Why is Mac better than a PC? Input needed!

[mobilehaathi]

Well, I like kittens dredged in flour and deep-fried, but I like puppies marinated and then roasted. Different preferences for different tastes.

Did I mention I'm a troll, so eating cute things is normal.

I prefer my kittens coated in cornmeal.

 

[SkyBell]

I do..... 🙁

Puppies are cute, sure, but kittens are melt-your-heart adorable.

 

[Don't panic]

Dear MacRumors Community,

I will soon be applying for a staff writer position in the Technology section of my college newspaper. Needless to say, I need a couple of writing samples to showcase my writing ability. I have decided to make one of my samples a feature story, focusing on the following topic: What makes Apple computers superior to Windows computers? That’s a fairly broad question, but I figure everyone has a slightly different reason(s) and I don’t want to pigeonhole your responses. That said, I do request that you focus on one or two primary reasons. Please feel free to elaborate, and personal experiences always make things more interesting!🙂

Since this is a feature story, I will use direct quotes. However, this will be used just as a writing sample and is not intended to be formally published.

On a final note, I welcome all reasonable opinions and if you have criticisms/praise of the Windows software/hardware please express them. Also, if you have criticisms of the Mac OS please explain them as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read and contribute to this post. Your input is greatly appreciated!

In my opinion this seems a particularly bad topic to write your showcase piece on.
not only it shows a biased view which my not fly well with the newspaper even if they were to agree, but the question itself is really really dated so it portraits you as someone who isn't really up to speed with the tech world.
the pc-mac wars are long gone

How about writing the potential demise of textbooks, the switch from laptops to tablets, the use of electronics in class (clickers, phones, tablets), effect of social network on campus life and so on. something more current. If you really want to focus on OS, maybe iOS vs Android would be more interesting.

 

[Huntn]

Traditionally Macs have been better for average users because in the words of Apple "they just work". I've been a Mac and PC user since the early 90's and over the years my PCs have given me about 10x as many problems as my Macs have. There was a time when it was reported that Microsoft assigned one tech to over a 100 Macs (used for developing MS software) as compared to 1 tech per 20 PCs. This is historical info only.

My impression is that Windows7 has made strides over previous Windows versions, but it still has that damned registry...

If forced to used W7 full time I could better today than in years past, but I prefer the MacOS. So is one better than the other? It probably depends on the individual's preference, but I continuously run into individual who have moved from Windows to Mac and now swear that the Mac is a better experience. I tend to agree. 🙂

 

[Huntn]

Also I believe an argument can be made for superior customer service when you compare Apple to any other brand. The last PCWorld article directed at customer service, placed Apple at the top for all computer related categories.

 

[And]

Also I believe an argument can be made for superior customer service when you compare Apple to any other brand. The last PCWorld article directed at customer service, placed Apple at the top for all computer related categories.

Getting back on topic... Kittens clearly wipe the floor with puppies. Kitty on my foot and I want to touch it, kitty on my foot and I want to touch it, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow. I hereby rest my case.

 

[Frisco]

Bottom line is Apple realizes the Mac's future is about to come to an end so they are "smart" moving into other areas iOS, iPhone, Tablets, TVs (we'll see).

That's why they discontinues X-serve, Logic no updates, Final-Cut nightmare. They have no intentions for the Mac for the long-term future.

Apple will survive without Mac OS, but the companies future all rides on how innovative they can be without Jobs. The iPod market is dying quickly, the iPhone Market is about 50/50, but losing ground to Samsung. The Tablet is doing well, but everyone is entering the market: Google, Microsoft and then there is the Kindle.

In my opinion Apple's future is very uncertain. I also believe their stock price is way overvalued, but people have been betting against Apple since their inception.

I would love for them to continue their success as a non-stock holder. It's just a risky future, especially without Jobs

 

[\-V-/]

Bottom line is Apple realizes the Mac's future is about to come to an end so they are "smart" moving into other areas iOS, iPhone, Tablets, TVs (we'll see).

That's why they discontinues X-serve, Logic no updates, Final-Cut nightmare. They have no intentions for the Mac for the long-term future.

Apple will survive without Mac OS, but the companies future all rides on how innovative they can be without Jobs. The iPod market is dying quickly, the iPhone Market is about 50/50, but losing ground to Samsung. The Tablet is doing well, but everyone is entering the market: Google, Microsoft and then there is the Kindle.

