Submitted by In a move that shouldn’t surprise anyone, Microsoft has finally started to run an ad that’s a direct attack against Apple. Previous marketing campaigns by Microsoft have always more or less ignored Apple, but the company’s latest commercial is a direct attack on Apple in a place where it should hurt Apple the most: price.
Instead of describing the commercial frame by frame like so many other sites tiresomely do, let’s just look at it (HD version):
The obvious message in the commercial is of course that Lauren can get more bang for her buck by buying a Windows laptop. The commercial also accentuates that Lauren has a lot more choice when shopping for a Windows laptop – we get to see dozens of them lined up, whereas there was only one Mac for her 1000 USD budget.
What I like about the commercial is the authentic feel – they didn’t use sets or studios, but real shops and locations. There’s also a lot not to like about it. The music is corny, and I really don’t like it when actors in commercials are all “look at me being all average and normal like you!” There’s also a very odd moment in there, when she sighs “I’m just not cool enough to be a Mac person…” They should’ve replaced “cool” with “rich” and it would’ve made much more sense. Now she just admits that you have to have a Mac to be cool, which doesn’t sound like a good idea if you want to discourage people from buying… Macs. The final line is very good, though: “I’m a PC, and I got just what I wanted.”
Still, in the current economic climate, it makes perfect sense to focus on the fact that you can get more PC for your money if you go for a Windows machine. Data from the first two months (January, February) of this year have shown that Apple has seen a rather harsh decline in sales, with Windows PCs and netbooks specifically seeing steep rises, probably because you can get those cheaper. However, the figures for March will tell us a lot more, since those will include the sales after Apple’s desktop refresh.
Interesting times.
Love it! Really!
I’m a Linux fan, but what is true is true.
How to be cool without a 13 inch display? I think you are more cool buying a Samsung or an EEE-PC and have much more longer battery life!
Bravo Microsoft!
So, you can buy a low end laptop PC for $700 or a high end MacBook for more $. You get what you pay for.
I have a 17″ Dell Inspiron that’s a piece of crap, as I type this message on my 13″ MacBook, which is by far the nicest laptop I’ve ever owned.
I agree. I have 2 GHz Core Duo MacBook I bought in 2007, and it does whatever I want. Yes, the graphics could be better, but besides that I have no complaints.
If I HAD to buy a PC, I’d install Linux, which I can use but don’t enjoy as much as OS X. To me there is no reason to buy anything but a Mac, I have thoroughly enjoyed every one I’ve owned (I’m on my fourth).
You do know Macs ARE PCs don’t you?
Sort of. It’s really the firmware and chipset that make the machine though. Apple does use pretty standard PC chipsets but the firmware has yet to be adopted by too many others.
EFI is NOT the same as the PC BIOS. Apple’s bootcamp is basically a BIOS emulation module for EFI that allows it to run older operating systems.
The thrased corpse that is the BIOS and the crappy old IA32 instruction set is the only thing that keeps a modern PC “still a PC”.
Some Cisco routers use x86 Intel CPU’s. Doesn’t make them IBM Compatible PC’s by any means.
Not all sub-$1000 17″ laptops are crap though.
The MBP is much more expensive not because of higher build quality, it’s just got a lot more features and powerful configuration. Things most people don’t need on their personal computer.
No, not all sub $1000 PCs are crap, but none are high end.
Microsoft it trying to compare low end PC’s to a high end Mac. Silly.
That’s bullshit.
My laptop cost me ^Alb430 18 months ago and it’s been used for live DJing in Ableton (where not only speed is mission critical, but also stability and durability of the parts) and never once had a problem with it – even despite it running XP.
Not bad for a budget laptop aye?
Sure, better products are often more expnsive, but don’t be fooled into thinking that a high price dictates the quality of a product, because it doesn’t.
I had a Mac mini, it costs me as much as a Quad core C2Q6600. Regarding noise and style Mac is way beyond PC. But putting Linux, 3D desktop, as development machine, as fun machine, as gaming machine, nothing was comparable. Also, buying a 60 euro video card, it blast even more (I’ve bought a nice looking DX10 game: Devil May Cry).
I bought a nice laptop, namely Samsung NC10: 6 hours battery life, everything works without a glitch, I’ve put the second display, no problem. Price: 400 euros.
What my wanting to say: if you go low end of PC/laptops at least, they offer much more value than the corresponding Mac crap mini. The PCs are even in a price range that Apple can compete only with iPods, even they are touch or no, or at the same (low end) price, the PCs offers a lot more.
One entry level workstation (bought using AMD components) last year: Phenom 9950 quad core, 8G RAM, HDD: VelociRaptor 300G, Ati 4850 1G Video, custom alien-like case, in rest are standard components, price: 1150 euro. Adding a 20 inch display, it will add the price as big with 1300 euros.
What you can buy as minimalist desktop on macs (this year, after the update of configurations, I will not say nothing that the components I have right now can be found cheaper)
iMac 20 inch
Core2 Duo 2.0GHz
2GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2x1GB
320GB Serial ATA Drive
Really, I know that are laptop components in macs, but the price standpoint, and the look and feel, of Vista (I like to use Linux as I’m a freak
) it feels much more instantly than the OS X. Not because Vista is fast, but because OS X is a low spec machine.
So for me, I never feel bad that I’ve stand with PCs… as ugly as they were.
So the point is: at low end Macs have no value, and the point of the ad is really true. At their price point, PCs have no competition, excluding that you can put Linux on them
Dell’s are junk, try a Thinkpad.
Bullshit. We keep hearing this over and over. I had a Mac craze and bought two Mini’s (one for me, and one for my SO), and we have one MacBook. Within a year one of the Mini’s had a defective CD-ROM drive. In little over a year the top layer of surface around the mouse and keyboard of the MacBook starts come off. And it isn’t even heavily used, I think my girlfriend uses it only about once per one or two weeks. I am very glad a shelved out a freaking 300 Euros for two years of extra warranty, but I still have to see if they are going to fix this.
I never saw such a think happen *within a year* with the HPs (only business models) and Thinkpads we have. And these were usually in the 500-600 Euro range, about half of what I paid for the MacBook.
There are a few times I’d agree with Steve Balmer, but you are really paying 500 Euros for the logo and operating system. The fabled high quality of Apple hardware is in contrast with my experience with three Macs.
