Thinking of Changing from a PC to an Apple Computer? Do it!
You’ve heard that old saying “boys and their toys.” Well, this time it’s girls and their toys))) So, if you have been on the fence about switching from a PC to an Apple computer….bite the bullet and go for it!
We have been using iPads around the house for several years. Mainly to play games on! Well, we’re retired, we deserve something nice to play with))) An iPad really comes in handy traveling though. You can just tuck it in your purse and play with it on the plane.
Carrie and I usually make 4-6 market trips each year and bringing along an iPad is much simpler than wagging a 5-pound laptop everywhere. Especially with the iPad pro. That’s my latest toy)))
But first, let me tell you about making the change from a desktop PC to Apple.
History
I’ve always been a computer nerd….not saying I’m an expert, I just have always loved my computers! My very first one came from Sears of all places and I think it had 512k memory. It used the 5.25 floppy disks. All I could do with it was word processing which I used while I was in nursing school. I would tape my classes and come home and transcribe them.
Then I had the chance the use an IBM PC in my home with the software DisplayWrite. The computer was similar to the one below.
I did medical transcription from home while in nursing school. The screen was monochrome with green text I believe. I would transcribe operative reports, history and physicals, and consultations for a local hospital. Doing transcription at home allowed me to get in the same number of hours as a full-time job, but I did it after supper in the evenings and usually after everyone had gone to bed. I spent a lot of long nights with IBM!
Fast forward to graduating from nursing school with an associate degree and working full-time as a critical care nurse. Computer use after graduation was just for fun for several years.
The Internet
My first experience with the internet was when I returned to nursing school in 1995 to get my Master’s degree in nursing. I had picked up my BS while working as a critical care nurse a couple of years earlier.
I entered the graduate program at the University of Mississippi, Jackson, MS. Now, that’s about a three-hour drive from home. My experience of graduate school could be a whole other post! But today I want to talk about the internet.
As students, we had to access the Resource Center at the University for certain materials. The only way we could do this from home was via dial-up. We had to have a computer with a modem – new for me! We were given a number to call, which was long-distance. Seems like we had software on a 3.5″ floppy too we had to insert. We connected with the Resource Center via modem and searched for the materials we needed. It was a long-distance call! So you had to hurry and search for your articles, save and print them. It was an ordeal!
I didn’t know what an internet search was until 1994 when a nursing instructor was working on her computer and showed me Yahoo. I wasn’t sure how it worked, but I knew I wanted it!
Anyway, got my Master’s in 1996 and after that signed up for an internet account! I had an actual email! My favorite search engine was InfoSeek. Of course, there was WebCrawler, Lycos, Excite, and Alta Vista. I played games and chatted on Virtual Places and ICQ. Goodness, this is aging me! I promise you I remember the day that I was searching for something and a chat buddy told me to search Google. I had never heard of it!
In those earlier days of the internet, for me anyway, it was such a wealth of information and communication, and of course, it still is.
I have replaced hard drives, added extra RAM, and even changed out a processor in my PC one time! Every few years I would upgrade to a new model with more capacity, a bigger monitor, and more bells, and whistles.
Other than an iPhone and my first iPad, the only experience I had with Apple was a laptop that Carrie got for me. I tried and tried to use it. But I think it was just a mental block. I finally gave up and went back to an HP laptop. HP had typically been my brand of choice. Though I have used Dell, I had rather have an HP.
So I stuck with PC products until about a year ago. My HP desktop crashed and even though it was repaired, I wanted to look at a Mac desktop.
I bit the bullet and got an iMac 21.5″ screen. I love it. Whatever the problem was when I tried the Macbook before, resolved itself this time. Maybe it was that I just gave it more time and patience.
This post isn’t to tell you the technical differences between the Apple computer and a PC, but just so you will know it takes a little getting used to. Keyboard strokes are just a little different, but not that much really.
The file structure is also a little different and I think the PC is a bit simpler, but there are other features that Apple has that make up for it.
Features Important to Me
- I like the fact that there is no big box that has to sit on your desk or under your desk somewhere. Now I know PC’s come as all-in-ones too and I’ve had a couple of those, but I still like the Mac computer better. You have the display, and keyboard and I like to use a mouse myself. When I do work of any sort, you’ll always find me on a desktop. Call me old school. I do work on a MacBook in the living room or on the back porch but for “real” work I go to the desktop.
