m3 pro for performance, screen and battery life. framework for maintenance, upgradability and cost.
Framework
Discussion around the Framework mission of building products that last longer by making them upgradeable, customizable, and repairable. Consumer electronics can be better for you and for the environment.
Framework for versatility, MacOs for really specific tasks to justify the price
You shouldn’t look at the hardware but at the software. For what will you use the laptop? What Applications do you plan to use. Are there Mac specific things you plan to do. Or do you have windows specific tasks. Or even would Linux the best platform for you.
If price is not a factor the software that supports your daily work the best will should be the decider.
7840u for performance and openness. it's far more futureproof
Apple hardware is unquestionable superior to anything made by other PC makers IMO, but it locks you into the Mac ecosystem which is a deal killer for me. Doesn’t stop me being supremely jealous of the M3 power, overall design, and battery life of the latest Macbooks though!
Under the lens of repair, Apple is inferior to every other manufacturer, even beneath Dell and HP. The locked down bootloader is part of the SSD beginning with the M1, so if your SSD goes, your expensive computer becomes a brick.
Get the Framework and I will tell you why. From looking at your profile you are going to be an Economics major and thus will need access to Microsoft Excel for at least a fair portion of the work. The Apple version of Excel is downgraded without as many features and that means things that 'just work' on the Windows version never even shows up on the Apple version, resulting in limited functionality and limited access to information regarding the data that you're working with.
Worth noting that this may vary from university to university regarding exactly how much Excel exposure you have. It is important to know going into the workforce though.
Can confirm, macos office alternatives suck but they do look pretty. I consider most of it bloat however and just uninstall it