Why a Mac costs more than a PC...

[Luis Ortega]

I bought a MacBook for £850. My daughter bought a Toshiba laptop for about half the price. My MacBook is going strong after more than four years. You can see the age, and the battery is gone, but it works just fine. On the Toshiba first the charger connector broke, then the battery, then keys dropped off the keyboard, then the motherboard was gone and that was it, all within less than two years. If you don't calculate dollars or pounds per computer, but dollars or pounds per year of computer use, Macs are doing absolutely fine.

And that is before you consider that all the time I had a much, much nicer computing experience.

All this anecdotal stuff is silly.

I bought my daughter a dell laptop 6 years ago for half the price of a mac laptop at that time and it still works fine for her.

I have two PCs that I built to my own specs 7 years ago and 5 years ago and they still run fine.

I paid a fraction of what a comparable mac would have cost, but there were no comparable macs because apple dictates the hardware that is used in a mac and I built the PCs to the specs I wanted rather than what apple decided.

In terms of money per years of use, they are far better values than macs.
Over the years, I have built at least a dozen PCs for myself and friends and they all ran fine. Most of them were finally put out to pasture when their specs became too dated to run the newer software.
I have a PC at work that I built in 1995 with a Pentium 75 cpu, a 750MB hard drive, a 2X CD reader and a 4MB graphics card that still runs Windows 98, but all of the new software has rendered it obsolete- yet it still works and runs the software on it fine.

The fact is that most macs or PCs will run fine for many years and the only reason to change them is that the software outpaces the specs of the computers.

The truth is that macs are overpriced. The fanboys will buy them and put up with being overcharged.

Macs are ok, but they tend to offer dated components and limited range of components compared to what you can get in a PC.
A homebuilt PC is a much more cost effective purchase than any mac, and it gives you total control over the specs.

 

[MacHamster68]

it really comes down to one thing , how much are you willing or can afford to spend on your computer and/or laptop
and Apple has outpriced most customers now as pc's and laptops are getting cheaper and cheaper and the majority of people dont use their home pc/laptop for serious work , they surf a bit in the www , send some emails and play eventually some games or sort some holiday photos on , and write some letters on ,and maybe rip some old vhs videos into divx format and for that sort of stuff you just do not need a £1000 laptop or computer as they dont need to get that stuff done in 5 minutes ,

 

[trip1ex]

All this anecdotal stuff is silly.

I bought my daughter a dell laptop 6 years ago for half the price of a mac laptop at that time and it still works fine for her.

I have two PCs that I built to my own specs 7 years ago and 5 years ago and they still run fine.

I paid a fraction of what a comparable mac would have cost, but there were no comparable macs because apple dictates the hardware that is used in a mac and I built the PCs to the specs I wanted rather than what apple decided.

In terms of money per years of use, they are far better values than macs.
Over the years, I have built at least a dozen PCs for myself and friends and they all ran fine. Most of them were finally put out to pasture when their specs became too dated to run the newer software.
I have a PC at work that I built in 1995 with a Pentium 75 cpu, a 750MB hard drive, a 2X CD reader and a 4MB graphics card that still runs Windows 98, but all of the new software has rendered it obsolete- yet it still works and runs the software on it fine.

The fact is that most macs or PCs will run fine for many years and the only reason to change them is that the software outpaces the specs of the computers.

The truth is that macs are overpriced. The fanboys will buy them and put up with being overcharged.

Macs are ok, but they tend to offer dated components and limited range of components compared to what you can get in a PC.
A homebuilt PC is a much more cost effective purchase than any mac, and it gives you total control over the specs.

Apples to oranges. You're comparing your noisy bulky ugly power hungry box that you put a few hours into building to something sleek, space saving, energy efficient and quiet like an iMac.

 

[ouimetnick]

Apples to oranges. You're comparing your noisy bulky ugly power hungry box that you put a few hours into building to something sleek, space saving, energy efficient and quiet like an iMac.

To be honest, I don't give a **** how my computer looks. Its a fricken tool, not a decoration. You use it to get work done and stuff. Once more its a TOOL NOT A DECORATION. And the standard for a desktop computer is a tower. So computer cabinets have space for the big EXPANDABLE TOWER (unlike the once you buy it, limiting upgrades Macintosh computers.)

And FYI, the Windows computers I use ARE in fact quiet. The fan and hard drive make no noise, and the disk drive makes noise when I put in media (so do macs.) So about energy. PC desktops are towers that are BUILT to be expanded, think of the Mac Pro. It fits in the same category (case wise and expandability wise) The Mac Pro isn't energy efficient.