- Plug and play made easy! All you have to do is attach the electrical cord. No hooking up monitors, keyboards, or anything else. The keyboard and mouse are wireless and they charge by lightning port. No batteries!
- AirDrop. I love this feature! I take pics with my phone and can air drop them to my desktop, iPad, or laptop. It’s so easy. No more cables to connect devices or cards to put in or out. All just touch and go. This is probably my favorite feature.
- Apple is less prone to viruses. All I can tell you is that I haven’t had one since moving over to Apple. I’m not saying it won’t happen.
- You can set the devices to auto-update. With Windows, just as soon as you purchase a new PC, Windows comes out with new software. You’re left always feeling like you’re a step behind if you don’t have the newest latest version of Windows.
Cons
Well, you really can’t talk about the features of an Apple computer and products without discussing some cons, so here we go.
- Apple computers cost more than PCs. It’s not really apples to apples though. Even at a higher cost, you get what you pay for. I have had very good luck with the HP PCs that I’ve purchased in the past so I’m not knocking those. I did pay more for my Mac desktop and MacBook than I’ve ever spent on PCs before, but I don’t regret it.
- Apple computers are harder to find. Well, they used to be anyway. That probably was more of a deciding factor in my not trying an Apple computer because they were not readily available. A computer purchase by me is usually an impulse buy. I do the research on what I want, but when I find it….I want it! So typically I would purchase a PC from Sam’s, Walmart, or Best Buy. Of course, now you can get Apple computers at Best Buy which makes impulse buying easy)))
- The iPad Pro uses a different power adapter than the previous iPad we have at home. I think it’s called a USB-C. I thought it was nice when the iPad and your phone used the same lightning port.
- My iMac desktop doesn’t have a DVD burner. But that’s becoming old technology you think? I know I’ve moved on to online storage since my later computer crash. But, you know once I’m gone, if someone else doesn’t pick up the subscription, all is lost! Some of my stuff has to be archived somehow before then. I just haven’t found the best way to do it yet. Then again, it’s probably just stuff that is important to me….right?
Wrapping it Up!
So if you’ve been thinking about making the switch to an Apple computer….make the plunge!
I love my Apple products. My desktop is an iMac 21.5″
The keyboard doesn’t require batteries! You just charge it right from the computer, the same with the Magic Mouse. The iMac comes with a wireless keyboard and mouse. The keyboard is smaller, so I got the optional one with the numeric pad.
It’s called a Magic Keyboard. It’s still a bit smaller than a typical PC keyboard, it’s about 16.5″ in width but doesn’t take long to get used to.
The newer version of the iMac is 24″ and comes in several different colors and is thinner too. You can get a 27″ also.
My newest iPad is an iPad Pro 12.9″ and I got the optional second-generation Apple Pencil. I’ll have to tell you more about the iPad Pro later and show you more about the Speck case I got for it. By the way, the Speck-Balance Folio Case for the iPad Pro is on sale right now. Marked down from $39.95 to $19.99!
I purchased the iPad Pro to use with Procreate and GoodNotes. If you’ve had experience with either of those apps I would love to hear from you! I’m just getting used to playing with the pencil right now))
My laptop is a 16″MacBook Pro and it’s much thinner and weighs less than any laptop I’ve ever owned.
I use a LapGear Home Office Pro Lap Desk when I’m sitting in a chair or on the sofa working. It has a mouse pad area which is perfect for me. The other option I did for my MacBook was to get a Magic Mouse. Again, I’m old school….I like to work with a mouse)))
Well just so you know, this is not a sponsored post! I’ve been a customer of Best Buy for so long, that they probably say….oh no, here she is again!
However, I have posted some affiliate links! I figured I buy so much from them that I might as well apply to be an affiliate and got accepted!
My affiliate income from any of my posts is not really very much, it’s “fun” money for me and supports my nerdy habits. If you would like to know more about earning affiliate income, I’ll be glad to share what I have learned. Just leave me a comment!
Do you have an Apple computer? What sold you on it?
