PC Says to Mac: Yeah, well, I'm CHEAP!
Whenever a Mac article or news item goes up on the site there’s always a ton of readers who point out the price premium of Macs over PCs, and declaring no matter what they put in there, it’s never going to be worth the “Apple Tax” you pay. The latest Microsoft ad has finally gone and pointed out the price difference between a PC and a Apple computer.
We were thinking the other day that the Mac versus PC ads had calmed down as of late. Nothing new to really report from either company, despite the fact that both are now producing the “we’re better than you!” television adverts. That was until today.
The new PC ad is targeting the fact that no one has spare cash lying around these days. It centers on Lauren, a twenty-something who’s looking for a laptop with a 17-inch screen priced at under a thousand dollars.
Microsoft says if she finds it, she can have it. Surprise, surprise, she has no luck at the Apple store (and jokes, “I guess I’m not cool enough to own a Mac!”) and finally settles on a 17-inch notebook from HP, which sets her back $699.
What puzzles us is why they had her visit the Apple store first and the only reason she didn’t buy one was that she’d have to double her budget (they only had one notebook for under $1,000 and it was a 13-inch MacBook). Isn’t that sort of like saying, “Sure, they all WANT one of your computers, but it’s just our luck they can’t afford your prices!”
Check out the video here.
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A better was would be - I've got £1000 to spend on a new computer.
Hold on, I only want to send emails and spank myself off to porn - Any old PC can do that. £350 on a notebook leave me we £650 left to spend on beer. job done!
That last paragraph echoes my thoughts. "Sod it, I wanted a Mac really badly so I'd look cool (cos that's what Macs are) but I don't have the cash. Well I'll just have to settle for a PC!". Bad advertising. What about noting the price hike just for the OS? Or pointing out hardware compatibility. Or hardware upgrades. Or software choice. Or just any of the ACTUAL reasons that Windows PC's (in some ways) trump a Mac? Seems a little dumb to me.
Never wanted a mac! Maybe they look slick but they have under 20% of the applications that run on a PC. Nevel liked apple products anyway. They try to restrict the user to use only their products.
Is that because the PCs are 80% choked with the conficker worm at the moment?
No live viruses and security that works is a very big plus point for the Macs.
... Oh wait, so that's why PCs start out so cheap. Next you then have to add in the virus/anti-virus disruption and costs.
Someone hasn't been keeping up to date with the latest thinking on PC vs Mac security.
Macs are far far less secure, you just need to set your Windows security up properly. Or like I do have a PC for pr0n which you know and accept will get viruses and a seperate one for work. You could very easily do this for less than the price of a Mac.
I can't understand the PC/Mac issue any more. Once upon a time, Apple used to sell their kit on the basis of:
* We use better hardware than PCs (and haha you can't compare it directly with that Intel/AMD stuff!)
* We have prettier looking hardware/boxes/peripherals than you.
* Our OS is miles better than that yucky DOS / Windows thing!
But these differences have all gone now. PC and Mac use the same hardware, there's a far greater a choice of pretty looking PCs than there are Macs, and there's virtually no practical difference in useability between the OS's. But some issues do remain:
a) Ridiculous Apple prices for the same hardware abilities as a PC.
b) Utter irrelevance of Macs in most industries/scenarios, apart from a few little design/creative niches like fashion, advertising etc.
There will always be those for whom fashion is more important that function (and who still think Apple is fashionable), so Apple will always exist to serve that market.
Good thing that the vast majority of the people in this World are still sane.
One thing i'd like to add - wait for it - i don't want a mac, you keep that to yourself, to each his own. You get me.