The only reason the Mac mini is energy efficient is because it uses NOTEBOOK components. Put desktop parts in it, and it wont be energy efficient. The iMac isn't to energy efficient either. The Mac notebooks are energy efficient... and so are the PC notebooks.

Again, I don't know many people that give a **** on how their computer looks. Its not furniture, its a tool. Its like saying my Hammer looks nicer than yours. Who ****ing cares. I use it to pound nails. THATS IT!

And no, we are comparing PCs to PCs. PC= Personal Computer. My MacBook Pro is my Personal Computer therefore its also a PC. It just runs OSX instead of Windows 7.

So why should I spend the premium to get something that looks nicer when it doesn't matter to me? Why should I spend the premium on an outdated computer that uses Notebook components? Why should I spend a premium on somethings thats smaller, even though its a desktop?

^^^ Post above was referring to the mac mini. The mac notebooks DO have better build quality that Windows notebooks, so thats a plus. The PC notebooks at best buy had flimsy displays, crappy touch pads, and horrible keyboards. But Windows desktops are a different story.

 

[r0k]

To be honest, I don't give a **** how my computer looks. ... Apple MacBook Pro 13" Mid 2010,2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3 SD RAM, 250 GB SATA 7200RPM HD, Nvidia GeForce 320M! Apple iPhone 3GS 16 GB White (not jailbroken) Dell Latitude D620 hackintosh.

I have to mildly disagree with you on the looks thing. I care more about how my computer works than about how it looks, but I do care how it looks. I have an old crusty, yellow-stained white (2008) macbook. The looks don't bother me that much, but when I upgrade, I'll likely spend a little extra to get the aluminum model that will keep its looks longer.

Also keep in mind that a lot of Apple products' appeal comes from their first rate industrial design. The Macbook Air, Mac Mini, Macbook Pro, iMac, iPad, iPhone and the entire iPod line are all examples. The Mac Pro is a dinosaur in terms of space it takes up but it looks nice. I doubt they sell on looks alone, but the looks are consistent with the quality of the end to end user experience Apple is famous for. By comparison, recent notebook offerings from Acer, HP, Dell and Lenovo are as Niecy would say "A hot mess" and to me are predictive of the bloated operating system and disjointed user experience waiting inside.

Turning to your sig...
How's that Dell D620 Hackintosh working out? I suspect it would run just fine. I'm sitting in front of a Dell D630 that runs awful under poorly maintained XP SP3 but I bet it would run just fine under OS X. I'm expecting to get this thing replaced in the coming months (by my job) but I do have an older Dell notebook sitting around at home that might run fine under Leopard and possibly even SL.

 

[ouimetnick]

I have to mildly disagree with you on the looks thing. I care more about how my computer works than about how it looks, but I do care how it looks. I have an old crusty, yellow-stained white (2008) macbook. The looks don't bother me that much, but when I upgrade, I'll likely spend a little extra to get the aluminum model that will keep its looks longer.

Also keep in mind that a lot of Apple products' appeal comes from their first rate industrial design. The Macbook Air, Mac Mini, Macbook Pro, iMac, iPad, iPhone and the entire iPod line are all examples. The Mac Pro is a dinosaur in terms of space it takes up but it looks nice. I doubt they sell on looks alone, but the looks are consistent with the quality of the end to end user experience Apple is famous for. By comparison, recent notebook offerings from Acer, HP, Dell and Lenovo are as Niecy would say "A hot mess" and to me are predictive of the bloated operating system and disjointed user experience waiting inside.

Turning to your sig...
How's that Dell D620 Hackintosh working out? I suspect it would run just fine. I'm sitting in front of a Dell D630 that runs awful under poorly maintained XP SP3 but I bet it would run just fine under OS X. I'm expecting to get this thing replaced in the coming months (by my job) but I do have an older Dell notebook sitting around at home that might run fine under Leopard and possibly even SL.

Well I guess I should say this: I don't really care about how much my computer looks, but if I could chose a mac or a Windows computer with the same power, I would go with a mac as it looks nicer. AS long as they were the same price. But spending hundreds more for looks isn't worth it IMO. And My Hackintosh it working quit nicely. I keep it on all the time now. I don't use it much as I now have a MBP.

 

[trip1ex]

To be honest, I don't give a **** how my computer looks. Its a fricken tool, not a decoration. You use it to get work done and stuff. Once more its a TOOL NOT A DECORATION. And the standard for a desktop computer is a tower. So computer cabinets have space for the big EXPANDABLE TOWER (unlike the once you buy it, limiting upgrades Macintosh computers.)

