Comments on: Report: Ballmer disses on Apple

At a conference in New York, Microsoft CEO is asked about Apple's computer market share. He responds by summing up the difference between PCs and Macs.

[passingthrough]

They both suck. I know people who have both and the Mac owners have as many problems as the Windows users. We have put Ubuntu on all or our old and new computers. It's the only way to roll for us.

And to any Windows owner who says they have never had a virus, you're a big fat liar. And to any Mac owner who says they have never had any issues or slowing down with their Macs, they are big fat liars too.

I'd be a liar if I said using Ubuntu has been a breeze, as I have had some problems with it too, but mainly because I mess around with it too much- I put it on my computer illiterate friend's Thinkpad, months ago and she has had no issues whatsoever, because she doesn't play with it, she just uses it. It is free and has brought some older PCs completely back to life. I'll personally never have the other two again. Macs are expensive with no reason and Windows is too high maintenance. But if I HAD to choose between a Windows system or a Mac, I'd choose the less expensive Windows system, format the hard drive and put Linux on it!!

[lakereddie]

I bought a macbook about a year ago and could not be happier with my purchase. After having used windows ever since I was a kid and seeing how slow my sisters new laptop was with vista, I decided to try something new with a mac. I just don't see how people can say apple is crap. Microsoft is gonna have a tough time getting me to buy a windows machine again.

[mglish]

I love Mac vs. PC debates. Usually none of the people on either side ever had anything to do with the creation of the hardware or the software, yet the ardor of the argument is so personal! But c'mon guys ? at the end of the day, if Person A likes a PC better than a Mac ? then let A use a PC! If Person B prefers a Mac ? then let B use a Mac! And be glad that there are both PCs and Macs and be glad that the people who really DO create the hardware and software try to make their respective platforms better than the competition.

[pooyan69]

Apple Mac's:

SECURITY THROUGH OBSCURITY

[qhue]

Even if I cannot believe I read the first 100 comments of the post I'm going to add my two cents.

Everything is a piece of sh*t. Your macbooks, your dells, your mercedes, whatever they all suck.

However it's a matter of personal taste that determines what you like & prefer to use. When I had a Dell (my second computer/third not sure really long time ago) & it was running XP I had bad experiences with costumer support & it scarred my relationship. When I got my '06 MacBook (typed this comment on ti cuz I'm too poor to afford a new mac & I don't need one, I upgraded the RAM to 2Gb & the Hard Drive to 320Gbs & it runs Leopard fine. The Geniuses & the tech support operators are nice & are willing to do favors for example giving me a battery for free 30 months after I got my MacBook (without a warranty). Still they have certain design flaws (e.g. the MagSafe, kudos on the MagSafe Apple, but why did you skimp on cord connecting the MagSafe to the power brick. you spent a sh*tload of money designing the MagSafe to easily remove the power to protect your portable but you connected a rather crappy cable. which costs me 80$ to replace).

But I prefer Macs. So please stop calling me an idiot who can't use a 'real computer'. I just prefer something better than the other. I'm not dealing with my Vista portable where after I reinstalled & reformatted Vista a billion friggin times, it still won't shutdown & take 5 hours - infinity to turn on. (I installed Ubuntu on it, works a tad better).

[iBuzz]

Ballmer says: "What's the difference between a Mac and a PC? $500 and a logo."

I say: "What's the difference between Windows and Ubuntu Linux? $269.99 and a logo."

I can't believe that Ballmer just dissed Apple on the grounds of an "Apple tax" while the "Microsoft tax" is just as real. When you are Coca-Cola, you don't try to promote your product over Pepsi by arguing that Pepsi is nothing but high-calorie, non-nutritious sugar water when your product is just the same.

Um, Steve... pssst.... you're selling the same thing that people could also get much cheaper than from either you or Apple.

[Alpha225]

My next computer: Anything but Windows based

I have no more respect for Mr. Ballmer and the words coming out of his mouth. Seriously? The words from that CEO? The one who laughed/mocked at the sucessful iPhone (You have to admit, that phone altered the entire way of smartphones)? I'm definitely going to try to STAY AWAY from his products.

