Love them or hate them, there's no denying Apple create amazing products that perform well and look great on your desk or in your hand. In this blog we take a closer look at ten great reasons for using the Mac.
1. Hardware and Software Integration
Apple software only runs on Apple products. This allows Apple to optimise the code for each model that it makes because they know exactly which hardware is to be found in the system. It also means that the system can be very robust as the hardware that has to be accounted for is a limited known entity - there is no hunting for drivers or strange issues occurring due to lack of hardware support. This has been taken to a whole new level with the new Apple Silicon, which is a whole system on a chip (SoC) and allows Apple to implement features that require specific hardware such as video compression and decompression and machine learning.
2. Longevity
Apple products last. This is due to several factors, chief amongst them being the quality of components used is high. Apple maintain repair programs that last longer than the PC market and support with security and maintenance updates to OSs many years old. Plenty of our customers are still on older machines for their everyday use, and there is often much we can do in order to help these machines to run as best as they can (often retro-fitting an SSD will dramatically improve the performance - ask us about it for your Mac). I myself use an iMac from 2010 as my main machine and run my entire business from it - that’s a twelve year old machine and it’s still capable of video editing, audio production, web design and administration.
3. Exclusive Software
Apple develop several applications for both professionals and enthusiasts that are only available on the Mac platform and are usually quite innovative in their approach to their respective use cases. These range from Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro to the iWork suite and iMovie and Garageband. Many of these come free with the Mac and the others are very good value offering advanced feature sets in powerful, optimised applications for professional use.
4. No Anti-Virus Needed
Apple has implemented several features in the OS to handle unwanted or malicious applications such as Gatekeeper that warns when applications have not come from the App Store or a known developer. It will also tell you if it thinks you are about to go to a suspicious website or if an Application will damage your machine. Thanks to these features and more it’s not necessary to use Anti-Virus software. This saves us from having to run something continuously in real time taking up valuable system resources and slowing the machine down.
5. Synchronicity
In times past we may have had one computer for the entire household's use, these days it’s a very different story. Many of us have multiple devices including a laptop, a phone in our pockets, an iPad and maybe even more. The ability to keep your data available on all of these machines without having to manually move it about is vital to keeping sane when interacting with our devices. Apple’s iCloud makes this super simple and affordable (the first tier is only 79p per month) and is integrated into every area of the OS.
6. Innovation
Apple are always pushing the boundaries of what can be achieved with their products. Before the iPhone debuted in 2007 phone design used small displays with physical keys, nowadays it’s hard to find a phone that fits this model; nearly all have switched to a large touchscreen based system that Apple innovated with the iPhone. This is just one example of innovation that Apple has brought to the industry, and they have numerous others in both hardware and software design. Their latest innovation is in releasing Macs with the new M1 Apple designed processor which is a complete system on a chip, offering speed and battery life that are trailblazing new levels of performance for personal computers.
7. Standards Compliant
When it comes to working with computers there are potentially so many ways to do the same thing. In order to make sure that everything works the way we expect it to, standards are created. However many developers choose to use their own implementation in order to add features or skirt a perceived limitation of the standard. Apple strives to use the industry standard wherever it can meaning that we can be sure that it is operating above board and correctly with all of the services it interacts with. This ensures services like sharing files, connecting to networks and receiving our email is all done safely and in an expected manner.
8. Crafted Products
I think everyone can agree that Apple spend the time to truly craft their products, taking into account a dizzying array of factors to ensure high quality finishes, ergonomics and durability. An Apple product is a handsome product and often the envy of its peers, so much so that competing products often follow Apple's trend setting in the next generation of their design. A quality product engenders a sense of pride and confidence in its abilities. No wonder then that Apple has a strong fan base.
9. Repairability
Many people complain when Apple classes the product they own as Obsolete (generally five years after production cessation for that model), however many PC manufactures wouldn’t maintain repair parts for anywhere near as long. There is also a great market in second hand parts available for the Mac which allows us to continue repairing them long after Apple stops official support. Macs are designed in a very modular way such that it is easy to swap out failed components. Apple also have a comprehensive training program for technicians so that they know exactly how to repair the entire range of Apple products.
10. Privacy
Apple is a very privacy focused company, especially to the consternation of certain large scale social media companies who make money selling data about you. Apple is on the forefront of pushing the envelope of what is and isn’t acceptable in the realm of your data, and data about you. What’s more, it puts this decision into the hands of the user so that they can make the choice about how much they would like to share. Knowing that Apple isn’t using my data without my knowledge helps to make me feel safer and in control of how I interact with the digital world. I certainly wouldn’t want to be choosing systems that have a more cavalier attitude towards my privacy.
This list is by no means exhaustive; there are many more awesome features which all add up to making using a Mac a really enjoyable experience. Many would agree with us that Apple products enhance our work, our play, indeed our lives; allowing us to truly express ourselves with ease and confidence.
This blog post is a shorter version of a longer article that goes into more depth for each area. It's available here if you would like to read more.
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