Edited 2009-03-28 08:57 UTC
I bought a Lenovo Thinkpad for ~500 dollars. It has been a great laptop, never had a single issue with it. The moral of this story is that price does not dictate quality, price is a direct correlation of the /perception/ of quality, and the value that the consumer applies to a product.
Actually, this surprises me very much. Microsoft generally has the marketing sense of a dead carp.
I disagree with you on people being confused by “cool” for “rich”. Frankly, having and showing off expensive things has always been the way to show off your higher status — your coolness. This goes beyond the Macphile talking about Apple’s “premium” brand. Abercrombie and Fitch is based on convincing teens and twentysomethings they’re better than their peers because they wear $200 jeans. Starbucks convinced people that their $4.00 coffee pays not only for the drink but the atmosphere. I remember kids in high school fighting each other over the cool $200 sneakers. There is very much in this world that confer status because of its cost. Designer clothes and accessories. Mercedes Benz automobiles.
Mac users are more likely to have a VW, or BMW. They are the ones who will run you over on the highway, with he VW crowd being even more agressive. The Mazda crowd are here as well, but then except for the BMW, those are not all normally expensive cars.
Seriously, the new cool is not showing that you are a true tard but rather how much smarter you are because you can do more but not spending more. MB owners don’t care which computers to own, their assistants run Windows.
—Replied to wrong comment—
Edited 2009-03-27 21:09 UTC
I’m a Mac owner and drive a Hyundai.
i’m a mac user who rides a bike. a 100^a‘not bike.
I’m a Mac user and I have no car, I use the train.
Some Mac user use Mac because of the OS not the actual machine itself. I use OSX because I make music and frankly you will not get a better bang for buck DAW on the market than Logic Studio. Where most oher DAWs cost 700 and up and then nickel and dime you for added features, Logic comes fully packed with absolutely no nickel and diming, and is seen in almost every music studio that isn’t a protools house (even the ones that are have Logic if they use Macs and trust me they use Macs).
If you are a movie studio or do film of any sort Final Cut Pro is the software to use and Apple practically gives it away for the power it has.
You see where I’m going here? The hardware, while nice isn’t really the draw for mac users, its the icing. OSX and Apple software are the real draw for most people. Personally my Macbook Pro doesn’t leave my house so I don’t care how sexy the hardware looks, but I do care that there are quality components in it and that they are going to last. I care that Apple is going to give me decent service on my laptop if breaks down on me. Somethin that frankly I have never experienced from any OEM. Usually the service is pretty awful, especially HP.
I’m not a mac user and that’s why I can afford a car.
I am a Mac user and choose not to own a car because I don’t feel the need to own 2 tonnes of metal on 4 wheels as some sort of edifice to demonstrate success and thus garner respect from my pairs because of a lack of self esteem.
I run a Mac because I am more productive on them – unlike you, I don’t feel the need to walk around on forums justifying my purchases through low blow pokes at other people.
My car doesn’t demonstrate anything except that it can get me from point a to point b.
No, you like others need to justify your purchase by going around forums and advocating to everyone that “I OWN A MAC! It cost a lot but that doesn’t matter, because I OWN A MAC. It’s great, when I’m not on the internet posting about how great it is I’m trying to see if I can see my reflection in it’s shiny aluminum surface because ultimately I’m a pompous self absorbed a**hole that thinks the only right way is my way!”
Edited 2009-03-28 15:06 UTC
On the contrary, at least where I come from and the “groups” I happened to be in throughout my school years, the people who spend $100 for jeans with pre-made holes in them (I never got that concept… I’m happy to make my own holes through normal wear-and-tear, thank you) or $200 on shoes are generally seen as stuck-up snobs and idiots for paying more for less. Even amongst the teens themselves.
I personally don’t see the sense in overpaying for a Mac system when you generally get much less (operating system preferences aside). Social status shouldn’t (and isn’t for many people) based on how much one pays for his or her computer.
How do you get less? A new Mac comes not only with OS X (which to those like me is the selling point, not a logo like the dumbass Ballmer thinks is the draw), but with Garageband iMovie and iPhoto. What does Windows include? No music creation software, no decent photo software, and nothing that comes close to iMovie as part of the whole package.
Edited 2009-03-27 21:53 UTC
It costs more because it’s a nicer, safer, easier to use OS. The hardware is better quality. Simple.
You know, I really get LESS. There is no Intel Centrino Duo logo, no Designed for Windows logo, no GeForce inside logo, and no Windows license at its back. I am really happy with that less.
And the screen hinges and/or power adapter on the cheap PC laptop will break long before the Mac. See it all the time. >^Alb100+ repairs because someone stepped on the cable…
Cheap is a false economy, you get what you pay for, and my MacBookPro has been worth every penny if I could count the number of times I^aEURTMve stepped on the power lead.
Not with computer equipment. Even assuming, for the sake of argument, that Apple’s quality is higher… if your less expensive system breaks and is out of warranty, you will likely be able to pick up a new unit with specs that would blow both your old unit and any pricey Mac of its time out of the water, for less money than you paid for the old, less expensive unit. Paying extra on the threory that you can keep it longer is the false econmomy in the ever-improving world of computers. Of course, once one has sunk a bunch of money into an overpriced Apple, it’s only natural to start rationalizing. Especicially once the technology has passed one’s current unit by.
Of course, the above was assuming higher quality for the Apple “for the sake of argument”. And as OSAlert readers should be well aware, Apple’s record for quality is far from spotless.
Edited 2009-03-27 21:02 UTC
Your entire premise fails because of this statement. Except for a few small subgroups of computer users, the computers available today are more than adequate for the tasks they set out to do. Word, Excel, email, web browsing, just about any computer will give you that. The vast, vast majority of users do not buy new computers because their computer is too slow.
Yours fails because of this one:
Those people certainly don’t need expensive Macs. And if they drop it and break it, they can still buy a new box a hell of a lot cheaper than an overpriced Apple. Except for a few small subgroups who think they’re making a fashion statement, nobody needs a Mac.
Edited 2009-03-27 21:33 UTC
Execpt, Mac OS X users^aEUR| Except half the freaking entertainment industry^aEUR| and so on.
