The easy guide to switching from Windows to Mac

Posted:
in macOS edited February 2017
Long-term Windows users looking to dip their toe into the Mac ecosystem for the first time typically stick to applications they are familiar with on PC, but there is a wealth of other software that can do the job for the more ambitious switcher.


Productivity

Existing users of Microsoft's Office suite of tools will immediately feel comfortable with the Office 365 subscription, as the apps offer almost identical functionality to the Windows versions. Many people who use the suite frequently may not want to move away from it, but for those who do, there are options.

The first alternative is in fact already installed on the Mac by Apple itself: iWork. Apple's own collection of apps cover the core areas Office is typically used for, with Pages, Numbers and Keynote standing in for Word, Excel, and Powerpoint, respectively.

At face value, Pages is a powerful word processor that seasoned Word users will quickly understand and can immediately start working within. Once a piece is crafted, Pages shows off its true value by incorporating the text into dozens of fantastic templates that makes an article or letter stand out.

While many are wary of working in spreadsheets in the first place -- Excel is simply a mass of black and white digits -- Numbers goes to great lengths to change that image. The selection of templates are colorful and easy to understand, making them far less intimidating to start using, while the overall interface makes starting from even the basic pages simpler than most would expect.
Add in the ability to collaborate with others, cross-platform compatibility with PCs via iWork for iCloud, and iOS apps, and iWork becomes serious competition.
Almost everyone who has sat in an office has had to endure a Powerpoint presentation, inevitably poorly produced with too many transitions and little in the way of visual appeal. Keynote, on the other hand, helps users create appealing and more professional presentations, again with easy to use themes and transitions between slides.

Add in the ability to collaborate with others, cross-platform compatibility with PCs via iWork for iCloud, and the same tools being available as iOS apps, and iWork becomes serious competition.

If the switcher would rather have something that resembles Microsoft's suite more in terms of appearance. , another way to go could be through OpenOffice and LibreOffice, the latter being a fork of the former open-source project. There is little difference between the two releases, as both are similar in terms of what they offer to users, including tools for word processing, spreadsheets, and databases, and while the OpenDocument Format is favored, they have no issue opening Office files.

These two are less of a recommendation based on their ability to be used on the Mac, and more one of overall ubiquity. The two projects are available to download for Mac, Windows, and for Linux, allowing for the exact same working environment to exist on multiple platforms. It also helps that OpenOffice and LibreOffice are free tools, unlike Office.

Image Editing

Adobe Creative Cloud could easily be considered the Microsoft Office for art, design, and video. Just like Office, Adobe makes its suite of apps available for the Mac, so there isn't anything to worry creative professionals making the switch. Even so, there are still a few Mac alternatives to individual components for those wanting to go further afield.




Photographers can make use of the included Photos app to make changes to their photographs, with basic cropping of shots and automated adjustments available for those wanting to perform quick improvements to shots. For more experienced editors, Photos can dial up the number of potential options considerably, providing a lot of flexibility in getting the perfect image.

Outside of editing, Photos is a great cataloging tool for images, with collections of great photos in shareable Memories, People for facial recognition of subjects, and Places to show where images are taken. Owners of iPhones and iPads can also see their entire image collection across multiple devices in the app, powered by iCloud Photo Library, with edits synchronizing across devices and easy sharing of image groups with others on social media.


Pixelmator


For design work or more involving editing jobs, one of the best-known replacements for Photoshop is the slick-looking Pixelmator. The interface is as finely polished as anyone would expect from a macOS app, making it a great example of what developers on the platform are capable of producing, and an advertisement for Mac in its own right.

Users needing simple edits or tweaks to an image are easily handled with a welcoming and easy to use interface, including a fantastic effects browser that shows what the option actually does to an image before the user applies it to their work. Those wanting to perform more advanced work are also covered, with Pixelmator easily able to handle the vast majority of tasks Photoshop can perform on an image. Where Pixelmator excels in is the price, costing just $29.99 compared to repeatedly paying Adobe a Creative Cloud subscription.

There are two other alternatives to suggest, which also happen to work off the same core code base. The GNU Image Manipulation Project (GIMP)is a powerful image editing tool that works on both Mac and PC, with the free open source software providing a similar feature set as Photoshop and Pixelmator, albeit with slightly less polish than the paid software packages.

The low cost does affect its usability, as unlike the paid apps, GIMP does suffer from having a steep learning curve making it harder for new users to do advanced edits. The GIMPshop project may be the answer for some, as it redesigns the interface of GIMP to make it more familiar to Photoshop users, relocating features and settings to where they would be in Adobe's software, in turn making it easier to pick up.

