Went shopping for Mac last Saturday. Since there are two Apple shops in the Windsor House, Causeway Bay, Tin and I decided that’s where we should go.
The shop was quite empty. Customers wise as well as product wise. They only had a 15″ PowerBook, a 14″ iBook and a 12″ iBook on display. I can’t remember seeing any iMac or PowerMac there. Sales were quite inattentive, which I don’t mind too much as I hate those who stand beside you and yell “feel free to look” at you every 5 seconds. However, these guys were quite unhelpful when I asked them about other models. They simply said they are not available and that was that! Kind of difficult to make a decision despite the fact that I have been studying the Apple website for a few months yet I was still torn between the 12″ iBook and PB, the 14″ iB, the 15″PB, and the 17″ iMac. Not to mention my original thought of the 17″ PB.
Down at the other end of the mall on the same floor, Designer Group Co is another Apple shop. On one wall inside, they had a 14″ iBook, a 15″ Powerbook, a 17″ iMac, and a 17″ PB on display. Opposite to the wall, they had a 23″ Cinema Display driven by a PowerMac and then a 20″ iMac was also on display next to the Cinema Display. All units were powered on. Hey, that’s about as full a line-up as I could hope for right in front of me.
As I am short on desk space at home, the 17″ PB was the obvious choice almost at an instant, with the 15″ PB not too far behind. When I tested the speakers on both PB, even though the 15″’s sounded very good, it was clearly no match for those built-in the 17″. They both have the best sound on any portables that I have ever heard and even better than my cheap external speakers at work! The 17″’s sound almost Hi-Fi like.
My mind was made up when they confirmed that the 17″ PB was in stock, so I walked out with one.
Spent all evening Saturday and all day yesterday prepping and learning. Never got tired of looking at the fine screen. Which is a wonderful experience as opposed to the eye stinging effect I got when I first turned on my dad’s old Topcon 15″ LCD which is what I am using right this moment at work and still not used to watching it.
If the switch from the work database to a Mac both hardware and software wise works out, I’ll consider getting a iMac for work as well.
WhaUSay?!