To be honest, when I bought PC's I've never been so picky and I'm sure there are similar issues that I could pick out just that I never did. I mean my qosmio that I had I remembered one of the usb port didnt work and I didnt really care and had 1 stuck pixel on the top right portion of the screen, screen wasnt closed evenly as well. This is how I used to be and how I didnt care unless the thing just worked fine. I know one usb port just stopped working or just shorted out somehow but there were 4 total so 3 left and I didnt care.
But for some reason only the apple laptops I started to get obsessed with getting the "perfect" one.. maybe because of the already awesome design and the excitement of using such a machine/os that I know I'd keep it for a very long time.
Yeah, that could be. It could also be that it's the difference between what you paid for one compared to what you paid for the other.
It could also be that a good portion of Apple users spend so much time talking PC's down and acting as if the Mac is so superior, that you just expect that it would truly be better.
By comparison, most PC users are indifferent (as in couldn't care one way or the other about Macs - they just don't use them).
I am particular about anything I purchase. I'll return something for a dollar. Anything I buy, should be worth having and worth what I paid for it.
Sure, the $1 items, I'll return whenever I'm already there (not worth a special trip). But, I won't throw stuff away, I'll return it.
So, I have always looked over my computers quite thoroughly. Actually, I don't even have to deliberately look them over. My eyes automatically catch small details in things I look at. With little more than a glance, I can tell you every minor bump, ding, or imperfection in a surface. Even if I try not to. Probably just comes from the attention to detail that I've always paid to things I make myself (I don't call it done until it's just right - and if it's good to me, I know it will be good to whomever it's for).
I do generally only care if something works. But, that is only so long as I haven't purchased it new. I will buy used things with imperfections. And, frequently, I prefer to do so. I can get something useful at a much reduced price (and it's already dinged-up so I can be rough with it).
If I buy something new, I am far more critical of it.
But, I would buy into that perhaps Apple users are more critical of their machines to start with. I would attribute that to price and delicacy.
First, the Apple stuff tends to cost a great deal more than what the same user would spend on a PC they might buy.
Second, the Apple stuff tends to be more delicate (inviting more careful attention to it's condition).
Consider the iPod and iPhone. Look at how many accessories there are to protect the delicate finish of the iPod. If I were running the company, I would be rather upset by how large the market is for cases and covers to protect and cover up my products. I would prefer to be able to boast about their durability.
That a music player (which costs $200 or more) should require a protective cover to help it hold up to the very task it was designed for?
While ugly, I rather prefer the textured plastic case of the Zune. It's a material that invites you to handle it without concern.
Likewise, I preferred the old beige towers to the polycarbonate cases that Apple has been using for so long. The old beige towers wouldn't be damaged by just touching them. By contrast, I damaged the surface of my iMac G5 simply by setting it down on the desk (permanent marks from my thumbs on the case). And, the first time I wiped the dust from the iMac left scratches in the plastic.
The first time I touched the iPod with the polycarbonate plastic, it was irreparably scratched up. Just from touching it. Really bad with the black one.
I went to the Apple store, and looked at the black MacBook right after it came out. But, found that just running my finger across it's surface left a permanent mark or discoloration that wouldn't buff out. And, surely, it would receive more abuse than that.
The iBooks are and white MacBooks are even worse. Though, because of their color, it's less noticeable.
The thing is, that pretty is a fleeting thing with Apple's products. They do look shiny. They do look beautiful. They do look Amazing. But, that's only until you use them like you would a product from anyone else.
If it were a music player from someone else, do you think I'd buy a special protective cover for it? Absolutely not. I'd throw it on the seat in the car and forget about it.
I couldn't tell you how many times my other music players have been dropped and thrown around (or just shoved in a drawer with tons of other stuff) and they still look like they did originally. Some have hit pavement more than a few times, and they still look fine. But, the iPod, well, we made the mistake of touching it... That's all it took. Goodbye pretty shiny surface. Was nice for that two seconds.
My PC's, I just wipe them down with any towel I grab and some 409, Windex, or whatever. They all look good as new. My Macs, man I hate cleaning my Macs. Gotta get out special towels, gotta get out a special delicate blend of cleaner (or only use water), and if the towel isn't delicate enough then the surface is heavily marked up.
Give me something built to last. I don't only care how nice it looks when it's new, I want it to continue to look nice while I own it.
I would rather have something that is built quite solid than something that looks pretty until I use it the first time.
My wife's portable PC gets carried with her on a plane at least twice a week. Shoved in a bag. Sent through baggage handlers. Bounced around through the airlines chute and conveyor system, and whatever else they do to it. And, it does all that just shoved into the pocket of a backpack.
By comparison, her portable Mac has never left her desk at home.
Guess which one looks more abused? Yep, the PC portable looks beautiful. The Mac, well, not so great.
You can judge how durable a companies products are by how huge the industry is for protective cases and covers for their products.
Right now, the only Apple products that I can't name a protective cover for, are the Mac Mini and the Mac Pro. They're available for the iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iPods (all of the iPods), and the iPhones.
And, well, everyone's already forgotten about the Apple T.V. so it doesn't get a glove either.
If you have to buy something to protect it, then it just isn't durable enough.
Sure, the cases and covers only protect it's cosmetics. But, with a PC, I wouldn't have to be so delicate with them anyway. Their finish is typically far more durable.
Of course, since "PC" describes literally thousands of manufacturers, there are going to be some examples of companies who are more like Apple in their build quality.
But, there are a ton of more durable PC's.
Thinking back to the younger days... I remember how little care I paid to my electronic stuff. Just bounced it around, threw it in a bag, throw it across the room, whatever. Never caused it any harm. Always looked like new.
For those old enough to remember the 70's and 80's, imagine a bunch of guys standing around and you pull out a music player wrapped in some high-tech protective film. They'd have tested it's durability by bouncing it off the pavement with you still attached to it.
Now, you can proudly display your high-tech music player behind it's protective case and you're still cool when you say scream don't touch my iPod you'll break it.
The nerds have taken over
