• by Dustin , February 16, 2007

To be frank, I think this post is way overdue. So I’ll choose my words very carefully.

Macs suck.

From the operating system to the price; from the Mac Zealots to all important iCrap I have to buy.

Let me begin by having a short conversation about the operating system on the Mac. I used the OSX system to setup content for web design and found it to be average. That’s right, average. There was nothing special that worked on the Mac that I was using that I couldn’t do on my good old desktop/laptop. So, where were all the bells and whistles that I have heard so much about? Tell you what, we’ll table that conversation for the moment.

My girlfriend who is required to have a Mac for her school work recently needed a new power charger and since her computer was fairly old I looked into purchasing her a new machine. Since all she really needed was the operating system I wanted to get it installed on a different set of hardware, one that was in my price range (the silly goose that I am, I didn’t want to take a loan out like most of my friends have had to do to get their Macs). The operating system is not for sale. So, if the operating system did in fact perform better, I wouldn’t be able install it on ‘weaker’ hardware. I would have to pay an extra $200-$300 for a setup that doesn’t prove (except by word of mouth) that it works better than a PC with Windows. Sounds pretty sketchy.

This is a topic of special interest to me since I got chewed out for being upset by some over zealous Mac user who told me ‘They don’t want to put the software on inferior hardware.’ Just so everyone is clear on this – IT IS ALL THE SAME! Macs ship with the same stuff as every other computer, that’s why you can run a dual boot Mac. And while we're on the subject: they DO break down. That’s right, just like every other PC, they are computers. Hard drives, screens, motherboards, power supplies, all are parts that have gone out on Macs owned by people I know.

Now that we covered operating system, let’s move onto price. It is $200 extra, on average, to get the same setup on a Mac as you would on a normal computer system. I know what you’re thinking, that’s $200 of well-spent style. Unfortunately, I am of the attitude that style is something you have and not something you buy. It’s too bad. I’ll admit, they are nice looking machines - but $200, come on…

And then there are the Mac Zealots. You know them, you’ve seen them, you’ve had to talk to them . . . you might be one. They make buying a computer seem like joining a cult. Can we please stop with that? That’s all, stop.

iCrap. Another time perhaps... too much to cover in just one blog.

I should say, I expect to be chewed out for writing this blog by a whole slew of Mac Zealots, but I am fed up with everyone telling me that Mac’s are better, blah, blah, blah. And then turning around and getting Windows installed on the system. And how about ‘My Mac doesn’t break down,’ - Did you by the iCare plan? Yes? Talk is cheap, a lot cheaper than a Mac…

Cheers.