[capaho]

Ballmer is good at PR, but Macs aren't about $500 and a logo. They're about OS X and optimized hardware, something a PC running any version of Windows can't come close to matching. Macs vs. cheap PCs. You get what you pay for.

[pando85]

I like both Windows and OS X, but because I build my own computers (primarily PC) I will have to go with this article, its common sense that parts are the same and you can purchase them on your own for much cheaper prices.

Both Windows and OS X have worked fine for me. I never knew what the stupid drama with vista was about because I personally never experienced issues, also OsX never pissed me off or did anything that would make me bash it. (but thats just me) What Ballmer forgets to mention isnt hardware, its software and if people are willing to pay 1000+ for adobe products, a mere 500.00 for an entire operating system they love and support is nothing and worth the price difference to the user, granted I know the stand alone isnt 500.00 Im just saying the average user cares about the Os more then the piece to piece hardware.

[AppleSuxLeo]

Ballmer Disses , but PALM pisses on Apple.
Holy Moly ! PALM is up another 12% today !!! Pre is gonna kick ass !

[AppleSuxLeo]

Macs are nothing more than an overpriced "ApTell PC.

[AppleSuxLeo]

CNBC keeps having live demos of the Pre. All theanalysts are pushing the stock price up.

[GHynson]

Mercedes = $50,000
Kia = $ 9,000

Would you like me to pick you up with one of my 5 Kia's when your broke down on the side of the road?

[Sam Papelbon]

all of you fanboys (on both sides) are seriously pushing the limits of the idiotometer. the issue isn't whether pcs or macs are better than the other. the issue is that macs cost more than pcs, period. have you paid any attention to the economy lately? unemployment numbers? at all? the average consumer, in this economic climate, is going to be more likely to make the economic decision and purchase a pc (whether better or worse than a mac) based on the price-point alone. just the same as people will buy cheaper versions of anything else to save money. this is common sense. if only any of you had the guts to pull your head out of your ass instead of spending your free time coming up with anti-mac/pc jokes. (or maybe not guts... but just 'ability'...)

[Azzuro10]

Microsoft hasn't come up with a good operating system since XP, which is basically Windows 95 without the bugs. Takes forever too boot up and crashes way too often. I use windows at work and used to have a PC at home. 2 years ago, I swicthed to Mac (at home) and never looked back. Its a much more stable operating system, has fewer viruses, and I can still run windows on my Intel macs if I choose to. But Apple gains share because it has the operating system and the hardware - and owning both enables you to do things competitors cannot do as quickly - and the fact that you have the flexibility to use Windows, attracts people who where previously in fear of incompatability. Macs are more expensive but not by $500.....once you include the free bundled software on a Mac and try to spec a PC with similar software, you are looking at around the same price - particularly if you look at notebooks. Only problem with Macs is that for networking with a lot of 3rd party devices - there is a lot of room for improvement. Try getting a PS3 to network with a Mac is not pleasant.

[Azzuro10]

By the way, if Apple wanted to inrease its market share in one big shot, its simple. Liscence the Mac OS X software to other hardware makers. But Apple would never do that.

[wshwe]

Microsoft's own products are overpriced. Ballmer doesn't think before he speaks. They should embrace open source and give away Windows, Office and Exchange Server for free.

[pithenumber]

and keep enough cash to pay the bills?

[skyelmad]

look here fanboys ..Apple and Microsoft... Microsoft makes software mostly not hardware...i used Windows and Mac OS X... both are okay... what matters here is are you looking for viruses or want to work? work on a Windows or Mac no problems so long as it does the job... i don't care about MS "it can play Games" or Apples "It is Virus free".... i have a Macbook running Windows 7, why?, because i want the hardware but i love the OS from Microsoft.... my Desktop is running Win7 smooth since 2002... guess what i did not upgrade nothing... My macbook also runs smooth its 2006 model.... use what you like not what some marketing guy said... Eish try them both and yes stopping searching for viruses they are bad for your health... i wouldn't waste my time hackin tiger or leopard or ubuntu and all 2000 distros out there... just not much impact...that's simple logic...