A Mac allegory: dont buy a Ferrari if you drive at 20m/hour

[mark28]

It is Ferrari that needs to drive slow because they need to let the public see how beautiful the car is. It is those ugly cars that need to drive fast because they aren't as beautiful.

it all depends how you look at it.

Ferrari is all about looks, not performance. Even a cheapo Nissan GTR can beat a Ferrari.

Only the Ferrari Enzo is a real performance car, but good luck buying one of those

Ferrari has got most of his reputation from the past when they were good. Nowadays they aren't that great.

 

[StefSSU]

If you like 'em, that's great! I've never driven one I liked, and the styling isn't my preference, but everyone's entitled to their own opinion. Don't let my opinion stop you from liking them!

Agreed. Everyone has there own opinion. Personally, the most beautiful car I can think of is the 360 modena (but then again, I am Italian ). Ferrari went left field with that car, very subtle vs the typical striking look of a Ferrari. I would say the 458 Italia is more of a successor to the 360 than the F430 was.

From a performance standpoint, people would still buy Ferrari's because of acceleration - regardless of whether they'd use the top speed.
Fair point?

Well said. I may not use my MBP to its full extent every day, but it's nice to have that horsepower at your disposal for when you need it, and have it easily handle day to day work. My MBP handles pretty much anything I throw at it well enough, and I've dabbled in programming, gaming and game creation, image editing, video editing, 3d rendering... And so on. Sure, if I made a living off something like 3d rendering, I would not hesitate to get a true desktop workstation (probably a Mac Pro, I'm pretty invested to OS X!). But if you want a notebook today for anything else, I don't understand why anyone would go for any other laptop if they could afford a MBP and weren't exclusive to Windows. MBP's have great keyboards, the best trackpads, great notebook screens, the best design (not in terms of looks, design is how it works), and amazing battery life. You may not get the latest intel quad core running at 2.8ghz or a modern video card, but if you wanted that, why the hell would you buy a notebook?

 

[mark28]

From a performance standpoint, people would still buy Ferrari's because of acceleration - regardless of whether they'd use the top speed.
Fair point?

Nope, people buy a Ferrari because of the status. Ferrari's don't accelerate that fast in comparison to other supercars.

 

[RattDawg]

Agreed. Everyone has there own opinion. Personally, the most beautiful car I can think of is the 360 modena (but then again, I am Italian ). Ferrari went left field with that car, very subtle vs the typical striking look of a Ferrari. I would say the 458 Italia is more of a successor to the 360 than the F430 was.



Well said. I may not use my MBP to its full extent every day, but it's nice to have that horsepower at your disposal for when you need it, and have it easily handle day to day work. My MBP handles pretty much anything I throw at it well enough, and I've dabbled in programming, gaming and game creation, image editing, video editing, 3d rendering... And so on. Sure, if I made a living off something like 3d rendering, I would not hesitate to get a true desktop workstation (probably a Mac Pro, I'm pretty invested to OS X!). But if you want a notebook today for anything else, I don't understand why anyone would go for any other laptop if they could afford a MBP and weren't exclusive to Windows. MBP's have great keyboards, the best trackpads, great notebook screens, the best design (not in terms of looks, design is how it works), and amazing battery life. You may not get the latest intel quad core running at 2.8ghz or a modern video card, but if you wanted that, why the hell would you buy a notebook?

Nuff said!!

 

[Patriks7]

I always thought Ferraris are the ugly cars! I never liked how they looked, ran or handled. But that's just me.

I generally don't like the looks of Ferrari's but even I have to admit that this is one sexy looking beast:

To the OP: most people I know don't use the full potential of their computers all the time. The reason I got a 15" MBP was because the 13" MB I had was too small for me and I just wanted to have the power there when I needed it (like the once a year week I meet up with my cousins to play games... yeah... I have to load Windows on it... poor thing...).

 

[StefSSU]

Ferrari is all about looks, not performance. Even a cheapo Nissan GTR can beat a Ferrari.

Only the Ferrari Enzo is a real performance car, but good luck buying one of those

Ferrari has got most of his reputation from the past when they were good. Nowadays they aren't that great.

I don't know, it depends on what you judge as performance. If you're only considering power, then theres plenty of cars that outclass the 458 for less than half the price. But if we're talking about how fast it'll go round a track, then you have to consider brakes, suspension, weight, acceleration, downforce, etc. The GTR is a great car, but on the Top Gear track it was slower than the 458 (granted, it's half the price).

Electronically, Ferrari's are very advanced machines. The Italia has some of the best transmission technologies available, and it results in quick shifts and fast acceleration. Don't quote me on it as I don't feel like checking the numbers, but the shift times on the Italia beat out the new McLaren I believe.

