grahamtriggs said:
It's not about a pissing contest... it's about knowing what you get for your money, and making a reasoned, informed choice. In the past we've never been able to make direct comparisons, and there have always been reasons for choosing PowerPC/Mac - faster for some things, cooler, lower power consumption, etc. Now that we are being forced into Intels (sooner or later), then we can and *should* make direct comparisons. Remember, these are TOOLS, it's not about what is the shiniest / glossiest, but what gets the job done.
As much as I deride Microsoft and Windows, as much as I hate OS activation and the registry and 'DLL hell', as much as Windows makes it easier than it should be to write malware, in all honesty, there isn't much practical difference between the usability of OS X and Windows.
On top of that, what about application support? How many major (or even minor) applications are available as universal binaries? How many major vendors have even announced intentions to ship universal binaries? How many won't involve significant upgrade costs? (And how many people are using latest versions already to incur minimal upgrade costs)?
You know what I want? I want a reason to stay a Mac user. Not just keep a Mac around (which I will do anyway), but to continue with Mac being my primary platform. I've been pleading for about 12 months for that to happen. They almost did - but at too high a premium to justify it. And unless you are intrinsically tied to the software, it's clear that it is.
Of course, if the badge is that important to you...
The badge isnt that important to me. Ive been dealing with Windows since the 386 days. Hell I have the box for Windows 1 sitting on my shelf. Ive worked with Dells, IBMs, Toshibas, Gateways, Acers, Alienwares, voodoos among other systems. I support a site of 160 users with another site of 50. In my free time I practically run a PC support business out of my house. I deploy Dells and IBMs ever freaking week. I KNOW this platform inside and out.
Im getting a Mac for one and only one reason: Apple knows how to put a computer together right. And when I say right that doesnt always mean the uber top of the line hardware. As I said in my previous post that you obviously missed Apple considers the entire system. Do you really think they didnt have good enough connections to get 2Ghz chips from Intel if they wanted them? Do you really think that a .17Ghz difference is going to make that large of an impact? Or do you think Apple didnt consider this when they were designing it. Consider the power requirements? Consider what is needed for a 1 laptop. If you think this is all about badging you are sorely mistaken and again dont get it.
This is about the entire system from the OS down to the CPU down the battery being integrated into a package that just works. Again I can tell you as someone who has deployed these systems in the office I work; people treat these things as commodes. There is no attention to detail anymore. As I type this I have 3 laptops under my desk:
The workhorse: A Toshiba Satellite 15, 800Mhz, 384MB RAM, GeForce2Go 32MB, 40GB, XP
The Wardriver: A Dell Latitude CSx 13, 500Mhz, 256MB RAM, NeoMagic 16MB, 30GB, XP/2K
The Business PC: An IBM ThinkPad X31 12 , 1.4Ghz, 512MB RAM, ATI 32MB, 40GB, XP
You know what differentiates all three of these other then age? Not a damn thing other then specs. All PCs are cut from the same cloth at the end of the day. What makes Apple different, even after this transition is the willingness to say what should stay and what should go. What is the best ratio of speed when it comes to CPU, battery, GPU, screen resolution, etc. Ive seen it too many times with Dell systems, and even my Toshiba. They throw in the best hardware paying no attention to detail. Of course this sounds like a ***** deal. Look you have these wonderful specs. Whats not to love? How long is it before you simply dont care anymore about the system itself. You simply want to DO something. That is the point where specs stop becoming all important and that is the point where Apple systems and their attention to detail becomes more important then specs. Does it sound like a BS excuse? Sure. But its the god honest truth.
If I didnt believe it I wouldnt be purchasing my first Apple since I owned my Apple IIe. If you didnt get it yet I will spell it out one last time, its late.
Bang for your buck does go beyond specs. Yes specs factor into it but for those who have worked in the industry long enough we know its not the end all be all of qualifications for a good computer.
Again stop complaining and go by the Acer. It seems as if you are hell bent on getting one and hell bent on convincing everyone that Acer is a better deal. Deal is in the eye of the beholder.
Some people get it. Some people don't. You, obviously don't. As has been stated time and again this isn't a pissing contest. If you want your hummer go ahead and buy one. Ill stick with Apples Prius.
