Alternatives to Macbook Pro?

Question

Hi all,
First of all, I am a huge fan of Apple products and own a Macbook pro purchased in 2007. I've never even imagined using a computer that is not made by Apple despite the fact that I use Windows quite a lot because of all the architecture softwares (D*mn it, you Autodesk!) . Here I am, looking for an alternative laptop to a Macbook pro. My belief has been that there's no alternative to the Macbook pro, so I didn't know where to start. After surfing around dell, sony, etc, I thought it would be fool of me not to ask you guys who may know well both Mac and other laptops.
My beloved macbook pro's battery said goodbye to me, but I didn't want to buy an one-hundred-dollar new battery because I've been thinking I need a more powerful laptop anyway. The new unibody Macbook pro 17" looked really good, but I found out that it has a built-in battery, and that Apple doesn't even sell a battery separately. I'll have to bring the laptop to the apple store and let them change the battery. (Mr.jobs, I can do the job. Please let me do it myself, saving some dollars. By the time the battery's depleted, the warranty is expired anyway!) Also, Apple is so closed that I can't trust any third party products for Apple.
After buying a $3000 laptop, the customer has to pay $200 every two-so year without any legitimate option? What is this, am I a drug addict, and they are the only drug dealer in the town? I feel like they think that their customers are all moronic zealots. (yeah, I was actually.)
Please let me hear what you guys think. Any word will be appreciated. You can give me some other options to purchase, or you can call me an idiot who doesn't know anything about the laptop and tell me to stick to the macbook pro--please don't forget to give me a reason to stick around the apple store besides calling me an idiot, though.

Answer 1

I understand not really trusting Apple's hard numbers, but what you can trust is that the new batteries will last longer than the previous ones. Perhaps it may not be 3x as long, depending on how you use the battery, but it should be +at least+ 2x as long.
I hear people complaining that the new battery does never last more than about 4 hours under normal circumstances.
Well, it does depend what normal circumstances are defined as. With my MBP (old, user-replaceable battery rated for 5 hours and 300 charge cycles) I can still get 4.5 hours after 1 year of use, with WiFi off and the screen brightness at the lowest setting. That's fine for me if I'm taking notes in class. For others, if they use more intensive apps, the number could be lower. Still, I can't imagine getting worse battery life than any PC when carrying out the same tasks.
I'd checked the built-in battery for 17" costs $180.
My mistake entirely. I did read that you were interested in the 17" but had the 15" in mind when I typed my reply! Sorry about that, you're right!
Obviously you'd want to do research into the third-party solutions but unless you find a large number of people complaining about them I would see no reason not to trust them, especially if the price differential is large. If you're saving $20 though, I'd go with the Apple battery.
However, I really come to hate the way Apple treats the customer
I've had the exact opposite experience. All my Apple gear works perfectly and when I did have issues in the past they've been very quick to take care of me and have the malfunctioning product repaired or replaced. You may be able to find a PC manufacturer that is better at this than Apple, or you may not. I personally doubt you will, but I don't have much experience with PCs, admittedly.
--Travis