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Despite their price, there was a time when macbooks were only 5-10% more than the PC equivalent laptop. People that were complaining about its price were inevi

Despite their price, there was a time when macbooks were only 5-10% more than the PC equivalent laptop. People that were complaining about its price were inevitably comparing it to bottom of the barrel PC laptops, not higher end business laptops that had comparable specs. I haven't priced out any recent macbooks to know if that's still true though. Glancing at the new 16" macbook pro, it seems like it might be reasonably priced for what you're getting.

Polylactic_acid 7y ago
There is so much that goes in to a laptop that doesn't make it to the spec sheet either. People only look at a couple of specs to decide how much it should cost but some laptop makers put everything in to those specs and cheap out on everything else and you end up with a laptop with a fast CPU but brittle plastic, A TN display, a DAC that hisses and a whole bunch of other nastyness
x3sphere 7y ago
Yeah, the MBP 16” is pretty comparable to the Dell XPS in price - at least when comparing base models. However, the costs go up a lot if you spec out a custom config (+$400 just for 32GB RAM). Then the MBP starts looking quite a bit more expensive. Overall I don’t think they’re a bad buy though if you want macOS.
- tracker1 7y ago
  That said, the Mac pro, even starting at the base price is pretty outrageous... I mean, I get $500 for the case and $1500 for the MB, but the rest just seems to be too much in aggregate, and even more ridiculous for mfg upgrades out of the box.
- ksec 7y ago
  >Yeah, the MBP 16” is pretty comparable to the Dell XPS in price - at least when comparing base models. The Dell XPS [1] with a comparable spec cost $1650 compare to MBP 16" $2399. In the old days Apple would have priced it closer to $2199 or slightly lower. Somewhere along the line they started making Mac same margins as iPhone. [1] https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/deals/new-xps-15-laptop/spd/xps-15-7590-laptop/xnber5cr656ps?view=configurations https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/deals/new-xps-15-laptop/spd/...
ksec 7y ago
>Despite their price, there was a time when macbooks were only 5-10% more than the PC equivalent laptop. I seriously doubt 5-10%. You are talking about minimum $50 - $100+ dollar difference, that has never happened. Mac has always been roughly 20-30% more expensive than a laptop with comparable specs. So $1000 comparable spec laptop, Apple will sell you one for $1300, ( But with more expensive upgrades ) The 30% has been fine for years, the quality and finishing as well as macOS was well worth the price tag. But in recent years it hasn't been 30% at all.
- olavgg 7y ago
  I remember when I bought my first Macbook Pro in 2014, the specs compared to Dell/Lenovo was in the same price range. There was no Apple Premium. So I decided to give Apple a chance, and I am still using that laptop today, it has really been great value for my money.

Polylactic_acid 7y ago

There is so much that goes in to a laptop that doesn't make it to the spec sheet either. People only look at a couple of specs to decide how much it should cost but some laptop makers put everything in to those specs and cheap out on everything else and you end up with a laptop with a fast CPU but brittle plastic, A TN display, a DAC that hisses and a whole bunch of other nastyness

x3sphere 7y ago

Yeah, the MBP 16” is pretty comparable to the Dell XPS in price - at least when comparing base models. However, the costs go up a lot if you spec out a custom config (+$400 just for 32GB RAM). Then the MBP starts looking quite a bit more expensive. Overall I don’t think they’re a bad buy though if you want macOS.

tracker1 7y ago
That said, the Mac pro, even starting at the base price is pretty outrageous... I mean, I get $500 for the case and $1500 for the MB, but the rest just seems to be too much in aggregate, and even more ridiculous for mfg upgrades out of the box.
ksec 7y ago
>Yeah, the MBP 16” is pretty comparable to the Dell XPS in price - at least when comparing base models. The Dell XPS [1] with a comparable spec cost $1650 compare to MBP 16" $2399. In the old days Apple would have priced it closer to $2199 or slightly lower. Somewhere along the line they started making Mac same margins as iPhone. [1] https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/deals/new-xps-15-laptop/spd/xps-15-7590-laptop/xnber5cr656ps?view=configurations https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/deals/new-xps-15-laptop/spd/...

ksec 7y ago

>Despite their price, there was a time when macbooks were only 5-10% more than the PC equivalent laptop. I seriously doubt 5-10%. You are talking about minimum $50 - $100+ dollar difference, that has never happened. Mac has always been roughly 20-30% more expensive than a laptop with comparable specs. So $1000 comparable spec laptop, Apple will sell you one for $1300, ( But with more expensive upgrades ) The 30% has been fine for years, the quality and finishing as well as macOS was well worth the price tag. But in recent years it hasn't been 30% at all.

olavgg 7y ago
I remember when I bought my first Macbook Pro in 2014, the specs compared to Dell/Lenovo was in the same price range. There was no Apple Premium. So I decided to give Apple a chance, and I am still using that laptop today, it has really been great value for my money.