No, they don't.

They use the same hardware any other desktop or laptop vendor uses.  Theres no rare select mine of DDR2 or hard drive that little Mac gnomes harvest parts from, its whatever is the cheapest to order at the time they receive the hardware.

The only reason macs CAN be more stable then Windows computers is because with a Mac you have maybe a couple hundred possible configurations of hardware, from their complete line, and all of these configurations are picked by Apple.  With a Windows PC, you're talking about literally billions and billions of possible configurations and drivers to consider.  They test as many as they can, and catch most of them, but they miss some, and when they find them they roll out updates. 

The reason your macs are more expensive then a windows based PC is just because Apple alone has the rights to sell the OS, and there is no competition between Mac vendors.

HV, as mentioned above, I wouldn't bother with a CPU cooler.  Why dump $50 on something you wont wind up really needing?

Considering picking up a Phenom II before next semester, and maybe some other upgrades, not sure though.  This 'ol 4600 AMD X2 processor is still going strong but it never was a great stepping.

Darur wrote: ParielIsBack wrote: But they use the highest quality components of anything I've used or seen No, they don't.

Clearly, you would know, knowing all the computers I've used.  Oh, wait...

The reason your macs are more expensive then a windows based PC is just because Apple alone has the rights to sell the OS, and there is no competition between Mac vendors.

Apple uses the exact same hardware as every other vendor.  They use Intel Processors, Nvida or ATI/AMD Video cards, Whatever brands of RAM/HDD are cheapest at the moment, etc.  The only proprietary hardware on an Apple computer is the motherboard, which is has a few proprietary parts to allow OS X to be installed.  Thats it.  I'll give you that they may have pretty screens, but I don't generally consider the screen in terms of performance.  Bodies, keyboards and mice are peripherals and aesthetics, they do not make your computer run faster.  Yes, the hardware they use conforms to the product spec.  They don't just drop in ATI and Nvidia cards when one is cheaper then the other. But if its a choice between Corsair XMS ram or Kingston generic, both of which perform the exact same for those conditions, you bet they'll use the cheaper RAM, just like every other vendor.  The same is true of hard drives and other parts.

Operating systems use specific driver sets for specific types of hardware.  Sometimes drivers conflict with each other, sometimes they aren't fully optimized.  These are hardware-software interface issues. They are not indicative of the quality of the OS, but rather of the sheer magnitude of possible hardware configurations around. If Apple licensed their OS like Microsoft, they would have similar issues.

I don't know what you are trying to say with the Hackintosh point.  They fail because OS X requires certain motherboard elements that aren't present, because those parts are proprietary.  hackintoshes try to get around that by emulating those parts.

Oooh

Why not just chop a hole in the case and stick in a yate loon?

Operating systems use specific driver sets for specific types of hardware.  Sometimes drivers conflict with each other, sometimes they aren't fully optimized.  These are hardware-software interface issues. They are not indicative of the quality of the OS, but rather of the sheer magnitude of possible hardware configurations around. If Apple licensed their OS like Microsoft, they would have similar issues.

Right, but Apple doesn't make that claim, and that's part of the reason they sell computers.  And again, driver issues are not a driving point here.  Vista and other OS's produced by Microsoft simply haven't been stable, which is obviously a problem.  Apple, on the other hand, hasn't done that, at least in the recent past.

I don't know what you are trying to say with the Hackintosh point.  They fail because OS X requires certain motherboard elements that aren't present, because those parts are proprietary.  hackintoshes try to get around that by emulating those parts.

My point is, if your point was going to be that OS X doesn't work on all hardware, it's because it was designed that way.  Whereas, for quite a while, Windows often did not work with hardware that was designed for it and even certified by the company (see: Vista and video cards).

I really don't think your grasping the significance of this.  Operating Systems serve as an abstraction layer between software and hardware.   I would love to expand on this but I have 2 finals in an hour so I'll return to this then.

Peripherals are not what people are talking about when they talk about performance.  Your computer does not run faster with a sleeker body, or a more tactile keyboard, so no, those points do not matter in the context of performance (which is by and large the point of this thread).  They do matter for looks and they do matter for comfort, but thats it.

I'm claiming that they don't use whatever crap Seagate is sticking in their hard drives.

The problem with Vista was not because it was poorly built, but because it was overbuilt.  It was designed for computers that couldn't handle it yet.  The cases of Vista computers not being able to handle the OS when they said they were designed for it was a marketing failure, not a software failure.  The PC companies demanded Microsoft say they supported computers that couldn't quite handle Vista, because the PC retailers needed to move stock.  Vista is a fine OS, I have no problems with it, but like I said it was designed for computers being released today instead of computers being released 3 years ago.

Pariell, I would suggest you pull that stick out of your ass and chill out.

Firstly, a Hackintosh is not an Apple computer.  When I say Apple computer, I am referring to a computer purchased from Apple or specifically designed to run OS X.  The former is any Macbook or Mac which Apple produces.  The latter doesn't exist because Apple never licensed out the OS, and the OS requires specific proprietary parts on the motherboard to allow you to run and install OS X.  This is a measure to keep vendors from selling computers which run OS X but are not sold by Apple.

A Hackintosh is just a PC which runs OS X. You cannot buy an Apple Computer from, ultimately, anywhere but Apple.  You can buy them from resellers or retailers, sure, but Apple is ultimately where you are buying the computer from.  

You can build a Hackintosh on Newegg, that is true, but as I pointed out before, it is not an Apple computer.  Thus Apple effectively is the only provider of OS X and computers that run it in a Monopolistic Competitive Market. 

You can build a Hackintosh on Newegg.  I suggest you go look up what parts are compatible first, because mainly the list of motherboards is a short one.  And don't expect to run the newest version of OS X (I don't anyway, so it wouldn't really be a problem).

Pariell, I'm almost regretting razzing on FE for his brick wall-like skills.

Luxury  "Better"

Apple does not use better parts.  They do not have software that can do things PCs can't. They look prettier, perhaps, but beyond that the differences are mostly personal choice.

And that argument makes sense -- if they were selling PCs like everyone else, and if they didn't have their own retail store as well

ParielIsBack wrote:  Bodies, keyboards, and mice are part of what sell Macs.

The other parts are the Apple image, and the actual customer support they provide.  Yes, if you were only buying hardware, they'd just be overpriced.   But they sell a lot more than that, and no PC maker has either the brand image or the customer support Apple has.  As someone who believes Apple screwed them, and who has no need for hand holding when using the computer, I don't find these to be all that powerful, at least anymore.  But when I was shopping for my first computer a year and a half ago I did, which is exactly the point.

I was about to argue that I'm not really a Apple hater at all, but given my record of posting I suppose that would be on par with FE claiming hes a proud Democrat and a practicing Buddhist.

Sorry, I didn't mean to suggest that you said Apple manufactures its hardware, I mentioned that because some people still do think that, but you did imply that Apple puts together the computer, or at least thats what I got out of it.  And that is not true.

But your point is correct, and exactly what I was arguing to Pariel earlier: Because Apple uses only a small selection of hardware configurations which they control, they can ultimately optimize and test OS X much easier then Microsoft can with Windows, which does lead to more stability and, to an extent, better performance.