You're right that Apple services don't integrate as nicely across non-Apple platforms. (Isn't that true of many things?) However, to dismiss it as a marketing

You're right that Apple services don't integrate as nicely across non-Apple platforms. (Isn't that true of many things?) However, to dismiss it as a marketing scheme is somewhat disingenuous. It may achieve that, but there are plenty of people out there who simply think they make the nicest hardware. The tight integration is icing on the cake. I own almost entirely Apple hardware. If I thought something else was nicer, I'd get it. I don't.