Why I bought a Mac instead of a PC
By glblguy
I wrote an article a few weeks back asking you for input on an Apple vs. a PC. First off, thanks for all the input, you all gave me a great deal to think about and consider. I ended up buying an Apple Macbook Pro 15″. It was really a tough decision, especially given the price difference, but here’s why I ended up going with the Mac:
- I’m tired of Windows – I’ve been using Microsoft windows since it’s very first release (Windows 286 for anyone that remembers that far back). Windows was a great OS for the PC, and really had a significant impact on it’s overall success. Overtime though, Windows has become a burden. It’s buggy, slow, bloated and the target of far too many viruses and hackers. It seems I get some patch almost weekly. Personally, I think I just needed a change.
- I need the experience – As an IT Professional full-time, and website developer part-time I personally felt like I needed some Macintosh experience. I’ve been working on computers for 27 years, and just barely have any experience with Apple products. I decided it was time to change that.
- I want to support Apple – I love Apple as a company. I think they are innovative and highly focused on the end user. From what I understand, they’re products just work. I want to support a company with products like that. Maybe if more people purchased Apple products, the cost would come down.
- Great Software – The Mac comes bundled with great software in the form of iLife. It also runs an incredible amount of really slick software that isn’t available on the PC. Particular applications I’m interested in are: Coda editor, Evernote for Mac, and Things. The OS is also frankly a work of art. OS/X is one of the slickest looking pieces of software I have ever seen.
- Longevity – I’ve consistently read that Apple products, and the Macbooks in particular have a longer life than PC based products. So even though you pay more upfront, overtime the cost works out. Not sure if I fully believe this, but just based on the quality of the machine from what I can tell, I’m beginning to buy it. The hardware quality on the Macbook is amazing. I am willing to pay more for something if it’s better.
- Seamless – Since Macs are made only by Apple, and much of the software is from Apple the user experience is seamless. My Dad once said that he wants a computer to be much like a TV, you just turn it on and it works. Apple products are as close as anything gets to this concept. They just work.
- Coolness – I’ll be honest, the other reason I bought a Mac is that they are just incredibly cool. I’m a computer guy and have a passion for computers. I wanted something cool. The Mac is coolness at it’s best.
Have a Mac? Why did you buy it? What do you guys think of my decision? I have lots of articles planned about it and I’ll keep you posted on whether I think it was worth the money or not. I’ll post about my experiences over on my Empty Cabin Media blog. Right now though…I’m loving it! Now where is the Start button??? lol
Photo by: neoPhillipw
August 6th, 2009 at 7:53 am
I use Macs also. I am a photographer, and it suits what I do. I can be an Apple fanboy. I have to say, though I know many do use Windows and are used to it, why stay with something that can be such a frustrating experience?
August 6th, 2009 at 8:17 am
We are about due for a new computer. My husband is completely sold on Mac, but I am a little freaked out to change from a PC to a Mac. I think ultimately, we’ll end up going with Mac.
August 6th, 2009 at 10:27 am
I switched to an iMac (the 20″ one) about 18 months ago, and haven’t looked back. I still have to deal with PC’s at work, and my wife’s work laptop is a PC, but luckily I never have to use it, and she constantly has trouble with it – has to defrag it a couple times a week, which takes HOURS.
I love the O/S on the Mac, and the plethora of available open-source software is mind-boggling. I’ve found free open-source games for my 2 boys to play (Pac the Man X, Warblade, a Mario brothers knockoff), photo-editing software (Seashore), a book archiving/library program that uses the built in webcam to scan UPC symbols (Books), plus several others.
Plus, its so nice that things just plain work. None of the many many hassles with Windows.
Enjoy your new Mac.
my2fish
August 6th, 2009 at 10:37 am
As a software developer and full time web developer I need to test on every browser on every platform. No single computer, besides the Mac (due to the OS X EULA) legally allows me to do this. Thus I am using a Mac. I love it! I love that I can be creative and do music in GarageBand when I want, too. Does it cost more to run? Maybe, but possibly because I use it for 3 (or more) OSes its cheaper than running three computers.
August 6th, 2009 at 11:32 am
I love my Mac and would suggest it over a PC any day now. I will not go back to a PC. Better software and a more reliable system.
August 6th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
I purchased a mac mini. I wanted quiet, small, energy efficient, and wireless N.
However, I run Vista on it with boot camp. I am just more productive on a PC. Plus their are two programs I adore only for PC: Media Monkey and YNAB.
