This is my first message in this forum. I've been a Mac user since my first in 2000, a iMac G3 350 MHz with Mac OS 9. It was also my first computer. Currently I'm using a Power Mac G4 Digital Audio. I love PPC Macs, and always will.
Earlier this week I bought my first PC, a Compaq CQ2009F desktop preloaded with Windows XP. There were a few reasons why I chose that PC instead of a Mac Mini. The honest truth is my primary reason was a emotional one. Since Apple chose to move from PPC to Intel, I've started feeling like Apple cares less about us and more about it's market share and profits. Also I get the feeling that Apple cares more about the iPod, iPhone, and getting PC users to switch to the Mac. I feel like Apple doesn't care much for Mac users who have been with the Mac for years, and are very passionate about it.
Apple manufactures peripherals, and designs software to work only with the recent versions of Mac OS 10. Often requiring 10.4 Tiger, and sometimes requiring 10.5 Leopard. For the PC user though they often let them get by with Windows XP. That doesn't sound like customer Appreciation to me. It sounds more like disregarding current Mac users. Would it really hurt Apple to sell peripherals, and software that would work with 10.3 Panther? What about when 10.6 Snow Leopard is released, how many 10.4 Tiger users will be left out in the cold?
Last I would like to say that since Apple decided to move from PPC architecture to commodity hardware like Intel there are less reasons for them to charge the prices they do. I'm sure that HP made some profit from the Compaq they sold me. If HP can sell me a Compaq desktop for under $400, I think Apple could do the same with a Mac Mini. True the Compaq I bought is marketed as a "net top", and with a 1.6 Atom single core processor it is a little slower then the Mac Mini. At the same time I feel like the Mac Mini should also be classified as a "net top", just a little faster, and a lot more expensive. Would it hurt Apple to make a affordable computer for the rest of us?
Being a Mac user doesn't mean we have to agree with Apple, or that we should never question the choices they make. It's healthy for us to "Think Different", even when it means that we think different from Apple.