And FYI, the Windows computers I use ARE in fact quiet. The fan and hard drive make no noise, and the disk drive makes noise when I put in media (so do macs.) So about energy. PC desktops are towers that are BUILT to be expanded, think of the Mac Pro. It fits in the same category (case wise and expandability wise) The Mac Pro isn't energy efficient.

The only reason the Mac mini is energy efficient is because it uses NOTEBOOK components. Put desktop parts in it, and it wont be energy efficient. The iMac isn't to energy efficient either. The Mac notebooks are energy efficient... and so are the PC notebooks.

Again, I don't know many people that give a **** on how their computer looks. Its not furniture, its a tool. Its like saying my Hammer looks nicer than yours. Who ****ing cares. I use it to pound nails. THATS IT!

And no, we are comparing PCs to PCs. PC= Personal Computer. My MacBook Pro is my Personal Computer therefore its also a PC. It just runs OSX instead of Windows 7.

So why should I spend the premium to get something that looks nicer when it doesn't matter to me? Why should I spend the premium on an outdated computer that uses Notebook components? Why should I spend a premium on somethings thats smaller, even though its a desktop?

^^^ Post above was referring to the mac mini. The mac notebooks DO have better build quality that Windows notebooks, so thats a plus. The PC notebooks at best buy had flimsy displays, crappy touch pads, and horrible keyboards. But Windows desktops are a different story.

? Angry much.

IF you want the ugliest computer you can buy then you are welcome to buy it. I don't care.

Did I say you couldn't buy an ugly computer? Or a loud one? Or a bulky one? Or use Windows 7?

I don't think so. MY post did not even address you.

I think if you go back and read it and digest it in reference to the post it did address then you'll find it doesn't limit your purchasing options nor does it say anything other than the post in question doesn't really compare apples to apples.

NOte this doesn't mean that your post isn't filled with misinformation and faulty logic. It absolutely is.

 

[ouimetnick]

? Angry much.

IF you want the ugliest computer you can buy then you are welcome to buy it. I don't care.

Did I say you couldn't buy an ugly computer? Or a loud one? Or a bulky one? Or use Windows 7?

I don't think so. MY post did not even address you.

I think if you go back and read it and digest it in reference to the post it did address then you'll find it doesn't limit your purchasing options nor does it say anything other than the post in question doesn't really compare apples to apples.

NOte this doesn't mean that your post isn't filled with misinformation and faulty logic. It absolutely is.

Your post above was filled with fanboyism. I am so tired of that. Your post made it sound like Windows computers are a POS, and that people should buy sleek, nice looking, quiet, power efficient, and small instead of buying cheap windows computers that can do the job anyways.

 

[philosopherdog]

It's not about price, it's about value. Macs are better value. If I could find a decent pc I never would have come over to the Apple camp. There's been a race to the bottom in the PC world. Poor build quality, bad battery life, crappy graphics, hot, plastic, junk. Windows 7 sounds like it's pretty nice, but unless you build your own workstation most of what I'm seeing is rubbish. It's too bad IBM couldn't keep the thinkpad line going. That was a good solid pc laptop. Lenovo has just run that brand into the ground. Absolute crap all the way.

 

[friedmud]

All this anecdotal stuff is silly.

I bought my daughter a dell laptop 6 years ago for half the price of a mac laptop at that time and it still works fine for her.

I have two PCs that I built to my own specs 7 years ago and 5 years ago and they still run fine.

I paid a fraction of what a comparable mac would have cost, but there were no comparable macs because apple dictates the hardware that is used in a mac and I built the PCs to the specs I wanted rather than what apple decided.

In terms of money per years of use, they are far better values than macs.
Over the years, I have built at least a dozen PCs for myself and friends and they all ran fine. Most of them were finally put out to pasture when their specs became too dated to run the newer software.
I have a PC at work that I built in 1995 with a Pentium 75 cpu, a 750MB hard drive, a 2X CD reader and a 4MB graphics card that still runs Windows 98, but all of the new software has rendered it obsolete- yet it still works and runs the software on it fine.

The fact is that most macs or PCs will run fine for many years and the only reason to change them is that the software outpaces the specs of the computers.

The truth is that macs are overpriced. The fanboys will buy them and put up with being overcharged.

Macs are ok, but they tend to offer dated components and limited range of components compared to what you can get in a PC.
A homebuilt PC is a much more cost effective purchase than any mac, and it gives you total control over the specs.