Video Editing

On the PC, the dominant force for video editing is Adobe Premiere, along with After Effects, as part of the Creative Cloud. Adobe's grip on the editing market extends to Mac as well. It's popular software, and difficult to beat, but other options are still available.




Many will have already heard of iMovie as a basic video editor, and considering it's preinstalled and effectively free, it's one of the immediately-available editing tools for switchers to try out. Unlike the underwhelming Windows Movie Maker many PC users will have toyed around with, iMovie is a polished product that is fairly simple to use, but is still capable of producing a decent video.

For anyone wanting to put together a vacation video or something similar, it is as simple as importing a few clips, putting them into an order, and adding a few filters or special effects. There are also a number of soundtracks and title sequences that could be added to a project, and even a feature to quickly create a mock Hollywood-style trailer.

If the switcher also happens to have an iOS device, they will also be able to benefit from being able to quickly make edits on the iOS version of the app, before transferring the video to the Mac for more fine tuning.




While iMovie probably covers most standard switcher's needs, more professional users may want to consider paying for Final Cut Pro X. Where iMovie works to be as easy to use by anyone, Final Cut Pro X instead focuses on providing a vast amount of editing options, giving more ways to alter the audio, add transitions, and to change the image.

On the more advanced side, Final Cut Pro X adds in multi-camera editing, multi-channel audio, color grading, and support for industry standard formats including XAVC, AVCHD, and Redcode RAW. Media is also handled in a better fashion, with automatic analysis of source material performed in the background, range-based keywords for locating clips, intelligent search of libraries for tags, and easy access to items held within the user's Photos and iTunes libraries.

Offering a vast amount of flexibility, Final Cut Pro X can be used to create polished content on a par with Premiere, making it a great choice for those working on YouTube videos or larger projects. Not only is it a serious contender to Adobe's video-editing throne, but the $299.99 price tag attached to it could certainly convince some video editors to move away from Adobe's subscription.

For students and educators, Apple just this week announced a new Pro Apps Bundle for Education that packs in Final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro X, Motion 5, Compressor 4, and MainStage 3 for only $199.99.

When you can't take it with you...

While most essential app categories have their Mac equivalents, there are some rare instances where an alternative isn't available, or the user doesn't want to pay again for something they already have the license for in Windows. In the event that someone switching doesn't want to move away from the Windows version at all, there's a few workarounds.




Boot Camp is a feature that allows a user to install Windows onto a Mac. By following the instructions of the Boot Camp assistant, a user can have a separate partition with Windows running in a short while, so long as they have the Windows installation media and a spare license available. While free, this option does mean that users have to effectively exit macOS in order to get into Windows, and vice versa.

Parallels Desktop is a paid alternative that allows Windows to run on a Mac, but in a different way. This time, Windows runs on top of macOS within a window, allowing for software running within Windows to be used alongside Mac apps. The downside is that it costs $80 to do this, on top of a Windows license.

If the PC is still going to be available to use, consider remotely connecting to it from the Mac. Chrome Remote Desktop is relatively simple to set up, and allows for remote control of a Windows desktop from within a window on the Mac. Other solutions are also available, such as LogMeIn and VNC, but considering it is free and easy to use, Chrome Remote Desktop may be the best route in many cases.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 76
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    Ironheadaltivec88xzuWooloomooloowilliamlondonbrucemc
  • Reply 2 of 76
    Under the photo editing section you should also mention Affinity Photo. It's available for both Mac and Windows and is every bit as good as Photoshop. They also make Affinity Design, an alternative to Illustrator.
    dysamoriawatto_cobraRayz2016bigpics
  • Reply 3 of 76
    thedbathedba Posts: 762member
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    This is the AppleInsider forum. So I doubt they'll ever tell you how to switch from a Mac to Windows. 
    As far as you being a Mac user for 25 years, well Apple was a very different company back then. The bulk of their users now are mainstream. 
    As far as you paying more for a Mac than a similar Windows machine, that's an ancient myth. 
    Try speccing a similar windows laptop for example, with SSD onto PCIe with same amount of memory etc. And you'll find out that Macs are very well priced. Tried it also with MS surfacebook and found it to be more expensive than a similar MBP. 
    You seem to be looking for a new Mac Pro. I understand your frustration but in the end you got to go with the tools that are available to you now. 


