Why we don’t write about Apple. Much.
By The Prodigal Fool, published on 10 July 2009
Remember that pesky kid at school who used to get top marks on every piece of work she turned in? Come on, every class has one. Well, at Tech High, Apple is that kid. The boys and girls at Cupertino so rarely put a foot wrong that – although their achievements are incredibly impressive – we tend to take them for granted a little bit. Writing about them in The Prodigal Guide would get real dull real fast because we invariably prefer the Apple product over the competition every time. There simply wouldn’t be any suspense in it.
Why? Here’s the thing: The Guide will never worship technical specs in isolation. We also like our gadgets to be elegant, cool-looking devices. We demand that they’re a pleasure to use, that they work as they should right out of the box. We expect them to enhance our lives not get in the way of them. We want to know that every detail – from hardware through to software – has been properly thought-through by people smarter than us. And we’re more than happy to pay top dollar for products that meet these criteria.
So, to our eyes, Apple beats everyone else in almost every segment it plays in.
Let us show you what we mean.
Best netbook: MacBook Air
Best smartphone: iPhone 3GS
Best consumer desktop: iMac
The Mac OS and bundled software pack alone are enough to win this for Apple. Why any consumer would choose anything but a Mac for home use is beyond us. It’s easy, elegant and – most importantly – the ads really are true: It just works! Most consumers buy PCs to access email, surf the web and store and catalogue their media. They might want to maintain a website, edit home movies or indulge their creative side. The Mac OS excels in all of these areas. Crucially, it manages to make these activities fun in a way a Windows-powered machine can only dream of. Of course, there’s more to the iMac’s appeal than just the OS. Once again, Apple have conjured up a beautiful design that looks as good in a home office as it does in a kitchen or even living room. Given a choice between having this sitting in the corner of your room or any other PC, what would you choose?
Best media centre: Apple TV
Best laptop: MacBook Pro
Best portable music player: iPod touch
This one really is a no-brainer. The flagship digital music player from the company that created the market for digital music players, the iPod touch is superb. It also bundles in most of the iPhone’s features as a bonus and is a phenomenal – and well-deserved success – as a result. When the next model is released with a built in camera, we predict it will put Flip out of business.
Need we go on? This is getting a little dull already isn’t it?
That’s why we don’t write about Apple too often. And, indeed, it’s why we don’t tend to write posts on these categories of gadgets. No one can touch Apple. And, though that’s certainly a hugely impressive achievement, like that pesky kid at school, consistent excellence can lead to being taken for granted.
So listen, Apple, though we may pretend not to notice you in class, you know we love you really. Meet us behind the bike sheds at break, OK?
Why we don’t write about Apple. Much.
Remember that pesky kid at school who used to get top marks on every piece of work she turned in? Come on, every class has one. Well, at Tech High, Apple is that kid. The boys and girls at Cupertino so rarely put a foot wrong that – although their achievements are incredibly impressive – [...]
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