August 6th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
My wife has a very expensive Mac. It’s been back for hardware repair twice in less than a year. It loses its WiFi connection regularly. It has trouble with wireless printing. So much for “it just works.” Some basic operations that are simple drag and drop in Windows take multiple clicks on the Mac. It’s overpriced.
Other than that – it’s a computer with a high priced brand attached.
August 6th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
The whole viruses thing is a complete and total copout. Macs are not void of vulnerabilities. This vulnerability was unfixed for over a year (maybe it is now).
http://i.gizmodo.com/5175246/safari-cracked-in-seconds-at-pwn2own-hacking-competition
http://gizmodo.com/5185911/winning-pwn2own-hacker-macs-are-safer-than-pcs
“I’d say that Macs are less secure for the reasons we’ve discussed here (lack of anti-exploitation technologies) but are more safe because there simply isn’t much malware out there. For now, I’d still recommend Macs for typical users as the odds of something targeting them are so low that they might go years without seeing any malware, even though if an attacker cared to target them it would be easier for them.”
August 6th, 2009 at 2:31 pm
Total cost of ownership can get ugly. If anything breaks out of warranty, replacement parts are painful. and all computers can break, no matter whose sticker is on the outside.
August 6th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
27 years of computer experience and never worked on linux. You should try it for some time..
August 6th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
i didnt just drink the Kool-Aid, i serve it to my friends. Love my Mac and generally just love Apple as a company as well.
August 6th, 2009 at 6:38 pm
Just bought my new 20″ monitor iMac and love it. Although I use a PC at work, at home it’s all about the Mac. My last one was 6 years old and still working well albeit slowly, so maybe there is some truth to the longevity theory.
August 6th, 2009 at 7:36 pm
don’t forget to factor in that any peripheral or accessory you buy for mac could have significantly higher cost. unless china happens to make a mac os x compatible hardware en masse, you’ll pay big bucks for anything that needs mac drivers. don’t let that deter you, just make sure whatever you need on your mac is already included when you buy it.
August 6th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Sigh . . . I don’t think I am smart enough to have a Mac.
August 6th, 2009 at 11:09 pm
I love my macs! Almost 10 yrs ago, when I got my first full time job, the company I worked for used all macs and I converted. When my husband and I needed a new computer, I convinced him to try a mac and now we’ll never go back. Macs just make sense. I recommend purchasing Apple Care. Our first iMac had fan issues, and after several times to the store to get it fixed (for free, since we had Apple Care, we finally sent it to Apple and they said they’d give us money for a new iMac. Of course, instead of getting a free iMac, we used the money to upgrade to a 24″ iMac…bigger is better. :)
August 7th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
In 2006, I made the switch from PC to a macbook and I gotta tell you, it’s one of the best decisions I have made. My macbook has not once let me down since then, it boots up fast, and shuts down fast. There’s not a millionviruses. I love it! I still have to use a pc for work and I get very impatient with the 5 minutes it takes to start my computer and the 5 mintues it takes to shut down my computer. With a mac, you can lierally cout to 30 and your computer turns on.
August 8th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
Is coolness really a factor in buying an expensive item? I think not. I thought this was a money-saving blog?
August 11th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
@ Mark – Coolness is always one of numerous factors that go into the decision making process. Its one of several hundred factors. Some times cool isn’t worth it. Some times it is. Its a personal decision that everybody has to make. Now that I own a Mac, I’m in the camp that says its worth every penny. I now have an envelope for a MacBook Pro for my coaching business. I’m about 4 clients away from fully funding that envelope.
After spending over a $1000 on graphics guys this year and looking at another $1000 quote for some video editing projects, I came to the conclusion, I should just just buy an a 24″ iMac and learn the programs. I bought CS4 as well. This cleaned out the techie improvement envelope, so I traded financial coaching for graphics design coaching and I’m on track to reduce my marketing budget this year with my Mac purchase.
So yeah – this is a blog about saving money. Some times you SAVE up money so that you can buy something that you really want that may be a luxery item. Some times you SAVE money by bartering for things that you want/need. Some times you SAVE money by not spending it or not spending as much.
September 30th, 2010 at 6:55 am
Hey, I’m having a problem viewing your site in my browser. Could you please check this. My browser is Opera 7 btw.
February 2nd, 2012 at 2:29 am
Why would you buy a mac when pc is so much cheaper all you need to do is split your hardrive into two partitions and put mac os on the 2nd partition