New Microsoft ad cuts to the heart of the issue |
The ongoing war between Microsoft & Apple continues. In this new ad, Microsoft exploits Apple’s Achilles heel, being outrageously overpriced. It’s a brilliant ad that hits them right where it hurts. Because it’s true.
The ad shows a customer looking for a laptop for under a $1000. She searches both the Apple store and a conventional electronics store and finally settles on an HP laptop for under $700. Unlike their previous ads, this one works because it actually speaks to the consumer, and what matters to them. Getting a decent computer for a fair price.
As much as I admire the design in Apple’s products, the pricing has always been ridiculous. It’s the one thing that keeps them from having even more fans. Some of us don’t need to fit in with the cool kids bad enough to over-pay for a product.
It comes down to this. Is paying more for a name important to you? Are you the type who had to wear Guess jeans, just because of the name?
You know something, many of the generically named/packaged foods at the supermarket taste exactly the same as the name brands. I’ll just say that a fool and his money are easily parted, and leave it at that.
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STOP THE FANBOYISM
their both fine products
You drive your 1988 ford and I will drive my BMW…. You save a few hundred dollars on a PC and I will continue to buy Macs. In 24 years I have never had a worm, virus or system problem so bad I had to reload my hard drive. I reboot about once every two or three weeks with my MacBook Pro. Microsoft software is malware by my experience. The problem with stories like this is that some people believe that all computers are the same and should cost the same…. You might try a Ugo car when your Ford craps out…. they are even cheaper than old Fords. I own an iPhone…. you want to make something about that too? Some people don’t want to learn to write software or become a computer engineer…. they just want to use the darn thing in an intuitive way… Windows is getting better because they shamelessly steal Apple blind on innovation…. about 4 years behind…. As I tell people who ask me how to fix their malcrosoft PC, soak it in a warm epson saltwater bath overnight and buy a Mac in the morning….
“I’ll just say that a fool and his money are easily parted, and leave it at that.”
Actually, I think a more appropriate quote for you would be, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”
It has been proven time and time again that Apple hardware is NOT more expensive than SIMILARLY CONFIGURED windows machines. You are either truly a fool for believing what you write, or, more likely, you were paid by Microsoft to write this tripe.
The machine in the ad has been identified and shown to be a piece of garbage that has a really poor screen, can only make use of 3GB of RAM even with 4GB installed and then shares that memory with the Graphics Controller, has 4 year old networking technology, an older AMD processor, no bluetooth, is over 2 inches thick and weighs nearly 8 pounds.
A 17″ MacBook Pro is light years ahead of that HP in terms of hardware. To try to make the case otherwise is just plain stupid.
Let’s pretend that we’re in “Bizarro World” and that Apple Hardware really WAS more expensive. I would still buy it, not because of the name, but because it is the only system that runs OS X.
OS X lets me run my computer - connected to the Internet 24 X 7 X 365 - without Anti-Virus Software. I don’t waste time scanning, updating, and worrying about the latest virus or worm, or hacking attempt from China (read the news people - Mac users are all immune to these things).
This article is simply a load of crap.
Conner, the devil is in the details. The computers that are purchased in this advert is not equivalent. I have a 17″ MacBook Pro and it’s a beast! However, it all depends on what you want to do with the machine. I know a few video people and designers that swear by Macs but then I also know Windows people doing the same things.
It always amuses me when people look at computers as generic things. There is a lot of reasons that different people choose their computer and even the most sofiaticated buyer will have some bias and ignorance due to the complexity of the choice.
No two PCs are the same, viewed the same or used the same. No matter what combination of hardware, software (which sometimes costs much more with licencing and updates). It is very difficult to compare two computers together.
Hmm, before these new Macs came, largely the difference was just the Operating System… and it was STILL about $300 over priced… So why not compare apples with.. well.. apples? When you buy a computer, you are buying more than just the hardware. For the most part you interact with the software, through the hardware. So does this instead lead to the question of ‘why are people prepared to pay $300-500 more for OS X?’ since the hardware is arguably virtually the same?
“Overpriced” depends on your definition of value.
I’m a former Windows developer, and up till two years ago used Windows exclusively. In fact, four years ago I was making fun of Apple. Two years ago, I bought my first MacBook, then a MacBook Pro (on which I am typing this response).
