Well the first noticeable difference is the time taken to start it. From pushing the start button until everything is ready to use, it's no more than 30 seconds. Try that on the laptop I use for school and I'm still waiting for all the separate start up utilities to complete loading after a couple of minutes.
I also love the top down - machine off, top up - machine back on instantly ready to work feature of it too. No more waiting for a machine to come back out of hibernation.
The noise too is very noticeable - there is none with the MBP. There must be a fan inside the case, but I can't hear it whirring around unlike with the other laptop. Infact, the other laptop fan will even kick in when the machine is sitting idle.
Then there are gestures on the mousepad - I love them! Using a single finger allows me to move the mouse pointer around the screen (as normal), but two fingers work as a scroll function. Four fingers pulled down the pad and I get an overview of all the windows open on the MBP - very useful - whilst four fingers sideways gives a pop up on screen from which I can skip to any open program (windows has this feature too, but with a key press).
The screen clarity too is superior to the school laptop - everything is crisper and more defined.
When I bought the MBP, I was under the impression that I was going to have to install windows in order to work on school based files on it - but that isn't going to be a problem now :o) After installing iWorks and reading the guide with it, I can save work from it as a word file when I need too, and using Dropbox I can save the file into the cloud, access dropbox from the school laptop and open the file without any trouble. There is no need to corrupt my MBP with windows!!
Finally, as the machines sit side by side on my desk, I can look at their design, and it's a no brainer - the MBP just looks so much nicer than the school laptop. The single aluminium casing, the crystal clear screen, the backlit keyboard. It's just sooo nice to look at.
Oh, and as for all the people who said getting used to using a Mac would be a nightmare, as everything is different - wrong! It's logical on the MBP. The menu system has a sensible structure to it. Items are where you would expect them to be. What a wonderful idea.
Am I pleased with my MBP? You bet! Would I trade it in for a top of the range windows laptop? No way!! I am now a fully paid up member of the Apple club. And I like it :o)
