I've always thought the opposite. Mainly because I've always bought PC's because I could research and choose the parts appropriate to what I wanted to use the machine for. Then build it myself. Though this has most likely changed now that apple uses intel parts for their machines.
I think choice is a double edged sword, especially when it comes to building your own PC. Yes, you can choose between many many components, but you also have to choose between them.
A lot of people buy Macs specifically for the hardware design and build quality. I've gone the hackintosh route before, but at the end of the day, I'd still rather have Apple hardware. There's nothing comparable from the PC guys.
I'd rather spend time building. The value prop of doing the research isn't worth it when I can just buy a Macbook Air and not even have to think about it.
So apart from the pleasure of being able to use MacOS, I presume it will be cheaper to just put these parts together myself, yes?
If the form factor is just a tower, well I can buy a tower myself. What is the advantage of paying for Apple a (presumed) bunch of money to build it for you?
If you don't want the hassle of building a PC (which is fair) there are an endless supply of places that will put PCs together for you, with (I'm presuming) a much smaller cut than Apple.
And you know millions people who loves playing games and build their own computer to use the CPU they want, the RAM they want, the GPU they want etc.
Macs are nice to some extent but incredibly locked down for my taste both on hardware and software level. Have to use it at work but I'd never ever buy one on my own.
I think a lot of people who buy Macs are the opposite of hardware geeks and case modders. I bought my MBP because I got tired of dealing with hardware, picking out parts, etc. I just wanted a nicely designed and built computer that let me do what I wanted (in my case, programming).
To me, having to deal with hardware just gets in the way of letting me do what I want, which I feel many people can relate to.
Agree. I used to build PCs as well. I even had a review site that received 2MM uniques a month and manufacturers would send me motherboards and top end video cards, for free, to review. I loved making PCs but would I trade my Macbook Pro and go back to a PC/Windows setup, no.
I don't imagine anyone would want to go thru that. Getting a case, fiddling with screws, power supplies, Video Card, and CPUs. Even worse, it is highly error prone. Do something wrong and POOF that 800 dollar CPU you bought is toast.
Oh come on, as if you spend more than a few days time combined building PCs. It might be more convenient, but going the Apple route is certainly not cheaper. The PC i have now is really powerful, i built it about a year ago for $1200 and haven't touched the hardware since. Before that i had a PC from 2009 which was still plenty fast and all i upgraded was a SSD and new GPU after 2 years. My Macbook Air was much more expensive because Apple demands high extra cost for upgrading Ram and SSDs. When the PC breaks, i order a new part and have it running again in 2 days, a couple of hours if it's really crucial, while fixing a Mac yourself is nearly impossible these days. I love my Macbook and use it exclusively for work, but your arguments are weak and sound elitist.
Not to mention if you build your own PC you can upgrade the parts as and when, unlike with the new Mac where you'll eventually just be replacing the whole thing.
Doesn't everyone buy a specific computer for the hardware and software?
I don't know anyone who goes to a store and just picks a random computer, they either decide between Windows and MacOS, and then pick a computer based on the specs.
I used to build gaming PCs for myself and friends, salvage laptops from parts picked up at auction, etc. But I'm no longer interested in doing that. I'd much rather just buy the computer I need and not fuss with it. I think both of those "modes" are completely valid, and it's great that there are many options on the market for people in both groups.
Is it perhaps "annoying in theory" that I couldn't upgrade my Mac's hardware if I wanted to? I suppose so. But I'm never going to want to do that, so I don't experience any practical annoyance. I suspect my experience matches the overwhelming majority of Apple's customers and potential customers.
When I was 14 I would build my own computer from parts and boy did I care about upgradability and serviceability. One of the reasons I switched to Apple is I didn't want to spend time making computers, I wanted to spend time making things with my computer.
My 2011 Macbook Air is the best computer I've ever owned. Go to any meetup for software developers and you see a lot of the people in the crowd who have gone the same way. Being a geek (for me) doesn't mean I need to upgrade the ram, or harddrive in my computer. Sorry if that means I get a better, thinner machine at someone else's expense.
Well, if all you care about is value for time spent/productivity then building your own PC probably isn't the wisest decision.
On the other hand if you have more free time than money then buying a Mac would probably be not the best decision.
Context is important and I don't think OP was generalizing that every PC user is a fool. It's just not the right thing for him personally since he got kids and would rather spend time with them.
I have my macbook for work and programming, my PC has windows on it (much to my dislike) and I use it for occasional gaming. I will probably not get new parts anytime soon though as performance is currently fine. Just wondering for when someone asks me to build them a PC.
Could you please explain why you would choose an Apple anything over a much more reasonably priced and specwise better PC? Not trying to be a dick, I'm a sysadmin genuinely trying to wrap my head around it.
True, the perception is probably more skewed than reality. For gaming, PC's are still definitely the way to go, but Mac's aren't quite as marked up as most people think. They do use quality parts.
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