In my opinion Apple's future is very uncertain. I also believe their stock price is way overvalued, but people have been betting against Apple since their inception.

I would love for them to continue their success as a non-stock holder. It's just a risky future, especially without Jobs

WTF are you talking about?

 

[thekev]

PC. It's the industry standard, unless you work in desktop publishing, but even in that industry Macs are losing ground.

Bottom line is:

(1) There is so much more software for Windows than Mac

(2) Even if there is a Mac version of that software it is inferior to the Windows version. (Examples: Office, Flash, Maya and even Adobe Creative Suite is superior on the Windows version).

They are losing some ground. In the case of Autodesk stuff (aside from Smoke) and Creative Suite, the differences haven't been so great. In both cases 64 bit versions just came out a version later due to the cancellation of 64 bit carbon. Publishing has just been getting hit all over the place.

o rlly?

In my experience, either is fine. Windows has a few things that irritate me, but it's no harder to navigate or less stable than OSX.

Puppies are cute, sure, but kittens are melt-your-heart adorable.

Years (10 or so) ago I had a roommate. He had a rottweiler that could do a perfect look of abandonment when he wished to be fed. That was far too cute. I haven't seen any other dog that could pull it off that well.

 

[MacDawg]

Bottom line is Apple realizes the Mac's future is about to come to an end so they are "smart" moving into other areas iOS, iPhone, Tablets, TVs (we'll see).

That's why they discontinues X-serve, Logic no updates, Final-Cut nightmare. They have no intentions for the Mac for the long-term future.

Apple will survive without Mac OS, but the companies future all rides on how innovative they can be without Jobs. The iPod market is dying quickly, the iPhone Market is about 50/50, but losing ground to Samsung. The Tablet is doing well, but everyone is entering the market: Google, Microsoft and then there is the Kindle.

In my opinion Apple's future is very uncertain. I also believe their stock price is way overvalued, but people have been betting against Apple since their inception.

I would love for them to continue their success as a non-stock holder. It's just a risky future, especially without Jobs

Obviously your work on a "reverse reality distortion field" hasn't quite been perfected yet

 

[snberk103]

Bottom line is Apple realizes the Mac's future is about to come to an end so they are "smart" moving into other areas iOS, iPhone, Tablets, TVs (we'll see).
....

Ah... so that explains why Apple is selling more Macs than it ever has, and why Macs are increasing market share, and why when PCs in general are losing sales Apple can sell more Macs each year than it did the year before. Now it all makes sense. Apple can't make them fast enough because that market is collapsing. Thanks for clearing that up... 🙂

 

[Synchromesh]

Mac is superior because its user interface is better, it is better built, it looks great, and it will make PC diehards rage until the end times.

My own personal gaming PC I'm typing this on is hand-built and is much better built than any Mac you can throw at it. It will wipe the floor a $5K Mac Pro for less than 1/2 the price in pretty much any game. There are certain tasks that are just not Mac's domain any way you go at it. As for the interface I'm fine with W7. It gets da job done. I agree that UNIX is better but Windows has its merits also. Lookswise it's quite decent without the bling or silly rotten fruit logos.

The best part about the PC is that it's far more customizable than any Mac. You can build it YOUR way. Macs are customizable only in Apple's ways.

 

[\-V-/]

Neither are superior. Whichever one suits your needs is superior to you. They both serve their purpose.

 

[SkyBell]

Obviously your work on a "reverse reality distortion field" hasn't quite been perfected yet

He's doing pretty well, all things considered. 😛 Practice makes perfect. 😎

 

[MorphingDragon]

Linux is superior, it runs on everything.

 

[\-V-/]

Linux is superior, it runs on everything.

Image

Yes... yes it does.

 

[snberk103]

My own personal gaming PC I'm typing this on is hand-built and is much better built than any Mac you can throw at it. It will wipe the floor a $5K Mac Pro for less than 1/2 the price ....

And ... it has been shown over and over again in these threads - any homebuilt system (if built by somebody who knows what they are doing) costs less cash than any comparable store bought system. As long as you value your time at $0 and as long as you put $0 value on the one-shop-warranty coverage of a store bought system.

This comparison is true regardless of the OS.

I'll also point out that Apple doesn't make systems to compete in the gaming market - so your comparison misses on at least three factors.

