Macs ARE PCs
For the longest time, Macs used PowerPC processors. Then, in 2005, they switched over to Intel processors, which is pretty much the equivalent of holding a pride parade at the Westboro Baptist Church. What this means is, for all intents and purposes, there’s really no significant differences between Macs and PCs (back in the day, there were all sorts of PowerPC vs. Intel charts and debates – no more).
In addition, with Boot Camp, you can install Windows on any Mac. And if you play your cards right, you can Hackintosh a Windows PC to run OS X as well. For the most part, the operating systems can be pretty interchangeable.
Hardware wise, we’re working with basically the same internals. The key difference here is that you can get an equivalent powered computer that’s a PC at a much lower price than a Mac.
This is, of course, assuming you’re willing to learn how to build your computer, which is a skillset that seems to be slowly becoming what “learning how to take apart an internal combustion engine” was for my generation. Luckily for us, we’re nerdily inclined, so we are comfortable with that prospect.
But let’s say we weren’t. Even going to a custom PC manufacturer who would have a healthy markup on a custom PC (say, OriginPC’s Genesis Pro Workstation) and comparing it to a comparable in price Mac Pro (in this case, it would be the low-end $2499 Mac Pro) yields some interesting results. Long story short, even in this case, the edge goes to the PC as far as bang for your buck is concerned – they’re pretty close across the board but the Genesis is a couple hundred bucks cheaper and has a faster processor (OC’d).
In my opinion, the only place that Apple still trumps PCs on a hardware front are their Macbooks. One day, I think, a PC manufacturer will make a notebook that doesn’t feel like a total piece of crap, but until that day, I really like the way the Macbooks are put together. Expensive? Yes. But you also get a really well put together piece of hardware.
