If the description fits, this is my true experience with the Mac, with no connection to Windows, especially after that long history between us. It’s a complete transition with no turning back, and until today, it’s been almost a week without even touching the Start menu. That’s what prompted me to share my experience with you, especially after encouragement from more than one person and follower, to present it from my perspective. But before you read the details, keep this in mind: Steve Jobs is not my father, brother, cousin, or even my aunt. Also, I don’t own any shares in Apple, nor have I ever worked for them. So, everything I write here is a personal experience, and every word is based on my experience only. Whether you love the company or not, don’t judge my words with anything beyond “personal experience and personal opinion only.”
Apple and I Previously
I remember the last time I worked with a Mac, and it was about a year ago. It was on a white MacBook, and my work was limited to Photoshop only. I didn’t have the chance to fully explore the system. It was a simple yet exhausting experience because I was working with shortcuts that were entirely different from what I was used to in Windows for many years, not to mention my sad school years. At that time, the administration had brought in two colorful iMacs. The devices were mainly for display, with students passing by them in awe of their simplicity and design. The focus of those who had the honor of trying them was on the absence of the “refresh” button on the desktop. I don’t know why they didn’t focus on other features, probably because each student’s usage time was limited to a minute for exploration and bragging about the administration’s purchase.
At that time, I saw the Mac as something strange, very elegant, and extremely expensive. I knew that Steve Jobs was the CEO of Apple, but I didn’t know anything else about him except that he was of Syrian descent. He was a role model used by one of our brave lecturers. This was around 2004, as I recall… until we reached the current year, and I started thinking about getting a Mac, though I never seriously considered it. It was merely a role model for me, a source of admiration for advertising and marketing, nothing more.
The important thing is that I finally decided to get a MacBook Pro. I hesitated a bit, thinking about getting an iMac instead, but then I realized that I spend most of my day on a laptop, and switching to a desktop wouldn’t be easy, especially since I might need to work from anywhere, and the desktop would only serve as an assistant for certain tasks.
The great thing here is that there is no official store or authorized distributor. The iStore here is fake and useless, and the shops selling Macs can simply be described as clueless, especially when the store manager confidently recommended a white MacBook, even after I repeatedly told him about my specialization. He insisted that it’s still being sold, then suggested a Sony Vaio instead. But, thank God, I finally got a 13-inch MacBook Pro and upgraded the RAM to 8 GB. I chose the 13-inch for several reasons, the most important being my constant mobility, especially after suffering with my previous laptop.
First Impressions
As a dedicated Apple follower, even without owning one of their computers (besides the iPhone and iPad), I know all the shapes and details of their devices, small and large, everything about them, even the boxes they come in.
Despite that, my impression of the packaging was that it’s stunning in its simplicity, especially the small size of the box and its elegant simplicity, limited to:
1. Charger and charging cable (I didn’t know what the other one was for)
2. A gorgeous catalog with only the word “hello” on its cover
3. A small envelope containing a cloth with the Apple logo for cleaning the device, and Apple stickers
4. And, of course, the device itself!
My Impression of the Device
The first thing you’ll notice when you take out the MacBook is the quality of the materials used in its construction. The power button at the top immediately caught my attention, followed by the backlit keyboard, and most importantly, the display’s precision and color quality. It’s absolutely stunning, as if it was my first time seeing a Mac. I was truly amazed by every detail and aspect of the device. Even the magnetic charging cable connection is impressive.
The Problems I Faced
Of course, we all know by now that Mac doesn’t accept Windows file extensions (exe), so it’s a given and somewhat strange for new Mac users to feel “restricted” at first.
I got mixed up with all the device’s keys, from Ctrl and Alt to the brightness adjustment keys. I kept confusing the keyboard backlight with the screen brightness.
Now let’s talk about the major problem that initially killed the excitement… Photoshop. Yes, I installed it, opened a new document, and started working on some basic things, only to find the performance worse than anyone could imagine, like working with a 400 MHz processor, 256 MB of RAM, and a 16 MB integrated graphics card (note: those were the specs of my first computer).
And for some reason, it never occurred to me to search the internet. I kept reinstalling it multiple times until I finally decided to search online and found out it’s a global issue that can be fixed simply by deleting two fonts and disabling the font display feature. Thank God, I was then able to enjoy the seamless performance of Photoshop and Illustrator together. I was amazed by the performance, so I decided to push it further by running 25 programs in the background, including Photoshop, Illustrator, Excel, Word, etc. I opened a Photoshop document measuring 50 cm by 70 cm with a resolution of 120 cm and worked on it smoothly, even with all those programs running in the background. I was constantly switching between them, waiting for an issue to arise.
Yes, some may tell me that all this information is basic, and we’ve heard it many times before, and some of you have experienced it. But a personal experience is entirely different, and it truly surprises you, especially if you’re coming from a Windows background.
Note: You might feel something similar to a smoker trying to quit. Don’t worry, it’ll fade away by the fourth or fifth day.
So far, I haven’t encountered any issues other than a black screen once on the first day. I believe the cause was Photoshop.
Keywords
These are the things I love about the device, summarized in simple and quick words: device design, backlit keyboard, bright screen, glowing Apple logo at the back, the black key color, the size of the touchpad, “MacBook Pro” text on the screen, build materials, the device’s box and everything in it, system performance, attention to detail in everything, and having a cup of Nescafé nearby.
Finally…
I love Apple, and this might make me see and say things about it that others may not see or appreciate. So, in this post, I’m simply sharing my personal opinion and impression, hoping to provide useful insights to those who might benefit from it and enjoyment to those who love the company.