Specs are only ever irrelevant if there is only one product out there. The analogy with Coke and Pepsi don't really work (to me anyway) because you can try both

Specs are only ever irrelevant if there is only one product out there. The analogy with Coke and Pepsi don't really work (to me anyway) because you can try both out and can differentiate by taste. In addition, they both serve only one purpose - to quench your thirst. Computers, on the other hand, are expensive (you can't just try them out) and used for a wide variety of tasks. For maximum benefit, you need to tailor it and for that you need to know the specs. Non-techies know that these things matter but they have no knowledge about it which is why they go to their tech friends for help.