I love OSNews, but it does seem like some of its editors enjoy just a little too much taking a good natured jab at Apple upon occasion (well, more like every chance that particular editor can get). I thought it time for a little good news and analysis about Apple that critics often overlook.
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Member since:2005-06-29
That's because Apple bends you over the fence with their upgrade and CTO pricing. It's common knowledge among Mac heads that you should buy the Mac stock and get your upgrade components third party.
I remember way back in '05 when I bought a G4 mini, I had configured it up with the specs I wanted and it was close to $1000 for a machine that started out at $499. I backed up and just bought it stock plus WiFi/Bluetooth (those were optional on the first G4s), and maxed out the memory and hard drive aftermarket. After throwing in the cost of the two putty knives, I came to a grand total of about $700. That was a savings of nearly $300!
In short, NEVER configure-to-order a Mac. Buy it stock and upgrade it yourself, and you'll stay within the realm of comparable Windows PC prices.
Member since:2005-11-14
Member since:2005-09-27
The issue isn't that Macs are more expensive then PC's it is that there are not many models of macs to choose from. You are correct if you build a PC to fit what you need it do it will be cheaper then a Mac.
However the thing complaint is Apple is marking their hardware up just because it is a Mac. And that is untrue. because as the studies go if you try to match all the specs of a Mac into a PC you get about the same price. So when you are buying say $500 more for a Mac it is because you are get $500 more technology (wether it being smaller or faster)
Apples issue has been the limited models available. Or the lack of truly custom built systems. That isn't the MacPro.
So to get the best bang for your buck and you know what to get Getting a PC now adays with Windows 7 or Linux if you want to go that route, and your time to try to figure out what will truly fit your needs chances are you will get a good deal on a PC. However if you get a Mac you will get more then what you need. And sometimes that is a good thing as you may find that the new feature you though was a joke is actually quite useful. Or (like my lighted keyboard) a feature you could do without.
Member since:2005-07-06
So I guess the rest of the points brought out in this article has merit since the "Apple Tax" has been beaten to death in the comments.
This all really just shows that people who want things to just work are willing to pay a little bit more for a good product. The most successful companies have figured this out, which is why they aren't as hurt as the rest(mainstream) when the economy gets bad.
"So in summary... Google has pulled the plug on support on a protocol they've helped popularize, after years of promising interoperability, for reasons that are dubious at best, and in a way that leaves people who don't jump to the new Hangouts app unable to talk to their contacts without any feedback that their IMs aren't getting through... And they've done that with no warning to anyone. I imagine there's a bunch of people out there wondering where some of their buddies have gone, or why their messages aren't getting responses, because this isn't documented anywhere." Google really messed this up. Such a dick move.
The Tizen Greek Community has some screenshots of a very recent build of Tizen running on a Samsung GT-i8800. It looks wholly unremarkable.Joint statement to The Next Web from Microsoft and Google: "Microsoft and YouTube are working together to update the new YouTube for Windows Phone app to enable compliance with YouTube's API terms of service, including enabling ads, in the coming weeks. Microsoft will replace the existing YouTube app in Windows Phone Store with the previous version during this time." Good to know these children stopped acting like little pricks. Can we have full Google support in Windows 8 now, please?
Yahoo is acquiring Tumblr, the microblogging and social networking website, for $1.1 billion USD. Tumblr offers little revenue but lots of eyeballs if Yahoo can monetarize them. Now Yahoo is bidding for Hulu, the streaming video service. After years of ineffective responses while Google, Facebook, and others took large chunks of the online advertising market, Yahoo is fighting back. Can Yahoo reignite the momentum it had at the turn of the century? What do you think?"Sources have described iOS 7 as 'black, white, and flat all over'. This refers to the dropping of heavy textures and the addition of several new black and white user interface elements." I couldn't be happier.
"Ilja van Sprundel, a security researcher with IOActive, has discovered a large number of issues in the way various X client libraries handle the responses they receive from servers, and has worked with X.Org's security team to analyze, confirm, and fix these issues."
"Google is facing a new antitrust probe by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission into whether the company is using its leadership in the online display-advertising market to illegally curb competition, people familiar with the matter said." Sucks to be Google today, apparently."In the midst of the major press blitz surrounding its annual I/O Conference, Google dropped some unfortunate news about its instant messaging plans. In several places around the web, the company is replacing the existing 'Talk' platform with a new one called 'Hangouts' that sharply diminishes support for the open messaging protocol known as XMPP (or sometimes informally Jabber), and also removes the option to disable the archiving of all chat communications. These changes represent a switch from open protocols to proprietary ones, and a clear step backward for many users." That's why I always say: only suckers trust companies."The wave of departures is a sign of internal struggle, but amidst all the bad news, there is a glimmer of hope. According to an anonymous HTC executive cited by WSJ, the crucial HTC One is selling 'pretty good so far'. The executive revealed that HTC sold about five million One units since launch, a performance that is deemed encouraging. However, sales have been limited by the persisting supply issues that still plague the production of the HTC One." Finally some good news for HTC. Five million units amidst supply constraints is very impressive.
"Sony gave the PS4 50% more raw shader performance, plain and simple (768 SPs @ 800MHz vs. 1152 SPs & 800MHz). Unlike last generation, you don't need to be some sort of Jedi to extract the PS4's potential here. The Xbox One and PS4 architectures are quite similar, Sony just has more hardware under the hood. Weâll have to wait and see how this hardware delta gets exposed in games over time, but the gap is definitely there. The funny thing about game consoles is that itâs usually the lowest common denominator that determines the bulk of the experience across all platforms. On the plus side, the Xbox One should enjoy better power/thermal characteristics compared to the PlayStation 4. Even compared to the Xbox 360 we should see improvement in many use cases thanks to modern power management techniques." AnandTech does its usual in-depth thing.
Member since:
2005-11-14
Instead of looking at an Apple and then trying to get a different brand with equal features, do it the other way around. Put together a nice Dell that does what you need it to do, and then see what you have to pay for a Mac of similar performance. Voila: now the Mac is ridiculously expensive.