Why your next PC should be a Macintosh
Saturday, November 19, 2005 - 05:49 PM EDT"Shopping for a computer would be easy, if it weren't for that whole Windows-versus-Mac thing," Rob Pegoraro writes for The Washington Post. "Fortunately, that may be a simpler choice than you think -- and making that call first can greatly simplify the rest of your home-computer shopping. Apple is making a strong pitch these days. The price to switch can be little more than $500, the cost of the Mac mini. That and other Macs ship with an outstanding set of multimedia programs -- iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie and iDVD -- and continue to be free of viruses, spyware, browser hijackings and many other Windows diseases."
Pegoraro writes, "Meanwhile, Windows XP, despite a stream of patches from Microsoft, remains a shaky structure that many users struggle to maintain. When even playing a CD can get a computer infected (as buyers of Sony's 'copy-protected' CDs have found), things need to change. But XP's replacement, Windows Vista, won't arrive until the fall of next year and possibly later. The choice between these systems is often phrased as 'why get a Mac instead of a PC?' But given Windows' painful history of insecurity and dysfunctionality, it's worth flipping that around: Why not use the safer, more reliable system?"
"'Because everybody uses Windows' is neither relevant nor true. There are other possible reasons, but you need to decide if they matter," Pegoraro writes. "One is software: While you can find at least one Mac application in pretty much any category of software, the selection of Windows programs is dramatically superior in a few categories (most obviously, games). The Windows market also offers a far wider variety of computers. Apple makes some fantastic machines, but its lineup skips categories that you might like. For example, it doesn't offer ultralight or big-but-cheap 'desktop replacement' laptops, and its cheapest desktop runs about $100 to $200 more than the starter PCs of other firms."
Full article here.
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MacDailyNews Take: A few caveats those considering switching or adding a Mac: Pegoraro writes that the selection, meaning the quantity of software, for Windows is dramatically superior, not the quality. The best-in-class applications are all there on the Mac side from Adobe and other well-known software makers. Microsoft Office for Mac is also available and generally considered ahead of the Windows version; its files are also compatible with Windows. If you create a Word document on a Mac and give it to someone on a Windows box, they'll be able to open and use it just as if you'd created it on a Windows machine. Same goes for Excel and PowerPoint. Also, most of the basic tools are already included on the Mac: a better browser, better photo management, better movie-making, better email client, better calendaring, better music-making, better DVD creation, etc.; plus a dramatically superior quality operating system: Mac OS X with Spotlight searching, system-wide dictionary, Dashboard Widgets, rock-solid stability, zero viruses, etc.
There are currently over 20,000 software titles for Apple's Mac OS X and more are added each day. If you spent just a day to learn each one (obviously not enough time for most), you'd be done in about 55 years (not counting all of the new applications introduced over the five and a half decades you've spent learning). Explore your Mac OS X software options here: http://guide.apple.com/
The other main thing to remember is that you get what you pay for: Macs actually cost less than most Windows PCs, by the time you add all of the extras to make it approach what the Mac already includes. Try it for yourself by matching features and pricing out Macs vs. Windows PCs online and you'll see what we mean - just remember that with the Windows PC, you won't be able to have Mac OS X, iLife and many other Mac-only applications. Lastly, how much is your time worth? There are no viruses, spyware, adware, or other malware on Macs. Macs just work.
Get a Mac today. You'll thank us tomorrow.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Apple Macs are less expensive than Dell PCs - April 24, 2005
Apple Macs are far easier, cost less to manage than Windows boxes - March 02, 2005
Want to switch to Mac? Mossberg answers common questions - November 10, 2005
Windows PC retailers face tough holiday season, meanwhile Apple stores are packed as Mac sales surge - November 09, 2005
Analyst estimates over a million Windows to Mac switchers during 2005's first three quarters - November 07, 2005
Windows sufferers: It's not your fault, but it is your problem - switch to Mac - November 07, 2005
Tech writer: Windows PCs highly vulnerable to zombie hijacking; get an Apple Mac instead - November 06, 2005
Windows switchers, now's your chance: Apple Mac mini with Mac OS X Tiger for $379 - November 03, 2005
Computer columnist: anti-virus software purely optional for Apple Macs, not so for Windows - November 01, 2005
Microsoft apologists and why Apple's Mac OS X has zero viruses - October 24, 2005
Mossberg: Every mainstream consumer doing typical tasks should consider Apple Mac - October 13, 2005
Mossberg: Switching from Windows to Mac - software not an expensive proposition - September 30, 2005
$500 bounty offered for proof of first Apple Mac OS X virus - September 27, 2005
Symantec: 10,866 new Microsoft Windows virus and worm variants in first half 2005 - September 19, 2005
Hackers already targeting viruses for Microsoft's Windows Vista - August 04, 2005
16-percent of computer users are unaffected by viruses, malware because they use Apple Macs - June 15, 2005
Mossberg offers resources for Windows users interested in switching to Apple Mac - August 18, 2005
ZDNet: How many Mac OS X users affected by the last 100 viruses? None, zero, not one, not ever - August 18, 2005
Intel CEO Otellini: If you want security now, buy a Macintosh instead of a Wintel PC - May 25, 2005
Mossberg: Apple's Tiger 'the best, most advanced personal computer operating system on the market' - April 28, 2005
97,467 Microsoft Windows viruses vs. zero for Apple Mac's OS X - April 05, 2005
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MDN: "Macs actually cost less than most Windows PCs, by the time you add all of the extras to make it approach what the Mac already includes."
What extras does a Windows PC owner have to buy?
Can you give me a list.