    dysamoriaStrangeDaysmacxpressr00fus1Anichiapscooter63suddenly newtondamn_its_hotwatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 76
    thedba said:
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    This is the AppleInsider forum. So I doubt they'll ever tell you how to switch from a Mac to Windows. 
    As far as you being a Mac user for 25 years, well Apple was a very different company back then. The bulk of their users now are mainstream. 
    As far as you paying more for a Mac than a similar Windows machine, that's an ancient myth. 
    Try speccing a similar windows laptop for example, with SSD onto PCIe with same amount of memory etc. And you'll find out that Macs are very well priced. Tried it also with MS surfacebook and found it to be more expensive than a similar MBP. 
    You seem to be looking for a new Mac Pro. I understand your frustration but in the end you got to go with the tools that are available to you now. 


    True, the Apple of today is not the Apple it used to be. Also true that a powerful PC notebook would be nearly as pricy as a MBP, but only if I would want it to be as absurdly slim as a MBP. To me Apple's drive for slimness is a foolish obsession when it comes to advanced video and photo editing needs. As for the Mac Pro, no, I would have liked to purchase an update to the old Mac Pro design with modern components and the possibility to expand it with PCIe cards, something professionals usually do. I think Apple should change its product names. Mac Pop and MacBook Pop would be suiting. The pros can make the switch to Windows as I have done.
    dysamoriawilliamlondonbrucemc
  • Reply 5 of 76
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member
    Under the photo editing section you should also mention Affinity Photo. It's available for both Mac and Windows and is every bit as good as Photoshop. They also make Affinity Design, an alternative to Illustrator.
    Fully agreed. It has functionality that Pixelmator does not have.

    https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/photo/
    watto_cobrabigpics
  • Reply 6 of 76
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    Hyperbolic nonsense. I'm a creative professional and my desktop is a 2011 iMac (SSD and plenty of RAM and VRAM), it's still a good machine for software development, running VMs, IDEs, Creative Suite, etc. 

    As for your photo & video editing, I'd love to hear why even the current iMac is unable to run your needed software, specifically. If I'm running Lightroom and Photoshop on a 2011, why can't you on a new machine?

    Also, it's not true that comparatively-spec'd PCs are cheaper than Macs. In fact the opposite has been shown to be true when building Dell pro desktops. 
    edited February 2017 Anipscooter63Soliwilliamlondonwatto_cobraRayz2016
  • Reply 7 of 76
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    Yet another myopic fanboy that thinks what they do is the only thing that can be classified as "Pro."  As a desktop, mobile, and web software developer, only the Mac has the ability to target today's major platforms.  For me, the macOS virtual desktop implementation "Mission Control" allows for productivity that cannot be matched on any other platform.  Setting up whole desktops for effortless multi-tasking is vastly more efficient than constantly managing individual Windows.  Windows 10 tried to replicate this AWESOME feature but fell quite short.  The new MacBook Pro's have some issues (battery life and dongles), but claiming they do not have enough power to serve a professional is total bull shit.
    AniStrangeDaysSoliwatto_cobraRayz2016
  • Reply 8 of 76
    rgen28rgen28 Posts: 1unconfirmed, member
    thedba said:
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    This is the AppleInsider forum. So I doubt they'll ever tell you how to switch from a Mac to Windows. 
    As far as you being a Mac user for 25 years, well Apple was a very different company back then. The bulk of their users now are mainstream. 
    As far as you paying more for a Mac than a similar Windows machine, that's an ancient myth. 
    Try speccing a similar windows laptop for example, with SSD onto PCIe with same amount of memory etc. And you'll find out that Macs are very well priced. Tried it also with MS surfacebook and found it to be more expensive than a similar MBP. 
    You seem to be looking for a new Mac Pro. I understand your frustration but in the end you got to go with the tools that are available to you now. 


    True, the Apple of today is not the Apple it used to be. Also true that a powerful PC notebook would be nearly as pricy as a MBP, but only if I would want it to be as absurdly slim as a MBP. To me Apple's drive for slimness is a foolish obsession when it comes to advanced video and photo editing needs. As for the Mac Pro, no, I would have liked to purchase an update to the old Mac Pro design with modern components and the possibility to expand it with PCIe cards, something professionals usually do. I think Apple should change its product names. Mac Pop and MacBook Pop would be suiting. The pros can make the switch to Windows as I have done.
    shouldn't you be asking these questions on a windows forum.  whatever you choose is your business.  be confident in your choice. 
    AnichiaSoliwatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 76
    When someone, somewhere, sometime comes up with a statistical simulations software for the Mac, please let me know. 
    williamlondon
  • Reply 10 of 76
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    That was my first thought.
    williamlondon
  • Reply 11 of 76
    Mike WuertheleMike Wuerthele Posts: 6,858administrator
    When someone, somewhere, sometime comes up with a statistical simulations software for the Mac, please let me know. 
    IBM SPSS?
    AniSoli
  • Reply 12 of 76
    Mike WuertheleMike Wuerthele Posts: 6,858administrator