You are so wrong, I am not going to write a 1^aEURTM000 word diatribe to correct you.
Now you’re really sounding like the other Apple fans around here.
Edited 2009-03-27 21:46 UTC
I chose my computer, and I take offence to people telling me otherwise.
Indeed, it would be if the comparison of a ThinkPad to a Mac was made more often. Usually it is a bottom of the line Dell or HP instead.
Damn, I hate Mac OS X with passion. After six month with my new Mac I’ve got to a point where I can take it no more. The awkwardness of OS X drives me crazy. I’ll probably sell my Mac or install Windows in the next month.
And regarding Apple’s high-quality … after six month my drive won’t write CDs and my system boots in twice the time it did when I first bought it.
I think that NewTek and Avid would disagree with you there.
Exactly, which is why no one “needs” them.
I don’t need a Mac either. I choose to spend a little more for a Mac laptop that just works, without being a pain in the ass nightmare.
How long have computers been mainstream now? Shouldn’t they finally be reliable? OS X = Reliable.
Yes they do, because win xp gets slower over time so they buy a new one with vista.
True. My computer is a sempron 1.6Ghz really old as of today standards and runs KDE 4 more than perfect, compared to a newer multicore+4GB ram computer with Vista. Problem is, computers are faster each year, but Windows/Windows software gets slower and bloated in comparisson. I know I could run this PC for at least 3 more years, totalling some 8 years, maybe 10 for a ridiculous price.
Edited 2009-03-28 01:01 UTC
Spec is not everything.
Aluminium chassis
^aEURoeMagsafe^aEUR power adapter
Backlit keyboard
Built in IR and remote + FrontRow
Digital optical audio in and out
1″ thickness
Efficient OS
Apple^aEURTMs quality is not in the parts^aEUR”they don^aEURTMt manufacture the RAM, HDD and so on.. that^aEURTMs an irrelevant argument; Apple^aEURTMs quality is in the design and that^aEURTMs unmatched as far as goes my experience. I hear good word from Thinkpads, and I respect that; but having used everything from ^Alb500 Advents, to ^Alb1500 Sony^aEURTMs to ^Alb1500 Apples and everything inbetween, owning a Mac is different matter to comparing spec sheets.
The HP also came with an IR remote.
And Windows Media Center is much better than Front Row
Um, why did you start comparing features in Windows Vista with Mac OS X? She bought a ‘PC’. No OS was specified so it could be anything, including a PC running a hacked version of OS X.
You do know Macs ARE PCs don’t you?
Of those, the ones that matter to me are pared down to:
Aluminium chassis
^aEURoeMagsafe^aEUR power adapter
Nifty OS
I don’t care about the others and they don’t affect my or most people’s use of the computer. They are strong arguments, adding the others really weakens them. Its like bragging that my Dad makes 20 million dollars, could beat up your dad, has toenail fungus, dandruff,and a passive aggressive behavior disorder.
Sometimes you just limit your complements to the best ones for everyone’s sake.
Hey, some people might find toenail fungus, dandruff and a passive aggressive disorder sexy and appealing! Just because you don’t, doesn’t mean there aren’t other people out there who might.
Just saying …
Much better than their other ones. I can’t tell the quality from that video, but I hope they’ve gotten rid of the low quality web-cam feel from them. However, I still don’t like their use of the phrase “I’m a PC”. That’s really the main problem I have with the adverts, besides them not really being particularly creative/funny (but then, most ads aren’t).
The Apple ads weren’t saying that those two people were actually humans, but rather, they were acting as anthropomorphic computers… demonstrating the personalities that they would have if they were human. After all, it wouldn’t make sense for Apple to alienate their target market by saying they were boring and only ran Office software.
The Microsoft adverts on the other hand, actually seem to be calling their users PCs… something that most people probably don’t appreciate. (I’d take it more as a compliment though assuming the PC runs Linux
)
Edited 2009-03-27 20:23 UTC
Actually what I’ve heard is that she said “I’ve got a PC” not “I’m a PC”. This makes the whole situation completely different.
I swear it says on the last line of the advert: “I’m a PC, and I’ve got just what I wanted”
I’m shocked that they actually managed to point out a real problem – artificial market segmentation on screen size. I still don’t know where that extra $1000 between Macbook and Macbook Pro goes. Ah, but I do – margin.
The $700 difference between the MacBook and MacBook Pro (not $1000) is more than just a larger screen.
– larger screen
– faster processor
– larger hard drive
– second display adapter
– illuminated keyboard
For some people it well worth the extra $700
All a lot of those things require more power. So the Macbook pro comes with a larger more expensive battery as well.
Especially the 17″ version. 8 hours battery in a one-inch thick laptop is pretty impressive.
Except that when that new, eight hour battery ends up hosed for whatever reason, it’s not user-replaceable.
Seriously, I like OS X and generally find Apple’s systems to be suited to my needs as well as the os’s tight integration with the provided hardware. But let’s not fool ourselves, ok? Current Macs differ from standard PCs in two respects: their external design, which is irrelevant to the internal hardware, and the use of EFI rather than bios for the bootstrapping. That’s it. The rest of the hardware is just stock PC parts, and not always particularly good ones at that. The days when Apple was differentiated from a standard PC at the hardware level died when they switched to Intel from PPC.
“Now she just admits that you have to have a Mac to be cool, which doesn’t sound like a good idea if you want to discourage people from buying… Macs.”
To the contrary, I thought it was an excellent line, because the implication is that she is cool, too cool for Macs. It was gentle sarcasm.
she looks cool. besides, who wants to hang out with someone who thinks they are SOO COOOL.. not me. i’d rather hang out with normal people who don’t have an attitude.
A price war is the last thing that will help Microsoft; in the long run Linux will win in a price war. Microsoft’s management is really short-sighted by doing this campaign: profits in the short run to please shareholders (helping management to keep their jobs), but losses in the long run…
To summarize: keep up the good work! This may be an important and real contribution to open source!
I’m an Apple User. I was once primarily a Windows User then…
Microsoft introduced Vista. It is a pity that it is not 4 letters rather than 5.
Now I have 5 Mac’s.
Three are Mac Mini’s that run Fedora (2 PPC , 1 Intel).
