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Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

informationweek.com

41–50 of 52 posts

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#41
post #10

It's not surprising. Most of Microsoft's attempts at advertising make them look stupid. The Gates/Seinfeld ads? They just made the company look aimless. They made the company look like they didn't know what people wanted or why Apple was doing well. These new "laptop hunter" ads hit Apple where it hurts. While one can argue that Apple's computers don't cost more than an identically spec'd PC, the problem is that very…

This is a huge sampling space fail, but anecdotally, the other day I sent my macbook into Apple care. They replaced the logic board, heatsink arm, display, and half the case (the latter for a cosmetic issue that was absolutely not under warranty). The machine was out of my hands for exactly 22 hours (fedex priority ftw). I paid $0 for this service (applecare was $300 several years ago). All of that to say, find me a…

So you basically what happened is that you bought insurance from Apple for the price of a cheap PC and they actually covered you according to contract.

AppleCare for a $1700 MacBook Pro costs $350. Does that mean one in every five MacBooks is broken beyond repair within 3 years? Or does it mean that you severely overpaid for your insurance?

I'm aware that AppleCare doesn't just cover the parts but the labor as well, but their margin on hardware is probably somewhere around %40, so that covers the labor easily.

I guess all hardware vendors would absolutely love to sell you a luxury insurance like that and if they're not idiots they treat people paying like kings accordingly (e.g by doing it quickly and not saving on shipping fees).

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#42
post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is also a company that once tried to get a patent on GUIs, windowing systems. They thought they should be the only ones around to produce a machine with a graphical desktop. Thank God that didn't happen, the computing world would be a horrible place. Why don't you tell me why paying more for the same hardware specs for the Mac should be justified? Because it 'looks' better? Are you all that superficial? I could…

Why don't you tell me why paying more for the same hardware specs for the Mac should be justified? I'm not trying to convince you of anything. The burden of proof lies with you. Read the facts. Windows has what, like 86% of the desktop market? I think you might be confusing facts with statistics? In any market you choose to look at, you can find a high-quality alternative to the commodity product offering that has a…

Wow, comparing a Taurus with a BMW? First, there's a huge price difference. Hell, these two are in two different classes of cars. BMW obviously has a nicer interior, better motor, suspension, everything. It has better performance in every area, and is a far nicer/superior vehicle. We're comparing a macbook and a PC, with relative hardware specs, if you'll read the topic. I don't have to prove anything, I only asked because you did. My remarks are unsubstantiated ? The purchase of a laptop is purely personal preference, as I stated earlier. It's my opinion. I can base my opinion on anything I want, and you cannot claim that an opinion is 'unsubstantiated'. You cannot tell me that my personal opinion is wrong. Well I guess you could, but that would be stupid. I'm not flaming anyone, and I'm not personally attacking you or anyone else for owning/liking a mac. That's your preference, your opinion. Everyone is entitled to their own, and unlike you, I'm not explicitly stating that your opinion is wrong, or 'unsubstantiated', as the popular word of choice seems to be here. I shot the facts out in the next post because you requested them. Yes, they are facts, it is widely known that PCs and operating systems such as Windows and Unix-clones are more popular than Macs and MacOS X. I used this statement to show that I'm clearly not alone in this opinion, and because you and others demanded me to 'substantiate' my opinion, which I shouldn't even be wasting my time with.

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#43
post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hehe, I knew I'd lose some points for that one. All the die-hard apple users constantly bash what I use, so I decided to give 'em some back. If its so great, why is its market share at such a low percentage? I realize its all personal preference, while you like your Mac, I can't stand the sight of one, but I've obviously used both and a PC is far superior. Its really more about how I despise Apple as a whole, more th…

I've obviously used both I think it's far from obvious when you've been unable to point to one concrete (even biased and opinionated!) example of why you think a Macintosh computer is inferior to the technology you choose to use.

