Being a mainly PC guy, the decision to get a macbook instead of a competing windows based laptop was a clear decision. Mainly I preferred the dependability and quality of the hardware in the macbook to the sometimes shoddy quality of most PC laptops. This comes from a previous HP and Compaq notebook owner.

I bought my Macbook Pro at a local mall's Mac Store. The staff there were very helpful and kind, I bought the 3-year apple care service with the laptop, but have not needed it so far.

THE GOOD

As a student I normally simply take my Macbook around campus for use in class or in the hall between classes. But I have also took it with me when i'm out on location shooting, using it as a mobile-footage capturing device. I have used it for over a year and a half and never once have I had a problem with it. I have ran servers on this computer as well, leaving the display, hard drive and processor running for days on end without fail. This thing definitely keeps on chugging and I have noticed no slowdown from the day that I bought it. It has great battery life too!

It runs all my school-use applications like Microsoft Word and Final Cut Pro perfectly. I also use it to stream netflix and watch DVD's and it works great. I can even edit my HD footage and it still performs well! I also recommend this product since it is less likely to burn out on you than a windows laptop. Often companies like Dell and e-machines use cheaper hardware, and as a result I haven't seen a windows laptop last longer than about 2 years before hardware failure. Also, Mac's customer support center is about a million times better than any other laptop manufacturer.

THE BAD

One drawback is it lacks the compatibility and functionality offered in a Windows based OS, such as some 3rd party windows based software and certain PC games. However, this drawback isn't a big deal since you can install Windows Vista or 7 in conjunction with OSX and use all the windows software you want. But even that has some drawbacks as you can only install Windows on a 32 gigabyte partition if you still want access to OSX. But, like I said, unless your a gamer, that doesn't matter too much.

Another problem? The price. I paid about $1,800 after it was all said and done. It's true that you can get a windows based laptop for nearly half that price with about the same specs. However, You need to weigh dependability and quality with price. Like I said, my family has owned many windows based laptops from HP and compaq, and all of them bit the dust just before the 2 year mark. All my friends who own macbooks have owned them for 5 years or more before they needed to upgrade or have any problems. Mac also has a reputation for being better about honoring their warranty with customers. For example, when my brother had a problem with his iphone's screen, they simply handed him a brand new one, no charge. Most other manufacturers have service charges, or tie up your product in a repair queue for weeks. I also have to stress the craftsmanship of this laptop, it has a solid metal unibody design with no visible fans or cover plates. It is truly built to be something to lasts you a long time.

One final drawback was the display port. I wanted to hook my macbook into my big-screen TV, so I bought a HDMI adaptor to do so, which isn't cheap. (about 60 bucks!) I was under the assumption that I would get both Audio and Video to the HDMI, but It only carried video, not sound. This is a drawback only in models that are a year or older. The newer macbook's all support audio AND video from their display ports. So keep that in mind if your buying used or buying an older model.

CONCLUSION

I've been using my Macbook for almost 2 years now and It's served me exceptionally well. For anyone looking for a quality laptop with good battery life, I would recommend the Macbook Pro immediately.