PC to Mac & Android Compatibility

[insanelupus]

I'm needing a new laptop. The old Toshiba is now ancient. I gave my daughters new super zoom cameras last year as they are creative and interested in photography, as am I (Canon 7D, Mark 1).

I've always owned PCs and use Android phones. Frankly, Apple's marketing, that seems limiting at times, to stay in their product line not to mention things they support as a company, are irritating to me.

That said, for a graphics heavy use, interes in graphic arts, and longevity their Macbook Pro M1 Masendems to trounce the competition. I'd combine that with an Adobe subscription, despite the price, for best tools/ quality.

From a real world/every day perspective, what are the challenges of moving from PC to Mac and especially with regard to Android compatibility (moving over Word/Excel documents), downloading photos from a phone, etc., without going through a cloud?

I used Mac and 25+ years ago but that's akin to stoneage software at this point.

Educated advice and/or the voice of experience is appreciated.

 

[Mike Islander]

I don't find any compelling reason to switch. Modern graphics tools work well on both platforms.

 

[jimh406]

Also, consider the Mac Air, but make sure you have at least a M1. For graphics, it is very fast. The Air has no fan. The Air has only USB-C ports while the Pro has additional ports. Neither are touch screen if that is important to you.

I used PCs almost exclusively for 30 years before this Mac. I researched and found the Air to be lighter and a lot cheaper than the Pro. There is no PC equivalent to the Mac Air M1 that I found for anywhere near the same price.

I have a Samsung Note 10. You do have to download an app to do file transfers, but it is not that difficult. The charging cable that came with my Air is USB-C on both ends, so that cable can be used to connect the Note 10 to Air.

The benefits of a Mac for normally a Windows user is access to apps to communicate with iPhone users via FaceTime, Messenger even without a phone. The hardware is solid and has a standard backlit keyboard. Battery life exceeds what an Intel can do although the fastest Intel is slightly faster than the fastest M1 chip. I've found the upgrades to be seamless so far. On the other hand, Windows updates still are crashing people from time to time.

I spend most of my time in browsers. Basic apps for word processing are available as well as Microsoft Office, Open Office, etc. Other apps like Turbo Tax etc are also available on the Mac. There are some differences, but there are plenty of YouTube on transitioning from PC if you want to take a look before/after.

 

[willd]

Personally I don't think there is enough there to make the switch to a MacBook Air. I had an ancient Toshiba from 2013 and while it was a good laptop I just upgraded to a Lenovo Thinkpad. I7 processor, 16GB ram, 500GB SSD and Windows 10 and it only set me back $700. It has done all the photo processing and things I could ever ask of it.

 

[hawkman71]

I'm ~50yo and have been using computers extensively for work for 25+ years. I've got some advanced degrees and used computer applications related to photo editing, GIS, data analysis, typical word processing, etc., not to mention non-stop internet use.

I've been a PC and Android guy the whole time.

However, I was shocked when I switched jobs four months ago to be handed a Macbook Air. I was absolutely SHOCKED that A) Mac was the company's choice, and B) that I had no say in the matter. It's not like I'm a newbie to computers or the workforce. I'm working for a startup but not in an entry-level position.

It. has. been. a. struggle.

I'm typing on it now. I can get around on it. But hell, my continuous question is "How do you do THIS on a Mac?" The usual answer is "Uh, you can't" or "Why would you?" or "Just do this" and the "just do this" answer always seems to be a long way around.

I believe the Mac hype is a hoax. I've never ever had a Mac person truly show me anything that makes them better in any way.

It's to the point that I'm about to purchase my OWN PC laptop for work with my OWN money. It's not good if I am less likely to pick up my laptop if I'm not comfortable with it.

I don't buy into the "one platform" thing necessarily. Maybe it's good with Mac b/c then you'll never know what you're missing elsewhere but I think PC and Android are more willing to play than Mac is. Both PC and Mac are more customizable as far as function. (Sure, you can get 10x as many phone cases for an iPhone but I just need an Otterbox, not a style statement.

 

[jimh406]

It. has. been. a. struggle.

I'm typing on it now. I can get around on it. But hell, my continuous question is "How do you do THIS on a Mac?" The usual answer is "Uh, you can't" or "Why would you?" or "Just do this" and the "just do this" answer always seems to be a long way around.

If you are struggling, you need better sources on how to switch besides the people you are talking to. Worst case you can load Windows in a virtual machine with Bootcamp or similar.

 

[insanelupus]

Just an update. I went in another direction as the Mac I want requires funds that are currently better used elsewhere in the family budget.

I did buy a new laptop which should handle photo editing well with some light video editing if I choose to do so in the future.

I bought a 16" ASUS with a 4k OLED screen panel and 3840x2400 resolution, the AMD Ryzen 5900 3.3 ghz processor, 32 GB RAM. 1 TB SSD hard drive, and an NVIDIA GeFORCE RTX 3050 graphics card, and Windows 11 PRO. The graphics card could stand to be a little better, perhaps. For the price and combination of features, I think it will serve my purposes well and still let me explore the capabilities of new Adobe suite further than my old (10-12+ years) Photoshop program. It could likely serve to help me start looking at graphics certifications too if I can find time to complete the courses (not a degree, just better education on certain programs to expand my knowledge and capabilities of existing software as well as studying some design theory).

Any suggestions for good online cert programs in those areas are welcome also.

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Thank you for the input all.