MacBook vs. 17 inch iMac

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Trying to decide between the 2. Have a desk thats only 20 inches deep and thats as big as will fit in my tiny apt. Any opinions?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 8
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,309moderator
    The 17" iMac with the X1600 GPU and Core 2 Duo is the same price as the Macbook with GMA and Core Duo. If you need the graphics card then there's no contest but the Macbook has portability and will probably depreciate less.



    I would personally go for the iMac because I would use the graphics card but being able to use your machine during a power outage is very handy.
  • Reply 2 of 8
    auroraaurora Posts: 1,142member
    You either have to have portability or you dont, comparing a desktop to a portable is illogical. Macbook has the dreaded GMA950 crap ass graphics in it. Your either enjoy games or you dont. If you dont like games and must have a machine you can carry around the Macbook is perfect.
  • Reply 3 of 8
    If you don't need portability, go for the iMac: bigger screen, better graphic card.
  • Reply 4 of 8
    steve666steve666 Posts: 2,600member
    Thanks for the feedback.
  • Reply 5 of 8
    In my opinion, both machines are portable - it's just that one is battery powered and one isn't. I went through the same debate over a year ago and settled on a 20" iMac G5 when I saw the iLugger case (www.ilugger.com). In just about 30 seconds I can be toting an iMac.



    Since then, I have upgraded to a 24" iMac and have gotten the 24" iLugger case also.



    Bottom line is - how portable do you need it. If you intend to go to a coffee shop to read your email, get a MBP. If you need to go between home and work occasionally (several times a week), then get an iMac. Not only does the iMac have the bigger screen, it has more hard drive space (and faster).



    Phil
  • Reply 6 of 8
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by steve666


    Trying to decide between the 2. Have a desk thats only 20 inches deep and thats as big as will fit in my tiny apt. Any opinions?



    A month ago, it was either a MBP or a 20 inch iMac for my purchase ? and I went with the iMac.



    Inherent in their small design, laptops make certain compromises in component type and placement ? that either reduce their effectiveness or operating life / reliability. So unless you have an actual need/plan to use the portability of a laptop ? then go with the iMac. Its been my experience that people overestimate their need for portability, and will get a laptop for the ?just in case? times ? and never use it or use it so little to make it an utter waste.
  • Reply 7 of 8
    gongon Posts: 2,437member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bacillus


    Inherent in their small design, laptops make certain compromises in component type and placement ? that either reduce their effectiveness or operating life / reliability. So unless you have an actual need/plan to use the portability of a laptop ? then go with the iMac. Its been my experience that people overestimate their need for portability, and will get a laptop for the ?just in case? times ? and never use it or use it so little to make it an utter waste.



    I've been there. My Powerbook might as well have been a Mac mini, if the minis would have been around at that time. It wasn't a total waste though, since it was my first Mac and my first laptop, so it taught me quite a bit about both.



    Another way laptop buyers screw up is getting a big and heavy one, which destroys the point of having a laptop in the first place. I found the size difference between 12" and 15" was huge in usability. I doubt I'll ever get a 15" one again.



    While desktops are undoubtedly better and a better value for people who know they are going to stick to their desk, the laptop is the ultimate in simplicity. My mom doesn't leave the house with a computer but I'll still get her a Macbook to replace her iBook when it's time for that. It's somewhat of an attitude thing. A laptop is an appliance: something she can just open, close, pick up and put somewhere else, and generally something she handles instead of a scary computer that she has to conform to.
  • Reply 8 of 8
    eckingecking Posts: 1,588member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Gon


    I've been there. My Powerbook might as well have been a Mac mini, if the minis would have been around at that time. It wasn't a total waste though, since it was my first Mac and my first laptop, so it taught me quite a bit about both.



    Another way laptop buyers screw up is getting a big and heavy one, which destroys the point of having a laptop in the first place. I found the size difference between 12" and 15" was huge in usability. I doubt I'll ever get a 15" one again.



    While desktops are undoubtedly better and a better value for people who know they are going to stick to their desk, the laptop is the ultimate in simplicity. My mom doesn't leave the house with a computer but I'll still get her a Macbook to replace her iBook when it's time for that. It's somewhat of an attitude thing. A laptop is an appliance: something she can just open, close, pick up and put somewhere else, and generally something she handles instead of a scary computer that she has to conform to.



    Not me man my mom has an hp laptop right now that's dying, the battery has no life, she's never moved it.



    I'm getting her a mini in a month or two.
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