    Ironhead said:
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    That was my first thought.
    I GUARANTEE that we aren't running any "Switching to Windows?" articles.
    mwhiteAnichiapscooter63williamlondondamn_its_hotwatto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 76
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    Hyperbolic nonsense. I'm a creative professional and my desktop is a 2011 iMac (SSD and plenty of RAM and VRAM), it's still a good machine for software development, running VMs, IDEs, Creative Suite, etc. 

    As for your photo & video editing, I'd love to hear why even the current iMac is unable to run your needed software, specifically. If I'm running Lightroom and Photoshop on a 2011, why can't you on a new machine?

    Also, it's not true that comparatively-spec'd PCs are cheaper than Macs. In fact the opposite has been shown to be true when building Dell pro desktops. 
    I am running Davinci Resolve. All current Macs have under-specced GPUs for my needs.

    An equally specced Dell Workstation is as expensive as a Mac Pro, but one can get up to date GPUs. And if one chooses to build a custom PC one would pay a fraction of the price of a Dell workstation or Mac Pro.
    Ironheadwilliamlondon
  • Reply 14 of 76
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Apple should introduce a bunch of really annoying optional 'features' they could toggle off once they were more comfortable.  Such as always hide an extremely important dialog box behind any open window so you have no clue it's there or tell you you need Administrator Privileges to do anything every two minutes but allow you to continue with just a click of acknowledgement ???

    Using Windows 10 Anniversary almost daily I could add a whole lot more to the list but you get my drift. ;)
    edited February 2017 AniStrangeDaysSoliwilliamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 76

    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    Yet another myopic fanboy that thinks what they do is the only thing that can be classified as "Pro."  As a desktop, mobile, and web software developer, only the Mac has the ability to target today's major platforms.  For me, the macOS virtual desktop implementation "Mission Control" allows for productivity that cannot be matched on any other platform.  Setting up whole desktops for effortless multi-tasking is vastly more efficient than constantly managing individual Windows.  Windows 10 tried to replicate this AWESOME feature but fell quite short.  The new MacBook Pro's have some issues (battery life and dongles), but claiming they do not have enough power to serve a professional is total bull shit.
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    Yet another myopic fanboy that thinks what they do is the only thing that can be classified as "Pro."  As a desktop, mobile, and web software developer, only the Mac has the ability to target today's major platforms.  For me, the macOS virtual desktop implementation "Mission Control" allows for productivity that cannot be matched on any other platform.  Setting up whole desktops for effortless multi-tasking is vastly more efficient than constantly managing individual Windows.  Windows 10 tried to replicate this AWESOME feature but fell quite short.  The new MacBook Pro's have some issues (battery life and dongles), but claiming they do not have enough power to serve a professional is total bull shit.
    Maybe you should re-read my posts. You'd be able to read that I am specified "editing videos and photos". For photos a Mac would be okay, for video editing I would be bound to fcpx. I tried that and dislike the program for various reasons. I tried Premiere CC which is geared towards Nvidia GPUs with CUDA, hence current Macs are not the best choice. Disliking Premiere for other reasons than fcpx I ended up with Davinci Resolve which I like. No current Mac is fit to run Resolve without hitting a ceiling due to underpowered GPUs.
    williamlondon
  • Reply 16 of 76
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    Oh you poor thing nobody told you?  We use external disk and peripherals these days on Thunderbolt for professional work.  I have a new Mac Pro 6 core and a video editing set up that would cost far more to equal on a PC platform.  Plus, when I boot into Windows 10 Anniversary it blows away just about any PC's specs (dual GPUs with Crimson Catalyst), so I have a twofer :)
    edited February 2017 AniSoliwilliamlondonwatto_cobrabrucemc
  • Reply 17 of 76
    thedba said:
    The pros can make the switch to Windows as I have done.
    One pro Photographer I know tried to go from Mac to Windows. He really tried. I know because of the time I spent logged into his system with Teamviewer.
    He's back in the Mac fold and smiling again. I have to stress that he's a Photographer and not an IT guy. Windows and him was a marriage made in hell.
    The final straw was a reboot due to an update right in the middle of him giving a presentation to a Wildlife society. A tad embarrassing to say the least. Could I have prevented it? Probably but at the time I was on a ship in the Indian Ocean Whale watching 600 miles south or Reunion.
    He loves his new 15in MBP.