This discussion is an apples vs. oranges debate. It depends on your definition of “value.”
The only software of note that I’ve purchased in the past two years has been Logic Pro for professional-level digital audio recording. Otherwise, if it didn’t already come on my Mac, it has been open source (e.g. OpenOffice 3.0, which rocks by the way).
Simplicity, ease-of-use, intuitive design, and loaded with great software out of the box. That’s what Mac and OS X has going for it.
Cheap laptop! $700
Cheap Screen
Cheap 802.11g WiFi
Cheap 100Mb Ethernet
Cheap/slow processor
Um…you must run a Linux laptop, right? Because you can get those for $299 if you look around. Why would you spend the extra $400 on a Windows box? A fool and his money, and all that rot, right?
Fool.
Macs cost more, yes. An ever increasing percentage of people are using macs. There must be a reason for this, don’t you think?
I was a PC user for 20+ years before I bought my first Mac last year…I’m NEVER going back, the $$ are completely worth it to me. The amount of time that I’ve saved just in the past year has made up for the cost of my refurbished $1400 iMac. I’ve just bought a refurb Macbook to go with it.
I guess that makes me “a fool”. You have a strange argument, I think–I can get all the performance and luxury of a Lexus by buying a Toyota with options, yet people still buy Lexuses. Mercedes, Porsche, etc.
I save $400 of my time every time I don’t have to reinstall the operating system again. I had to reinstall on my last PC 3 times in the last couple of years. Macs are totally worth it to people who value time more than money.
So…do you run a linux box?
lol. apple fanbois in a tissy… face it fanbois, you will never admit the truth about macs, way overpriced for the same thing you can get elsewhere for a lot less. It is called being ELITIST. Real people don’t want to be a part of your special Mac club.
I get that Apple makes good machines. I agree. So do many other manufacturers. And forget the model that she chose in the video. The prices are inflated. I just don’t see what all of that extra money is getting you besides good looks and being one of the cool kids.
I may feel differently one day, and become a fan, but while I dig Apple’s stuff, I never understood their pricing for what you actually get.
And no, I don’t run a Linux box. lol
Wal-Mart PC… $398
Refurbished iMac…. $1400
PC Hardware running OSX…. Priceless
You all crack me up. Not everyone cares or needs the performance of a mac. 2 years ago I needed a basic laptop to work on when I was on call and didn’t want to sit at home. Well I ended up buying a average $600 laptop, yes the hardware was out of date. But I did not need a top of the line laptop, I have my custom built pc (which you can’t do with macs), and neither do most of the people that buy laptops.
I’m sorry that this commercial hurt your iFeelings, but the truth is that apple will never become the brand that fan boys want it to, until they put out budget laptops. Oh and even if they do become what fan boys want, they will get hit with anti trust suites faster than microsoft has.
Enjoy your over priced computers.
well,i’ve had a mac, and i will never spend the money again…
its just not worth it, for all the people saying they’ve never had a worm/virus get real. you can get FREE software that takes that threat on a pc almost down to 0. And i dont care what anyone says, my pc works better for what i use it to do than the mac ever did. Sure it seemed cool and sleek, but i wont be fooled again…
Oh I wanted to point out one more thing…
Posted by: WindozeKiller
“The machine in the ad has been identified and shown to be a piece of garbage that has a really poor screen, can only make use of 3GB of RAM even with 4GB installed”
You might want to check that again, as you can see by the link below, that computer comes with Vista 64 bit, and if you didn’t know Vista 64 can run over 3 gigs of ram. Nice try though man.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9166635&st=hp+dv7&lp=1&type=product&cp=1&id=1218041148373
What an ignorant ad. Somewhat less annoying than Apple’s Mac vs. PC campaign but equally stupid. Any product is worth only and only the amount of many someone is ready to pay for it. Microsoft of course knows this, but Apple also know all about stereotypes from their adds, but that didn’t stop them.
Critique her new ‘top all you want, - now, with the savings over MacPro, she can get a desktop to network with, and a big Adobe suite. Uncle Bill said, “It’s the economy, Stupid!”
