4 ms·

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. 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 ;).

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 ;).