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I myself have always been a PC owner and user. Just recently I switched my PCs from Windows to Kubuntu Linux and havent looked back since. I have at times given serious consideration to a MacBook Pro though. I wont pretend to have enough to get one that is brand new, which is why Im looking at 2013 models. Are those still fairly viable in the opinions of users here?
I recently got a 2012 MacBook pro, and pimped it out with 16gb.
Runs really well, without any issues.
I actually have a late 2011 MBP with 16g RAM and have no reason to upgrade it, it runs so smooth for being an old fogie in the computer world :)
If you can get a 2012, you'll be able to upgrade RAM and hard disk (to SSD) yourself. After 2012, they soldered the RAM and made the HD nearly impossible to swap out yourself.
Next is an SSD upgrade :)
or use Apple Made Pages (word), Keynote (powerpoint), and Numbers (excel) that comes with you mac for absolutely free. Full featured and can be converted to a .docx etc. microsoft file extension when emailed from the native mac email client.
Also, if you Really want to get 100% out of your mac, and you Like to Learn.
Give lynda.com a try and watch training videos. They have 1000's of hours of video on just about anything you can think of. CAD, OSX, iOS, Android, Windows, Photo shop, and the list goes on and on. It's great for learning more than just basic features or any other subject.
If you happen to have a desktop monitor and a keyboard/ mouse laying around, maybe grab a Mac Mini to start. $499 new (a little slow)
or maybe get a used one to try out first.
Actually, the mac mini has HDMI out, you could just hook it to the TV and use a bluetooth keyboard and mouse from across the room even.
The mac mini "should" get an update "soon" who knows when, but its really ready for an update.
macrumors has a buying guide for macs that tells you how long each computer has been out and when it was last updated.
I too have joined the MacBook party; with a Pro 13.3" 128Gb - and I absolutely love it.
Coming from PC, and really not wanting to get bogged down in MS and virus checkers etc etc, I decided to take the plunge.
Having always said I'd never have Apple; my kids are laughing at me.... however, I reckon I'll have an iPhone by the end of the year.. Words I never thought I'd say.
I don't use iTunes, and pretty much live in Google land; so not bothered too much with Numbers, Pages etc... but the Mail and Calendar apps are excellent.
Looking forward to the next stage of my Mac journey
I've been a Windows user since Windows 3.1 and went Mac by getting my first MBP at 2010 and never looked back. Used it until last year the HDD gave up and then bought the current retina MBP with AMD M370X.
Awesome speed and power, they're real workhorses!
Congrats! You can sync your google calendar(s) with the stock calendar app quite easily which is good! We use it a lot.
I recently acquired my first MacBook Pro 13 Retina and overall I am very pleased. I do find have some frustration with the Calendar. I sync the iOS calendar just fine from my phone with one exception. iOS syncs my Outlook calendar to my phone with no problems. (I only really use that to keep track of my elderly dad's appointments.) I'm baffled however that the Mac calendar will not add any of these events from the phone. Why can't they all sync properly? Also, I opened an email on my Mac which had an appointment confirmation. When I added the event to the calendar, it entered it as a blank event and even posted the incorrect time. This never happens on the iOS side. Am I doing something wrong or is the Calendar integration on the list of problems to be addressed someday?
Honestly if you don't want to pay for Microsoft Office or don't get it for free ( like if you're in school) than I would suggest pages.....already installed and is free. It's a pretty good word processor that would easily be usable on other Apple devices.
Since I get to use Norton for free I use it but to be honest you don't need anti virus on Windows.... All you need is common sense and you'll never get a virus. In theory OS X is just as vulnerable to viruses but people just don't make them like they do for Windows. Somebody still could and if I remember there has been a few Trojan on OS x before
I would honestly save up and buy a new one.....Or buy one refurbished at the Apple website