As has already been pointed out, the $700 Windows laptop is not equivalent to a $2800 Mac. However, there is *no* (new) 17″ Mac for anything less than that. You can get an 18.6″ hp laptop with the same nVidia 9600 graphics card, 2.666 GHz Core 2 CPU, and 4 GB RAM as the 17″ Macbook from HP for $1,450, just over half what the Macbook Pro costs. I compare to the 18″ because HP’s less expensive 17″ models use ATI cards, which aren’t directly comparable. Also, to be fair, the Mav has a 1920 by 1200 screen while the HP has a 1920 by 1080 one. Both have 5400 RPM 320 GB HDDs. Ports look comparable, though neither company has an obvious link to a full list. The Mac requires an (annoying) $30 donglish-thing for DVI output. I think the Mac’s battery life is significantly better, though HP fails to give an estimate.
So specs of the two systems are basically the same. The 17″ Mac may be cooler/lighter/sexier/have a prettier screen or something than the HP, but unless you’re willing to pay a huge price premium for both that and Mac OS (And a longer battery life), I’d say the Mac is pretty clearly overpriced.
In addition, to upgrade the HP from 4 to 8 GB DDR3 RAM costs $520. The Mac costs $1000 for the same upgrade. Both use DDR3 1066. Unless you think Apple pays twice as much for the same memory, not much justification for that. I can’t even find any 4 GB DDR3 modules that cost over $400 a piece (And keep in mind it’s an upgrade from 2 2 GB modules).
Being a gamer I stick with Windows based systems. Never cared much for Apple products but due to the outcry of this article I did a lil research.
The MacBook Pro is going for right about $2800 in the Apple Store right now. Configuring a similar Studio 17 machine from Dell was just shy of $2000. I realize that alot of people will purchase Apple products just cause they are from Apple but still…$800 is a pretty wide margin. You cant say much about all the open source software either since these days much if that is also available for Windows users (also a big fan of OpenOffice).
The new ad by Microsoft is suggesting Apple is over priced and that being a Windows PC is fine. The problem with that is in the advertisement. First, Apple laptop’s come with higher hardware performance and is why the cost is higher. microsoft Windows is just SOFTWARE and if you use it on a slow, old laptop, what are you going to expect when using Windows Vista? Does it matter if Microsoft gives away Vista for FREE?
Slow is slow… Vista is nothing but restrictions, limitations and DRM (digital rights restrictions)!
Apple isn’t better, although for years they sold higher preformance hardware to go with their software!
Microsoft sells their software only, and attempts to get the whole planet Earth to develop for Windows…
Linux is better than both Apple and Windows, is cheaper and offers what both don’t offer, for FREE! Plus with Linux, which is open source, you can improve it. Not to mention, Linux is 8,888 percent faster than both Apple and Windows combined together and then some… Because Linux doesn’t include all the lock you down and into DRM code!
If only individuals would educate and learn more about open source code, than to buy as customers a lock you in product.
I think the point of the ad is that she didn’t want to spend more than $1000, right? You can’t find a 17″ macbook for under $1000. Although I agree that macbooks are better than almost all other ‘equivalent’ laptops you have to pay a premium price to get even the entry level notebooks.
Being a A+, Net+, MCSE and Apple certified computer tech/Systems Admin and working with ALL types of computers over the last 17 years, I personally do not agree with this article. I have numerous PCs and Macs, BOTH laptops and desktops. Yes, Macs cost slightly more. But, if you would compare the Mac with a PC that is “comparable”, by that I mean comparable hardware ( the OSes will NEVER be comparable ) you find that the cost difference is minimal. Most of my customers with problems are using PCs. I would guess 10 to 1. Viruses, malware, registry problems, corrupted programs, the list is endless, not to mention the numerous problems with Vista. Sure the Macs cost “slightly” more, but they just work. Install a program, it works. Hook up a peripheral, it works. Moreover, if you do have a problem on a Mac, it’s much easier to fix. All this, to me, is worth the additional 300-400 bucks. Most of my customers just want to USE their computers and enjoy using them, not fix them all the time.
This article is BS. The only thing to say is “you get what you pay for”. If you buy cheap hardware, expect it to run cheap. Microsoft wants their users to use crappy hardware.
“I never understood their pricing for what you actually get.”
You really need to read your comments.
