[KenS]

Originally Posted by 357

Actually you can get identical specs + Blu-Ray for $1099 made by Lenovo (Formely IBM's laptop/desktop division) and save $600.

IdeaPad Y550
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P8700 (2.53GHz 1066MHz 3MBL2)
4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz SODIMM Memory (2 Dimms)
nVidia Geforce G 210M graphic card with 512MB memory (your post didn't list video memory)
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
Bluetooth
15.6" HD WLED with 1.3M integrated Camera
250GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
Blu-ray/DVD-ROM Combo
Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters: Intel WiFi Link 5100 1x2 (AGN) WLAN
Battery: 6 Cell Lithium-Ion 2.6Ah


OR

You can smoke the Apple's specs this HP for $1424 and still save almost $300

HP DV6T
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-720QM Processor (1.6GHz, 6MB L2 Cache, 1333MHz FSB) QUAD CORE
6.0 GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
500GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection (Prevents fall damage)
1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 230M
15.6" diagonal High Definition LED HP Brightview Widescreen Display (1366x768)
Lightscribe Blu-Ray ROM with SuperMulti DVD+/-R/RW Double Layer
Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
Intel Wireless-N Mini-card with Bluetooth
6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit


Heck for $300 to $600 you can enjoy a lot of fine cigars while marvelling at the MacBook owners shiny aluminum shell. With all that leftover money you might even be able to buy a laptop bag with some padding incase you drop your "inferior" plastic laptop. Although you may just opt to refrain from dropping it.

Don't forget your antivirus subscription and internet "security" At least now you are talking about things that are comparable. I was struggling with comparing a sub-$500 machine to a MacBook Pro.

I wouldn't argue that there is some price premium paid for a difference in "it just works" kind of quality, and the ease of use and tight integration of things like iTunes, iPhoto, iDVD, iMovie, etc.

Certainly a judgement call on the value of that, but again, you are now making a more reasonable comparison for somebody who is genuinely looking for advice. I use both types of machines on a daily basis (they sit side-by-side on my desk), and I would never, ever recommend Windoze over Mac OS.