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I tried, but I don't really feel much sympathy for someone who buys a product with a 40% premium that's effectively a status symbol masquerading as a piece of h

I tried, but I don't really feel much sympathy for someone who buys a product with a 40% premium that's effectively a status symbol masquerading as a piece of hardware. To be honest, I'm quite giggly over this whole ordeal.

danieldk 8y ago
I tried, but I don't really feel much sympathy for someone who buys a product with a 40% premium that's effectively a status symbol masquerading as a piece of hardware. Oh come on, this is getting really old. A lot of people (most Mac users that I know) pay the 40% premium because they want macOS and the Mac application ecosystem. Sure, there are people that will buy it as a status symbol, but that's a crude over-generalization. Also, a Surface with about the same specs sells at about the same price at our local retailer. The Surface Laptop 2 with a Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD is 1449 Euro, the MacBook Air 1409. There are some differences like a touch screen (Surface), Touch ID (MacBook), higher PPI (MacBook). But for all practical purposes, they are in the same class and have the same price. A similarly spec'ed Dell XPS goes for 1399 Euro without a HiDPI screen.
- droptablemain 8y ago
  I drive a 7-year old subcompact and you're telling me that the Mercedes S-Class is not that expensive because it's only $10k more than the BMW 7-Series. Those are two quite modestly-spec'd laptops with fairly high price tags. I bought a rebranded Clevo with pre-installed Ubuntu 4 years ago with an i7 and 16GB of RAM for around $1,000. Does it have cool features like an all-aluminium construction or a nifty touch-bar? No, but it's a highly functional machine and has been quite reliable as a daily workstation (I once dropped it from a second-floor balcony and didn't have to visit a "Genius" since I'm actually allowed to open it and work on it myself). Not so great at impressing peers, perhaps; however, I can eat all the sandwiches I want over my keyboard and it still works.
  - robjan 8y ago
    Can you develop and test iOS apps on it?
  - danieldk 8y ago
    Those are two quite modestly-spec'd laptops with fairly high price tags. I bought a rebranded Clevo with pre-installed Ubuntu 4 years ago with an i7 and 16GB of RAM for around $1,000. Sure. I am just saying that there is no big markup for Apple compared to other vendors. If you want a laptop with the same specs, screen, trackpad, weight, and thinness as a MacBook Air, you are going to end up in the same price class as a MacBook Air. I am not arguing for thin laptops, light laptops, Magic Trackpads, or whatever. Different people have different requirements. But a lot of people buy MacBooks based on their requirements and not for status. I think there is at least one thing that we can agree on: the Touch Bar is completely unnecessary and a gimmick ;).
mratzloff 8y ago
MacBooks aren't a status symbol anymore. You only tell yourself this to feel superior instead of considering that there are actual reasons people prefer macOS and, yes, the ecosystem over Windows or Android. Many of these reasons are cited in this thread.
- threeseed 8y ago
  It really is pretty hilarious that the people who believe Mac users to be superior are the ones who desperately need to feel superior themselves. Most Mac users are just happy to pay more for a device that isn't perfect but works far better than Windows and Linux.
carlosrg 8y ago
I'm willing to pay that 40% for the only decent desktop OS out there.

danieldk 8y ago

I tried, but I don't really feel much sympathy for someone who buys a product with a 40% premium that's effectively a status symbol masquerading as a piece of hardware. Oh come on, this is getting really old. A lot of people (most Mac users that I know) pay the 40% premium because they want macOS and the Mac application ecosystem. Sure, there are people that will buy it as a status symbol, but that's a crude over-generalization. Also, a Surface with about the same specs sells at about the same price at our local retailer. The Surface Laptop 2 with a Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD is 1449 Euro, the MacBook Air 1409. There are some differences like a touch screen (Surface), Touch ID (MacBook), higher PPI (MacBook). But for all practical purposes, they are in the same class and have the same price. A similarly spec'ed Dell XPS goes for 1399 Euro without a HiDPI screen.

droptablemain 8y ago
I drive a 7-year old subcompact and you're telling me that the Mercedes S-Class is not that expensive because it's only $10k more than the BMW 7-Series. Those are two quite modestly-spec'd laptops with fairly high price tags. I bought a rebranded Clevo with pre-installed Ubuntu 4 years ago with an i7 and 16GB of RAM for around $1,000. Does it have cool features like an all-aluminium construction or a nifty touch-bar? No, but it's a highly functional machine and has been quite reliable as a daily workstation (I once dropped it from a second-floor balcony and didn't have to visit a "Genius" since I'm actually allowed to open it and work on it myself). Not so great at impressing peers, perhaps; however, I can eat all the sandwiches I want over my keyboard and it still works.
- robjan 8y ago
  Can you develop and test iOS apps on it?
- danieldk 8y ago
  Those are two quite modestly-spec'd laptops with fairly high price tags. I bought a rebranded Clevo with pre-installed Ubuntu 4 years ago with an i7 and 16GB of RAM for around $1,000. Sure. I am just saying that there is no big markup for Apple compared to other vendors. If you want a laptop with the same specs, screen, trackpad, weight, and thinness as a MacBook Air, you are going to end up in the same price class as a MacBook Air. I am not arguing for thin laptops, light laptops, Magic Trackpads, or whatever. Different people have different requirements. But a lot of people buy MacBooks based on their requirements and not for status. I think there is at least one thing that we can agree on: the Touch Bar is completely unnecessary and a gimmick ;).

mratzloff 8y ago

MacBooks aren't a status symbol anymore. You only tell yourself this to feel superior instead of considering that there are actual reasons people prefer macOS and, yes, the ecosystem over Windows or Android. Many of these reasons are cited in this thread.

threeseed 8y ago
It really is pretty hilarious that the people who believe Mac users to be superior are the ones who desperately need to feel superior themselves. Most Mac users are just happy to pay more for a device that isn't perfect but works far better than Windows and Linux.

carlosrg 8y ago

I'm willing to pay that 40% for the only decent desktop OS out there.