And why is everyone always attacking Apple about the price of their hardware? What about Sony? Their PCs are priced very similarly! And what a bout Dell? Their new Adamo is a LOT more expensive than the Macbook Air and is heavier AND WAY underpowered.
I used a PC with Windows from the time I was in the 7th grade (my first computer) until I graduated from college in 2004. Then I tried out Linux (Fedora) and haven’t looked back since. I boot up my Vista partition about once a month and my OSX partition about once every 3 months.
How about “the right tool for the job” instead of “mines longer than yours”? I don’t use a hammer on every home improvement job just because I own one. I use a Mac when I need to, and I use a PC when I need to. I try to find the best price for each. It’s ALL ROI. Good for Lauren, looks like she found a deal. After 30 years of programming, I’d rather be playing with my kids and avoiding computers altogether.
if Mac owners are so happy with their Macs… why are they always so angry on these message boards?
I have 17 computers in my house due to being a techie by trade. Sun and PC equipment, Unix, Linux and Windows servers, desktops and portable systems abound, oh and one Mac which is 5 years old. The Mac is my personal computer and it still faster and more reliably than most of my younger PC or SUN based equipment. It even runs faster than both my laptop and tablet PC’s which are 2 and 1 years new.
The Mac is a pure relief to work with as compared to all the other machines as they are always in need of attention for one reason or another. One person in this thread said he had all but one commercial application come with his mac, and anything else he needs is open source. I completely agree.
In regards to the author of this article, you and others like you who believe Microsoft’s ad is fair and just in it’s comparison simply need to just enjoy your false mindset. These debates are so tired. Apple OSX is made for non-techies without losing the power a techie enjoys.
Windows has some of that, but it is far less reliable and far more resource intensive to do the same job 99 percent of the time.
Fellow Mac users. Two words:
Chill out!!!
Fanboy attitudes like yours make me embarrassed that I don’t carry my Macbook anywhere. You ruin the image for everyone, making us sound like we’re losers.
Come on guys. Our Macs are pretty cool, but the users don’t seem to be.
I haven’t really used a Mac, and my question is, can you actually do real work with them? A friend showed me his and I just remember bouncing icons and cutsie animations. It seemed like a cheerful toy, but I just need basic functional programs. Please pardon my ignorance!
Factor in what your time is worth. How many hours are you going to spend debugging Windows?
If you want the 64 bit version of Vista you will need to upgrade the memory and video card.
How about your virus subscription?
Then there is the enjoyment factor. The leopard UI is a joy to use.
I’m cool with apple and feel the Microsoft ads are trying to pull apple down to their level instead of putting the money into developing a robust operating system.
Macs are living proof that not all people are created equall and that are just inferior in physical / mental aspects compared to others. In majority of the cases of someone purchasing a mac (unless for video editing) that person has to be mentally challanged / incapacitated or with below average IQ. No sane, intelligent person would ever consider a Mac as Macs are overall an inferior product that utilizes the same hardware as every other comparable product on the market but comes with less secure and more bloated OS.
I cannot believe so many mac users posted on this. This is hilarious.
For $1200 you can get the PC equivalent to the $2000 version of the macbook pro. I actually just went to their site and compared it with those available at newegg, and the PC matched or beat the mac in all hardware.
Just be trithful, you either like the OS, or you think its cool. If you believe any other reason you dont know what youre talking about.
People do the research for yourself before coming to the defense of your new Macbook that you can’t logically reason WHY you bought it other than what the media tells you what to do. I swear if I made commercials about how COOL jumping off bridges was without a parachute, half of you would kill yourselves.
Hey Mr. Mills, if you haven’t used a PC in the last 24 years how do you know anything about them? It’s so funny to read how upset and heated people get over this topic.
I have a HP laptop similar to the one in the ad. I got it 2 years ago for $699. I still use it and I have never had a worm, virus, or malware… that’s because I don’t look for free porn and steal music and videos!
I also have an iPhone. It does everything I need and its easy to use. Did I pay too much? My Google Maps are priceless, thank you very much.
Not everyone is a POWER user, so we don’t need INSANE harware. I don’t play games, do CAD, edit video, or crunch huge data. I like to read the news, my email, do my banking, and research things like alternative energy. Sorry, my life is boring and oddly enough don’t I sound like a VW driving, beret wearing, latte sipping Mac freak? I just need a good machine that dosen’t cost alot!
