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Survey: Apple is Losing the College Crowd

Paul Lilly — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:47:34 -0500

As the back to school shopping season kicks into high gear, look for OEMs to push PCs with product bundles and all kinds of enticing offers. For Apple, that might mean once again bundling an iPod with the purchase of a new Mac or MacBook, but that might not be enough. According to a new study by consumer electronics site Retrovo, college-bound students are less willing than ever to pay the so-called "Apple Tax" by purchasing a pricier Mac.

"While Apple has done well historically in the education market, 2009 marks the dawn of the netbook," says Vipin Jain, Retrevo CEO. "Students told us they wanted longer battery life, smaller size, and a lighter laptop. 58 percent of them plan on spending less than $750. Only 18 percent have a budget over $1,000."

It also isn't helping Apple's cause that "retailers are working overtime to attract students," such as Wal-Mart expanding its laptop selection by 40 percent and partnering with HP to make a sub-$300 Compaq Presario.

But take the survey with a grain of salt. While respondents were selected from a random sampling of Retrevo's 4 million monthly visitors, the sample size was only 300.

Microsoft Takes its Fight to the Apple Store

Justin Kerr — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 18:30:35 -0600

Die hard Apple fans love to defend their platform, and that’s okay, it’s actually good to know they are capable of emotion. But is this really what passes for a news story? The popular web tabloid AppleInsider.com ran a news feature on Friday criticizing Microsoft’s decision to place a Vista campaign booth outside an Apple store in Birmingham England. The booth was apparently set up to record I’m a PC videos for possible use in upcoming marketing efforts. Some of the clips gathered are slated for use in TV commercials while others will be used for web promotions. In addition to gathering video clips, Microsoft staffers are on hand to convert potential Mac customers back into the fold. The booths are the continuation of the Vista ad campaign which started with Bill Gates and Jerry Sienfeld, and more recently matured into the “I’m a PC” initiative.

So are Mac users whining again?

Click the jump and let us know what you think.

(Image Credit AppleInsider)

Mac Users Are Whiny Losers. Love, Maximum PC

Paul Lilly — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:00:00 -0500

We don't like taking on the role of enforcer, nor do we like bullying those ill equipped to defend themselves. But sometimes, for the greater good of all involved, as PC users we feel obligated to step in and lay the smack down when our Mac brethren come asking for it. In a way, we feel like Billy Madison did when he told a bunch of first graders "Now you're all in big, big trouble" before proceeding to pummel them in dodgeball.

Well, Mac users have come asking for it, courtesy of our friends over at MacLife (Maximum PC's sister magazine) who this week posted 25 Reasons Why Non-Mac Users Should Shut Their Damn Pie-Holes. To borrow from Billy Madison, now you're in big, big trouble. Here are our retorts:

1. Justin Long is a dick - There are only two people who are fans of Justin Long, his agent and his mother. And to be perfectly honest, we're not even sure about the latter.

2. Shinier = better - Just because your computer is shiny and aluminum doesn't mean it's better. We'll take a Lenovo X300 over a MacBook Air any day.

3. We don't want to be Steve Jobs' bitch - You guys constantly get reamed by the House of Jobs, whether it's the incessant train of forced hardware upgrades, lightning fast price cuts, or the industry standard features that Apple supports with proprietary implementations, Mac users get hit where it hurts most--the wallet.

4. OS X is awesome - It's not nice to pick on disadvantaged folks (it's the reason why we seldom pick on Mac users). We all know that OS X is awesome, but we defend Vista even though it sucks because it's what we're stuck with. Just because you've got something that's better, doesn't mean you need to get all Justin Long about it.

5. Team Fortress 2 kicks ass - We believe you when you say you have more important things to do than play games. Like sitting in Starbucks dressed in stonewashed jeans wishing you could play games. But hey, Oregon Trail still rocks, right?

6. Elmo had a line, too - We can't dispute that hundreds waited in line for the Mac OS X Leopard release, just as many also clamored for the Tickle Me Elmo doll when it first came out. But we're still not trading in our cooler toys to get one.

7. We have Newegg - Intel P45 motherboard: $99. Core 2 Duo E8400: $170. 2GB DDR3-1333 RAM: $80. Not having to throw away your PC and buy a brand new one when it comes time to upgrade: Priceless.

8. Secure in our insecurity - You love to tout the lack of viruses targeted towards Macs as an indication that Macs are more secure, but could it be that even hackers don't give a f*** about Mac users? In a way, it'd be like invading Iceland. It's not that it can't be done, but what's the point?

9. Mighty Mouse - Like all things Mac, the Mighty Mouse is cute. And also mighty lame compared to the Logitech G5 PC users have been computing with for the past 24 months. But then again, what would a Mac user do with all those buttons?

10. Who compiles 25 reasons of why Macs don't suck? - Mac users do. And while we'd love to spend time coming up with 25 retorts, we have better things to do. Like play games, run executables, overclock, watch NBC Olympics On The Go, and not overpay for under powered hardware.

Will Smith contributed to this story. Image Credit: Flickr super-structure