Opinions About Computers and Cameras

I adore my MAC computers (we have 4 - 2 PCs and 2 MACs). The 2 PCs have both had viruses which required them to be completely "wiped" and rebooted (nightmare). My desktop MAC is 10+ years old and still runs awesome. My new laptop is fabulous as well and I love how it syncs to my iphone.

You go MAC and you never go back :)

If you're mobile a lot - get a laptop, if you store lots of pics, music, etc, get one with a large hard drive space (gb), if you surf internet all day, you want one with speed - for you digital camera, you may want to choose one with a SD slot on the front to upload your pics, so that when you buy an SD card and it stores your pics, you can upload them and all the new widgets they have out there. I have a Kodak Easy share digital camera, love it. It only has 8 mpxls but that's all I needed.

I have been avid MAC user for years now and have converted most of my family as well. They rarely crash or get viruses and when they do it is much simpler to fix and the techs at apple are fantastic and very thorough and simple in their explanations of any problems you might have. You can't beat it for photos and media and the whole system is very user friendly. Mac Office blows Word out of the water and is simpler to use- at least for me. If you still insist on needing Word or other PC programs for your work you can have an application called Parallels put on your MAC that allows you to boot your computer into MAC mode or Windows mode, so you have the advantage of essentially having two computers. i think it runs about 200 dollars for the program. very cool!!! They are worth every penny and the money you save not having constant tech issues like I always did with a PC and having to replace the whole darn computer every two years more than makes up for the slightly higher ticket cost. I have purchased 2 MACS and both still run well after 6 and 4 years of use with only 2 trips for repair. One time for a new hardrive on my laptop- which the Apple people replaced and uprgaded for free!, and once because I am stupid and left my desktop computer plugged in without a surge protector..in Florida..during summer thuderstorm season..the lightening capital of the world...and my power supply got fried and a quick 80 dollars had me up and running with a new one right away. needless ot say I always use surge protectors now. Anyway, I digressed.. MAC all the way and I have experienced that their salespeople won't over sell you as badly at an actual APPLE store as they will at places like Best Buy. They have always been honest with me about what my needs are and how much computer I really need so that I don't over buy. I over bought anyway because, well, I'm a huge nerd but they told me it wasn't necessary to get that level of machine and I appreciated them being honest. As for cameras I wish I could help you but I haven't bothered with a new one in a couple of years. I have been looking to buy my 3rd MAC and the new ones are pretty neat, even more streamlined and user friendly than my original ones. Oh and be looking for at least 3 or 4 GB of ram (memory), 2.66 Ghz processing speed ( i think 3.06 is about as high as they go for the moment) and a 500gb hard drive. 1TB would be amazing but is probably overkill as long as you back up your info on an external hard drive regularly. the screen resolution and size will make about a 200-400 dollar difference and is an entirely personal decision, you can test drive the difference at the store and see if it is worth the money to you for great or reallly great display. MACS are a little different from PC's as you cannot do quite as much upgrading later on the laptops, you can add RAM but you cannot change the processor speed or add hard drive space. I think you can with the desktops buy you would have to check with APPLE. so if you go the laptop route spend the extra money and get the best one they have. have fun, oh and most places like target its really simple to get digital pictures turned into prints you just pull out the memory card and stick it in a little machine they have and pick the ones you want to develop or you can e-mail them from your computer to the store. Another thing MAC is great for is ease of use with photos. you just plug in your cords to the computer and it pulls up everything for you and saves everything directly into iPhoto you just click upload all ( or select the ones you want) and you're done. :) happy shopping!

I work on computers for a living. The question you will want to ask yourself is "would you want your computer to be mobile?" If mobility does not matter, then get a desktop. They typically last longer (for the reason of not being mobile). DELL has good prices on a computer. Just be aware that it can take up to 3 weeks to get your computer. For a desktop computer, just make sure it is at least a dual-core processor. And make sure to get about 2GB of RAM. Also, DO NOT GET VISTA. Windows 7 is WAY better and less buggy. If you get a laptop and all you will be doing is WORD and internet, then get a Netbook. They are under $400 and work great. HP or DELL both make wonderful Netbooks. I hope this helps!

Honestly, we LOVE our mac. I used Apples for work years ago before I became a SAHM, and have never used many PC's. My kids each have a PC (gifts from extended family) and while they are not the latest and greatest.. they have lots of memory and DVD drives so they can watch movies in their rooms, and play all the PC games, etc.

My son had an issue with a printer and it was such a hassle to figure out what to do to fix it. I couldn't even find the driver to delete it and reload... I cannot figure out his files, I just don't like it. And there are a bazillion ways to configure everything...

