Mac vs PC for graphic design (for my sister)

[Cy-Fy]

So hello guys I'm asking this in behalf of my sister, she is gonna study graphic design in uni in about a couple months and obviously she needs a new pc as she only has a crappy laptop.

Now she doent know almost anything about computer hardware so she doesnt know the advantages of a custom pc, however as everyone else at some point she is interested in macs cause that is what most people use for that buiseness and because it is a quality product with warranty etc. So yeah guys my question is what fo you think would be better for her and will last her all her studies which is 3 years and being able to never crash or freeze at all..

Of course I would go for a PC cause I know that in about five years I could change some components and have it good as new but she doesnt know ANYTHING about computer hardware so yeah guys what do you think??

Note: a reason why she wants mac is cause in tv, big companies and universities they use macs and they must use the best of the best right??? And another thing is that a custom pc doesnt really have an easy warranty and is not as plug n play and easy as macs if you know what I mean,,, anyway there are many pros and cons but what do you think???

Thanks very much for your help ;)

[Volbet]

What programs will she be using? If she is going to us the Adobe Suite i recommend PC, because the Apple version of Adobe Suite is horrible (In my opninion anyway). 

[CoolBeans]

You could build a hackintosh if she really wants OSx

[megadarkwood]

Unfortunately. I will have to recommend an iMac for a desktop but for a laptop a windows one

 

EDIT: A hackintosh is an option also.

[Scia]

Unfortunately. I will have to recommend an iMac for a desktop but for a laptop a windows one

 

I'd go the opposite way, a nice workstation PC and a Mac Laptop. For graphics design, I guess it's less of a hassle going with the flow ^^'

[Xaring]

What programs will she be using? If she is going to us the Adobe Suite i recommend PC, because the Apple version of Adobe Suite is horrible (In my opninion anyway). 

 

Adobe Photoshop does not work on Windows 8... 

 

Personally, i use Mac for all my graphical/sound work and PC is just there for gaming...

 

Edit: http://theitbros.com/windows-8-and-photoshop-cs6-black-screen-flickering/ it does not always solve (in my case I just cannot get the zoom tool to work... it is horrible)

[megadarkwood]

Adobe Photshot does not work on Windows 8... 

What? Im using photoshop on windows 8?

[danieldsklein]

I bought a Macbook air, it is not terrible but it isnt great either, I use it only for Smoke(Autodesk Smoke) all the rest I use my workstation PC, it is just so much faster than any mac you can buy, even if someone argues that OSX is faster than windows when you throw double the processing power for the same price you cant really compete with a DIY PC

[Volbet]

Adobe Photshot does not work on Windows 8... 

Works for me. I haven't really played much with Photoshop since I subscribed to Creative Cloud, but Premier, Audition and illustrator work fine

[CornOnJacob]

Getting a real "workstation" grade Mac is ridiculously expensive. I would recommend getting a PC. It will be easier to upgrade the parts later on with a PC, and certain companies (e.g. EVGA) have great warranties and customer support. I can't comment on software though.

[Xaring]

What? Im using photoshop on windows 8?

 

 

Works for me. I haven't really played much with Photoshop since I subscribed to Creative Cloud, but Premier, Audition and illustrator work fine

 

There are serious failures in Win 8  photoshop. Mine is just one of them. 

[megadarkwood]

There are serious failures in Win 8  photoshop. Mine is just one of them. 

I have not ran into any problems

[Xaring]

I have not ran into any problems

 

I have in 2 out of 7 installations (the retail installation worked alright). I was able to solve one of them, but my zoom tool still does strange things...

 

By the way I am talking about CS6, not Creative Suite Cloud(new one).

[megadarkwood]

I have in 2 out of 7 installations (the retail installation worked alright). I was able to solve one of them, but my zoom tool still does strange things...

 

By the way I am talking about CS6, not Creative Suite Cloud(new one).

I had both and no problems at all. its just you

[criso8]

I have in 2 out of 7 installations (the retail installation worked alright). I was able to solve one of them, but my zoom tool still does strange things...

 

By the way I am talking about CS6, not Creative Suite Cloud(new one).

Ahh. and I thought I was the only one. It does weird stuff to me every once in a while too. I wouldn't say it is terrible though.

[Cy-Fy]

Guys I cant quote all of you but I have read all answers,, she will be using photoshop the most but she will also use illustrator a lot.... as for those who say that some companies offer great warranties, does that apply if you buy off amazon for example?? Because I have always thought that a custom pc doesnt really have warranty unless you buy it from pcspecialist etc but that defeats the purpose of building your own pc anyway soo yeah

[ProGearUk]

Basically Mac are overpriced, underpowered and incompatible. This is just the truth. You are much bertt off going with a PC because of the much larger amount of stuff you can run on it. Also you will get more power/performance for your price and you will not be waiting hours for things to render if it is Premiere Pro kind of programs. Mac are just not up to it. People buy them because others say they are good when they are just not and they do not have the power to be efficient workstations at all.

[Cy-Fy]

What programs will she be using? If she is going to us the Adobe Suite i recommend PC, because the Apple version of Adobe Suite is horrible (In my opninion anyway).