I have a MACbook Pro which I use for my Photo Editing and very occassionally, run XP in a VM.
My daily use machine is one of the latest Mac Books. It works better than any Windows laptop I have owned from the likes of Dell, Compaq & HP. Only a Stinkpad (an IBM not Lenovo) came close to the usability of the Mac.
Sorry you venerable guys from Redmond, I’m not coming back into the fold ever again. If apple screw me up with changes to OS/X, I’ll just install Linux and be done with it once and for all.
I don’t care how you try to sell me windows your pitch failed a long time ago.
btw, for those who like stereotyping Mac users, I drive a Saab Estate, Ride a 1969 Triumph Bonieville and shoot with a Nikon. Put that in your pint glass and snort it.
So you are admitting you are a rich snob. Good for you.
I own several Macs, several normal PCs, and drive a Nissan Micra 1.0, 1995, in Ferrari red. What does that make me?
Edited 2009-03-27 21:36 UTC
I guess it makes you a person who… wants a Ferrari
Well, I would say you have more money than you know what to do with. A Nissan is not an expensive car, a Saab is. A Triumph is also extremely expensive, and could probably pay for all your computers with quite a few K left over for other things by itself.
I drive a 5 series BMW and despise the ‘cool’ boys who use Macs… Design wise they’re nice, but I’d rather spend my money on a better spec-ed PC for the same price.
I bet Acura drivers say the same thing about your car
(just kidding, nice car)
A poor snob with a lot of computers! Joking by the way!
Edited 2009-03-27 22:50 UTC
Wrong.
I should have said
a 2004 Saab Estate with over 100K miles on it
a 1969 Triumph which I have owned since 1969. It cost me ^Alb429.00 to buy then. It has over 200K miles on the clock.
So who is the rich bastard then? Plainly not me.
Essentially I loved the ad. It’s one of the first ad’s that MS had gotten right in a long time…
What was interesting though was that the ad was basically for PC’s, none of which MS build. They didn’t mention any OS at all, though it was implied. It’s interesting that this ad would work equally well for Linux, Solaris and the Hackintosh community and many others…
I find it interesting that MS can’t compare OS features, but I do take the point.
I also think we have seen the last of the “I’m a Mac, I’m a PC” ads from Apple by the way. I think Windows 7 will be good enough not to poke fun at.
Oh, I drive a Ford Falcon (not sure of the equivalent in the US, but think stock standard family car). I couldn’t give my car away last year – lol, it’s not the best thing you’ll see on the road. Not all Mac users can afford a new car…
sorry to burst you’re bubble, but did u even check out what computer she got for under 700 bucks!? it’s perfect for someone who is going to use nothing more than word… 3 or 4 years ago, its one of the oldest computers in best buy, just check the ati video card, but don’t look for specs on ATI.com, they took it out a long time ago, she bought a cheap dinosaur computer that she will trow away in 6 months to a year… yea she won’t care, it was free! they are giving away better computers when u buy an lcd screen! by the way I don’t like windows it blows I use linux, and when I’m at home I have a nices mac waiting for me
they just WORK!
this makes me feel stupid for even having an opinion on mac/pc..
YouTube comments are a very valid reason to give control of the internet to China.
xkcd said everything you need to know about youtube comments:
http://xkcd.com/202/
http://xkcd.com/481/
Edited 2009-03-27 21:44 UTC
hahahaha, xkcd is classic!
That is so true; I tend to atleast read my posts a couple of times before I send something off; I really wonder because so many send back posts and they never ask themselves, “the comment I am making, can it be misconstrued in a particular way?” or “does this make me sound like a judgemental asshole”.
They also launched some web ads in http://www.nytimes.com/
They made my chuckle
I actually thought it was pretty good (and the girl was kind of cute too!)
I’m sure that it will sell a lot of computers.
But not to me, I’m not the intended target market – yes, I have a Macbook Pro and I drive a VW
Cheers!
Now if only it was the Jetta that was paid off rather than my 17″ …
If your budget is less than $1000, then buy a low quality PC. If you have a bigger budget, you have more options, like a high quality MacBook. Simple.
Or more correctly – she wanted a desktop replacement NOT a laptop. She got a laptop with desktop parts with a 1 1/2 hour battery life. If she is happy with what she got – then all power to her, but the reality is that she is comparing oranges with apples.
OS X vs Windows should be also debated. OS X is so much easier to use, and the hardware only compliments that.
The only thing I don’t like about my Mac is that MICROSOFT OFFICE kept crashing, that is until I bought iWork.
Why is it the fault of the Mac that Office kept crashing and why didn’t you ever make an attempt to fix the problem with Office instead of complaining then migrating. If there is crashing – there is a logical reason for it.
Why is the software crashing in the first place? Why is Microsoft putting out shitty software after all these years?
The average person doesn’t know how to fix Excel if it crashes when you open it.
Different people different choices… That’s as far as I can say pro-Mac. I have a Mac Mini at home for over an year; now it runs Win7. The only apple device I appreciate is an iPod. Apple packs a lot of stuff with iLife; but the only one I use in them is iTunes with a dash of iPhoto. I ran into issues trying to get Leopard share a folder containing some C++ code with my laptop over my wifi network but instead ran into messy priviledges issues where XCode couldn’t read the files. Recently it corrupted my external hard disk thanks to a bad(?) installation of ntfs-3g — lez not talk about that now.
If you want me to be honest about mac, “everything just works” is true until something DOES break down. If anything does; hell breaks loose. On windows things might break down a lot more often, but they are not dreadful to fix.
The girl in the ad wanted a 17″ laptop within $1000 budget, period. I guess all she wanted was something to watch movies on. Not audio editing, no photoshopping and no crysis. Apple doesn’t offer one — so stop whining…
I think the perception of Macs being more expensive is mostly from the fact that if you limit yourself to any one particular hardware manufacturer, you have much less choice in what features* you get, and generally have to pay more for features you don’t need in order to get the features you want.
(*features in this post includes things like quality and stuff, not just Ghz and ram)
Say you want a laptop with features X, Y, but not Z. If you don’t limit your self to one company, it’s easy to find one with those features at a reasonable price. But if you limit yourself to one particular brand, then it’s possible that they will have one model with X, but not Y (or Z). The next higher up model will have X and Y, but also Z. So if you get the lower end one, you don’t get all the features you want. If you get the higher end one you’re paying more that you should for the features you actually care about.