Its not just me dude, millions of others share the same opinion, but here ya go: My PC is faster than my friends' macs. The UI looks better on my PC, you can even make a window fullscreen! I'm a programmer, and Apple has chosen to base their platform on Objective-c, a jumbled mess of a wanna-be C++. Honestly, I've neven even heard of another big company worth mentioning that uses the language, other than to port their software to macs. I'm part of the open source community, and while I'm sure their is some, I've never heard of an open source Apple/Mac community. Hell, Apple even discourages it for the iphone. There are vast communities for the platforms I use, Windows and Linux, and there is also plenty of free software for these platforms, while it is rarely the case on Mac. My guess its probably because software vendors have to go through the hell of using Obj-C, so they want to be paid for every program they write, as would I. As I stated I don't go looking for FOSS mac communities, but they can't be that popular, i've never heard of any at all. Is that enough for you? If not, I'm sorry but I'm tired of having to validate my own opinion. I could say that I hate mac because I don't like the color, and it would be valid because it is MY opinion. I guess I don't have the leisure of having as much free time as you all.

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#44
post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with most of your points except one: I recently switched back to PC, and am amazed at the hardware i can get for the price. I can get a superior PC (operating system preference aside) for FAR less than a MAC. But, that being said, I am so used to OSX that I prefer it over windows XP at the moment. But I have recently enjoyed the simple breadth of things I have been missing out on (gaming and game design, add-…

Preferring OSX to XP is somewhat of a no-brainer at this point, as XP is about 10 years old. A fairer comparison might be the Win7 RC (perhaps, I don't know about breadth of driver support).

Win7 is not actually out yet, so really your options are Vista, XP, or CE. And most people think XP is the best of those options.

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It depends on what you value as quality. Many of the things you guys have mentioned is either cosmetic, or used to preserve my computer far past its average lifespan...(with advancements in tech I have to get a new computer at least every 5 yrs. The cheapest PC with non brand hardware will last you that easily... Cae in point, I bought my cousin an emachines computer for $299 three years ago, and the only problem she…

Quality is quality - and much of it is non-functional. The car analogy is really apt here. I can buy a Toyota for $20K that will get me to work at the same time as I could if driving a BMW. It costs a hell of a lot less for the same functionality, and if we believe the reliability numbers, will last me just as long (if not longer) than the BMW - certainly longer than I plan to own the car anyways. So why would anyone…

Thanks for the hysterical laughter that you just provided me. The only apt analogy here is that the Mac is the taurus, with the price of the BMW. The comparison with the laptops is hardware specs, monitor, functionality, everything. The only differentiating yet irrelevant feature is the appearance, in which they differ. The 'frilly extras' of the BMW simply don't exist on the Mac. Very funny though.

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quality is quality - and much of it is non-functional. The car analogy is really apt here. I can buy a Toyota for $20K that will get me to work at the same time as I could if driving a BMW. It costs a hell of a lot less for the same functionality, and if we believe the reliability numbers, will last me just as long (if not longer) than the BMW - certainly longer than I plan to own the car anyways. So why would anyone…

Thanks for the hysterical laughter that you just provided me. The only apt analogy here is that the Mac is the taurus, with the price of the BMW. The comparison with the laptops is hardware specs, monitor, functionality, everything. The only differentiating yet irrelevant feature is the appearance, in which they differ. The 'frilly extras' of the BMW simply don't exist on the Mac. Very funny though.

Looks like there's now a timeout before replies, new feature pg?

You should probably stop shedding karma for today - your unsubstantiated, inflammatory Apple-hate has already gotten you modded into oblivion today.

But I'll bite:

- MagSafe. You cannot buy this feature anywhere, and it has saved my laptop on numerous occasions. In fact, in university I knew a guy who fixed out-of-warranty laptops for other students, and "power socket ripped off motherboard" was the most common repair he did. The fact that it snaps into place from a distance also adds that little bit of extra ease (as opposed to hunting for the hole).

- Better monitors. Seriously, do you think a $500 HP laptop can stand up to the monitor on a 15" MacBook Pro? Apple isn't the only ones offering 8-bit panels on a LED backlit screen, but if you look at any other laptops offering this you'll realize they're also in the MBP's price range. You do get what you pay for.

- Form factor and size. Your $500 Dell Inspiron is 2-3 times thicker than my MBP, and weighs 50% more. Is the size and weight savings worth it for you? I don't know, that's for you to decide, but there is a difference.