  

You could build a hackintosh if she really wants OSx

  

Unfortunately. I will have to recommend an iMac for a desktop but for a laptop a windows one

 

EDIT: A hackintosh is an option also.

  

I'd go the opposite way, a nice workstation PC and a Mac Laptop. For graphics design, I guess it's less of a hassle going with the flow ^^'

  

Adobe Photoshop does not work on Windows 8... 

 

Personally, i use Mac for all my graphical/sound work and PC is just there for gaming...

 

Edit: http://theitbros.com/windows-8-and-photoshop-cs6-black-screen-flickering/ it does not always solve (in my case I just cannot get the zoom tool to work... it is horrible)

  

I bought a Macbook air, it is not terrible but it isnt great either, I use it only for Smoke(Autodesk Smoke) all the rest I use my workstation PC, it is just so much faster than any mac you can buy, even if someone argues that OSX is faster than windows when you throw double the processing power for the same price you cant really compete with a DIY PC

  

Getting a real "workstation" grade Mac is ridiculously expensive. I would recommend getting a PC. It will be easier to upgrade the parts later on with a PC, and certain companies (e.g. EVGA) have great warranties and customer support. I can't comment on software though.

  

Ahh. and I thought I was the only one. It does weird stuff to me every once in a while too. I wouldn't say it is terrible though.

see my previous message please

[megadarkwood]

Maybe give us a budget? and tell us if you want a desktop or laptop.

[Volbet]

Guys I cant quote all of you but I have read all answers,, she will be using photoshop the most but she will also use illustrator a lot.... as for those who say that some companies offer great warranties, does that apply if you buy off amazon for example?? Because I have always thought that a custom pc doesnt really have warranty unless you buy it from pcspecialist etc but that defeats the purpose of building your own pc anyway soo yeah

You have warranty on the individual parts of a custom PC. Some warrantys are with the manufacture: EVGA, Corsair ect. While some are with the retailer. As for the Apple warranty. I have heard that they offer a better than average warranty in some countrys, but where I live they need to change their policys becaus it didn't live up to the country standard. 

 

If she is going to use the Adobe Suite I was going to recommed a PC, but apparently some people have had problems with Windows 8. And I guess my dislike of the Apple Adobe Suite is more a problem of learning new things then it is a problem with the suite itself. 

 

Edit: A very important thing is to find out what the school teaches in. if the school is only teaching graphic design with Mac software, it will be very hard to keep up with the rest of the class if she is using a PC. 

[Cy-Fy]

Maybe give us a budget? and tell us if you want a desktop or laptop.

budget isnt really a thing bu maybe around 2000£ and probably a desktop 

You have warranty on the individual parts of a custom PC. Some warrantys are with the manufacture: EVGA, Corsair ect. While some are with the retailer. As for the Apple warranty. I have heard that they offer a better than average warranty in some countrys, but where I live they need to change their policys becaus it didn't live up to the country standard. 

 

If she is going to use the Adobe Suite I was going to recommed a laptop, but apparently some people have had problems with Windows 8. And I guess my dislike of the Apple Adobe Suite is more a problem of learning new things then it is a problem with the suite itself. 

 

Edit: A very important thing is to find out what the school teaches in. if the school is only teaching graphic design with Mac software, it will be very hard to keep up with the rest of the class if she is using a PC.

thanks very much and is there a way to know if the component has a warranty of the retailer or the manufacturer,

also if she is going with pc what do you think of this build http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/user/Hawk/saved/29jP

[danieldsklein]

The warranty for a build pc is each individual part, but normally is much longer than a pre-built or a laptop.

And as volbet said look at her school, I bought a mac only because my teachers prefer and it is easier to use the same then finding the differences, because there always are. And my graphic design friend had to buy a pc because he had a 3dsmax class, and even if he installed parallels only ultra expensive macs can properly run 3dsmax

[danieldsklein]

The warranty for a build pc is each individual part, but normally is much longer than a pre-built or a laptop.

And as volbet said look at her school, I bought a mac only because my teachers prefer and it is easier to use the same then finding the differences, because there always are. And my graphic design friend had to buy a pc because he had a 3dsmax class, and even if he installed parallels only ultra expensive macs can properly run 3dsmax

[megadarkwood]

budget isnt really a thing bu maybe around 2000£ and probably a desktop  thanks very much and is there a way to know if the component has a warranty of the retailer or the manufacturer,

also if she is going with pc what do you think of this build http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/user/Hawk/saved/29jP

I would add a graphics tablet and change the cooler to the Evo 212

[Volbet]

budget isnt really a thing bu maybe around 2000£ and probably a desktop  thanks very much and is there a way to know if the component has a warranty of the retailer or the manufacturer,

also if she is going with pc what do you think of this build http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/user/Hawk/saved/29jP

Usually when a warranty is longer than what is the standard in your country it is with the manufacture. Then you have to register the serial number and the day of purchase with them, and then theu will cover you. 

 

The build looks good. However: There is no reason for a 1000W PSU. Go with a 600-650W. And if she is going to use Creative Cloud I recommend going with a AMD card, since the Open CL support is faster than CUDA. Everything else looks solid.