In the ad she wanted a 17″. The Mac she could afford didn’t have this feature. The Mac that has this feature has a bunch of other crap she doesn’t need and so was overpriced, compared to other computers that had just what she needed and no more.
The last time I was looking at a Mac there was a similar thing. The cheapest version had everything I wanted except a DVD burner. The next level up had the DVD burner, but also had a larger hard drive and more ram, which was useless to me. If I went for the more expensive option I would be paying hundreds of dollars more just to have the DVD burner. So, for what I wanted it was cheaper to get a non-Apple.
The same thing is likely to happen if you limit yourself to only buying Lenovo, or Sony or Fujitsu or even Dell. I was recently trying to decide between two Lenovos. One was under my budget but didn’t have the features I wanted. The other had the features I wanted, plus many more, but was too expensive. I went with another brand that had the same features I wanted. No more, no less.
So while it may be true that a similarly spec-ed non-Mac is about the same price as a Mac, that’s only relevant if the Mac has the exact features I want. If it has less features then it’s not good enough. If it has more, then it costs too much for what I want.
Too bad some people are determined to buy exclusively from one company.
Too bad some people are determined to buy exclusively from one company.
I am a Mac owner because I am determined to make my life easier, by just buying a better OS, and the hardware is comes with (which is nice too).
Linux is fun, I love it. I install Linux OSes non-stop, but just to play. No distro ‘just works’ (at least on my hardware, which is all that matters to me), although Ubuntu is close.
Windows is a non-stop maintenance headache. I’ve finally rid my house of every Windows PC, and now I can relax.
I use my Mac when I just want to work, with no fun/tinkering and no problems.
Edited 2009-03-27 23:20 UTC
100% agree with you – too bad someone immature thought it would be his duty to abuse the moderation system and repress another persons opinion.
I wish people took your approach and viewed the purchase of a computer as more than just purchasing hardware; you are purchasing a system which includes hardware and software. The experience one has is the sum of all the parts; not just the hardware, not just the software but the whole widget.
Too bad that so many here have a hardware fixation fetish where they focus all their criticisms on the hardware whilst ignoring that people purchase systems – not hardware.
Edited 2009-03-28 04:00 UTC
For the Apple crowd: Adamo. I’m sorry, but that machine blows anything Apple has ever produced out of the water when it comes to build quality and looks. Granted it’s not even close to a thousand dollars, but if given a choice between plopping down big moolah for a laptop, I’ll take the Adamo any day of the week.
Yeah, but does it run OS X? That’s why most people buy Macs you know. With that lap I’d have to run Windows
100% agree – if I could run Mac OS X supported by Apple on a Thinkpad – I would purchase it over a MacBook. The reason I go for a Mac is because I want Mac OS X. I like Mac OS X because I can’t stand Windows, from top to bottom it is a horrible operating system, from the UI to the stability to the inherent fiasco that rolls out once you install third party drivers which are laden with crapware, the instability bought about by the reliance on third party drivers etc.
If I could install OS X on any system, I would built my own system, with the specs I wanted.
But since I can’t, I purchased a Macbook Pro, and I love it. It was money well spent, since I spend 6 to 8 hours every day at work on my laptop.
What makes the Mac so great isn’t just the hardware or the OS. It is the software. Textmate, CSS Edit, Mac ports (ruby, rails, python django), CS4. No other platform allows me to run all this software.
Adamo costs $200 more than a MacBook Air, and for the CPU:
Adamo 1.2Ghz Core 2 Duo
Air 1.6Ghz Core 2 Duo
Yup, but the Adamo is also thinner, and comes with an 128GB SSD by default, an option which raises the price of the Air by 500 USD. Its unusual design will also turn more heads.
The Air is indeed more value for your buck, but let’s be fair in these comparisons, shall we?
Edited 2009-03-27 23:39 UTC
I’m sorry, but that machine blows anything Apple has ever produced out of the water
Okay let’s compare and see if Adamo blows MacBook Air out of the water:
http://apcmag.com/dell-adamo-vs-apple-macbook-air.htm
“it^aEURTMs close enough to neck and neck if each factor is weighted evenly, but with the MacBook Air ahead if you want maximum performance and the Adamo if connectivity”
I have two words:
“Too slow.”
(for my purposes anyway)
the Thinkpad, as just about the closest thing to a “flagship” laptop available in the PC world would have been a better pick then some near-disposable HP.
I was about to make a comment about the HP Pavillion she “bought” with Microsoft’s own money, and the fact she couldn’t get such a machine for < $1000 considering HP’s product lineup, but I thought… nah… who knows what shifty shit is happening at the time she presumably bought it!
If anything, I’d say… to be fair (yea, I know, I’m stretching it!) perhaps she should have bought her Pavillion from HP direct, since Apple never ever do any price adjustments on any product, whether from a dealer, from an Apple Store, or from the Apple on-line Store.
That’d make things a wee bit more believable.
Cheers!
Edited 2009-03-28 00:25 UTC
i’d guess it’s a HP Pavilion dv7t in silver instead of black
At 0:13, a bald guy is walking by and as she exits the store, the same guy advanced just a few more steps. I guess this shows how much time she spent examining her alternatives… one second. Of course, this is little surprise since she referred to the Apple Store as a Mac Store. This commercial is really sloppy.
Moreover, few people claim that Macs are cheaper than most other PCs. The claim is that they provide a more pleasant and productive user experience with fewer headaches and better support when problems do occur. While the hardware may be sexier and of higher quality, the real key is the software. Still, the price issue is exaggerated. For a COMPARABLE PC, it is never necessary to “double [the] budget” as is claimed in the commercial. The price difference is modest or at least reasonable unless Apple’s offerings are close to a refresh.
BTW: What is it with this silly notion of “Mac person” or “PC person?” Are people so pathetic that they define themselves by the type of computer they have? Instead of listing personal qualities, materialistic elements are the first to come to mind. Personally, I’m a PS3 person. Oh, maybe it’s better if I say I’m a Ritz cracker person. Then, again, I might be a Nike person. It’s all so absurd and I hate that this commercial reinforces this notion (not that Apple isn’t even more guilty of this).
