And yet I'd bet the laptop was still cheaper tham a comparable one from Apple, where the built-in upcharges are for thinness, macOS, and extortionate non-upgrad

And yet I'd bet the laptop was still cheaper tham a comparable one from Apple, where the built-in upcharges are for thinness, macOS, and extortionate non-upgradeable RAM that you'd better buy up front because you don't want to be stuck with not enough RAM in a year or two.