PC makers usually use the holiday season to tout the greatest and latest desktops and notebooks, but this year they will be hawking something different: consumer electronics, says C|Net News. Also, OSViews posted an editorial discussing “misconceptions of PC users regarding the Mac prices”.
Look homeward, PC maker
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Eugenia Loli
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the guy is certainly not a Mac fanboy, just a guy who thinks it should get a fair shake.
The Mac article totally hits the nail on the head. Macs aren’t really “expensive”. Sure some of their models are overpriced, but I’ve seen a lot of overpriced PCs as well!
I was just pricing laptops the other day, and Apple always seems to beat Dell by at least $100. Well obeviously not with the 17in PB, but then Dell doesn’t have a 17in laptop.
The iBook is cheaper than Dell’s low end models when customized with the same features and the PBs are cheaper on the high end.
What the guy said is true… Sure you can get a PC for less, but that’s only because you’re getting less!
If you’re looking for an “all-in-one” package meaning hardware/OS/software then yeah, Macs are a pretty sweet deal with the bundled applications (I’m not going to argue quality of software because Windows also comes with bundled apps, and “quality” is always a personal preference).
But the individuals (like myself) who complain that Macs are expensive are those who just want a bare minimum system at a low price and build it up by adding software they choose to use. Again, I’m guilty of this mentality. But it makes sense for office computers that do basic tasks, which usually means non-multimedia related jobs so iTunes/iPhoto/QuickTime/iChat is a non-issue.
This is why Macs used in offices is rare, but do exist. With PCs the level of customization is far more flexible whereas buying a Mac means buying what Apple says you can buy.
Sure.. Macs arent very expensive…
But PCs can be CHEAP.
If the tech industry would stop sending jobs to third-world nations and keep them here, maybe I could afford a new computer.
… or even an old one.
… or even a broken one.
I own a Mac, and I’ve tried to encourage others to buy a Mac. However, the article doesn’t give any specifics at all, not even the prices of the computers he bought. It’s kind of hard to argue that Macs are no more expensive than PCs when he’s not giving us an actual feature and cost comparison.
The article contained no prices, no models, not functionality comparisons. It was all hot air and hype.
Considering that so many Mac-heads resort to the “Apple is a luxury car / PC is a utilitarian car” argument, the editorial is disingenuous at best.
Apple has been known for over 20 years as offering the worst value for your money when it comes to personal computer hardware.
Apple also makes the most expensive MP3 player you can buy.
Most people who buy Macs today could not have afforded them if they were not rich. The demographics on current Mac owners put the majority of purchasers into the far upper reaches of the economic classes. This explains why 75% of the Mac user base has not upgraded to OS X — they don’t have money for new hardware.
Apple has built a company on intellectual subterfuge and hype. It is no surprise that Mac owners ape their corporate God and continue the illusions and the hype.
The simple truth is that Macs are expensive compared to PC’s. This is the main reason that in the world, PC’s account for over 95% of all the computers ever sold. People can afford them!
The new eMacs and iBooks don’t really come in at new lower price points but what they do offer is now these systems are fully featured. The stupid CDROM is gone and now you have combo drives across the board which is nice.
The low end machines also have plenty of HP to run MacOSX. Either of these systems are easily faster than my G4/500 at work and I have no problems with this system.
I don’t think that Apple will ever compete with a company that loses money on a computer sold but they will certainly stay in business longer. There are hundreds of computer companies have gone out of business and all of them sold computers that cost less than Macs but that didn’t seem to help them.