The question I have is... WTF are you (and people like you) doing on this forum? Why o why can't we get rid of people who don't care for macs around here?

I'm not attacking your reasoning (everyone is driven by different forces)... I just don't see why we need to continue to have these conversations on MACrumors. If you don't like macs... and think they are overpriced.... THEN GO SOMEWHERE ELSE.

There needs to be a voting system around here where after some large number of people say you are a "anti mac" you get permabanned. It would really clean up the signal to noise ratio around here...

 

[4look4rd]

...but is CHEAPER in reality.
The Software
Mac OS X is the most advanced operating system out there - pretty hard to doubt that. I could explain that in a septillion ways, but people don‘t care for that anyways. So I have that for you:

iTunes - FREE
The whole world of music - under your cursor. The biggest music store out there, the best way to organize it. It‘s a tie here, because you can download that for Windows, too.

iLife - FREE with every Mac
Mac users know why they love iLife. No fooling around with folders full of photos, you can make really good looking videos, compose DVDs, and even semi-professionally record music. It‘s just there, and so easy to use that virtually everyone can use it.

iPhoto? -> Picasa2 for free
iMovie? -> Windows Live Movie Maker? Not even close. Corel Video Studio Express, $39.
iDVD? -> Nero Media Suite, $70.
iWeb? -> Microsoft Expression Web, $150. Let‘s be generous on this one, Google Page Creator, $0.
GarageBand? -> At least Mixcraft 5, $75

Your fanboyism makes me throw up. Mac are expensive because people are willing to that much money for them. Apple's build quality is indeed amazing, but for that price you could get a similarly spec'ed PC for the same price, with equally good build quality (Lenovo comes to mind). The thing is, OS X is a really good OS, thats the only reason why I bought my first mac. Even though I love my iMac, I hate the fact that a 07 computer that costed me 1200 dollars, struggles to run Counter Strike xD.

If I had tons of money I would certainly buy more Mac's, but since I don't I stick with a decent laptop (better specs than most macbook pro's) for a fraction of the price. I surely miss OSX, but I am happy with ubunto + windows 7 for games (windows 7 is surprisingly good, believe it or not).

I stop reading your post after you compared iLife's most useless program (iDVD) with one of the best burning softwares available (Nero). Nero is equivalent to Toaster which retails for about the same price (I like Nero better though).

 

[ouimetnick]

The question I have is... WTF are you (and people like you) doing on this forum? Why o why can't we get rid of people who don't care for macs around here?

I'm not attacking your reasoning (everyone is driven by different forces)... I just don't see why we need to continue to have these conversations on MACrumors. If you don't like macs... and think they are overpriced.... THEN GO SOMEWHERE ELSE.

There needs to be a voting system around here where after some large number of people say you are a "anti mac" you get permabanned. It would really clean up the signal to noise ratio around here...

Thats a very Apple fanboyish response. The thread is called "Why a Mac costs more than a PC" AND not everyone needs to spend 1K on a Mac to check Email or to use Photoshop Elements. The thread topic was asking for the responses it got. I have a Mac. I use both Windows and OSX. I don't think Mac OSX is worth the premium price.

But I do love my MBP. For my grandfather, he does basic web browsing and email. He has no clue how to use a computer to start with. This will be his first own computer. Should he buy an iMac for $1200 or a Dell for $600? Well Let me say this He bought a Dell Inspiron 530 in 2007. He uses it, and it works fine for his needs. So for him, a Windows computer is better than a Mac. The Windows computer was cheaper, had better specs than the iMac at the time, and does everything he wanted it to do... for $600 less than a Macintosh.

I posted this a while back:

That statement makes you seem like an Apple apologist. We all have our own opinions. For some, a Macintosh is better than a Windows computer. For others, Windows is better than a Mac. They can defend their decision of why Windows is better than a Mac, but that is them. Windows is only better than a Mac for that specific person, and I'm glad that they have a computer that they are happy with.

For some, Windows computers are cheaper and get the job done. Our family PC is a $489 HP Pavilion. We use it for web browsing and email and Photoshop Elements. Guess what. It works GREAT for what we wanted it to do. Why should we have spent $699 on a Mac mini that doesn't even come with a keyboard and mouse (two very low cost components) when a cheaper computer does what we need it to do?

Yes, Windows can get viruses, but we use Microsoft Security Essentials, and we have never gotten a virus yet to start with.

Just because for my parents needs and mine on a computer, a Windows PC does it fine... for $200 less.