So Mr. Mills, I know quality when I see it so I can appreciate your love of German automotive engineering. Then again, I prefer utility and cost value… so I’ll crush your shiny BMW under the 35 inch super-swampers I roll on my JEEP!
Look, anybody who says that Mac OSX is completely impervious to a virus attack is like a motorcyclist who’s never taken a fall. There are only two kinds of riders: those who have crashed, and those who haven’t yet. Anything created by man is by definition flawed, because man is a flawed creature. Thus, OSX is flawed, as are all versions of Windows, Linux, Solaris, etc. It’s just a matter of time … so don’t forget to backup your critical data, and keep praying that the bad guys get caught before your machine is compromised.
Install Gentoo Linux.
I love how the comments are filled with misinterpretation. The ad, in my own analysis, tells me that there are no Mac Books for under $1000 with a 17″ screen. It also tells me that there are more brands and options when choosing a non OSX laptop.
I still don’t know why the people in this comments section are comparing hardware between laptops when there is obviously a huge gap in price; you’re comparing a printer to a pen.
On the other hand, I also don’t know why Mac users still state the obvious, yet wrong, stereotypes. If you actually know how to use a computer, you would know that you CAN NOT get worms, viruses, etc. The only chance where Windows will be affected by malicious software is when you, the user, download them. It your fault alone that you contracted these faults.
You can easily achieve a Mac Book by buying a $400 netbook and slapping Linux on it; that’s basically what you’re getting out of a Mac Book; give or take a few ‘performance’ notions.
If you REALLY do need THAT MUCH computing power in a laptop, you should really invest in a computer at home.
haha, i feel like a mentally retarded and challanged and worst autism patient with these Mac Vs Microsoft Vs Open Source wars of the WiTards (c) (Wizards Who Are Retards). I happily ran windows server 2008 advanced server 2008 on a HP laptop w/ freedos (which i am using now) and with full blown server config including fax server apart from IIS and ftp and mail and AD and PKI authentication and crypto keys on a HP Compaq C734TU laptop which is 406.25 US$ march 2008, i.e. 19500 INR w/ all tax and vat incl. and i am now running Debian Squeeze/Sid and making my own debianlive live cd and 6 custom kernels one coming to as less as 6.8 mb and successfully compiled linux from scratch 3 times and netbsd from scratch with all custom kernel. and hey look i didnt even use MAC from apple. now thats why feel like i am an autism patient with head injury and a retarded and mentally challanged attitude, etc blah blah. now flame me. and coming to this ad? all i got to say is “Apple, thats sure gonna hurt you in that sport Right there.” looks like oops! M$ hit apple right in the WEAK SPOT. hahahaha!
and whoever says/said “you get what you pay for?” its rubbish comment and can be silently ignored. i paid only 406.25 US$ which is a bit more than price, as laptops are imported from US/China, i got more than that i PAID for. so how does it justify that statement. and lasly? “if you know how to get things done? you wont pay a penny to get it done. rest of them pay a fortune, others are freebies.” priceless. MS also gives windows source codes to people for free, aargh the nagging NDA intellectual right nag puts the spark off, and GPL and BSDL are fine enough, since when APPLE gave away its source code? the opensource alternative from apple’s mac os is for darwin only. which means? if i buy a mac i am paying more than i am getting. its like shelling shizzalions for peanuts. i rather stick to BSD/Linux’s open source and also M$ source code (nagging NDA IR BS). so mac fans out there? i will support you only if you bribe me with a MAC hardware laptop/PC and source code (optional), else till then as long as i am a source code junkie? i will stick to M$ (till what extent source code is offered free to public) and OpenSource from Linux and BSD. period. buy me mac and bribe me with a mac and you got my support, else no way i vote for MAC. because mac makes money anyway from selling BSD variant kernel. so no crap.
You macfans will say anything, and I mean ANYTHING to justify your purchase!
What about value and profitability?
