I think when it comes to marketing electronics, Apple is king. Look what the iPod has become. Now look at these ads for the Mac. Are you using a Mac? If yes, you are probably chuckling at how incredibly stupid the PC guy looks and how hip and cool the Mac guy is. Well I hope you get cancer.
Macs are great. I adore them for their simplicity and beautiful design. If I didn’t have a computer or didn’t know how to use a PC, I’d get a Mac. This is partially because of Apple’s attidude — “Macs are great and PC’s suck.” I’d say it’s Apple’s marketing at work here, and it’s doing it quite fantastically. While 90% of the world are computer illiterate, saying PC’s suck for sure pushes them to Macs. But for the rest of us who know better, these ads are completely ridiculous.
Here is what’s really going on behind those ads.
Out of the Box
Yes Macs come out of a box and they work. PC’s do too! Where did Apple get the idea that you need to buy separate parts to use a PC? What happened to.. I don’t know.. Dell? And for sake of arguement, yes PC’s can be built with separate parts (doesn’t mean they have to be). That’s for people who want to customize their own computer. As for Macs… well you can’t build your own, can you?
Touche
Macs can now run Windows XP and OSX. Why buy an expensive Mac if you are just going to run Windows on it? Touche.
Work vs Home
Macs can record things. Good for you. So can PC’s! Pie charts don’t do it? What about those 283653 hardware accessories for PC’s that Macs don’t have?
I don’t think I’m the only one not pleased with Apple’s attitude. Granted, Apple has always pushed their products to their customers this way. But it seems like many people are starting to believe the obvious and obtrusive message behind the ads.
I don’t think that there is much doubt about the Apple OS X being better designed than Windows XP. It is true that it doesn’t suffer from viruses or spyware as badly as Windows XP can do. OS X’s handling of RAM, like Linux’s, is also superior to Windows’.
If you talk to a Mac owner, they will tell you that their Mac has amazing designs and looks… at which point they really do need to get a life! However these people who are prepared to pay a premium just to say their computer box looks nice are Apple’s target audience. I totally agree with you about the fact you can’t build your own Mac, to most people that won’t matter but it puts of those who do.
I think the main difference between Windows and OS X is not the operating system it self. It is what they come with. Windows can be installed on any PC and is indeed installed on most computers sold today. The main reason it is so popular is people have little choice apart from Linux which isn’t for the average user. OS X on the other hand, comes with the hardware; your choice is about zero compared to the choice of Windows based machines.
What I find most annoying about Apple, is there need to keep OS X on Apple hardware. Now it is compiled for Intel architecture there is no reason it cannot be installed on a normal PC. The OSX86 project has even proved that AMD machines can run it. I have little doubt that many people would flock to buy OS X if they knew they could install it on their existing hardware. I would have also thought that the extra publicity of the operating system, would encourage more to buy Apple hardware too.
Somehow I doubt it will happen, OS X will always be for those who want to feel exclusive (and have a slightly light wallet).
Apple macs are far superior in processor efficiency than PCs, however the differences beyond this - particularly when running WinXP - are few in my opinion (though granted I am not a mac regular user). For general work a PC has always, always done exactly what ive asked of it without any real trouble or restraint, so why change? To slate PCs and their users, representing them as boring fools I think is a little short sighted and pretentious by Apple, and if it wasnt such non-serious advert then perhaps quite offensive to some.
Being a switcher, I can attest to the validity of all the statements within those commercials. Im not sure why people react to apple’s statements in this way. Is it hurting your pride to know that the machine that you own could be inferiour to another machine? Its alright to not like Mac’s, I personally don’t care. But to say that a PC can do Video/Images/Life as well as a mac, its just not true. These are statements from people that have never experienced the ease of iLife or OS X. For some reason, there are people that would rather tinker than work with something truly intuituve.
And for the billioninth time, apple will not release OS X to run on your ugly 4 year old HP. The reason apple creates such a great experience is because they control the hardware and dont let you put in a $20 generic video card (made by who knows). Most of those blue screens come from hardware conflitcs, and apple tries their hardest to avoid that situation.
PCs work out of the box? hardly.
I have a good friend who is a chief engineer at a major, instantly recognizable software company. He recently purchased a brand-new, top-of-the-line HP laptop (the big one, 17″ screen I believe.)
It took him two days to get the thing to work. He ended up wiping the drive, reinstalling the whole OS, then downloading all the non-included drivers that the machine needed just to do things like recognize its built-in DVD drive.
As to the remark about people who appreciate good design needing to “get a life”, some people like to surround themselve with fine art and great literature, while others are content with velvet Elvises (Elvii?) and Harlequin romances. I’ll leave it to you to figure out which is which.