 

[r0k]

The question I have is... WTF are you (and people like you) doing on this forum? Why o why can't we get rid of people who don't care for macs around here?

I'm not attacking your reasoning (everyone is driven by different forces)... I just don't see why we need to continue to have these conversations on MACrumors. If you don't like macs... and think they are overpriced.... THEN GO SOMEWHERE ELSE.

There needs to be a voting system around here where after some large number of people say you are a "anti mac" you get permabanned. It would really clean up the signal to noise ratio around here...

I disagree, to an extent. I welcome PC fans to MacRumors as I think any intelligent discussion needs to be open to all sides. However if PC or Apple fans are simply here to rant, perhaps they should think twice before hitting Submit Reply.

 

[Les Kern]

...but is CHEAPER in reality.

People say, we are a Sect, with Saint Steve as our leader. We pay way.....

I am amazed so much thought went into this.
I am amazed I posted.
Amazing.
No, not the content. That's not amazing.

 

[Les Kern]

I disagree, to an extent. I welcome PC fans to MacRumors as I think any intelligent discussion needs to be open to all sides. However if PC or Apple fans are simply here to rant, perhaps they should think twice before hitting Submit Reply.

And could you do something about the excessive use of the word "fanboy". Sounds so adolescent and it tires me and I am sure others.

 

[Luis Ortega]

Apples to oranges. You're comparing your noisy bulky ugly power hungry box that you put a few hours into building to something sleek, space saving, energy efficient and quiet like an iMac.

Lol...Maybe you're used to building things that look like a piece of ****, but not me.

But more to the point, mr. fanboy, the value of a computer is what it does and how well it does it for the money that you spend.
Maybe fanboys like to spend thousands of pounds to buy a computer and just sit there and look at it, but adults in the real world buy computers to actually do some work.

 

[Luis Ortega]

The question I have is... WTF are you (and people like you) doing on this forum? Why o why can't we get rid of people who don't care for macs around here?

I'm not attacking your reasoning (everyone is driven by different forces)... I just don't see why we need to continue to have these conversations on MACrumors. If you don't like macs... and think they are overpriced.... THEN GO SOMEWHERE ELSE.

There needs to be a voting system around here where after some large number of people say you are a "anti mac" you get permabanned. It would really clean up the signal to noise ratio around here...

Apparently, we're here making insecure fanboys spout nonsense as a way of avoiding reality.
Get over yourself, kid.
I also have macs but I'm not so insecure that I have to pitch a fit about censoring opinions of others, even though idiot fanboys are a huge waste of time on forums like these to the adults who actually use macs or pcs or linux boxes to get their work done.
You people are a joke as well as a waste of time when it comes time to offering any useful advice on issues.

 

[ramzhh]

Apparently, we're here making insecure fanboys spout nonsense as a way of avoiding reality.
Get over yourself, kid.
I also have macs but I'm not so insecure that I have to pitch a fit about censoring opinions of others, even though idiot fanboys are a huge waste of time on forums like these to the adults who actually use macs or pcs or linux boxes to get their work done.
You people are a joke as well as a waste of time when it comes time to offering any useful advice on issues.

There's a difference between having different opinions and shouting out idiotic anti-Apple nonsense. That's not an opinion, thats just childish-ism.

 

[Luis Ortega]

There's a difference between having different opinions and shouting out idiotic anti-Apple nonsense. That's not an opinion, thats just childish-ism.

There's also a difference between having countering opinions or actually offering advice relevant to the topic and shouting out insipid apple fanboy nonsense and wishing that people who aren't swooning at every pronouncement from steve jobs be banned.

 

[ramzhh]

There's also a difference between having countering opinions or actually offering advice relevant to the topic and shouting out insipid apple fanboy nonsense and wishing that people who aren't swooning at every pronouncement from steve jobs be banned.

Thank you so much, you just proved my whole point!

 

[smallnshort247]

Buy the computer that you like..wether it be the look of it OR the specs. If you feel that you'd rather save some money and build your own PC, by all means, feel free. If you feel like you rather build a Hackintosh, do it. Want to know why? Because you can. And guess what, your system will be the best system..to you. That is the point. What system is the best system for you? I'm glad that all you guys have such strong opinions on all these operating systems and companies. It shows that you have passion in what you're using/what you prefer. I'm not going to argue that Windows is better or Apple is better because I don't need to convince anyone that my decision was right for me. If I do, that just shows my insecurity in my choice of computers. Lastly, I'm glad that all you guys are so diverse in your opinion of computers. What would this world be like if everyone owned a Windows based computer? What would the world be like if everyone owned a Mac? I think it would be boring. Just be happy we have a choice to pick which computer we want. Imagine if we only had one choice for everyone to pick..how boring that would be.

