Why should I switch? - Hardware & Software

I was a long time "Apple disliker" and have just been recently been getting over my juvenile assumptions. The only thing I really have a problem with now are the practices of the company its self. The way employees are treated in China and such. That aside for what reasons should I start using apple products specifically the Iphone and Macs? I love technology but have never really delved into Apple because of my juvenile prejudice. Any input at all would be appreciated, thank you for your time.

The main benefits for me are their general reliability and easy of use of the software and the high quality of the hardware (applies to both Macs and iPhones). They're more for people who prefer a pleasant experience over features. Of course in the end, it's whether you like the product or not. Apple products aren't necessarily "better", so if you're already used to something else, there's nothing wrong with sticking with it.

- Ease of Use - Smooth, well designed, and consistent interface. - Brilliant hardware, and doesn't feel cheap in the hand, if that matters to you. - Awesome displays, especially if you're shooting for the new iPad or the iPhone 4 / 4S - HUGE application support. People take the piss out of the "there's an app for that" thing, but it's pretty much true, you'll find an application for most things you're looking to do. - Most people think they're really fragile devices, but they can take a beating. - This might not be the same for everyone, but a lot of people I know has iPhone's so iMessage (free texts via internet) can save you a lot of money. If you love technology and you look into whatever Apple product you're thinking about getting, and making sure it's open enough for what you need it to do, then you won't have a problem.

as far as the Iphone goes wouldn't I be better off waiting for the Iphone5?

[QUOTE=XxThreedogxX;35546240]I was a long time "Apple disliker" and have just been recently been getting over my juvenile assumptions. The only thing I really have a problem with now are the practices of the company its self. The way employees are treated in China and such.[/QUOTE] While I don't delve into how they run their company too much, I think the "way they treat their Chinese workers" is a bit blown out of the water. Big companies like Samsung, LG, Sony and such have been using "factories" of cheap labour for longer than I'd care to know. Since Apple is such a high profile company these days though, it's very easy to say "Hey, Apple almost exclusively use Foxconn and they've had tons of suicides!" so naturally, biased journalism sells lots of magazines. When you've got thousands of workers, it's statistically reasonable that you'll hear about a suicide or two - it's just Apple being as big as they are, you almost always hear about the stir it makes. Since Apple has more money than it knows what to do with, they're going out of their way to improve the standards of the workplace and increase their wages. I think that's a start at least and I suspect a few other companies that use workers in similar conditions aren't going to like the precedence that Apple is causing. This is all my opinion that I've formed from what I've read on Apple related sites and such. [QUOTE=XxThreedogxX;35546240]That aside for what reasons should I start using apple products specifically the Iphone and Macs?[/QUOTE] iPhones, I find, are a nice all in one device that has a sleek and smooth interface that for the most part, is pretty damn good unmodified. There are a few things that are nice to have different though and that's where Jailbreaking fits that gap. Other devices can be "rooted" out of the box, but I just don't like the look and feel of them. Also, the fact that everything syncs nicely to "Apple's Ecosystem" ([i]Fuck, that's a pony word, but a valid one[/i]) with iTunes, iTunes Match, iCloud and other built in items in a Mac is just my view on how a device should really function. The Mac computers are solid machines that, if treated well, can last five or so years without any problem and not suffer agonisingly poor load times that Windows has a tendency to suffer after a year without formatting the OS. So performance wise, they're excellent out of the box and will stay performing well for quite some time. If issues do arise, they're very simple to isolate down and resolve [b]without[/b] having to reinstall the operating system. Considering I use both PC and Mac, that's something I can appreciate. [QUOTE=XxThreedogxX;35548595]as far as the Iphone goes wouldn't I be better off waiting for the Iphone5?[/QUOTE] [url]http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#iPhone[/url] Depends. Mid product cycle doesn't bother most people, but you might be waiting quite some time for a new model.

[QUOTE=WaLLy3K;35548782][url]http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#iPhone[/url] Depends. Mid product cycle doesn't bother most people, but you might be waiting quite some time for a new model.[/QUOTE] The rumored upgrade fee doesn't seem all that much. The specs look great. hmmm.

[QUOTE=XxThreedogxX;35548904]The rumored upgrade fee doesn't seem all that much. The specs look great. hmmm.[/QUOTE] I've still got the iPhone 4 and I think it's a fantastic device that hasn't given me any problems. My girlfriend has the iPhone 4S and she doesn't push the device nearly as much as I do.

[QUOTE=WaLLy3K;35548782] The Mac computers are solid machines that, if treated well, can last five or so years without any problem and not suffer agonisingly poor load times that Windows has a tendency to suffer after a year without formatting the OS. So performance wise, they're excellent out of the box and will stay performing well for quite some time. If issues do arise, they're very simple to isolate down and resolve [b]without[/b] having to reinstall the operating system. Considering I use both PC and Mac, that's something I can appreciate. [/QUOTE] Interesting, in any case I certainly have a lot to research and think about.

To be honest I'm not sure why I got into Macs... I tried out a Hackintosh when it was new and I thought that it was meh alright but I got kind of sick of it after a bit. Got an old 2009 MacBook Pro from my bf when he got a MacBook Air and I fell in life with the thing. I don't know I just find that I have a lot less "problems" with it to say the least, every thing feels like it runs smoother and I don't have to do as much maintenance taking care of it. I guess it boils down to if time is an important asset to you and what you want to do with your computer. I'm mainly an artist so the lack of playing video games isn't really that big a deal to me and when I do I want to I just boot into Windows it's not exactly that hard.

I consider that the iPhone is an okay device, and if you don't want more from it than what it gives, it's great. The Macs on the other hand - they're not bad computers in any way, but they're not better (design and OS can be argued, but I don't agree with that. Quality isn't better either) and especially not for the price. Unless you need Mac specific software (FCP and whatnot), i wouldn't recommend getting one.

Their devices are nice in my opinion. I can't say what Mac are like because I've never owned one. But my friend owns one of their Mac books and a iPhone 3G he seems to enjoy them enough. But I've owned a iPod nano 4g and I own a iPhone 4 which is great. But if you have the money give one of their devices a try. The only problem I have is their devices at launch seem to have issues. I normally wait about 6 months to a year so I can be sure the kinks are fixed.