# Mac users - why do you like so few choices? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 7, 2011, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949 "2011-10-07T22:57:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/141 "2011-10-11T22:49:13Z")
> [@obbn](#): > > I couldn’t care less what computer you want to use. However I have experienced many times the smugness of Apple users telling me how much better their piece of fruit is than my PC. This happens in real life, if you say it doesn’t you need to get out more. I see it on internet forums, the smugness is real and rears its head anytime this debate comes up. No, I don’t particularly care for Apple users. I find them a unique group that values style of substance. I see them as willing to spend tons more money for a product that will do nothing more than the one costing $100’s if not thousands of dollars less. When you point it out, you get the typical responses the main one being how Macs are so much better at graphic work, only to find out that 99 out of 100 don’t do the very work they claim their computer is superior at. > > I can tell from your response that you are die hard Apple user and no amount of reasoning on my part will change your opinion. We will have to agree to dis-agree. I will go back to browsing the SD on my $600 PC laptop and smile knowing that the $1200 or so dollars I saved by buying a PC over a Mac is still in my bank account and my internet experience is as good as yours is, even though you are on the “superior” machine. I couldn’t care less what computer you want to use. However I have experienced many times the smugness of **PC** users telling me how much better their **Beige Best Buy Bargain** is than my **Mac**. This happens in real life, if you say it doesn’t you need to get out more. I see it on internet forums, the smugness is real and rears its head anytime this debate comes up. No, I don’t particularly care for these **PC users (and they are a subset)**. I find them a unique group that **values cost above anything else**. I see them as willing **to spend the bare minimum and ignore anything of value that costs more.** When you point it out, you get the typical responses the main one being how **PCs are so much cheaper** , only to find out that 99 out of 100 **haven’t really done their homework or are completely blind to the points they don’t care to acknowledge**. I can tell from your response that you are die hard \*\*PC user \*\*and no amount of reasoning on my part will change your opinion. We will have to agree to dis-agree. I will go back to browsing the SD on my **$2500 Mac laptop** and smile knowing that the $1200 or so dollars I saved by buying a Mac over a PC will be **returned over the years when I don’t have to buy something else** and my internet experience is as good as yours is, even though you are on the “superior” machine. I really can’t tell which one is more smug…it kinda reads like a Mad Lib. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/142 "2011-10-11T23:00:18Z")
Nah, a Mad Lib would read like: “However I have experience many times the smugness of **penis** users telling me how much better their **fart** is than my **boob**.” At least that’s more like how I remember Mad Libs. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/143 "2011-10-11T23:05:02Z")
I would still like to know how I could have an extra $1200 in my bank account from buying a PC when my Mac cost $1000. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/144 "2011-10-11T23:12:05Z")
[Choice is not merely overrated, it actively contributes to paralysis, confusion, and ultimately unhappiness.](http://www.ted.com/talks/barry_schwartz_on_the_paradox_of_choice.html) Having said that, Mac people don’t choose Mac because they “like” few choices - and I think you know that. What we like is Macintosh. The fact that there are fewer choices for Mac is just an occasionally annoying aspect of choosing what we do like: the Mac. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2011, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/145 "2011-10-12T00:49:30Z")
In matter of fact, based on what apple charges for ram and storage, the choice is often the lowest level Mac in the product line. The slowest processor these days is more than fast enough for most things, and it’s been admitted by both sides of the debate that games aren’t really where it’s at, so the GPU ain’t as big a deal… I saved some serious money over the apple ram tax by buying the MBP and the 8gb of ram separately. It’s not like we’re against saving a dollar or two. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2011, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/146 "2011-10-12T00:56:29Z")
I agree that Apple really charges a lot for memory. I bought a Macbook several years ago. It came with one gigabyte of memory. I wanted to max it out to four gigs, and found that I could buy memory from another company (even a good name brand) for, as I remember, a quarter of the price that Apple charged for it. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2011, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/147 "2011-10-12T01:13:50Z")
That sounds right. I took my MacBook up from 512 to 1 gig and paid about as much as I did a year later for two 1-gig sticks from Kingston. Of course, now that’s it’s four years later than that, I can go up to four gigs (it’ll use three) for something like $60 from Kingston. Apple has always made a killing on RAM and storage. If the cost of buying it separately is much less (as in, I probably wouldn’t bother for $10) I’ll do that. ---
**Author:** ![ladyfoxfyre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@ladyfoxfyre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladyfoxfyre)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2011, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/148 "2011-10-12T01:24:40Z")
> [@obbn](#): > > I can tell from your response that you are die hard Apple user and no amount of reasoning on my part will change your opinion. We will have to agree to dis-agree. I will go back to browsing the SD on my $600 PC laptop and smile knowing that the $1200 or so dollars I saved by buying a PC over a Mac is still in my bank account and my internet experience is as good as yours is, even though you are on the “superior” machine. You are just preemptively dismissing any criticisms of your posting on the basis that the people who oppose you are “die hard fans who won’t listen to reason”. That’s stupid. You’re bitching about smugness of Apple users while being by far the worst offender in this thread. Smile all you want, you’ll be buying another computer in half the time that I will. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2011, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/149 "2011-10-12T02:18:09Z")
> [@ladyfoxfyre](#): > > Smile all you want, you’ll be buying another computer in half the time that I will. Why’s that? ---
**Author:** ![ladyfoxfyre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@ladyfoxfyre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladyfoxfyre)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2011, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/150 "2011-10-12T02:36:18Z")
Because in my experience they tend to last longer than PCs. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2011, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949/151 "2011-10-12T05:13:42Z")
> [@obbn](#): > > No, no one has addressed this. Please share, because I haven’t seen it in the app store. It was addressed, Post #121. > [@](#): > > You really haven’t seen this? Blind these days? To give you an example, look at the cases for sale for the iPhone. Almost everyone has a opening in the back of the case to “show off” the Apple logo. And [cases for other phones have cutouts to show their branding too](http://www.amazon.com/HTC-ThunderBolt-Droid-Incredible-Silicone/dp/B004J0NYBO). > [@](#): > > Look at cars while in traffic, notice any with a Apple sticker on the back. Why in the world does anyone find it necessary to advertise the computer they use on their car? Why do people advertise _anything_ they like on their cars? Why is it any stranger to advertise that you’re an Apple fan on your car than being a Kansas City Chiefs fan, or a NASCAR fan or a Jesus fan or an honor student at Joe Shmo Elementary School fan or anything else that people represent via vehicular stickerage? > [@](#): > > Because buying an Apple for many isn’t about the hardware, it is about the image. Well heaven forbid people like cultivating an image of themselves. Perhaps we should all use beige box computers and wear plain blue jumpsuits and have regulation haircuts. Would that be more to your liking? Get a grip, man. People are allowed to enjoy things that you don’t. That doesn’t make them wrong, bad, frivolous or otherwise a negative thing. Tastes differ. Get over it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-users-why-do-you-like-so-few-choices/598949.md?page=7)