Why Do Students Own MacBooks?
I’m amazed at how many students own Apple laptops. Don’t get me wrong, I think they are great computers, but they cost significantly more than what a comparable PC goes for. How does one justify the purchase?
A quick glance on BestBuy.com reveals the cheapest MacBook is $1,000. This comes with a measly 13.3″ screen, 1GB of RAM, and 120GB hard drive. There are 89 PC laptops on BestBuy.com that sell for less than $1000 (only 17 sell for more). You can pretty much have your pick of any PC they have for less money than the CHEAPEST MacBook (the average MacBook on BestBuy.com is $1936). I found a great HP laptop with a 16″ screen, 3GB of RAM, and 320GB hard drive for $600. The $1000 MacBook costs 2/3 more and has worse specs!!
Considering we spend the majority of our computer time today browsing the internet and using web applications, which both computer platforms support, I can’t find a justifiable reason for a student to plow the extra cash into a MacBook (unless you are in graphic design or a related discipline that requires you to use software specific to Apple’s OS).
Why then do MacBooks sell so well to such a debt riden, ramen eating segment of the population?
1) Mommy and Daddy foot the bill…
2) “I’ve already taken on 20k in debt this year, whats 21k…”
3) Just part of Keeping up with the Joneses…
What are some other examples of current trends that are particularly wasteful?
Would he same thinking apply to the Ipod Nano? There are dozens of competitors out there that will offer the same amount of storage for a fraction of the price. People spend the majority of their time listening to music on an MP3 player and all players have that feature so why does someone throw down the extra cash?
a perennial debate that can’t really be answered when comparing strictly numbers. a general one is the seamless syncing that can be done on mac’s. hands down has pc beat.
on a designer side, there are compatibility issues with a lot of art work that is done when tossed between a pc and a mac. for example the 64 bit processor that pc’s have just recently came up to speed with that macs have been using for years.
another way to look at the intrigue of getting a more expensive mac even if it isn’t better than a pc(strictly numbers) based, it is two cars…
take a dodge viper roughly around 80K and then take a mercedes SLR, costs around 500k, similar performance, which one do would you want?
it’s the american way
I’m feeling a little convicted here, as I just purchased a shiny new Macbook laptop. However, I’m a working professional, don’t have a home computer as of right now (my dell laptop from undergrad bit the dust)… I decided to go the Mac route b/c they’re much more stable machines and are incredibly better with digital media… call me trendy.
Another ‘fad’ is Blackberry devices… I know so many people who have them and don’t even use mobile web or e-mail!
in lieu of getting buried in the possible reasons for this specific example, or the “rich parent” scenario, i think it’s a more general matter of individual choice of reward, making the free market tick.
jim eats noodles all week so he can booze on the weekends, while john eats heartier meals without the party. a mercedes owner may eat at home, while rustbucket owner is dining out. some make investments to enjoy later, others spend to enjoy now. we make these decisions every day, often even without conscious effort. each choice has its reward tradeoff.
that being said, i chose both a Mac and a PC.
Kudos to the Apple Marketing Machine. For those who do not pay for their own this falls into the same category as The North Face, Tims, Banana Republic, Kenneth Cole, etc. Is this the true American Way? For a select few, Apple is the only way to go…but maybe I am preaching to the choir….