Apple grabs double-digit US laptop marketshare

Great!

More self-obsessed, kharki-wearing, coffee-house dwelling, half-wits out there pretending to write that "child-hood ruined"/"chick-lit" novel that'll never happen! What is with Apple fanbois, wearing kharki and hanging around coffee shops with the lappy open so we can all see your not one of Billy's corporate slaves but one of Steve's liberated free spirits? *shudder*

Sorry, I'll get me...you know...

If they're actually durable, it's no surprise

In 2000, when I started traveling for a living as a technical trainer, my company gave me a Dell Latitude. It was so rock-solid I convinced my mother to buy one in 2003 (a D600 for the record). It's still working wonderfully, and the only thing we've replaced is the battery.

However, in 2004 my new company gave me a Compaq. Within 6 months the hard drive failed. So they gave me another one. Its keyboard fell apart. I was given a new Dell Latitude (D610). The latch, the touchpad, AND the keyboard broke within the year. One more new Dell (D630), and it's falling apart as well. My friend will never buy Sony again, as he went through three of them in two years for his company.

To summarize, every laptop my friends, co-workers, and I have worked with in the last 4 years has had major durability issues; ESPECIALLY the Dells. On the other hand, my brother has an Apple PowerBook. He's dropped it, kicked it, put it in his checked baggage, and never had a problem with it.

If Apple is still making a laptop that can survive the trials and travails of travel (say that three times fast), then I can't blame people for paying the extra price to own them. I don't plan on buying another Dell, HP, or Sony laptop until I hear they actually care about quality again. So if I need a new laptop, I'm probably going to bite the bullet and go Apple.

Joe

Wake up call

Could be a good time to start learning a bit about OS X. Tis not just kharki-wearing student types using Mac's now days. The Rupert's and Sebastian's at corporate HQ have taken a liking to em.

Being the only one in IT capable of hooking their Macs to the Exchange server may result in few well earned brownie points.

Ain't that right Webster?

mea culpa

I didn't mention that I like the new layout of the comments form ;-)

And why doesn't Reggy produce a booklet of Paris comments as a prezzy for sale on Cash n Carrion? Or as a t-shirt design (covering the whole shirt).

(Paris cos she might confuse layout with putout...)

@Isaias

Do my research? Well I have, long before this article and as far as I can see the worst thing microsoft do is throw lots of money at a problem until it goes away. Underhanded and dirty tactics yes, but far from the worst things they could do.

examples:

Apple: Knowingly utilise child labour in China

Coca-cola: Purchase and deny access to the local water supply in India causing famine, disease and many deaths AND funding Columbian militias to torture and kill and worker and their families if they even think about joining a union.

Nestle: Refuse to do anything about the child labour being used in their plantations in the Ivory Coast

Dow Chemicals: Dumping of illegal toxic chemicals into populated areas

Pfizer pharmaceuticals: Knowingly terminate promising lines of research into killer diseases as it is more profitable to focus on products that relieve syptoms and keep people alive instead of curing them altogether

Wal-Mart: Do I really need to say anything?

And I can think of many more examples

Yet are you frothing at the mouth decrying nestle when you buy a chocolate bar or coffee? Do you protest that Coca-cola are still allowed to sell their product despite their record? How about Exxon deliberately making areas uninhabitable when you fill up your car? Demand Pfizer finish the cures they have almost completed instead of focusing on the more profitable drugs.

If you answer no to any of those, you are a hypocrite. Microsoft may not be a champion of our rights, but they have a long way to go before they deserve the spiteful bile that is regularly poured out in these comments pages. I personally do try and make a stand and wherever possible do not buy from 'evil' corporations. That isn't always possible as they have their claws in so many products you don't even realise, but at least I make the effort. Which is why until Apple stop using child labour in China and using the excuse 'the local laws say it's ok' and use their buying power to enforce some changes that evil shit Jobs won't knowingly get a penny from me.

If you think Microsoft rapes us in the ass - try working abroad under less stringent employee regulations for one of the big companies and then you might actually have something to complain about, only you won't be able to or else you and your family will be silenced. At least with microsoft, if I do decide to give them my money I can do it in the knowledge that some unfortunate isn't suffering just so I can have a more comfortable lifestyle or the latest shiny toy.

So while you may think 'there is plenty of information out there that more than justifies the hatred Microsoft gets.' do YOUR research and overall for a major international corporation, they really aren't that bad.

You did make one good point though 'you don't see so many people ranting as much about other companies'. But you should and people should be ranting much louder to get these companies to change their policies.

Apple flamers

Apple haters, why are you unable to spell khaki? Unless you meant Kharki in Bangladesh?

Yes, I am one of the elitist fashionistas - That is if you use this description when you refer to a fat, retired scientist/computer geek.

I bought Apple and *NIX stuff after I retired so that I did not have to continue to deal with the hell-hole that is Windows. I type this on a PowerBook that runs OS X, Debian stable, and XP Professional (shudder!), although XP only gets used about once a fortnight.

Perhaps I am a little unkind about Windows - I made a good living, for years, keeping it running and writing applications. Shame that I no longer have a use for it...

Not very useful metric

When talking about percentages, the term "double-digits" isn't entirely useful given that "double-digits" covers a range from 10% to 99%.

Pfizer pharmaceuticals:

"Pfizer pharmaceuticals: Knowingly terminate promising lines of research into killer diseases as it is more profitable to focus on products that relieve syptoms and keep people alive instead of curing them altogether"

Using the same logic I could suggest that Microsoft and IBM deliberately kept computing difficult and complicated so only an elite few could possibly understand or use them. Thus holding back the progress of humanity in order to retain control.

Fuck, if we had standardised on Macs back in the 90's we would have bases on the moon by now and flying cars running on free fusion generated hydrogen...

as if.

Why Apple

If ever I need reminding why I bought my Apple laptop doodad, I need only look round the office to see the way Vista functions. Although the technical problems we have had with Vista seem to be fewer in number, these days, the UI was quite clearly designed by a six-year-old with a box of crayons.

The coat. Because I just don't get it. Geddit!!

@danny

By diversity , I didn't just mean apple products. I meant M$ , Apple, Linux, Sun, Sony, Nintendo , HP , Dell, google , IBM , Amiga , BeOS , plan9 , RTOS , Nokia (i can go a long time.)

With M$ expanding into EVERY computing market - it would be possible for them to extinguish every other competitor. They are already a strong monopoly on so many fronts. I WANT COMPETITION not a single dominant player.

M$ are very very evil more so than coca cola. You dont see them trying to extingish coffee, tea, water. Pepsi perhaps.

Child labour and all the other nastys by the mega corps. Sad and true. M$ are now a hardware manufacturing company so they probably have these issues directly or indirectly. Just think of all the new super computers needed because of vista!