topper

To any current students or parents at Swat:

What type of computer would you recommend for this upcoming year? My parents have been going back and forth between a PC (I'm more comfortable with this) and a MAC (the Biology department specifically suggests this, though I can say truthfully that I have no intention of being a Bio major). Also, my parents are looking at a Latitude Dell as opposed to another type that Swat recommends over this, though we don't understand why. If you could shed some light on this issue, I'd very much appreciate it.

gphoenix

Hmm... I have no expertise in this area. However, I refer you to:

From Arador's board, which you need to register for, but is very free and gives good access to other future Swatties & such common topics as computing:

Computing thread *very useful for discount and comparison info*
http://arador.org/swarthmore/viewtopic.php?t=59&start=0

Computers thread
http://arador.org/swarthmore/viewtop...?t=306&start=0

If you do register, you should post and ask what the url is for Swat dell discounts. Could come in handy, ya kno? :-P I have it bookmarked as http://premier.dell.com/portal/messa...ep&cs=RC982419 , but I think you need a login... Always a good thing to check up on.

bowtoserenity

topper,

Dell Notebooks-
The Inspiron line is built for the consumer market with an emphasis on keeping costs low. The Latitude line is built with an emphasis on reliability and business-useful features, even if it costs a little more. Although both should just work fine with onsite warranty at swat.

about the swat dell link, just a word of caution, it might actually be cheaper with special deals on dell's regular site than the swat dell promotion site. It won't hurt to check out both.

Abt PC and MAC, I think you should choose the model you are most familiar with (In your case, PC) so that you won't have to go through all the learnings and troubleshootings again. PCs tend to be quite a bit cheaper (especially if you count in the additional cost of new MAC software while you might already have some PC software). And if you play games (tho might not be realistic in swat), PC definitely has more support.

achat

Listen, topper, we had the same concerns as you last year. My son is not a Bio major. This is what I wrote on the Harvard forum (yes, I do visit there from time to time, although why, I don't know):

=============cut and paste======
I don't know what deal Harvard has with Apple or IBM but my son (who goes to a different school) has the 17 inch powerbook and we are very very happy with it. It is:
1) More secure than Windows XP. In fact when there are computer security problems on campus, the only computers allowed are Apples.
2) More reliable.
3) Easy (extremely easy) to use.
4) Works seamlessly with wireless bluetooth technology.
5) Wonderful graphics.

It is a beauty to look at too.

If you can afford the powerbook, I'd recommend it whole heartedly. And it has all the Office software that you'd need. There is no comparision.

I don't want to start a MAC versus Windows war, this is just a humble opinion.

achat

And my son plays games on his MAC too..and watches movies.

northeastdad

To add my 2 cents worth, D bought a powerbook for Swarthmore, because Bio is a possible majors for her. She had been using Windows before that. She became very comfortable with Mac quickly and is very happy with it. Besides, it goes well with her ipod, itunes, song collection and nice Klipsch speakers.

topper

thanks for all your responses; they've helped a lot!