Hardware
Many manufacturers all with engineering teams - using common components from chip makers and other manufacturers. Market is seeded with many new models however, due to the sheer volume of products their value tends to rapidly erode and are placed into commodity due to adoption rate by consumers. Market has to absorb the products being manufactured and sold. Slower adoption yields price drops and reductions hence the $500-$1000 machines and yes, there everywhere and we have seen this for many many years from most of the manufacturers. This business model for those have yielded hundreds of millions of products sold, large market share, and yielded the perceived value of a PC by the consumer as basically $500-$1000. This is based upon volume production and market consumption at sustainable rates.
A manufacturer like Apple does not currently have similar volume production and market consumption compared to HP, Dell, Acer, IBM, etc., and they have other costs that change their pricing due to no dependency on purchasing their OS or software products from Microsoft, hence their pricing model is different. However, the market perception is that they are the same as HP, Dell, Acer, IBM, etc. and should be offering a similar product at a similar price. What will be interesting to see is that when that happens, and the market needs to absorb these products as well as the other manufacturers, what will tend to happen to the value of the PC? I think the trend towards Apple’s model may become more common as they need to protect margin to survive and invest in the future of engineering and product development.
The overall quality of the product by a manufacturer is going to attract investment by many people and brand loyalty because they realize that by supporting the manufacturer’s profitability leads to much higher quality products now and in the future. Continued investment in the lowest cost brand neutral product leads to exactly the opposite effect.
So, Lauren wish you luck with your short term investment.
I’m always amazed at how these discussions goes. I think of this like the right tool for the task and also like people think of cars. Cars are only a tool to get you somewhere but a lot of people have great pride in them, also spend a lot of money where they may get by with a much cheaper car. Have you seen the car shows? Those guys drool over the cars. There is the girl factor with guys and cars,that you don’t really get with the computer (except geek girls).
People have ever right to buy the parts and use Linux or any free OS! They can buy a pre-packaged DELL, Sony, HP or the like with Windows on it. They can also buy a Mac. All these different choice have different price tags and depending on the store you will pay more or less for them.
Conner shame on you for writing such a defamatory article without doing any homework! The computers were in on way equivalent.
I buy Macs, and when I do I pay for the current and breakthrough technologies. I pay more still for the brand, more for the design, more for the community. I am aware that I pay more, and until now I have been quite satisfied with what I have bought. Therefor, I’ll continue to buy, and recommend Macs to my friends, as I have for the last 20 years. I use PCs too; they can be great machines. But don’t let Microsoft trick you into believing the price is a qualitative summary for these different categories of machines. Yes, it’s the entry point for a portable computer that can email and surf the Internet, but not for one that can help you edit video, manage media libraries, create web content, or burn DVDs out of the box! Have fun out there.
Wow, you mac users sure got told. The price you people pay for ease of use and fasion is extrodanary. I don’t really understand things like ease of use anyway, as it just leads to problems. Casuals ruin everything, if it weren’t for them, companies like apple and best buy wouldn’t exist. What I wouldn’t give for a world where the only operating system was Slackware linux, and if people couldn’t handle it, then they simply wouldn’t get to use a computer.
It would solve many problems.
I use both Mac & PC. Microsoft is not without their flaws, just look at the disaster called Vista and all their heavy handed licensing. The gist of the ad is dead on, Mac makes most of their money marking up their hardware and that’s no secret. Their OS and software is very nice whether its worth the extra money is subjective. For multimedia professionals quality hardware is worth it but for the average consumer PCs are more than adequate and offer the consumer more choice and greater value. $300 laptop is junk not a $1,000 one, should provide more than enough power for the average person.
I think what makes “Macfans” seem so angry in their replies is that what’s being implied in the commercial is simply untrue. That’s never a recipe for keeping anyone who knows the difference happy. The ad hominem attacks that begin flying really quickly aren’t helpful either.
One reason I will always use Windows is that I hack/crack all my software so I can have the same functionality of an Apple computer. I will never buy an Apple computer cause it is not easy to hack/crack software that you can use like Photoshop, InDesign… Using Windows, it’s so easy; who cares about malware and viruses. Reformatting your hard drive should take less than 2 hours anyways. Yes an Apple computer cost way more than a computer running Windows, but since Microsoft doesn’t built anything, shouldn’t we be comparing Apple vs Dell, Apple vs HP anyways. That’s my 2 cents
Methinks we got them angry…