Need a new computer... specs?

[TCampbell]

When Apple as a company has more value than Exxon does, something would seem to be seriously out of whack with Apple's pricing.

Apple worth $338bn leads over Exxon as the most valuable company in the world | Mail Online

Yes -- but they're not making that on their computer sales. They're making a LOT of money off the iTunes music (which pretty much saved the music industry.) They also get paid on a portion of the data-package for every iPhone they sell. They lead in phone sales (I think there are more total android phones, but android phones come in a LOT of different models. No single model android phone outsells any single model iPhone ... and of course they absolutely crush it in tablet sales. Their app store model has been a huge success as well.

As for computers... not a lot of profit margin in them anymore (not in any computer). This comes up all the time. But whenever some industry rag does a tear down, they find that Apple basically doesn't skimp on the quality of components. When you buy a PC with equivalent components (and you can... they're out there) it turns out the PCs cost just as much (and often more.)

I also appreciate the fact that they're not bringing device manufacturing back to the US.

 

[nycphotography]

At the end of the day, I'd still end up booting a mac into windows the vast majority of the time, so at that point it adds no value over a PC.

A mac still costs more than a PC, and ultimately, for Windows, it works less well (due to an insistence on making a cool keyboard and mouse instead of a productive keyboard and the absence of keyboard keys for windows functions and the perversely dogmatic refusal to accept the single most useful UI convention sense Xerox PARC, the RIGHT CLICK).

Apple as a company rubs me the wrong way, as they insist on telling me that rather than produce a product that works how I want, I should learn to want what Apple produces. That kind of religious crap might work for some, but for me, it would be the PC of last resort, only to be considered after Dell, HP, Acer, and Lenovo all went out of business. Add to that the loathsome censoring being applied via iTunes and I truly avoid Apple like the plague.

Meanwhile, the OP specifically asked for PC specs, not MAC specs. Not sure why someone would feel the need to pipe up with a "what you really want is a MAC" response. If you ask for the best remote shutter release for your Nikon, is it helpful for me to tell you to buy a Canon instead?

 

[jwbryson1]

At the end of the day, I'd still end up booting a mac into windows the vast majority of the time, so at that point it adds no value over a PC.

A mac still costs more than a PC, and ultimately, for Windows, it works less well (due to an insistence on making a cool keyboard and mouse instead of a productive keyboard and the absence of keyboard keys for windows functions and the perversely dogmatic refusal to accept the single most useful UI convention sense Xerox PARC, the RIGHT CLICK).

Apple as a company rubs me the wrong way, as they insist on telling me that rather than produce a product that works how I want, I should learn to want what Apple produces. That kind of religious crap might work for some, but for me, it would be the PC of last resort, only to be considered after Dell, HP, Acer, and Lenovo all went out of business. Add to that the loathsome censoring being applied via iTunes and I truly avoid Apple like the plague.

Meanwhile, the OP specifically asked for PC specs, not MAC specs. Not sure why someone would feel the need to pipe up with a "what you really want is a MAC" response. If you ask for the best remote shutter release for your Nikon, is it helpful for me to tell you to buy a Canon instead?

Well said.

 

[Devinhullphoto]

At the end of the day, I'd still end up booting a mac into windows the vast majority of the time, so at that point it adds no value over a PC.

A mac still costs more than a PC, and ultimately, for Windows, it works less well (due to an insistence on making a cool keyboard and mouse instead of a productive keyboard and the absence of keyboard keys for windows functions and the perversely dogmatic refusal to accept the single most useful UI convention sense Xerox PARC, the RIGHT CLICK).

Apple as a company rubs me the wrong way, as they insist on telling me that rather than produce a product that works how I want, I should learn to want what Apple produces. That kind of religious crap might work for some, but for me, it would be the PC of last resort, only to be considered after Dell, HP, Acer, and Lenovo all went out of business. Add to that the loathsome censoring being applied via iTunes and I truly avoid Apple like the plague.

Meanwhile, the OP specifically asked for PC specs, not MAC specs. Not sure why someone would feel the need to pipe up with a "what you really want is a MAC" response. If you ask for the best remote shutter release for your Nikon, is it helpful for me to tell you to buy a Canon instead?

Macs have right click. Also why would you buy a Mac just to run windows? Seems like a waste.

 

[JenR]

Thank you to all for the input. I appreciate it.

 

[JDFlood]

I have my PCs built at Frys. Get a geek, and a shopping cart. They love doing this, tell them what you are doing, they pick out the pieces and put it together for 50 or 75 bucks. You will save money and have a incredible PC. I would do 8gig ram, i5 or I7 (Lightroom does not support fancy graphics cards, no need)' if you have money, a SSD c: drive for operating system an 2tb d: drive... And a second 2tb if you can afford. JD