NOTE: This post was written back in early 2006 and I still gets a lot of traffic to it. Since that time I have purchased a Mac and am very happy with my decision. The points that I bring up in this post about the hardware to hardware comparisons is true but my experience with comparing OS X to Vista or XP makes the difference.
From my experience OS X does much more with lower performing hardware then Microsoft is capable of. My Dell Dimension has been completely replaced by a Mac Mini EXCEPT for the gaming aspect. For gaming you need to consider an iMac or better. In reference to security, I do not even run virus software on my Mac and if you do any research the general consensus is that it is not needed for Macs.
Finally, my conclusion on Macs being a “status symbol” is no longer a valid point. That is not what pushed me to buy the Mac. My bad experience with Windows Vista got me looking. I do think Macs are better quality as a whole but I also believe Macs are a little more main stream now then they were back in early 2006.
Anyway, on to the original article…
I have been wanting to jump on the Mac band wagon for a while. I was even excited when Apple announced that I could run Windows on a Mac (see my post here). I thought in my mind “Wow, I can finally have a Mac, and I won’t be ‘missing out’ any longer”.
There was even this guy at Make Me Switch who was asking for people to donate so he could have a nice new iMac. I donated $10 to the guy because yes, everyone should have a nice new Mac in their house.
So I started to formulate my plan to retire my perfectly good 1 year old Dell which has not given me any problems. I was going make it into a media center to play videos because after all “it was just a lowly PC’. I even went to the apple.com web site to decide which Mac I was going to get when I could afford it.
So there I was, at the apple.com web site. First I looked at the G5’s but wait, they do not have Intel inside yet. So I looked at the Mac Mini. 1.2Ghz? Man I have a 3Ghz PC right now and I am sure that it is not going to play BF2 better then my Dell.
So I went to the iMacs. The silly little 17″ would not due since I have a 21″ monitor right now (even though it is a big ugly CRT). So I fixed my eyes on the 20″ iMac. 2Ghz processor – OK it is a little slower then my Dell but Mac’s are better right? 512mb memory – I wonder how much to get at least a Gig (I have 1.5 Gigs now). 128mb Graphics card – OK the same as I have right now. OK Price –
Price – Price –
$1,699.00!!!!!!!! – WHAT?!?!?!
$1,699.00 for what? What are you getting for $1700 that is so much better then the Dell that I got for $699?
A more stable computer? I have not had any problems with my Dell – none – 0.
Mac OSX? Yeah it looks cool, but… looks are not everything. Is it more stable? With the people that I have talked to who REALLY use Macs they say it is as stable as Windows, no more, no less.
20″ flat screen monitor? While it would be nice to get a large portion of real estate back on my desk, you can get a 19″ monitor for around $400.
So what is the pull? Why would I want a Mac?
Then the answer came to me – the same reason that I would want a Mercedes or BMW.
Status.
Do Mercedes and BMW look nicer then a Toyota or Nissan? Yes, they do.
Are they more reliable? Not if you look at the statistics at how many issues a person has within the first year.
So what type of price do you put on status?
Apple is charging almost double for comparable equipment to attain this “Status” (they are doing it with the iPod also).
So what am I going to do since I am not going to buy a Mac?
I am going to enjoy my Dell that does not give me issues.
Then after Microsoft releases Vista, I will head over to dell.com, configure a nice new 3.7Ghz PC with 2GB of memory, a 512mb video card, and a 500GB hard drive.
What price am I expecting to pay? About $1000 (they will probably through in a nice 19″ LCD too for that price).
Sorry Apple, you almost had me, but I will be the one laughing all the way to the bank this time.
Comments
7 responses to “I am not going to buy a Mac”
I don’t think it’s about status at all!
First off, it’s not fair to compare a 1.3GHZ mac to a 3.0ghz PC. They’re just completely different. You can’t compare them. A 1.3 ghz mac is completely different than a 1.3 ghz PC.
Second of all, the OS is so much different, and to many, much better. I consider it much better. Everything in OS X just makes sense. Simple actions take far fewer steps. The interface is way better.
I think it’d be well worth it to make your next computer a mac, of course, after your dell gets outdated. 🙂
Bethany, I appreciate the comment.
I agree that it is not fair to compare a 1.3GHZ mac to a 3.0ghz PC – that was not the comparison that I was trying to make.
The comparison that I was trying to make was what you get for $700 – a 3Ghz Dell or a 1.2Ghz Mac Mini. It was a financial comparison.
The other point you brought up is “OS is so much different, and to many, much better”.
It is different, and in some aspect better. But those aspects I do not use.
IMO the Mac is excellent for hard core video editing and hard core graphics. I do not do these things.
I code web sites and do graphics for the web so the scale of what I do does not compare.
For me, I will be sticking with PC’s because of the balance between price and functionality.
The whole image comment came from people that tend to buy more then they need and never use it just to say that they have it.
I don’t know if you’re still interested in this topic– last post was months ago. I generally don’t post things like this, but I am waiting for my Dell laptop to reboot, so I’m writing this from my desktop computer at work. Frustration has reached a maximum.
My 1.5 year old laptop is a disaster– needs to be rebooted generally once per hour. The thing worked perfectly until I tried to upgrade my security suite when the subscription ran out. I have uninstalled, reinstalled, tried different security software, and dealt with everyone’s customer service, and it’s still a disaster. When they ask what’s wrong, it’s hard for me to remember ALL of the things that are wrong.
I’m looking to mac for, at the very least, a fresh set of problems. I ran a search to find some comments on why I shouldn’t switch to mac– haven’t seen anything compelling yet. Mostly things like your comments– why you decided not to switch, rather than comments from people who switched and didn’t like it.
Consider these counterpoints: What good is a faster processor clock speed if the thing is bogged down with unstable software? I compared the price of a new iMac with a dell desktop with similar configurations, including antivirus/security software, warranty, flatscreen etc, and the difference is actually quite small. I don’t care if it costs more if it actually works.
For years I have hated Macs, and many times my hatred has been justified– remember the old PowerMacs, and those aqua pastel iMacs– those things were absolute garbage. Maybe the current stuff is junk too and I just haven’t recognized it yet. I spent $2k on my dell laptop– it’s 18 months old, and it is irreparably useless.
I’m going to give mac a try. I find it hard to believe that it can be worse than what I have. Maybe different, maybe no better, but not worse.
It is funny for me to read this post almost a year later. I did not buy a Mac but stayed with my Dell.
My Dell has been rock solid although I have reinstalled the OS about 2-3 times in the last year due to things that I did but also dues to things that Windows caused.
Tried Vista – hated it. It is nothing more then a more complicated XP.
At this point I have decided that the next computer that I am getting is a Mac. It may be a lowly Mac Mini but I know for a fact that it will be more stable then any Windows machine.
For me now, buying a Mac is not a status thing, it is a reliability thing. In the little bit that I have used Macs at work (as secondary machines) they are different but seem to be thought out much better.
I think that I will always need to use Windows at work because that is what most companies use. But personally, it will be Mac for me from now on.
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