Edited 2009-03-28 00:30 UTC
Agreed. Many non-Mac users want to feel ‘cool’ by pointing out how dumb Mac users are for thinking they are ‘cool’ for buying a Mac. So, put the ‘trying to be cool’ story aside already.
I own a Mac but I never leave the house with it, or show it off to boost my ego. I own it because I thinks it’s a better computer.
Do it like me: buy a PC notebook and request windows refund !
I received a check from Dell when I requested refund of the Windows Vista which come with the notebook. I’m using linux of course.
In my country Dell don’t sell linux notebooks, only with that Vista trash.
I refused to pay the MS and Apple taxes !
Edited 2009-03-28 00:31 UTC
doesn’t work on all some of them only takes the pc back
(if you don’t want windows then you’ll have to give us the pc)
I just configured a G70t series with 4GB RAM, Vista 64 Bit and a 17″ screen for $679.99 on HP’s site.
Vista is like ME most people hate it and downgrade to XP
I have an iMac and MacBook for a reason – I buy it for Mac OS X. I don’t purchase a ‘PC’ because I can’t stand Windows. If you want me ‘interested’ in a ‘PC’ then maybe you should fix your operating system so that it doesn’t royally suck.
Here is a free tip; grab FreeBSD, buy out Amiga, plonk the Amiga GUI ontop of a FreeBSD core, increase hardware support, port your middleware across to the new platform – and I’ll buy a PC laptop with that loaded.
Again, I don’t buy a Mac because it is ‘cool’, ‘hip’ or ‘what Apple markets’ – I purchase it because I like the operating system. Fix your operating system and I’ll purchase your product.
I may be missing the point… But Microsoft doesn’t make computers
They make expensive Operating Systems and overpriced versions of an office suite. And on top of that neither is even remotely secure
Don’t get me wrong I realize that Macs seem expensive but I have not had anything like a virus or worm since 1998. Let’s re examine this debate ina week (after conficker)
—
Aww schnapp! Microsoft does make hardware the high margin unreliable xbox –
When Apple comes out of the box with a two button mouse I will buy one.
It already does; I have an iMac and can right click to my hearts content without any problems. Learn how to use a mighty mouse instead of spouting FUD on this forum. It isn’t Apple’s fault that you’re ignorant.
LOL!!
A standard Apple mouse can be clicked both right and left, has two side buttons, and a clickable trackball.
I don’t really care about processor speeds or graphics cards, but 1000 euros for two USB ports and no expresscard can f–k right off, with bells on. I got a ThinkPad and it’s smaller (good thing), has three USB ports, ExpressCard and a card reader.
It’ll also be easier to fix once the warranty expires. That’s a big plus for me – hate throwing computers away because of one dead bit. Even a motherboard transplant is fairly simple with a ThinkPad. But after the time I tried to get the harddrive out of an iBook, I’m never going to attempt to take apart an Apple again.
So you make an assessment of Apple based on an iBook experience which would have been circa 3 years ago. Yes, I might as well start judging Microsoft Windows based on my Windows 98 experience – like that would be fair*
* That was sarcasm – for the sarcasm impaired.
I agree with your sentiments but the OP’s point is still valid. I’ve upgraded the hard disk in my MBP and although it’s far from what I’d call difficult it is definitely not as simple as it should be either.
It’s an easier task for the MB than it is for the MBP which I find a little odd considering MBP users are more likely to require such upgrades.
And upgrading hard disks on other laptops is easier? the only laptops I’ve come across where it is easy are those laptops which are desktop replacements. Laptops that are designed to be laptops are compact because they don’t allow the same degree of modification as a desktop replacement.
With that being said, upgrading the harddisk on a MacBook isn’t difficult, remove the battery, unscrew a couple of screws and on your left hand side you’ll see the hard disk and infront of you there is the memory upgrade slots.
Maybe a…… USB hub? They’re real cheap and come in all shapes and sizes. They even have bus-powered hubs that are the size of a cigarette lighter and require no additional cables! The WHOLE POINT of USB was a universal bus that you could plug 127 devices into one port via hubs.
I think my little bus-powered 3 port hub which plugs directly into the USB port was like $10.
When is the last time you plugged 5 USB devices into your machine while on the road or mobile? Just leave a hub on your desk or in your bag. Not that hard.
Half of the laptop manufacturers just embed a bigger USB hub on the board, it’s not like they’re adding an additional USB controller for those extra ports or anything.
As for ExpressCard, my Macbook already has gigabit ethernet, 802.11a/b/g/draft-n wireless, optical audio in/out, firewire…..
The only use I could see for ExpressCard would be a cell modem and they make those in USB flavors. I guarantee your cell modem is no faster than a USB 2.0 port.
Now a built-in SD/MS/CF reader would be nice but I’ll let Apple slide on that one.
I’ll give you that, the iBooks were evil to work on. I have done several motherboard and HDD swaps on them. The 12″ PowerBooks sucked in regard to.
However, the Macbooks are insanely easy to work on, replacing the RAM/HDD is a matter of removing 3 screws under the battery. Check out the teardown guide on ifixit.com. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Hey Lauren,,,
your more than welcome to come over to my apartment and use my mac to get your report done when your computer is hosed with virus
I’ll even take you to McDonalds for a latte, well, since Starbuck’s probably isn’t your thing either…
seriously though…I have both mac and pc’s and my pc is TOTALLY hosed with the Vundo virus right now, no lie. I had anti-virus, and ad-aware, and still got it somehow. I don’t even have antivirus on the mac, and it has never let me down. Dispite all the software for the pc, I’ll take a mac anyday.
Well, it didn’t just automagically get there — you did something stupid.
I don’t have anti-virus software installed either, and I’m doing just fine. I do install some occasionally to verify this, and when engaging in relatively risky behavior. (software from shady sources).
Windows isn’t the greatest OS if you need to be protected from yourself, but (technically) OS X isn’t really either — all it does is cast an irrelevancy cloak over you.