Nope, people buy a Ferrari because of the status. Ferrari's don't accelerate that fast in comparison to other supercars.

0-60 in 3.4 seconds for the Italia isn't bad at all, and while Ferrari haven't released stats for it yet, the Challenge does Fiorano in 1:16.5, just 0.2 seconds slower than the FXX. The FXX did 1:10.7 at Top Gear (on slicks), so coming that close on Fiorano is really impressive. For comparison, the Veyron SS holds 1:16.8. Just what do you consider fast acceleration?

 

[sammich]

Haha, that's quite a good allegory. What do Italia 458's and (well, older) Macbooks and iPods have in common?

They spontaneously erupt in flames.

 

[orfeas0]

From a performance standpoint, people would still buy Ferrari's because of acceleration - regardless of whether they'd use the top speed.
Fair point?

that would be my point. Even if you don't drive the ferrari at top speed, you still get to enjoy the acceleration.
And with macbooks, the extra power you have helps you do WHATEVER you're doing , faster. The fact that you don't use your PC to its maximum potential doesn't mean you don't use its resources at all.

 

[torbjoern]

Haha, that's quite a good allegory. What do Italia 458's and (well, older) Macbooks and iPods have in common?

They spontaneously erupt in flames.

that would be my point. Even if you don't drive the ferrari at top speed, you still get to enjoy the acceleration.
And with macbooks, the extra power you have helps you do WHATEVER you're doing , faster. The fact that you don't use your PC to its maximum potential doesn't mean you don't use its resources at all.

Misuse of technology.

 

[grahamnp]

I don't consider a mac a Ferrari at all, in fact, the complete opposite. Windows machines have better outright performance but are hard to live with, the Mac does little wrong and is a great machine for everyday tasks.

 

[jlc1978]

I was at the Mac Store with my Pro 15 because it was making a scratchy noise. I started talking with another customer with same Pro 15. I explained what I used my computer for: almost always for word processing and internet, a little photography, even less video editing. He said, 'you bought yourself a Ferrari to drive at 20 miles an hour; it's nice to have a Ferrari if you have the money, but do you really need it?'. He was right damn it!
He has his for 3D models of properties, pixel hungry plans.

I'm not sure the Ferrari analogy is apt - in his case he needs the performance; in most others having it for when you need it while still being able to easily accomplish routine tasks in an enjoyable fashion is what people are paying for. A better car analogy is buying a high end luxury sport sedan an then just using it to drive around town. Yes, a cheap econobox would do that just fine; but it lacks the refinement of the sports sedan and when you really need the performance, it won't cut it.

 

[jlc1978]

Volkswagen beatle engine

True, the boxer engine has very humble origins. Porsche even sold car under the VW-Porsche label; and there's still a lot of cross-platform commonality.

 

[croooow]

...He said, 'you bought yourself a Ferrari to drive at 20 miles an hour; it's nice to have a Ferrari if you have the money, but do you really need it?'. He was right damn it!
He has his for 3D models of properties, pixel hungry plans.

Relatively few Mac users... or even PC users... really push the limits of their computer's potential. That doesn't mean it's inappropriate to own them.

I'll try to bring it back to the Mac (thought I was on a car forum for a second)

I would not say he is totally right. Maybe getting the top of the line 15" MBP (i7 2.8, etc) to surf the web and check email would be like "Buying a Ferrari to drive 20 MPH" but what about the people who buy a base model 15" or 17" laptop just because of the screen size? People who want to have multiple documents open at once (spreadsheets for example) for work. Sure the 11" or 13" notebooks could do the work fine, but it's good to be able to spread things out. The point of a computer is to make work and life easier, if a larger screen helps then it's not a wasted purchase.

 

[deeddawg]

Maybe getting the top of the line 15" MBP (i7 2.8, etc) to surf the web and check email would be like "Buying a Ferrari to drive 20 MPH" but what about the people who buy a base model 15" or 17" laptop just because of the screen size? [...] The point of a computer is to make work and life easier, if a larger screen helps then it's not a wasted purchase.

The allegory assumes that the only reason one would choose a Ferrari is to drive fast and ignores the fact that there may be other attributes that lead someone to choose that car.

As you note, there are many reasons one might choose a particular computer model or configuration. The reasons are often rather different from one person to the next.

 

[cheesygrin]

Don't expect Ferrari drivers to go eveywhere at the car's top speed! Imagine popping to the corner shop for a newspaper at 180MPH?

I have a decent spec iMac with 8GB RAM, but normally only do email/web browsing/coding etc. Occasionally, however, I do need the extra RAM for running several virtual machines or large Photoshop projects. I certainly don't consider the RAM to be wasted.

