Why I May Switch to a Macbook for my Next Computer

A few years ago, I probably wouldn’t have believed that I would actually consider buying a Macintosh for my next computer. On the surface, Mac seems to be overpriced, underpowered (on spec sheets), and overall not the best choice, especially for someone with enough technical knowledge to install and use a Linux and Windows dual boot. However, since the dawn of Windows 8, I’ve found that every version of windows that was released within the past decade has clearly demonstrated that Microsoft has not designed an operating system with its users in mind. Instead, they have gone with a design that best suits their profit margins, shareholders, and other affiliated companies.

To elaborate more on this point, the integration of the Windows Store and Windows apps has never worked well for me as an end user. Between an Asus Transformer Book T100 running Windows 8.1, an HP DC7800 CMT running Windows 10 Professional, a few laptops running Windows 10 Home and Pro, and my principal desktop running Windows 10, every time I’ve run Windows Store apps (even integrated ones like Photos, Xbox Music, and plenty of other core apps), I have encountered problem after problem. Between apps returning a blank black screen, apps not even launching, apps trying to launch and then locking up my computer, and other issues, I can see that the whole idea of bringing apps to Windows as if it were a mobile device operating system, is a half-baked idea that has never really seen refinement. Then there’s the issues with Windows Updates. I have had and know many friends and family members who run or have run Windows 10 and have had their entire systems brought down just by the latest bi-annual updates, or even the latest feature upgrades. From issues like your computer not displaying any text whatsoever, to missing files, broken programs and apps, black and blue screens of death, corrupt user profiles, and many many more, I’ve lost a lot of faith in Microsoft and have had to reinstall Windows way more often than one should reinstall the same operating system on the same machine.

My solution to this initially was to go with a highly specialized edition of Windows that was extremely difficult to track down (but I have some really great friends that were able to help me out). This version was guaranteed not to recieve any OS breaking updates, only security patches. However, the obvious elephant in the room here is Windows 11. Microsoft revealed that they will be ending official support for Windows 10 Home and Pro in 2025, which has me concerned that even though my version is guaranteed security patches long after that date, I may not be able to install any of the latest programs on my OS because most developers will inevitably drop support for Windows 10 in favor of Windows 11 when official support from Microsoft drops off at the standard consumer level.

Why wouldn’t I want to upgrade to Windows 11 and give Microsoft another shot you might ask. I did manage to get my hands on the leaked copy of Windows 11 and I tested that out in a Virtual Machine. I had intended to do an article on that topic before the launch of Windows 11, however, I had a lot of other things going on and I’m working in a different field at the moment. But I was disappointed to find that Facebook Messenger was preinstalled by default and upon reading the release notes, I did notice that one of the requirments for laptops to run Windows 11 is that it have an HD front facing webcam. Without going too much into how intrusive Facebook is when it comes to spyware (I have an Oculus and the software that goes along with it requires 18 different passthroughs in my Firewall along with 5 different processes to run when online and only 2 when offline to do the same things), I simply do not trust Facebook and do not want any part of it integrated into any part of my Operating System. Every time I buy a new Android Phone, one of the first things I do is uninstall Facebook, then load up ADB and sleuth through the list of hidden installed applications to snuff out and remove all of Facebook’s insidious backdoors.

Furthermore, Microsoft has made the ever so popular descision to push all 2016 and older hardware off a cliff and into obsolecence (unless you opt for a full Linux installation or plan a restoration project). I understand that TPM 2.0 is necessary to keep your system secure against modern attacks and that virtualization is key to isolating programs, but I still can’t shake the feeling that Microsoft has banded up with hardware manufacturers to force people into upgrading their computer hardware when their current machines are otherwise more than capable of handling their day to day tasks.

In addition to this, Microsoft seems to be very wishy washy about literally anything they do. They claimed that Windows 10 would be the final version of Windows, yet they’re coming out with a whole new Operating System dubbed Windows 11 and they’re killing off machines that are only 5 years old. Apple on the other hand seems to pretty much guarantee support for up to 11 years on its Macbook Pro lineup and 8 years on its cheaper Macbook Air laptops. I’m also considering alternatives such as the Pinebook and System 76, but I do still want my daily driver to have full compatibility with a lot of the software I enjoy using in Windows. It would be nice to go back to one operating system instead of having to dual boot Linux and Windows and switch between the two anytime I want to run a Windows/Mac only program.

I may still upgrade my desktop to the latest graphics when this GPU shortage finally ends and I may consider another SSD to sideload Windows 11 alongside Ubuntu Unity and Windows 10 and slowly work on migrating over to Windows 11. However, when it comes to a daily driver, I want my next laptop purchase to last me for a long time and Apple’s 11 year guarantee will definately help me get the most out of that machine. I really love the appearance of Big Sur and the transparency throughout the interface and I hear that the new M1 Macbooks are real powerhouses. Sure, it may cost more than a comparitive Windows Laptop and I may be sacrificing a lot in terms of gaming, but I have to be honest with myself; while I do love PC gaming, my desktop and Xbox are more than adequate and I already have a gaming library on my desktop of 1.2 TB, so I’m pretty much covered and have no real desire to buy new titles constantly when I have so many that I have not even started or finished yet. I also have to focus more on self improvement and other aspects of my life, so I likely won’t be gaming too much in the future and the majority of gaming I will want to do will probably be on weekends when I’m home anyway. I originally hadn't planned to jump over to Mac OS, but I feel that the latest release of Windows 11 might have just been the final push I needed to reconsider my daily driver!

I hope you enjoyed this article. If you’re interested in reading more, you can check out some of my older blog posts and you can keep up to date with my latest posts on my News Feed on the Home Page.