Well, it didn’t just automagically get there — you did something stupid. [/q]
Not necessarily true. Vundo comes in many forms, one of which is a worm, and usually is delivered with a payload of other crap besides. If it was the worm variant, no one would’ve had to do anything to let it in, and the only thing that could have kept it out was a tightly locked down firewall–not Windows firewall, which is absolutely worthless, a real one such as Core Force or AVG Personal. Antivirus is generaly useless against Vundo worms, as they come in many revisions and new ones are appearing all the time. Hint though: Malwarebytes Anti-malware is usually able to get rid of Vundo and most of its other payload.
Mac users, and that includes myself, are not immune to these kinds of attacks either. Right now, we have the benefit of obscurity: no one’s bothering with us. That may change in the future, so don’t feel too secure just because you have OS X. Same for Linux, and *BSD, don’t rely on security through obscurity forever, though it’s safe enough to do so right now.
[/q]
Exactly! I have only a few sites that I visit. I didn’t open a suspicious email or something stupid. I _think_ I accidentally clicked on ad banner on facebook (using Firefox-never run Explorer), or the cat jumped on my keyboard. Is Windows SO sensitive, that mistyping a webaddress, or mistaken click will hose your system? Apparently, I need even more protection.
The point is if you want a cheap PC with Windows fine, but, it WILL be a constant battle. My up-to-date anti-virus detected it very fast, and TRIED to clean it. I am behind a router firewall. I moved the HD to another computer to try and get rid of it. The DLL is 89k and was replicated ALL over the system. Over 30 instances and counting. The two tools I tried made just for Vundo did not detect it. Yes, I imagine that MacOS will soon be a target and the days are numbered for running without antivirus.
The point is if you want a cheap PC with Windows fine, but, it WILL be a constant battle.
The operative word here is “Windows”. If you get a low cost PC and run something else than Windows, there is no battle.
Add to that Windows laptop:
– Anti-virus software, which most (non-geeks) buy $$
– Microsoft Office – a few 100 $$
Oops, you just blew your $1000 budget.
On a Mac there is no need for anti-virus. A family pack office suite (can be installed on multiple computers) is only $129 ($40/Mac in my case)
I was surprised to see this but the HP I bought from a local electronics store came loaded with OpenOffice 3.0.
Edited 2009-03-28 05:40 UTC
I’d to own one and would like to think a Mac would be value for money.
The family car has just been impounded.
Sure is a bad day.
it’s against the rules to like apple products you’ll have to hate apple and love microsoft and their products
Now would be a good time for the likes of canonical, arm, etc, to run ads pointing out that you get even more bang for the buck if you buy a laptop with linux on it and no windows…
Provided the OEMs didn’t do a crap job like they did with most Linux netbooks, perhaps.
Pretty much this ^
But this commercial is pure win imo, “I’m not cool enough to buy be a Mac person”. I think it sums up really well in fact, to be a cool Mac user, you have to blow money. Yes it’s biased and stereotyped and stuff, but they don’t care they just push the fact that Macs cost more money, it’s not that bad a move.
Ok I don’t own a mac, and well I don’t care because a PC is a PC (Mac, Dell, HP, Asus) are all making personal computer right ?
Most people are seeing the value in whatever they pay, would it be because it’s cheap, or pack a lot of feature in what they bought ( same argument is still raging on with Sony user ).
So regarding each comment about what they bought I don’t care because you bought what seem best for your need at the time, and /me or other have other needs on the buying time. Ok microsoft did kick themselves in the nuts since … windows Me, but hopefully we have linux even if most people don’t care ( or bsd , haiku , solaris pick your poison).
But at last I can say that I mostly advise non tech savvy people tobuy a mac because 95% of the time “it just work”.
But whatever was your choice remember that at least you can always change your mind and run an open source OS.
The funny thing about these apple users is that they cant se beuond the glossy plastic looks apple lubes them with and then rips them off with a high pricey pc. What is under the hood is a pc. I hope i didnt destroy your fairy tale. And your OS is a rip from bsd unix lol. Btw my 800$ cusyom pc runs your OS faster than your 3k mac desktop.
Looks like the spell check on your $800 Hackintosh is broken.
Baaahahahaha – BEST COMMENT HERE!!!
The company Microsoft gave this advertising campaign to is Crispin Porter+Bugosky. They are almost exclusively a Mac shop.
Their entire line of desktops and laptops are pretty much 100% Apple. Their back end even has a collection of wastefully purchased XServes and XServe RAIDs using xSAN against the advice of some folks among their IT staff trying to push a more cost effective and sane environment. Let’s be honest here, the XServe RAID is simply shit for what you get at that price level — not to mention the issues that existed in 10.4 Server such as a busted CIFS client that caused issue with some of the few Windows servers they actually had. Of course since then Apple has dropped the XServe RAID themselves and 10.5 Server has improved a fair bit, but this is just setting the background here… Overall their corporate culture is pretty much ‘f–k Windows’, which despite owning and using a Mac primarily myself I found rather childish and limiting when I was around it.
I just thought it was hysterical they were willing to do this account for Microsoft even though it will change absolutely zero about how they function in their offices. Regardless of what you might see in this campaign, the folks who created it have *ZERO* issue spending their money with Apple.
Edited 2009-03-29 04:37 UTC
Damn if they went with Xserves, they must be a hardcore Apple crowd. I can imagine that when there is a keynote they all gather around the interweb with dutiful worship in their eyes. They probably had to shutdown the office when they announced Jobs was taking a break.
Decided to throw in http://dev-serverwatch.internet.com/hreviews/print.php/3584781 which interviews Jordan Kilpatrick of CP+B just to add extra credibility to what I mentioned.
I won’t comment on all the things that have been said on this forum, which is basically fulled of shit by people knowing little on the matter. And even the news was anyway clearly written to turn the forum into a court of anti Apple idiots.
But few words,
“They should’ve replaced “cool” with “rich” and it would’ve made much more sense. Now she just admits that you have to have a Mac to be cool”
She is not admitting that having a Mac is being cool, Microsoft admits it. And replacing cool by rich does not make any sense, stop your frenzy. If you must need to be rich to be able to buy a Mac, Apple won’t sell millions of them each quarter. You like it or not.
” Data from the first two months (January, February) of this year have shown that Apple has seen a rather harsh decline in sales”
Wait the data that you are referring to are not supposed to be reliable data. Come on, how a hell NPD could have access to Apple’s sales data and Apple does not release monthly data. Plus those supposed data usually only refer to sales in Apple stores and only in US. So what?
