Lets hope that Microsoft treat their customers with a similar cost for Windows 8 which really is Windows 7 with a few more features, and is mainly the addition of support for tablets and ARM tablets and phones that are expected from 2012.

If Microsoft continues to try and charge all their customers their old high prices, then this will be a good reason to abandon Windows as an OS

 

your forget the hardware differential. A PC with the same spec is at least 50% less then a mac. Computer technology moves fast enough that it is not necessary to get a new OS till you get new hardware.

On this front, you save e hell of a lot more with an expensive OS and inexpensive hardware...not only that, you can get better hardware then apple offers, for much less money

 

@Guest spec-wise yes, quality-wise Apple always have competitive or cheaper prices (see MacBook Air vs. anything like it, iPad vs. anything like it).

 

Yeah, a hundred bucks puts Windows waaaaay out of my reach. Why would a person balk at spending $100 for a new OS, but be cool with overpaying several hundred dollars for the same hardware?

One could argue that OSX costs you hundreds of dollars considering Apple's profit margins on their products.

 

LOL yeah right!

 

"One could argue that OSX costs you hundreds of dollars considering Apple's profit margins on their products."

Microsoft makes no profit on the software they sell. DVDs and bandwidth costs so much money! LO(RR)L.

The higher relative cost on some Apple products comes down mainly to build quality and best-in-class support. Something severely lacking in much of the PC world. Also, remove the subsidized crapware loaded on most new PCs and the price disparity will shrink considerably.

There is far more to a great user experience then just processors and memory. Software, soft-hard integration, build quality/weight/size/aesthetics, and support are important factors with considerable value to the end-user (and cost to the provider).

Apple gets a lot of it right. Hardcore PC users need not apply but shouldn't dismiss the UNIX foundation and Applescripting of OS X which are quite powerful and good fun.

 

If Microsoft put Windows 8 out for 30 dollars as an upgrade for Windows 7 it would blow all Apple stats out the of the water. Everyone knows this.

In the meantime Microsoft don't have the best selling mobile phone in the world and need to make money on their new operating system which will offer little upgrade from Windows 7 except touch etc which will be better suited to the new tablets that will come out when WIndows 8 is released. I see few people heading for a Windows 7 - 8 upgrade but all new machines will have it as standard and if its half as good as Windows 7 that won't be a problem.

Good luck to apple - offering your new OS for 30 dollars is successful.

 

You think your Apple is put together by Japenese Zen masters who have to practice for two decades before they are able to assemble a computer? They're built by the same Chinese workers that build every other computer on the planet. Well, maybe they do a better job so they don't "commit suicide" if they let too many shoddy iPads through quality assurance.

My point was that since Apple's OS is not something you can separate from the hardware, people can make *****ic statements that Lion is a good deal cause it only costs $30, but Windows 8 will be a ripoff because its basically rehashing Windows 7, and they'll be asking full price for it. But in reality you could put a price on OSX as far higher than what any Windows customer would pay.

Yeah, you can be clever and say that you're paying for system integration or synergy or unicorns dancing on meadows when you buy a Mac, but the OS isn't free just because there isn't a price tag on it.

 

Macs are overpriced, not because they're better quality, but because they're more aesthetically-pleasing, which seems to be more important to most end-users than value for money, which is surprising given current economic conditions. "Build-quality" is a moot point; the internal hardware inside any Apple computer is exactly the same as that within a Windows PC, especially since Macs now come with mainstream Intel CPUs; putting a shiny cover on it doesn't mean squat. Apple also unnecessarily charges for what are essentially service packs. In addition, "Software" and "software-hardware integration" are just vague bookends that don't serve any purpose to explaining things. Both OSX and Windows 7 are as user-friendly as the other, and I don't see any issues with them behaving oddly with any hardware, unless it's a REALLY old device, in which case it will likely not work with anything save Windows XP. If you're talking about integrating it into one package like an iMac, there are alternatives available that run Windows as well. (The Acer Aspire Z7561 is one example)

As for tech support, YMMV with that one; Microsoft's tech support based in India is pretty atrocious, from personal experience. But to my experience, the ones based in the US and Canada are pretty good; again, YMMV on this. I haven't had any experience with Apple tech support, but from what I have heard about it from friends, there hasn't been a single negative remark at all, which is something MS has yet to learn from methinks.

Still doesn't justify Apple charging me way more than MS just for better-quality tech support.

Just my $0.02.

 

OS X Lion seems to have some issues with Adobe software.

 

Lion is not really $30. It says you need to upgrade from Snow Leopard so that is another $30 before you can get Lion. Not sure if Snow Leopard itself requires an upgrade from Leopard as that would be another $30 to buy Leopard first.

In any case, the Apple tax is several times the money you save with OS X compared to Windows. You lose more money with Apple. But that should be obvious.

 

$30 is the price, but if you own more than 1 Intel C2D or higher Mac, you can install it on that too. You are allowed to install it on 5 machines. I know if you have 5 Macs you'd have already spent a fortune on the hardware, but $6 per install, thats pretty good.