Kebin: I have used iLife and I admit it is quite a nice package. For images, Picassa is probably a better alternative to to iPhoto. For Video, WMM/Encoder is an acceptable alternative to iMovie. I find iTunes a lot of hassle to use and much prefer WMP11 or Winamp. To say that a Windows machine cannot do Images as well as a Mac is just stupid; those who are serious about Photography or Image Manipulation will be using Photoshop. If you have ever used Adobe Audition or Premier, you will know that they are both extremely power programs. All of Adobe software is available for Mac and PC.
The fact that Apple control the hardware is probably their main drawback. One chooses the hardware inside a PC depending on what one uses that PC for. It seems to me Apple are more concerned about what they want to sell than what the majority of people want to buy. You can rant about Windows as long as you like, but which is the most popular OS? I agree, Windows might not be the best, but it is still the only OS available. And I’m sorry, but how much do you think a Intel GMA950 costs?
GC: When he bought that Laptop is will have worked, it may not have been setup to his liking but it worked. The average user is not going to do a system rebuild as soon as they get the laptop. My Vaio came with all the software I could have wanted and worked straight out of the box. I admit I reinstalled the OS because I wanted XP Pro instead, but it did work fine out of the box.
Unless you play games, which if you have a Mac you probably don’t, a computer is for work. I am not saying looks don’t matter, but if you spend most of you time marvelling over the nice black finish on your MBP, then productivity will suffer?
OUT OF THE BOX
Watch what it is saying guys - not what you think it is saying… The advert is for the iMac an all in one computer. The joke from the PC was not about separate parts as in build it yourself pcs it was about the fact that most pcs come in MORE than one box. i.e. Separate CPU and Monitor… that is not out of THE box but out of the BOXES.
Touche
>>Macs can now run Windows XP and OSX. Why buy an expensive Mac if you are just going to run Windows on it? Touche.
Well actually for what you get in the iBook it is a pretty reasonably priced pc Laptop with a Core Duo processor. Expensive Macs are not THAT expensive when you consider what is in the box.
“Well I hope you get cancer.”
You sir, are a twit.
“If you talk to a Mac owner, they will tell you that their Mac has amazing designs and looks… at which point they really do need to get a life!”
You must not talk to a lot of Mac owners, then. I mean, I’d point out that my Mac has superior security, a hassle-free user interface, and is a complete web development environment environment out of the box (Apache + PHP + MySQL).
The fact that it doesn’t look like a generic asstastic black plastic box is merely a nice bonus.
“…a computer is for work.”
I agree — making an extra $15,000/year with my Mac is nothing to sneeze at. ;-)
–R.J.
Hah. I knew this would cause a stir.
Like Leo said, there are about 1000x more programs for PC than for Macs. If you saying software for Macs are superior than for PC, you should really try using Google.
jgp - I guess you are right that Macs come all connected in one piece, while PC’s come in… two — the computer and the monitor. Really is it that a reason to buy a Mac?
Robert, “hassle-free” is a relative word ;) Preference is one thing to take into account. As for web development, I don’t think there is anything that can be done on a Mac that cannot be done on a PC. Again, we come back to the software arguement.
There really is no need to fight; Apple is positioning itself in a completely different market from you: the consumer market. This is wise of Apple since the Business Market is petering out while the consumer market is still growing. All of the ads stress the virtues that a consumer would enjoy: fun, flexibility, style, ease of use in a very well made, hassle free computer. It doesn’t stress the PC’s virtues: compatibility with the status quo, workflows, etc.
Apple likely is happy to cede the business market and claim the consumer, SOHO, education and creative spheres. This comprises the top quarter of the market, but it is the most profitable sphere.
Apple needs to differentiate itself by being the computer that does all the boring stuff, but really specializes in fun stuff– the life stuff. Can you do the fun stuff on a PC? Sure, but not without a lot of hassle.
Apple is serious about being “the computer for the rest of us.” Most people are not technical; they aren’t nerds. Apple is going after the 60% of the population that doesn’t use a computer now. It’s going after the people who have had a bad experience on a PC. So, it must say the things that these people want to hear. These ads aren’t for you PC fanboys, but for someone else.
I think Apple has its marketing spot on. The ads are humorous and *almost* condescending - enough to get the point across but not too much so to be offensive.
I switched to Mac about 4 years ago. Prior to that I would dutifully build my own PCs. The whole PC vs Mac arguament is old and tired. The truth is one machine will suit one person and one machine another. I use my Mac for work and have an Xbox sat under the TV for gaming. Suits me just fine.
Personally, I prefer the stability and efficiency of Apple hardware and OS X. The two integrate perfectly. The better designed GUI of OS X is a bonus.
And while my G4 tower is certainly easier on the eye than your average Dell box, its not really a looker. Having said that I’ve never understood why certain elements of the PC community attack Mac users for paying more for a nicely designed piece of hardware. People are willing to spend thousands more on a nicer car and people accept it. Why should a few hundred dollars more on a computer be any different?
