In my business, many people have asked me why in the world I don't use a Mac. The biggest reason has been software compatibility, and my own comfort/knowledge with the Windows XP and Windows 7 operating systems.
When you're on your own - like that commercial says - you are your own marketing department, accounting group, sales team and tech support. I've been in the PC world since the beginning and only dabbled with an iMac early on in my marketing career at TCB. My clients rely on me to produce and manage complex spreadsheets, for media buys, marketing plans and budgets and what I send them needs to open on a "regular PC" and vice versa. I've been happy within the Windows world and just stuck with it - Windows 7 has been a stable and smart operating system, although I was grateful to have skipped the Windows Vista "mis-fire".
Since all good things must come to an end, and early feedback on the newly released Windows 8 operating system is not good, I started considering a switch to Mac as a replacement for "Jerry's computer", which is my back-up (in case of disaster) and travel laptop. For some time, I've needed to wipe the drives and get rid of two partially functioning PCs - one ten years old and the other eight - and just haven't done it until now.
Enter the survey feedback ... including responses from a long-time, would-not-have-it-any-other-way Mac user and the other from Jason, electrical engineer at Texas Instruments - a mecca of traditional PC use. I knew what Randy would tell me, but hearing Jason rave on and on about his shiny little MacBook Air pushed me over the edge.
He said his purchase of the MBA was "frowned upon" by the corporate office and he was soundly warned that tech support would not be able to help him, but what he discovered was that he needed no support. Like Randy said, the Mac products "just work". This has been my experience with the iPhone and iPad products and since the Mac Operating System - Mountain Lion - is almost identical to the iOS of the other devices, I figured I could make it work.
Enter the beautifully designed and surprisingly powerful 13" MacBook Air ... YES, it's really as thin as this photo on the box shows.
The brushed aluminum case with lighted Apple logo (who knew?) is another elegant "Apple touch"
There's no fuss, no muss ... a beautiful, thin laptop and an electrical cord! If you want to use is as a desktop computer, just buy the stunning, new 27" Thunderbolt Display and connect your laptop with ONE CORD. No extra cables, no external speakers, no mess.
I don't own a Thunderbolt, because they're pretty proud of those and it will have to wait until next year!
Set-up was a snap and in a few clicks of the keyboard, your new laptop is running and linking with your iCloud account, meaning every "iDevice" you own is communicating seamlessly, wirelessly and with no further effort from you. Your calendar and address book on the phone is on the MBA. I'm not making this up - apparently, it doesn't have to be difficult.
This laptop weights just a smidge over two pounds, is a little bit thicker than a pencil at the widest edge and easily slips into a purse for travel. It has a solid state drive - so no moving parts to damage. There's no CD/DVD drive on this model, but I already owned an inexpensive Samsung external drive that works just fine plugged into the MBA when you need to load software or view a DVD. Movies/TV shows are in iTunes anyway, so there's no need to carry the drive when traveling.
It boots up and is ready to use in 15 seconds or less (I timed it), the Microsoft Office Suite for Mac is 100% compatible with the PC version and it handles complex graphic files and software better than my 2 year old, tricked-out Dell. I'm still learning the ins and outs of Mountain Lion and understand that if you have PC programs that you just can't live without, you can use Boot Camp to partition your hard drive and run Windows simultaneously. Amazing!
I use my bigger Dell on a daily basis, but it's highly likely that when the Dell retires, it will be replaced with a 17" Mac product!
