Would you recommend Macbook Pro?

Question

Hi folks,
I've been an owner of an iBook ('snow' model) for about 5 years and I'm in the market for a replacement computer. My past experiences with the iBook have been stellar, it's never had a major problem (there are some minor gripes btw). However because of the tiny screen size, I've sworn off of buying another 'non-pro' apple notebook.
I mainly use my computer for typing papers and surfing the web and occasional photo editing. I just want something that will last me a good number of years and still be usable. Would you recommend the macbook pro?
iBook Dual USB/ G3 500   Mac OS X (10.3.9)   'Airmac = Airport'

Answer 1

artfart (Josh):
My reply may be a little late but I thought I'd throw it in just the same. There are some very good replies here, especially those from Digital Dude and cgerrells. My apologies for what will likely be a lengthy reply because I have yet to share my story with this community. Perhaps now is the time.
I would certainly recommend a Macbook Pro to anybody that had the budget, was looking for a near-desktop replacement computer, and was into prosumer-level capability for an audio and video editing (and similar duty) workhorse. This could be for anything from a hobby-level to professional level or both. Mine is a 15-incher with 1GB (needs to bump to 2) and the 7200RPM 100GB HDD. I tried BootCamp, which was very good, but I hated restarting. I decided to run with the Parallels Beta, purchased the pre-release license, and now that it is released, I haven't looked back. I absolutely LOVE it. My XP-only stuff is great. Some people still have issues with Parallels and some people have some lingering problems with the MBP itself. But I am fortunate, I guess. For now, this is my second MBP (first one was DoA), and I am very, very happy with it.
My very, very long story. Skip it, if you like:
I too was once a hardcore PC-only user. Never would an Apple grace the insides of my home or office. I could never consider the artsy-fartsy-ness of a Mac, no matter how well they were made or how good the customer service was supposed to be. They were just too expensive and too exclusive. I was basically a PC snob, much like many Mac users are Mac snobs, you know? I was/am not a PC novice, either. IT Pro doesn't exactly describe my profession; it's not exactly that simple. I have more than a decade of experience in MIS and a graduate degree but I'm more on the high end of my company's IT shop. MS SQL and management and stuff like that. So I was a Windows guy through and through. I do audio and video editing both for a hobby and semi-professionally. Digital photography is the same kind of deal for me. But I did all that on the PC just fine. My house was like a server farm. I had 4 or 5 PCs at any one time. There were even a few Linux distros just for fun. Windows 2003 domain for testing with Exchange 2003 in there for good measure. I guess there was a Toshiba laptop or two.
Then one day last year (some time before they announced the plans for the switch to Intel CPUs) I got a wild hair to buy a Mini. They were so cheap, I just wanted to try out the audio softwares and such. And with a simple KVM switch, I could add it to my desk here at home.
I had trouble at first. It just didn't make sense to me. After a while, I let the Mini just sit. Maybe six weeks went by. I got back into it and learned how integrate the Mini into my production studio. Things were looking up. I began to like OS X.
Then I began to need a new laptop. Back then I didn't know Apple had changed the meaning of the word.
But I had the feeling I should wait until I saw what Apple would come up with. They had announced the Intel CPU deals. People had begun "hacking" together ways to run Windows on these new Macs. Things really began looking good. Then Apple announced the MacBook Pro. I really wanted one of those very much.
When was that? February?
So I started to figure out if I could buy one.
By April, they announced Boot Camp. This sort of (un)officially supporting dual-booting XP sealed the deal. I ordered the sucker.
Aside from the terrible ordeal of spending the $$$ and then having to return the DoA and waiting for the replacement (and dealing with the scumbags I had to deal with at Apple Care) I am very happy with my laptop.
If you chose to read this terribly long story, thank you very much.
Bob
MBP & Mac Mini   Mac OS X (10.4.7)