Backstory/Context: My wife is an aspiring writer and wants to self-publish a novel that she’s been writing. Currently she’s typing on my old Asus ROG gaming laptop that I no longer use. It’s (barely) running Windows Vista, it was built with Crysis in mind (really shows you how old it is), it’s bulky & heavy, and the battery is completely dead (no longer charges)

Originally, I wanted to get her a MacBook because she can switch between MacOS and Windows (via Boot Camp) to get the best of both worlds, that’s until I found out Boot Camp no longer works/exists. I also felt sticking with the Apple ecosystem might be better in the long run, allowing her to sync her iPhone, use iMessage/FaceTime/iCloud etc… when she’s not near her phone, better laptop design & portability.

I’ve been using MacBooks since Leopard-era and have experience with Apple computers before (candy colored iMac and 5200LC) so I know my way around an Apple keyboard & the shortcuts.

She, on the other hand, has only used Windows.

Definitely looking for laptop recommendations in general. Sure, it might be bias to post this in an Apple community but as an Apple user, I’d like to hear other opinions. Maybe there’s a Windows laptop with a similar feel/design of a MacBook? Perhaps the MacBook is the better choice?

Might be worth mentioning that I’ve heard horror stories about people finding spyware on Windows laptops (I think Dell/Alienware was the big one) and I’m totally out of the laptop game.

  • bob_wiley@lemmy.worldEnglish
    131·
    1 year ago

    I’d make sure she’s involved in the decision.

    A MacBook Air would be more than adequate for a writer, and with her already being on an iPhone, there is a lot of benefits there. But you have to make sure she likes typing on the keyboard and is ok moving about the system. Some people are up for learning something new, while others simply get frustrated. Only she can help answer where her head would be with that.

    On the Windows side, Thinkpads have the best keyboards hands down. Always have. That being said, she should still test out typing on any Windows laptop she might be looking at. There are so pretty bad ones out there. Test out the trackpad as well, those are usually pretty bad too, but I’ve heard some companies have finally started to figure it out, though Apple is still the gold standard for trackpads.

    On the security side of things. That’s always something that concerns me with Windows laptops. Thinkpad is bad my Lenovo, and Lenovo has made several very questionable choice which have really destroyed my trust in them. I’m not sure I ever had much to begin with, but the Thinkpad brand was extremely strong when IBM sold it to them, which is the only reason I haven’t completely written them off.

    Talk to her about her preferred places to write too. Right now it sounds like she’s tethered to the wall, but would she prefer to be out and about when using her laptop? If so, battery life, weight, and size all come into play. MacBooks have killer battery life, some Windows PCs are trying to catch up, but it’s something to pay more attention to there. Big screens can be nice, but they don’t fit as easily into as many bags, so that is something to be considered as well. Apple has a couple different sizes of the MacBook Air now, and of course PCs come in all sizes.

    I’m not sure if she’d be up for it, but the iPad could be an option on the table as well. Of course, once the keyboard cover is added the size and weight become pretty comparable to a MacBook Air, so it’s more about workflow than portability.