What’s best for me, an Apple Mac, Chromebook or Windows PC?

Computing has changed radically in recent years with laptop sales far outstripping those of desktop models. Their internal parts are also far more standardized, with key price points met by different types of the same processor, and varying levels of memory or storage. 

One age-old question that remains is should I get an Apple Mac or a Windows 10 PC? The question is more relevant as the Apple brand has moved on from a designer niche to global appeal thanks to design innovation and the popularity of iPhones, iPads and Apple Watches. 

The world of Windows-powered PCs, on the other hand, has recovered from the dismal designs of Windows Vista, Windows 8 and early Windows 10 operating systems into a more appealing package with Office and cloud services. Entering the race as a relatively recent arrival Chromebooks are a third way, offering the power of the cloud and Google services across a growing range of notebooks. 

Windows or Mac?

Ultimately, you can do all the same tasks on a Windows 10 or Apple Mac PC, but if you already have other Apple devices, a Mac might be the way to go as they sync data and services better. Even so, a Windows 10 PC will work well with any smartphone and other devices, but Chromebooks are more limited in their choice of applications, so there are tradeoffs to make depending on your budget. 

Notebook or Desktop?

You can still buy traditional desktop PCs, but their size, noise and general ugliness have limited them to gamers and power users. More compact options like mini-PCs or the Mac Mini are available if you have a screen to connect them to. 

Flatscreen all-in-ones like the Apple iMac are more appealing if you work from home or have a comfortable home office environment to work in. Note that Apple Macs can run Windows 10 operating systems using an app called Boot Camp. 

For everyone else, laptops are more practical, thanks to their portability and the lower-power processors in modern units that give them longer battery life and mean the casing does not heat up. 

If the idea of being fixed to a desk, or having wires trailing around the room isn’t for you, then a notebook solves those problems with excellent portability, so you can work at college, the coffee shop, home or on the train. 

What’s the best notebook for me?

Notebooks come in three basic classes; budget, mid-range and high-specification. Budget models start from £180 typically and are fine for basic tasks such as office work, web browsing, social media and playing music. 

Mid-range notebooks come in at around £300-700 and provide better quality keyboards, screens, casing and more processor power for some light gaming, HD media playback, and more intensive tasks. 

Premium notebooks cost upwards of £800 and are often desktop-class components crammed into a notebook case for gaming, high-end work like video editing and other tasks. Apple MacBooks come in at the higher end, but you are paying from premium performance and design. 

There are many more models with varying specifications, but the rule with any PC purchase is to buy the most powerful processor you can afford. It is easy to upgrade storage through SD cards or external hard drives, but you are stuck with the processor until your next notebook purchase.