    Some personal thoughts on W10 after using Windows from 3.0.
    It is a straightjacket. You will do things the MS way. MS is a diety that you need to worship every day. They know best. Once you have W10 on your computer MS owns it. They can brick it at will if they don't like you. You are subject to their foibles, bad updates and a get out of jail free for them EULA. They are not liable for anything even if their forced reboot causes a death.
    They know what you are doing all the time. You can't stop the data slurping unless you block over 100 different IP addresses in your router.
    YMMV but that is how I see Windows today. As I said, those are my personal thoughts.



    dewmewatto_cobra
  • Reply 18 of 76
    thedbathedba Posts: 762member
    thedba said:
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    This is the AppleInsider forum. So I doubt they'll ever tell you how to switch from a Mac to Windows. 
    As far as you being a Mac user for 25 years, well Apple was a very different company back then. The bulk of their users now are mainstream. 
    As far as you paying more for a Mac than a similar Windows machine, that's an ancient myth. 
    Try speccing a similar windows laptop for example, with SSD onto PCIe with same amount of memory etc. And you'll find out that Macs are very well priced. Tried it also with MS surfacebook and found it to be more expensive than a similar MBP. 
    You seem to be looking for a new Mac Pro. I understand your frustration but in the end you got to go with the tools that are available to you now. 


    True, the Apple of today is not the Apple it used to be. Also true that a powerful PC notebook would be nearly as pricy as a MBP, but only if I would want it to be as absurdly slim as a MBP. To me Apple's drive for slimness is a foolish obsession when it comes to advanced video and photo editing needs. As for the Mac Pro, no, I would have liked to purchase an update to the old Mac Pro design with modern components and the possibility to expand it with PCIe cards, something professionals usually do. I think Apple should change its product names. Mac Pop and MacBook Pop would be suiting. The pros can make the switch to Windows as I have done.
    The Mac Pro is one product that I, like you think that Apple has dropped the ball. 
    The design was unique in 2013 when they announced it but they haven't updated it since. At this point they should either retire it or update it. 
    As far as the thinness of their current laptop lineup goes, it is not foolish if they are selling more of them. This may not meet your needs and I understand that. Their numbers however tell a different story than yours. 
    As far as the Pro moniker, just remember that there are different kind of Pros out there. I'm one of them and these new machines look mighty attractive to me. If you're carrying your laptop to and from work, every little pound makes a world of a difference. 
    xzu
  • Reply 19 of 76
    dr. xdr. x Posts: 282member
    Have you looked at VMWare Fusion or VirtualBox (free) for other virtualization options.
    edited February 2017
  • Reply 20 of 76

    Ironhead said:
    I'd be much more interested in a description of the reverse switch since I just bought a used Dell workstation for video and photo editing. I maxed it out with components I'd not even be able to put in a Mac, with the exception of an outdated Mac Pro. This is after 25 years of exclusive Mac usage. Back in the day the Mac was a serious offer for people like me. Nowadays I'd pay a multitude for an inferior Apple machine. It's probably my mistake to expect a smart phone company to deliver powerful stationary computers for creative professionals like I ;)
    That was my first thought.
    I GUARANTEE that we aren't running any "Switching to Windows?" articles.
    That's too bad.  Not sure why that is considered such a hostile request.  I was thinking the same thing as some of the others.  After 30+ years, this is the year we start transitioning over to the dark side (windows) and such an article would really help out some long time Mac users.   Does anyone know of a good site that is similar to Appleinsider but on the PC side of things?

    Some of the comments on here are beyond ridiculous.  Guess what people, "Pro's" do different things.  Just because you are able to do your Pro things on a 1997 iMac does not mean every pro can.   Get over yourself as being the centre of the universe.  Others claiming that PC workstations cost the same or are more as a Mac is just plain wrong.  You can easily configure a 30+ core HP or Dell with modern graphics and faster DDR4 Ram for less than what you would pay for the antiquated 12 core MacPro.

    There are a lot of good reasons to use Macs but making stuff up or insisting that nobody needs anything greater than an old iMac is not one of them.
    williamlondonbrucemc-hh (2017)
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