 

[Synchromesh]

And ... it has been shown over and over again in these threads - any homebuilt system (if built by somebody who knows what they are doing) costs less cash than any comparable store bought system. As long as you value your time at $0 and as long as you put $0 value on the one-shop-warranty coverage of a store bought system.

This comparison is true regardless of the OS.

I'll also point out that Apple doesn't make systems to compete in the gaming market - so your comparison misses on at least three factors.

Right. When it comes to gaming systems last thing any gamer should do is buy Apple anything. So buying a prebuilt PC for gaming system makes much more sense. So this is one case when a PC is better than a Mac hands down.

 

[\-V-/]

Right. When it comes to gaming systems last thing any gamer should do is buy Apple anything. So buying a prebuilt PC for gaming system makes much more sense. So this is one case when a PC is better than a Mac hands down.

Yes, but that isn't breaking news. PCs will probably always be superior for gaming.

 

[snberk103]

Right. When it comes to gaming systems last thing any gamer should do is buy Apple anything. So buying a prebuilt PC for gaming system makes much more sense. So this is one case when a PC is better than a Mac hands down.

Putting aside for the moment the rather broad and sweeping generalization you've made ... I've been saying that works best for each individual is the "best" system. So it depends on whether you want to play or work I suppose.

For the record, there are lots of games that work just as well on a Mac as a Windows machine. Though of course there are lots of games that do work better on a Windows gaming machine. Though if I was that serious about gaming I would get a game console - a better experience and save some money. In that case the "best" OS is neither Windows or OS X.

 

[SkyBell]

For the record, there are lots of games that work just as well on a Mac as a Windows machine. Though of course there are lots of games that do work better on a Windows gaming machine. Though if I was that serious about gaming I would get a game console - a better experience and save some money. In that case the "best" OS is neither Windows or OS X.

They may work just as well on a Mac, but if gaming is your main intent, why spend a lot more for a Mac, when a cheaper PC can play them just as well? Doesn't make sense.

 

[snberk103]

They may work just as well on a Mac, but if gaming is your main intent, why spend a lot more for a Mac, when a cheaper PC can play them just as well? Doesn't make sense.

Not arguing that point.... However the post I was replying to was implying that all games play better on a PC rather than a Mac. Which is not necessarily the case. For many people the games they choose to play will work just fine on their Mac, and so if they want to buy a Mac then they should go ahead.

I'm not a big gamer myself... but generally the advice I hear is that if you want a gaming machine to buy a console.

 

[Huntn]

My own personal gaming PC I'm typing this on is hand-built and is much better built than any Mac you can throw at it. It will wipe the floor a $5K Mac Pro for less than 1/2 the price in pretty much any game.

What processor and video card did you use in it and how much did it cost? Just for my info. I still have a PIII sitting at home in my office.

As long as I travel for a living, the MBP is the best computer for my needs and that includes gaming. As I value the MacOS, it's one laptop that does it all, Mac and Windows (W7). There are NO other computer that do this...

The best part about the PC is that it's far more customizable than any Mac. You can build it YOUR way. Macs are customizable only in Apple's ways.

As far as I can tell this is really not that important to most compute users, but maybe it is to the most hard core of gamers. You can vary the processor and the video card, what more do you really need?

 

[ristlin]

My own personal gaming PC I'm typing this on is hand-built and is much better built than any Mac you can throw at it. It will wipe the floor a $5K Mac Pro for less than 1/2 the price in pretty much any game. There are certain tasks that are just not Mac's domain any way you go at it. As for the interface I'm fine with W7. It gets da job done. I agree that UNIX is better but Windows has its merits also. Lookswise it's quite decent without the bling or silly rotten fruit logos.

The best part about the PC is that it's far more customizable than any Mac. You can build it YOUR way. Macs are customizable only in Apple's ways.

You raging bro.

 

[Melrose]

Neither is "better"
They are different ways of doing the same things
And it comes down to personal preference

Your question might be better phrased, "why do you prefer X over Y?"

One can be better if you use it a certain way, but I agree since the argument is moot anyway because opinions and experiences differ.


-
But by and large, the differences that really make them different are gone, not like it used to be. Try both, and use what you like best. I personally recommend Macs because in my experience they're more stable and more reliable, but others members here can vouch for Windows.

So, if you can try both, try both and make a choice. If price is the only option, you'll be forced to buy a Windows machine. But remember that Macs are pricier only because they use higher end components. PC Mag in the past has compared laptops from several manufacturers and found MacBook Pros to be in the middle price wise.

🙂