reviews had issues with the speakers not working, or having to reinstall the OS within the first couple of weeks. With issues like that, I'm not sure why they would rate it a 4 or a 5?
I don't care how good the specs are on that thing, if it doesn't consistently work, I'm not buying. What a headache of a computer to own.
I've had exactly zero issues with my Macbook since I purchased in October. These people surpassed that number when they tried to turn it on!
Why thank you Sol. Yes, that's what I was getting at. My grammatical fortitude is not at its best today
The AppleTV is great at what it was meant to do. It's a very easy to use media extender appliance, but it certainly does lack in many areas if you want higher quality video and audio. I'd guess that the next version will be able to push 1080p, though the iTS won't carry it and even if they did the bitrate would still be well below that of an HD optical format. But it is an option and one that my parents find simple to use, convenient and of good enough quality to when they miss a TV Show or want to watch a movie.
Yea, ok. Very few people I know have an Apple TV, and those who do say it's been mediocre at best and limited in functionality. Moreover, sorry to disappoint your ego, but Blu ray devices aren't going anywhere. They are the next logical step of read/write technology, as there are inherent limits to red laser devices. Same goes for Blue ray discs as opposed to other storage mediums. There will always be a need for physical storage mediums at even higher densities. The venerable CD is still around, and DVDs are alive and well too, so I would expect Blu ray discs to be prevalent for many years to come. Stop letting Apple's strange disdain for Blu ray cloud your judgment of the Blu ray medium.
after watching hulu for free and screening itunes rented movies on my mac mini >connected to my hd set . . i do agree apple tv is not as good as a mac-mini set up . sadly blu ray has a lot of other great media soursces competing with it .
yet if bu ray comes down to $99 and lower price discs i would love to watch some great blockbuster movie's on my 1080p sharp i don't see why not . go with blu ray .
blu will be around for a long while ...