Windows is not an acceptable replacement for an avid user of macOS. It just isn't. I use it daily for gaming and a couple select apps via boot camp, and it's just not there no matter how much you want it to be - the little things will anger the crap out of anyone used to the way a Mac works. I put up with it for IT purposes, but Adobe apps kind of suck on W10 and are horribly optimized, every single laptop trackpad and its corresponding drivers are terrible and scary bad compared to the trackpad in macOS, etc.
New user here, and your response here actually made me register as a long time lurker. I agree with you on some points, but the hardware can work. I have an early 2013 MBPr (along with other stuff in the Apple range) and I've been an avid Apple user and fan since I started administering systems for work and switched to Apple gear since I could work on all platforms. It was brilliant, you had the official RDP client from microsoft, just connected via SSH to your Linux and Unix systems and used the built in X-server with forwarding and managing OSX systems was a breeze.
Fast forwarding to now, and I have to say that in terms of hardware, I also own a Microsoft Surface Book, and the keyboard is excellent. It's not quite the level of my MBPr, but neither is the new butterfly system on the latest MBPr. The trackpad isn't as large on the SB as it is on the new MBPr, but it does compare with the one I currently have. The ability to work with a touch surface on the display of the SB is more convenient than I thought, and comes together nicely with Windows 10. The one thing I'm not 100% convinced about is the quality of the display hinge, but that's about it.
Now, while the SB is in a similar price range to the MBPr (especially with the add on GPU), I have found it to be stable in terms of drivers, fast and enjoyable from a hardware perspective. All of those things are at least similar/comparable in ease of use and built quality to anything but the latest version of the MBPr.
What still gets me though is the OS itself. Windows 10 came a long way in terms of being more user friendly, and like I stated, the touch displays really add something with the OS being optimised or more open towards this capability. What is missing for me is a lot of small things that I've just grown used to. Cmd-Tabbing between programs and closing the ones I don't need with Cmd-Q, using built in screenshot capabilities, and so on. On the other hand, OSX/MacOS also dropped the ball in certain areas. XQuartz is easy enough to download, but not having an X-server built in is less than ideal. The app store is cool for buying software, but getting trial version of software (especially on a full fledged operating systems) is a pain in the a**.
To make a long story short, I do agree with the OS part of what you are saying, but for the same premium price, there are definitely good hardware substitutes available when compared to the Apple ecosystem. They might not be as easy to spot though, and not always in areas where you would expect them to be. But with Apple, I was used to it being fairly easy, but with the new keyboards on their laptops, not being able to do 80% of what I do without a dongle, it's not the obvious or default goto platform of choice for me anymore.
