My Problem With Apple

The New MacBook (Oct 2009)I've been a Mac user for a little over three years now.  In fact, I daresay that my fingers spend as much time on the keyboard of my MacBook as they do on any other computer.  I'm not an expert, but I am comfortable with Mac OS X and can get all but the most specialized computing tasks done with it.

And I really like Mac OS X.  I've been a UNIX user in some capacity for decades now, so the file structure and command-line Terminal are very comfortable to me.  Mac OS is a rock solid operating system.  I routinely run my MacBook for a month at a time, putting it to sleep between sessions, and usually only doing a reboot after installing a system update that requires it.  Mac OS leans on it's tried-and-true BSD heritage to create a remarkably sound computing experience.

But it's not an experience that comes cheap.  Many journalists have compared Macs to luxury vehicles like BMWs and Lexuses, where you pay not just for the functionality of the vehicle but also the refinement and attention to detail.  There's also an element of prestige that isn't bequeathed upon the owners of say, a Chevrolet or Kia.  Those comparisons to luxury vehicles are apropos.  Apple has long been recognized for it's outstanding design in everything from its iPod line all the way up to its Mac Pro towers.  The hardware and the software are well-designed and well-integrated.  The latter is what gives Macs their legendary stability, and the company charges a premium for it.

I don't necessarily mind paying that premium for a quality product.  As the kind of guy who will own multiple computers at any given time, it's okay to me that one or two of them are pricier models from the Mac lineup.  It's hard to argue against the design superiority of the Mac even if its actual dollar value is debatable.  But I hate feeling like my choice for that superior design comes at the expense of raw power.  I consider myself a power user.  If I have a faster CPU, I'll throw more processes at it.  If I have a larger hard disk, I'll store more files on it.  Give me a bigger monitor, and I'll open enough windows to make your head spin.

So I'm always left wanting when I see a new lineup of Macs emerge that don't use the latest CPUs, GPUs, or hard disks, especially when PC-style laptops have already had better technology on the market for months.  It would be like BMW having a 200-hp V6 engine at the top of their lineup.  It would probably be harder to recommend paying the extra for the luxury if the core performance didn't match up to a car costing half as much.  I hate feeling like my decision to go for the superior design comes at the expense of performance.

So even though my three-year-old MacBook is feeling long in the tooth, I'm not sure whether I'll be upgrading to another MacBook.  I haven't ruled it out yet, but Intel's recent announcement of new mobile i5/i7 processors certainly makes the mobile PC laptops a lot more tempting.