There's also something to be said for future-proofing. Each new OS that comes out seems to need more power to run smoothly.

 

[gngan]

I generally don't like the looks of Ferrari's but even I have to admit that this is one sexy looking beast:

To the OP: most people I know don't use the full potential of their computers all the time. The reason I got a 15" MBP was because the 13" MB I had was too small for me and I just wanted to have the power there when I needed it (like the once a year week I meet up with my cousins to play games... yeah... I have to load Windows on it... poor thing...).

I've never been a Ferrari fan until this one. I prefer Aston Martin.

I have switched to Mac because I am sick of my laptop breaking every year; max 2 years. I've always loved the look of Apple product and my MacBook is 3 years old and still running good. I mostly just do word documents, web surf, VERY little photoshop/video editing. I guess i bought a Ferrari but drives like a grandma. lol

 

[idea_hamster]

He said, 'you bought yourself a Ferrari to drive at 20 miles an hour; it's nice to have a Ferrari if you have the money, but do you really need it?'. He was right damn it!
He has his for 3D models of properties, pixel hungry plans.

Sorry, but I call BS on this guy's premise. The only things that someone needs to wind up with a 15" MBP are these:

• Mac
• laptop
• >13"

This isn't buying a Ferrari to drive 20 mph -- it's buying the computer that fits your needs.

Now, whether you got an i5 model or a 2.8 GHz i7 model is a different question -- but only at the margin.

 

[GGJstudios]

I generally don't like the looks of Ferrari's but even I have to admit that this is one sexy looking beast:

Their overall design looks too much like Corvettes to me (another car I never cared for.)

0-60 in 3.4 seconds for the Italia isn't bad at all, and while Ferrari haven't released stats for it yet, the Challenge does Fiorano in 1:16.5, just 0.2 seconds slower than the FXX. The FXX did 1:10.7 at Top Gear (on slicks), so coming that close on Fiorano is really impressive. For comparison, the Veyron SS holds 1:16.8. Just what do you consider fast acceleration?

Porsche 911 Turbo S: 0-60 3.1 seconds
Historically, Lamborghini always seemed to be the king of top speed and Porsche, the king of acceleration. Ferrari wasn't historically king of either (I'm talking production cars, not specialty or modified or race cars)

However, it really is a waste of time debating about which car is faster or quicker. During my younger and foolish days, I had a minor addiction to Porsches (never had more than 3 at any one time, though) and street racing. Two of them were pretty wicked and were never bested by any Ferrari, Lamborghini, or any other car. However, I know there were cars out there that could outrun them. No matter how fast your car is, there's always one faster somewhere. In the same way, no matter how fast a computer is, there will always be one faster.

These days I ride a Harley and don't care who passes me or what they choose to drive. I also find that a MacBook Pro does what I need it to do, as fast as I need it to do it. I don't care if other computers are faster or more capable. The MBP suits my needs and tastes and is affordable, so as long as this is true, I'll keep using it.

 

[millerb7]

Porsche is probably the ugliest car EVER to be made, EVER.

Why buy a Ferrari? Maybe looks if you like it, or status, def. NOT speed, you can make a car 1/2 the price just as fast or faster.

You want pure sex, you buy an Audi R8 or a BMW M6.

 

[alt]

90% of mac users use their mac to get on facebook and put makeup on in photobooth (actually saw a chick do this)...ugh

also 90% of mac users that you get advice from..have only used their macs for these reasons. Most peeps know nothing.

 

[GGJstudios]

90% of mac users use their mac to get on facebook and put makeup on in photobooth (actually saw a chick do this)...ugh

If you have a Mac with a glossy screen, you can do that without Photo Booth!

 

[alt]

If you have a Mac with a glossy screen, you can do that without Photo Booth!

True.

 

[StefSSU]

Porsche 911 Turbo S: 0-60 3.1 seconds
Historically, Lamborghini always seemed to be the king of top speed and Porsche, the king of acceleration. Ferrari wasn't historically king of either (I'm talking production cars, not specialty or modified or race cars)

Yeah, the 911 is a hell of a car. Like any other sensible person, if I was looking for a fast sports car I couldn't justify buying a Ferrari. But those guys at Marenello manage to make me want to!
I suppose Enzo said it best - "We don't sell a car, we sell a dream.".

 

[Richard1028]

I would've counteracted with this:

I find that a 13" display is too small and a 17" inch too big so I was pretty much limited to the middle one and all the bells and whistles that come with it. Apple only sells one 15" model.

 

[robertgarven]

The Imac is the Ferrari

I have a Mac and a Ferrari, they are both beautiful and works of arts. although I think the imac is the Ferrari of the mac world JMHO.