We bought our Mac online. But I have bought one in the store as well. It is SOOOO easy. You just talk to the "genius" and tell them what you need and what you plan to use it for. They will direct you to what you need. They will show you the "minimum" you can use to get by and the steps "up" and how that would affect your speed and ease of use. So you won't over buy. You literally take it home, take it out of the box, and plug it in. All of the "setup" stuff is done thru simple prompts.
We replaced an older one with an newer one. To set up the new one and transfer ALL of our files literally took me (a clueless computer person) about 45 minutes.

The photo suite is phenomenal.
Internet surfing... so much fun.
And it's just beautiful to look at.. lol... I know I could be a commercial.
But truly, once you go Mac... I could never go back.

My 11 yr old can use iTunes to sync his music to his ipod... and even my husband can do it (he HATES computers). It is very intuitive...

I have to say I love my VAIO laptop, and I love Sony's customer service online chat option. I thought that once my year was up they would try to charge me. They did not. They helped me with my Windows 7 upgrade questions 1.5 years later, no prob. We weren't sure that the extra cost would be worth it, but it definitely was! I never had any problems with Vista, but my husband the techie wanted me to upgrade, so I did. There are some features I liked better on Vista than on 7, and vice versa.

I saw the recommendation about the netbook, and I would say no way for my everyday computer. We take it on vacation because it fits into the hotel safe, but for everyday use, I would be way irritated with the small screen. We also have a Dell desktop that my husband built, which is a great computer, but we don't allow the toddler in the office, so I almost never use it. My VAIO goes with me anywhere: kitchen, livingroom, to the library... It was our only computer while my husband was building the other one, and I would say that it was fine as the family computer, except that there was only one...

We have a Canon Powershot A710. (Not sure what the current model is, but at the time the research showed that this was a good one.) It used to be a pain to download the photos, having the camera connected to the computer, keeping track of the cable, or the USB card-reader. But, the VAIO I have has a built-in card reader, so no extra parts to keep track of.

I download to the laptop and then upload to a site like Kodak or Shutterfly. I really liked Kodak, but they changed their interface over the past year and all I get are headaches trying to use it. So now, I use Shutterfly, which still stores photos for free. You get 50 free prints for signing up with them to try it out.

I would say buy the camera and the netbook from Costco and try them out, because you can always return them there, no questions asked, for like 30-90 days. Just check on the timeline and keep all the packaging so you can return it if you don't like it.

I just got Parrallels for $79.99

I agree with Kate..... I just switched over to a MAC a few months ago and I have love it... I have no issues that you get with PC's..... I cannot begin tell you how much easier and less hassle a mac is plus if you get the extended warrenty and one to one, the help you get is unsurpassable.

okay so now I'm done with that.... If you save your pics to your computer then you need a lot of hard drive space.... at minimum 250gb but will but will need at least 500gb is you save pics to it..... also, in order to run Windows Vista or Windows 7 you need a minimum of 1gb ram.... but I suggest getting it with at leads 2gb ram. Don't let the salesman tell you different.... 1gb is bare the minimum to run those windows. Do you multitask alot? Have multiple programs open etc... if so, then also go with at least a dual core processor.... I would get AMD or Intel, stay away from a celeron. If you game on the computer then you need good graphics if not don't worry about it. As for brand I really don't think it matters..... HP is good if you get the more expensive, dell is good regardless, sony is also good, you would probably want to read reviews to find out if that particular model is prone to mishaps. Dell has better customer service... hp is horrible with customer service and I have not had any experience with Sony.

Now for the desktop vs laptop.... now days the only difference between the two is size. If you don't use it anywhere but home and have space, and want a big monitor you can go for desktop, otherwise get a laptop. Laptops can be upgraded the same as desktops but laptops save space and you can take it with you.

Now camera's..... this also depends on what you do with it. Are you only using it for family pics or are you going amatuer? If your going fam pics then get a good point and shoot.... for prints I would say get at least 6mp and get as much zoom as you can.... don't pay attention to digital zoom because digital zoom takes quite a bit a way from the quality of the print. You don't want that. If you are going for amatuer then it depends on where your skill level is at as far as knowing the camera....

Hope that helps a little. Good luck on your search.

I love Sony Vaio computers! I've had two (one desktop and a laptop) and they've both been wonderful! I mostly just use my laptop now, it does everything I need and it's portable.

We like Dell, and I got a laptop so I could have it anywhere in the house that my daughter was. It's also nice for taking to my grandma's and showing her pictures.