Many people I know believe Apple makes the best computers and related hardware. They are surprised when I challenge their opinion. I think they formed these opinions based upon three sets of Apple products—iMacs, MacBook Pros, and iPhone/iPod Touch/iPod models. My opinion is based upon the complete Apple product line that incorporates products such as the Mac Pro, Xserve, Mac Mini, Apple TV, MacBook Air, AirPort hardware, storage products, and keyboard and mouse offerings.
I am agnostic when it comes to technology. I try to assess what I see and use on its face value. I am rarely swayed by flashy or shiny things. I try to judge on ease-of-use, how well the technology does what it purports to do, and the cost/value ratio.
Below are some quick thoughts that I hope amplify my position:
The iMac is the best all-in-one computer. There are Windows alternatives. None are as compelling.
MacBook Pros are very nice notebook computers. There are few comparable offerings in the Windows world. But there are many good Windows notebooks, often providing a better cost/value ratio than a MacBook Pro. This impression is due to Windows 7. Windows 7 changes the balance for the client operating system user interface/user experience (UI/UX), away from Apple’s OS X Leopard/Snow Leopard, to Microsoft. This happened once before when Microsoft released Windows 95 and leapfrogged the Apple UI/UX of the day.
The iPod Touch is in a category by itself. I have seen no other device that does as much as the Touch, does what it does as well as the Touch, or is priced as favorably.
The iPhone was in a category by itself but that is rapidly changing. The Motorola Droid offers many features that the iPhone does not and is quickly adding apps and functionality that leapfrog the iPhone/iTunes App store ecosystem. Peter Ha of Time Magazine recently named the Droid the best gadget for 2009. There are other new or soon-to-be-released smartphones that challenge the iPhone’s hegemony.
The Mac Pro is a beautiful tower computer. It is extravagantly over-priced. There are many Windows alternatives that provide comparable hardware at a fraction of the cost. The primary reason I see to buy the Mac Pro over a comparable Windows tower is because you want to use Final Cut Studio, Apple’s $1,000 video editing program, to edit lots of video recordings.
Xserve is an expensive, not-so-special, pizza-box-shaped server. Linux, Unix, and Windows servers generally provide better functionality and features at much lower cost.
The Mac Mini is useful but monitor, keyboard and mouse are extra. It is not always the best-in-breed for media center devices and it makes a mediocre desktop computer. (I suggest buying an iMac if you need a Mac desktop computer.) Window nettop boxes are coming to market soon that challenge the Mac Mini. We need to wait until January 2010 to assess what is best-in-breed in this form factor.
The Mac Mini has a younger, smaller sibling, the Apple TV. TiVo is far superior as an easy-to-use media device. Xbox and the SONY PlayStation PS3 provide media center functionality and add game playing and an optical drive (Blu-ray for the PS3), both of which are missing from Apple TV. Roku, Vudu and Popcorn provide lower-cost media center functionality. The Roku box, which I will be reviewing next week, costs much less, provides a simpler interface and is easier to use than an Apple TV.
I often recommend Apple computers and other Apple hardware to my clients because the device(s) best meet the clients’ needs. I often recommend non-Apple products because they better meet that client’s needs. As I said above, I’m agnostic.
I could go on surveying Apple’s remaining hardware, such as Airport networking devices, keyboards and mice but I won’t. My point is that Apple makes some good hardware, in some instances such as the iPod Touch or the iMac the best, but not always the best and often not very good, like the MacBook Air or Apple TV.
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