 

[SlamJam12]

I had a Dell XPS laptop. It lasted barely three years. It developed viruses and became a desktop quickly due to a short battery life.
I've had a black Macbook for three years now and it has surpassed usage as well as length of life against the XPS. I like Mac OSX over Windows because I got tired from the constant pop ups that ask "yes or no".
I thought the XPS laptop was a great looking computer. The display was amazing for the time. The touchpad was nice although I used the mouse more often. When I got my macbook, I got a design upgrade from the XPS. I use the touchpad all the time now because they have convenient uses such as scrolls, etc.
I love my first Apple computer and continue to use it. I do not have enough experience using Windows 7 as much as Vista or XP.

 

[barkmonster]

You get what you pay for. I take my computer serious and thus I will pay the Mercedes price to get the Mercedes quality. Feel free to fill in your car analogy of choice. My ability to earn money is based on how well my computer runs. That is why I choose Mac.

If you're in the market for a Mac Pro, I couldn't agree with you more but Apple systems aimed at home users aren't "Mercedes", they're like those awful cars teenagers buy then spend a fortune adding loads of cosmetic things that don't make it any faster like pointless plastic spoilers, alloys, a big bore exhaust.

Apart from the noise compared with a more modern system, my G4 is still going strong but it does represent the end of Apple's "affordable" desktops.

Here's what Apple want to sell you:-

Laptops

Laptops for your desk without screens

Expensive Laptops for your desk with screens

Expensive High end workstations

Here's what Apple used to sell you:-

Laptops

Laptops for your desk with screens

Desktops

High end workstations

A Mac Mini has the specs of an entry level laptop at best, it should cost no more than £499 with 4Gb and a 2.66Ghz CPU, not £649 for a slower performing system than the old 2.53Ghz system with half the RAM. It's not value for money, software bundles don't excuse this.

There's no entry level tower equivalent to the PowerPC days in a price point acceptable to home users that don't want a laptop or laptop for their desk.

Things I need to be able to do (without resorting to overpriced external firewire cases, USB is worthless for more than backup storage):-

Upgrade the RAM myself at a later stage - This is the ONLY thing the Mac mini CAN allow me do but it should have 4Gb minimum to start with!

Upgrade the internal hard drive at a later stage

Add a second internal drive for storage/recording about £45, not £45 + £90 for a firewire case so it's full duplex like an internal drive, forgot USB, till it's USB 3.0 across the range, that's only useful for your backup drive and other peripherals.

If there was something between the Macmini and the iMac, both in price and spec, it would be perfect.

Why not simply have a system called the "Mac"?

All I want is something to plug my existing monitors and peripherals into, migrate my system over and get using the thing with minimum outlay for what shouldn't be "extras" or external add ons as a compromise for Apple's stingy specs.

 

[node808]

This pretty much sums it up.

And as to your first point, I agree, as does the OP, that the software is part of the reason why Apple can charge so much. However, the OP also seems to think that the hardware that Apple uses is somehow magical. And even if you can't find the exact same specs in a Dell or HP or Alienware, you can fine similar enough specs to determine that, specs alone, Apple is overpriced for what they give you.

My point is that the price premium comes from it being a premium brand, with a monopoly on OS X. I've pointed out that computers from Dell have similar usable specs with between 1/3 to 1/2 the price.

It's arguable that Windows 7 is better than OS X, but very very few people will buy a mac to run Windows on. It's because when you buy a mac, you're not buying it because of the hardware, you're buying it for OS X.

TheJadedMonkey is absolutely correct. But first of all, I like Macs and I recently upgraded from a PowerBook G4 to an iMac that I purchased a few months ago. I use Fedora, Ubuntu, Windows, and OSX of course. I'm not a hater or troll, but people tend to lose their minds when it comes to comparing Apples to oranges. Set aside your emotions and try to think objectively. For Macs...its all about OSX, design, and marketing. The hardware specs for the low end iMac that I purchased are a little disappointing...especially for the premium price that Apple charges. The hardware in Apple computers lags behind compared to other computers, and that's the hardest thing to swallow when you reach for your wallet.

 

[jazziethomas]

Great discussions for this thread, well apple product cost too high because of the products quality or maybe because of its brand name either ways although these products are quite expensive people continue to buy them.