“with Windows PCs and netbooks specifically seeing steep rises, probably because you can get those cheaper”
Oh yeah you get poorly performing computers with unusable screens and keyboards, and with performance of computers that we had 4-5 years ago. Yes, sure they are cheaper than today’s state of the art computers….. yes Einstein, you got it right. Or i have better, the comparison is simply pointless so that you just look foolish trying to do it.
“The obvious message in the commercial is of course that Lauren can get more bang for her buck by buying a Windows laptop.”
Really, in the ads she is looking for 17 inch laptop (you notice not a netbook, Microsoft won’t make an ad promoting computers which kill its margins….. will they?) for under 1000$. She ends up buying a wonderful peace of crap. Yes you can get a pc for less than 1000$ but the new ads don’t go into details on hardware purchases; they simply make the case that PC laptops can be found for cheaper. Best Buy actually does sell the DV7-1245DX, an HP notebook with 17″ screen, but it lacks fast wireless 802.11n, fast Gigabit Ethernet, digital audio inputs and outputs, weighs 7.75 pounds, and only features the screen resolution of Apple’s 15″ notebooks: 1440 by 900. How can this sort of laptop be compared to a MacBook pro 17 inch?
So shes does not get more bang for her buck, like you stupidly say, she gets crap, that’s it.
Plus, this comparison based on price and not on real characteristics (weight, performance, reliability, quality, size, software built-in, etc…) makes little sense because i can give you a list of 17 inch laptops prized more than 1000$ but they are all pcs. You could make the same ad with pcs against pcs, or HP against Sony, or HP against Lenovo. And ends up saying that you can get cheaper pcs from HP than you can from Sony or Lenovo.
All the message of Microsoft therefore is fundamentally flawed.
But at the end of the day, one message for the trolls, you think Apple is expensive, hell buy a pc and have fun with Windows. What? All the anti Apple idiots on this forums forgot one more thing, Apple makes it own OS, HP does not, neither any other pc vendor. All they have is the crap from Redmond.
Oh, the irony! Was this really posted on OSAlert?
An end line I like better:
“I’m a PC, I got just what I wanted and I will install GNU/Linux on it to make it stable and secure!”
That’s what I always do whenever I get a new PC: I wipe out the preinstalled Windows and install Debian GNU/Linux from the testing repository.
Btw, it’s so hard to get a GNU/Linux pre-installed PC in Colombia. The only netbooks in the marked are the ones with Windows preinstalled. That’s a shame, I guess we won’t see any of those ARM based netbooks around here.
Okay so i use a pc and drive a toyota, I have 3 kids and am a single parent. I used a Mac up through the G4 series until I realized that I was spending way too much money for what is more or less going back to the beginning of renewed performance of updated software for things that I have been doing for almost two decades.
You can have your cliques.
My household is all Macs, I drive an Audi, and I’m an Apple technician.
Sweet, I’m glad to be reassured that I’m cool!
…just like spin journalism – sucks in the suckers.
So um, when she gets this shiny new HP home and fires it up with its awesome 1.6GHz dual core Celery Processor and Vista Bottom-of-the-Barrel Edition, what software is she going to run on it for the next 18 months of its usable life? Microsoft Office? There’s another hundred bucks for Micros$oft for a CD and a piece of paper – KA-CHING.
Then shell out for security packages to supposedly keep it safe ’cause we all know she’s gonna fire up Messenger and put some peer-to-peer client on that will open it up to who knows what so she can get her music for FREEEEE – KA-CHING.
Then pay the local IT bloke to reformat it and get it working every six months because its become unusable despite paying for security software because of the above-mentioned junk she’s installed on it – KA-CHING.
Then replace it in 18 months time when opening the new Micros$$oft Office Super-Duper-Makes-Your-Morning-Coffee Edition that she’s just shelled out to Micros$$$oft for (KA-CHING) takes more time than roasting then grinding the coffee beans by hand, making the coffee yourself and hand writing the document you wanted to create. And of course this gives Micros$$$$oft another Windows License sale – KA-CHING.
But it is shiny, and its got a 17″ screen – albeit with its 12 degree viewing angle – and she did pay less for it…
I suppose
For those saying that “PC’s” are way behind Macs on style and design, there are other places to purchase desktops from besides Dell or HP. I have a Dell laptop, but my desktop was purchased through these guys:
http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/
I’m not advertising for them, but making a point that you can get some very sharp looking desktops from other companies that, in my opinion, look much better than boring looking cases that Apple has in their desktop lineups.
Oooo, look at the pretty lights!
Did you ever wonder why the likes of Dell, HP and Apple don’t manufacture PC’s with cases like the majority of those? “SWEEEET CASE DUDE” for the 15 year old gamer, “Oi, stop with watching the lights and get some work done!!!” in an office / work environment…
Dear god they are ugly; they look like they’ve been designed by a hormone raging 16 year old with has a fetish for bling and lights. I want a computer – not a disco light show. What that link shows is those who claim to be ‘style’ experts on this website have no grasp on the very concept of ascetics of design to begin with.
Agreed. But they’re no worse than that ridiculous cube thing that Apple had. Personally, I think that both the Apple Aesthetics and the Blinken-Lite Brigade could use a sit-down with Joyce Brothers to get some priority issues worked out.
Edited 2009-03-31 01:03 UTC
Eh, the Cube wasn’t too bad, but I prefer the aluminium look of the iMac’s, these days; its a lot lower key and minimalist than their old style; although a small part of me used to love the over the top bright clam shell iBooks
Edited 2009-03-31 01:28 UTC
nt
Yup, here is the proof, at least from New Zealand’s point of view.
http://christiannews.co.nz/2009/macs-are-too-expensive-mac-mini-a-r…
$450 difference between models when the component prices difference is about $70. This is quite shocking.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/storage/?p=442
From ZDnet no less…
Microsoft^aEURTMs GM for the last 5 years: 81.69%
Apple^aEURTMs GM: 31.83%
Microsoft^aEURTMs GM ^aEURoetax^aEUR on customers: $189,878 billion.
Apple^aEURTMs comparable number: $31 billion.
Apple is so fraking evil!
Does it make you feel cool to hate Apple? Whatever helps you sleep at night