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Wintel laptop - similar to Macbook air

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  1. #1

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    Wintel laptop - similar to Macbook air

    I've seen a few of them around whenever I've visited the various computer centers but never looked at them in detail. Before I start digging, I wanted to get some feedback from the collective wisdom here.

    What model/make would you recommend to investigate further?
    few requirements: Prefer Win7, 13 or 15inch screen, thin/light/no-disk (similar to Macbook air)

    Any suggestions?


  2. #2

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    Buy a Macbook Air, buy a copy of Windows. Install Windows using boot camp. Best of both worlds.


  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by mrdollars:
    Buy a Macbook Air, buy a copy of Windows. Install Windows using boot camp. Best of both worlds.
    Does this work with win 8?

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    Quote Originally Posted by pin:
    Does this work with win 8?
    Yes, but of course you're not going to get the touchscreen.

    Personally, because I don't run anything intensive on the Windows side anyway (just classic games), I use Parallels on my MBPr.

    One tip for those that need to run legacy mac software but are using recent versions of OSX, install Parallels and then install the old versions of the OS to run the legacy software.

    Sent from my GT-N7100 using GeoClicks mobile app

  5. #5

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    Quote Originally Posted by mrdollars:
    Buy a Macbook Air, buy a copy of Windows. Install Windows using boot camp. Best of both worlds.
    While not a bad idea, it will be expensive due to Apple markups.
    I was under the impression that I could get a Wintel laptop at much lower cost than Apple hardware...

  6. #6

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    My Lenovo Yoga (first iteration) strikes me as pretty similar to Macbooks in many ways. Alu case, design, SSD as standard. I happen to detest the machine, but I detest Macbooks for pretty much the same reasons so if you like Mac design you'd probably like a Yoga.

    The Yoga is on it's second generation. It comes in 11 and 13 inch screen sizes . It also happens to flip into a tablet and have a touchscreen.

    Last edited by jgl; 05-03-2014 at 02:38 PM. Reason: typo
    HowardCoombs and imparanoic like this.

  7. #7

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    The new Macbook Air's have a 9 hour battery. They are really well made and I think HK is one of the cheapest places you can buy them.

    I have a Macbook Air and I also installed Windows 7 (using the supplied Bootcamp software). It's dead easy and all the drivers etc are supplied by Apple. I can't vouch for Windows 8, because I haven't tried that, but I'm sure its possible.

    Parallels is great but you are effectively running to operating systems, so you are not getting the best performance from your machine. With Bootcamp you get a true Windows laptop and a Mac at the same time.

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  8. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by HowardCoombs:
    While not a bad idea, it will be expensive due to Apple markups.
    I was under the impression that I could get a Wintel laptop at much lower cost than Apple hardware...
    Nope, the ultra thin ones are similar prices. This cute Samsung baby is about HK$9000

    http://www.samsung.com/us/business/c...NP900X4D-A04US

    If you want POWER you can consider the Macbook Pro, they are really thin nowdays.

    I suggest you get your close combat gear and check it out in a Apple Store.

    BTW, I find it highly unethical to pretend you got kids just to get the Apple ~10% educational discount that they give on some of the hardware. High markups are unethical too. What a dilemma!!!
    HowardCoombs likes this.

  9. #9

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    If you get an Apple factor in the extended warranty. Costs almost 2 grand but it's still probably worthwhile if you are going to rely on the machine a lot. When I checked with Lenovo, they had a similar extended warranty for the Yoga (actually it was better as it included accidental breakage).

    Last edited by jgl; 05-03-2014 at 02:41 PM.

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by mrdollars:
    I have a Macbook Air and I also installed Windows 7 (using the supplied Bootcamp software). It's dead easy and all the drivers etc are supplied by Apple. I can't vouch for Windows 8, because I haven't tried that, but I'm sure its possible
    After reading this and researching a bit more, I'm leaning more and more towards buying a new MBAir...
    Trance Omega likes this.

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