- Metal vs. plastic construction. The best keyboard I've used on a PC laptop ever is the ThinkPad keyboard (I have one right now, in fact), and even that is no match to the stiffness offered by the new aluminum-framed MacBooks. Go down to a $500 laptop and what you get is mushy crap that will twist and bend as you type. Been there done that, sick of it.

- Touchpad. The multi-touch gestures are an incredible productivity booster - two finger scrolling is the way it is meant to be. Shoving your fingers into the corner of your touchpad just to scroll is counter-productive, annoying, and just plain backwards. Being able to access any open window from a single gesture swipe has also improved my productivity.

I could go on, but go ahead and keep trolling and insisting that the "looks" is all that is different.

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for the hysterical laughter that you just provided me. The only apt analogy here is that the Mac is the taurus, with the price of the BMW. The comparison with the laptops is hardware specs, monitor, functionality, everything. The only differentiating yet irrelevant feature is the appearance, in which they differ. The 'frilly extras' of the BMW simply don't exist on the Mac. Very funny though.

Looks like there's now a timeout before replies, new feature pg? You should probably stop shedding karma for today - your unsubstantiated, inflammatory Apple-hate has already gotten you modded into oblivion today. But I'll bite: - MagSafe. You cannot buy this feature anywhere, and it has saved my laptop on numerous occasions. In fact, in university I knew a guy who fixed out-of-warranty laptops for other students, an…

Wow, that shot over your head. The comparison is in between laptops with COMPARABLE specs. Good lord. Not a $500 Dell and a $1,000 Macbook. If you'll remember, most commercials weren't too specific, but in most of them at least a thousand dollars was being spent. We're not comparing a low end PC with a high end Mac. I didn't realize I was going to have to hold your hand through that. Man, I guess at least five of you also learned a new word today, 'unsubstantiated'. Congratulations!

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#48
post #10

It's not surprising. Most of Microsoft's attempts at advertising make them look stupid. The Gates/Seinfeld ads? They just made the company look aimless. They made the company look like they didn't know what people wanted or why Apple was doing well. These new "laptop hunter" ads hit Apple where it hurts. While one can argue that Apple's computers don't cost more than an identically spec'd PC, the problem is that very…

This is a huge sampling space fail, but anecdotally, the other day I sent my macbook into Apple care. They replaced the logic board, heatsink arm, display, and half the case (the latter for a cosmetic issue that was absolutely not under warranty). The machine was out of my hands for exactly 22 hours (fedex priority ftw). I paid $0 for this service (applecare was $300 several years ago). All of that to say, find me a…

I did that with a dell laptop except they did all the work at my home.

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a huge sampling space fail, but anecdotally, the other day I sent my macbook into Apple care. They replaced the logic board, heatsink arm, display, and half the case (the latter for a cosmetic issue that was absolutely not under warranty). The machine was out of my hands for exactly 22 hours (fedex priority ftw). I paid $0 for this service (applecare was $300 several years ago). All of that to say, find me a…

So you basically what happened is that you bought insurance from Apple for the price of a cheap PC and they actually covered you according to contract. AppleCare for a $1700 MacBook Pro costs $350. Does that mean one in every five MacBooks is broken beyond repair within 3 years? Or does it mean that you severely overpaid for your insurance? I'm aware that AppleCare doesn't just cover the parts but the labor as well,…

> but their margin on hardware is probably somewhere around %40

Maybe, but remember there's a pretty big invisible hardware R&D cost. Things like unibody, multitouch, internal battery, displayport, etc. aren't free. And Snow Leopard probably cost a bit more than $29/seat to develop.

Re: Apple Wanted Microsoft Ads Yanked

#50
post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with most of your points except one: I recently switched back to PC, and am amazed at the hardware i can get for the price. I can get a superior PC (operating system preference aside) for FAR less than a MAC. But, that being said, I am so used to OSX that I prefer it over windows XP at the moment. But I have recently enjoyed the simple breadth of things I have been missing out on (gaming and game design, add-…

Preferring OSX to XP is somewhat of a no-brainer at this point, as XP is about 10 years old. A fairer comparison might be the Win7 RC (perhaps, I don't know about breadth of driver support).

>Preferring OSX to XP is somewhat of a no-brainer at this point, as XP is about 10 years old.

OS preference is not primarily dependent on OS age.

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