Sad ramblings of an almost Apple switcher...

[Radio Monk33]

Oh come on, it's the same old arguments from both sides.

But as for what you're saying...yes, I will admit that if you go by the actual cost to make the components for the computer and put it together...then Macs are priced more than they should be. But that's just not how businesses work. Yes, if you argue component-for-component, Macs are priced higher than they are worth, and we are willing to pay for it. As long as people will pay for overall quality (and yes, whether they're the same parts or not, Apple's product is what I see as higher quality--you may disagree, but that's my personal computing experience and preference; I'll respect yours and you respect mine), they will continue to be priced that way, no matter how much they cost to make. Do you know that the soda you buy for $2 at a fast food is only worth about $0.03? Lots of people seem to think it's worth it.

So if that's how you want to look at it, then yes, Apple overprices everything. If that's how you want to look at it, everyone overprices everything, and Apple is the most vicious with it. But that's because there are happy OS X users who think its worth it; whereas if PC manufacturers priced their products like that, many of their users wouldn't find it worth its.

Does that make some of us OS X users stupid or mindless fanboys? No, it means Apple has given us a computing experience that we simply find to be a complete joy. Now Windows may simply be "different"--I'm not saying it's inferior or anything like that--but until they create as enjoyable an experience for me as Mac has, the price difference is worth it to me and many others.

So yes, for the components it's made of, my MacBook was overpriced. Does it matter to me when my overall computing experience has been worth it to me? I'm not bothered by it, and I'm known by all my friends as the tightwad among us.

Oh not all Mac users have some superiority complex/fanboyism (though I wouldn't like to have to make a demographic chart for this forum ). And don't get me wrong, I post this from an ibook G4 (been Apple-only since around '92-93) and I too am willing to pay the extra for a luxury good. I also like to buy fancy brand name clothes too heh.

It's just that I get frustrated that people try to find value in Apple's pricing to psychologically justify a decision that they've made or are planning to either way. Afterall, even against numbers and logic...the ultimate cop-out for Macs is "I don't like windows, I like OS, and therefore would pay x dollars extra". And well, if there's a blank cheque argument not really based on any logic, there's really just no reasoning with some people. It would be like someone being of a Christian faith, then no matter what scientific evidence you have, if they're losing they default to the statement that God moves in mysterious ways and therefore they admit nothing hehe.

We should all just admit it...we're getting gouged, and anyone who comes back here is still loving it lol.

 

[gothamm]

Stop being bitter fanboys and actually listen to the point the OP is trying to make. I wholeheartedly agree with your decision. You were on a budget, and still received an excellent laptop. I applaud your discipline.


p.s.


if you are willing to get anal about defending something material (mbp), then your life is nothing but a meaningless existence of consumerism

 

[BigPana]

if you are willing to get anal about defending something material (mbp), then your life is nothing but a meaningless existence of consumerism

Yes sir, Mr. Durden!

 

[gothamm]

Yes sir, Mr. Durden!

you are not the computer you own. you are not your ****ing khakis

 

[cohibadad]

I'm not sure what the OP wanted in a mac. It must not have been the OS and that is where my decision making starts. Was it the hardware? You can always find cheaper faster hardware elsewhere although the package may not look as good. To lust for a penryn just because it is the newest chip doesn't make sense. CPUs these days are plenty fast for almost all applications. Penryn should allow faster video encoding but unless you are doing it so much that it saves you significant time you are just lusting after the newest and that lust will never end. I guess one of the downsides of forums such as this is that there is a perpetual waiting game for new hardware and it is probably irrelevant for 95% of consumers. Apple doesn't discount older hardware because all it does is reduce their profits and eliminates a future sale. They don't have a lot of hardware in the pipeline and as upgrades happen old inventory clears quickly. Microsoft dumped their old zunes at huge discounts and probably lost many sales of their new zunes as a result and probably turned off some future sales due to dissatisfaction with the old product. And as far as installing Mac OSX on PCs, that has been discussed many times. No problem with going PC if that is what you want but my advice would have been to first decide what OS you want then go from there. An entry level macbook is a great machine and a refurbished one is a great deal.

 

[kuwisdelu]

We should all just admit it...we're getting gouged, and anyone who comes back here is still loving it lol.

Oh I never said anything about being gouged. I do admit if you argue for component-by-component pricing, then you're being ripped off, but when I buy a computer, I figure I'm paying for the overall computing experience I'll have while using it. If Apple doubled their prices tomorrow, I'd have to think about switching to Linux when I replace this MacBook. But right now, I think my MacBook was worth any penny.

The people I think are being gouged are those who settle for a PC simply because its cheaper, and then get frustrated with their computer down the line. But at least their specs are great!