Sorry about Microsoft. (Like it's any of our faults)
The Mac doesn't really need any "special" peripherals anymore. Photoshop actually behaves better on a Mac than on a PC (my opinion). Most mainstream Windows programs are available for a Mac, and if they're not, you can just run Windows on the Mac. It's win-win. If you want to make yourself feel really good about getting a Mac, go to
www.apple.com/getamac
I would suggest milling around Apple's site anyway, to sort of get a feel for what the computers do.