Well my FreeBSD box is more secure than a Mac… but as long as you’re behind a hardware firewall and you don’t go to weird websites, the security in Windows is fine. For the average user it is absolutely fine, and frankly most people buying computer won’t understand it. Business may value security, but they value the availability of software more.
As far as web development, I would go as far as to say web development on a Mac is inferior… out of the box, which OS comes with the worlds most used browser? True, Windows can’t run Safari, but less people use Safari.
Macs are meant to be highend computers for creative artists of all types. iLife is the consumer version of their pro software, which does have alternatives. However, Apple is the only company that has Final Cut Pro, Motion HD, Logic Pro, Aperture, etc. Macs, yes you can build your own. Very easy in fact, this being impossible is one of many myths. Building a Mac from the ground up is simple. If you want to work with an out-of the box version of Mac OS X (not with the slightest update/pathc) you’ll have to use a Core Duo/Core 2 Duo and an Intel logic board. Everything else is fine. What Apple is referring to as separate parts is the monitor, software, and wireless equipment, keyboard/mouse. They’re rarely in the same box, Macs come with plenty of software preinstalled which is very nice ;) And if you want to compare macs to PCs as expensive, Sony Vaios average 10% more expensive than macs. I did a price comparison using build-to-order options to get them as even as possible. The more you pay for a Mac (which isn’t m uch more if not less compared to many PCs) comes back in software, hardware (i.e. ATi X1600, built in camera ) and service. Think Apple Stores. Even though my warranty is only for one year, my buddies at the Apple store are hooking me up with free upgrades all the time. Many Apple Stores do this, and Apple knows it, they think it’s fine. As far as hardware not available for Mac, that’s low end hardware. There’s not much difference between a Western Digital 80GB 2.5″ 7200HDD and a Seagate 80GB 2.5″ 7200HDD. If you want low end parts, swap for ‘em. Macs are high end. That’s just it.
@Leo: Safari is actually has Firefox, Netscape, Mozilla, IE, and others built in with the package. If you know how to enable the debug menu, you can choose to emulate many browsers/versions. This includes emulationg IE v.5 and 6
If you want more explaining, sure. But I think each of your responses are all Apple myths, maybe once true (think 1986… oh wait, Bill Gates used to advertise for Apple…. nevermind :) )
Macs are so pretty. Though I agree wholeheartedly with you about the ads. That’s just stupid. PCs have greater functionality in my opinion.
You guys hit the spot. Apple’s marketing is indeed for people who don’t know jack about a computer, and I bet it’s working.
It’s sad seeing Apple marketing its products this way, while the rest of the competitors are still comparing computer specs.
Kitsimons, as for your car analogy, people buy nice looking cars because they (usually) have better performance than others and for the fact that cars are something you show everyone when you use them. The only time you’d show a computer to someone probably when it’s broken and you need it fixed by a tech guy, assuming you don’t know how to fix a computer. Otherwise, the look is just for yourself.
Actually it seems like it’s for idiots… but actually looking deeply it’s true for the geeks as well. In my opinion, Apple had all the right. Microsoft made so many attempts to put Apple (and Linux) down, it’s about time they bring humor out to snap back a little bit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yirMwH9xhjc&search=steve%20ballmer you gotta admit, that’s funny
I work in a graphic design studio and I usea pc laptop with an AMD 4000+, my partner has a dual G5. I do like the look of the OSX system but that look cost’s you in RAM usage. Beyond that my partner thinks he bought the all in one solution with the Mac and included software, funny thing is he doesn’t know how to use the thing in an optimal way because he’s so used to the point and click method for rendering his projects. I find this behavior very much like what I used to see in grade school computer labs which is what I feel Macs are best for — people who don’t have a clue and don’t really care. When it comes to processor and RAM usage I out render the dual G5 100% of the time with superior file quality. Macs are for Nazi’s who want expensive gear for there own classist reasons, they treat PC’s like Hitler did the jews — “who cares if they’re lying to us I’m a member of their club”. So for a little under 5 grand you can get a computer from Apple that will barely keep up with a PC that costs 6 or 7 hundred bucks — if you’re an idiot that might make sense but for those with more than a pea for a brain will stick to the Windows machines.
I used to share the opinions a lot of you guys are sharing against the quality of Mac products but being a switcher, I disagree with a lot of your points. I do a lot of web work and development and I love developing on my recently purchased MacBook Pro. I only got it because I knew I could run Windows and since I have been meaning on trying a Mac for the first time, I at least had the assurance that my new laptop would run Windows, just in case. I installed Windows on it and haven’t used it since (except to play Counter-Strike).
