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There are costs that people overlook, or might not even make use. Previously my dad (who's basically tech illterate), kept getting talked into getting Nexus pho

by calyth2018 7y ago

There are costs that people overlook, or might not even make use. Previously my dad (who's basically tech illterate), kept getting talked into getting Nexus phones by the local carrier. And once he gets the phone, and he's got questions, the staff that sold him the phone would hardly extend the help. I got him (and my mom) iPhones, knowing that they cost a lot (and in my eyes, overpriced) because once they both are on the same phones, he could walk into an Apple Store, and get issues resolved. They could share with one another about how to use the phone, etc... If it breaks, he could talk to a person to sort out what to do, and get swapped with a replacement. I sold an old Nexus 6 to a friend, and eventually an OTA update borked it. He was on the phone getting the run around to recover it. I know I could work with a much cheaper phone, but for the use cases above, I'm not just paying for the R&D and the hardware and a margin on top, but the services and peace of mind.

trm42 7y ago
This is actually quite important. After supporting my family and relatives with Linux and Windows for 15 years, I decided that I’ll only support them if they buy Macs. My time has become more precious to myself than it was without family and work. Some bought Macs and basically I may need to install some updates when visiting and point them to some software, nothing annoying or time consuming and no late-night helpdesk support calls. Of course some relatives like my mom were cheapskates and did not buy Macs but then their problems are now somebody else’ problems. My personal life quality improved a lot after drawing the clear line. And no, Macs are not completely problem-free but anecdatally a lot easier :)
- tracker1 7y ago
  When my grandmother's old PC laptop finally died, I got here a chromebook... absolutely bog simple and no virii. After my mom saw it, she switched to one too. IMHO even easier than a mac, though lower support. My other grandmother who lived local (before she passed last year) I had running on linux, with wine for a couple of her mid-90's era games, would stop by and run updates every few months. Definitely would not suggest windows for non-technical people if you can avoid it. And if you don't need local apps, omg chromebooks are great.

trm42 7y ago

This is actually quite important. After supporting my family and relatives with Linux and Windows for 15 years, I decided that I’ll only support them if they buy Macs. My time has become more precious to myself than it was without family and work. Some bought Macs and basically I may need to install some updates when visiting and point them to some software, nothing annoying or time consuming and no late-night helpdesk support calls. Of course some relatives like my mom were cheapskates and did not buy Macs but then their problems are now somebody else’ problems. My personal life quality improved a lot after drawing the clear line. And no, Macs are not completely problem-free but anecdatally a lot easier :)

tracker1 7y ago
When my grandmother's old PC laptop finally died, I got here a chromebook... absolutely bog simple and no virii. After my mom saw it, she switched to one too. IMHO even easier than a mac, though lower support. My other grandmother who lived local (before she passed last year) I had running on linux, with wine for a couple of her mid-90's era games, would stop by and run updates every few months. Definitely would not suggest windows for non-technical people if you can avoid it. And if you don't need local apps, omg chromebooks are great.