I am studying abroad for university in Russia for fall semester. We're going to be living in Nizhni Novgorod. I need a new, lighter laptop before I head off to Russia. Should I get a Mac or PC? I want to make sure it is compatible with everything and that if i need a repair, I can get it done somewhere closeby. Also, does anyone know about Internet capabilities? Is it dial-up? wireless?
Thanks for helping me out!
Wow, what a question, you will get a lot of opinions.
I have a PC because they are more common. No real experience with a Mac but their users love them.
I would think that the PC may be more common in Russia and problem solvers more available. That is my guess only and could be wrong.
Good luck
PCs are more common, all over the world. However, as somebody who recently made the switch to a Mac i can only kick myself that i didn't do it sooner. I find my work PC a piece of carp now compared to my Mac.
I wouldn't be too worried about service- unlikely you need service in the first year or so. So buy a Mac a month before you go, so you can make sure there's nothing wrong with it, and than the risk should be really minimal
Macs are easily russified and you have your choice of keyboard styles. I use a homophonetic board where the Russian п is the same key as the Latin p.
I love my mac and would not be concerned about taking it to Russia. For the past 2+ years I have been using mine all over SEAsia and the Pacific (thousands of miles in some pretty remote places like Papua New Guinea and East Timor) without any need for servicing. I did buy a new battery in Singapore once but that was it.
One point, the new lightweight Mac doesn't have a CD/DVD player included so you might want to bring a separate attachment to play dvds.
Ruth
In Russia, Macs are used mostly by upmarket publishers. So, in terms of compatibility and service (and the prices for this!), better use PC. However, I think it would be worth to check out whether it is Mac distributor in NN (and appropriate service) or not, if yes- I think there are no reasons to switch to PC.
Concerning Internet conncetion, I don't know what is exactly for NN, but I propose it is similar as in any major city like Omsk. Here we have (in order of a decreasing of spreading/coverage):
1) Dial up V.90/V.92 - possible virtual everywhere, up to 56 kbps
2) GSM cell network with GPRS protocol- very usefull if you need mobile internet and/or to obtain an access as fast as possible
2) ADSL connection - widely spreaded, you need the permission of phone owner and check out whether there is ADSL port available on your PSTN branch
3) Broadband cable connection- very common, especially in new building/office centres. 2 types: Ethernet network (no modem needed) or coaxial cable network- cable modem needed, the 1st type is more common
4) Wi-Fi- available in some cafes and hotels
5) Long-distance wireless network - pretty expensive but the only solution if no cell/PSTN coverage does exist at the site or GPRS is too slow
6) CDMA cell network- up to 64 kbps, is replacing now with G3 network
I hope something like this goes to NN as well.
Best regards- Igor Fedyaev