I love Mac OS because it’s built on top of FreeBSD and open technologies that work much better than Windows and are by far more stable. I have yet to find an application I use on Windows that I can’t use on my Mac. The only two applications I frequently use on Windows that I can’t use full featured on my Mac are SecureCRT (an SSH program which I don’t need anymore because Mac OS X actually has a terminal that’s useful) and MSN Messenger (it just doesn’t have the games which I sometimes play with friends and family). When I need to play a game like Counter-Strike, I just switch to Windows. All other games that I play have a Mac version so that works great. I still haven’t found a thing I can’t do with my Mac as a developer and I love the fact that I get the power of a UNIX-based platform without the UI and compatability hell of Linux. Mac OS X is missing a few more enterprise features of Windows but the big difference is that at least with Mac OS X you can easily get the open source counterparts of the features you get in Windows and you usually end up getting better quality anyways.
I love switching and as soon as the Intel versions of the PowerMacs come out, I think I’ll pick one up.
The points I do agree with some on this post are that Apple does overprice their computers somewhat (although the hardware that Apple computers come with are state-of-the-art) and it does suck that I can’t just build my own computer and install Mac OS X on it. The latter does irritate me but I don’t mind it that much. It does suck that I have to replace my awesome Windows computer for a whole new system when the new Pro Mac comes out. Oh well, I’ll just sell the video card and use it as a server for the home.
I agree, the apple adds have been getting on my nerves recently because of how many people I know who are computer illeterate jump to the apple bandwagon because they love their ipod. Macs are unfortunatley slower than pcs on every program tested. The only plus I see to them is that they are virtually immune to viruses; but hey, I’ve been running anti-viruses on my pc since I got and and have not yet once gotten a viruse that held on long enough to do any malicous damage. In reality only about 3.9% of the usa owns a mac.
I wonder what programs you tested? Obviously if it’s optimized for Windows it will run faster than on Mac, but all Macromedia/Adobe programs have proven superior in OSX to me. Computer illiterate people generally buy Dells/Gateway, sometimes a Mac. But that’s the first step to making the computer easier for them, since all of Apple’s software is integrated into every part of the system.
http://daringfireball.net/2003/07/market_share Read the whole thing, too, it’s a good article. 3.9% market share really doesn’t mean a thing, if you read the article you will see why. by the way, don’t you hate those f*****g tool tips in the start bar in Windows? :P Man they bug me
hmmm I think you have the wrong idea here..
I’m currently running 2 Macs in my house..
one..I run windows XP windows Vista and Apples OSX..
all on one computer..sure peecee users can run all those OS’s but i am running windows XP and Vista for the purpose of gaming.. nothing more i see no point OSX handles everything i own superbly.All my computers are networked (very easily) all my external HDD’s are networked. when i was setting up a network for a group of 24 computers. (Peecee computers) It was a nightmare. just one computer wouldn’t connect..
needed drivers… ive never had a problem with my macs..my old peecee broke down almost every week.or needed a driver or just died!..face it peecee users just haven’t enjoyed the ease of use of a mac..just try it..you’ll become a switcher i promise.
enjoy my rant.
sorry :)
Funny it seems that it’s always Apple-heads who are talking down PC’s — it’s just stupid. Apple’s are cute, the software bundle is solid (iMovie, iDVD, Garageband, etc.). Windows could take a huge lesson from Apple’s software designers, but the advanced computer user is going to get just as much functionality and expedience from either machine. I configured a machine to buy from the Apple store and it ended up being $9000.00 for the same setup that a personal computer that doesn’t run Mac OS cost $4000.00! Machines that only run windows or linux are by far and away more productive for the money spent. If Apple wants to release there OS for all Personal Computers then I’d buy it and use it. The new Mac’s - please — it costs a fortune and the intel chips are brand new to Apple. I can’t afford to take the kind of risk that down the line there’s going to be a hardware issue with this new design. So I’ll wait until Mac’s drop a bit in price then I’ll try one out — but this whole Intel cross-over is new territory, not to be easily trusted. I think Mac heads are modern day fascist’s in the making - buying products as a social status symbol to further their social position amongst the same type of folks that are racist and classist to the point of being a detriment to the planetary populus. When I see a Mac user I see a two faced revolutionary artist wanna-be who want’s a big organic garden on the hill for he and his white friends to plan new ways of taking advantage of the capitilistic nightmare called the American dream. That’s what all these white boys and their pathetic wives want. You know what I think - anybody who takes this computerized reality too seriously is an idiot, marginalizing those who are trying to get beyond “technology” because it’s killing the world — computers are stupid. People are clearly stupid. It’s a bogus reality, your computer will not save you be it an Apple or a Gateway. Shut up about it — go sip your latte and just shut it.
i have a windows pc right now and im thinking on swintching to a mac..the only problem is that im afraid that ill have a hard time using it. ive never used one before…i dont know if ill get the hang of it or not and i dont want to buy one and not know how to use it..someone please help mee!