Oh, knock it off... A $400 PC is last year’s $1600 PC, so if last year’s model didn’t crash last year, it ain’t gonna crash this year. The difference is Apple keeps obselete machines off the market by using licensed dealers.
Now, if you’re going to buy the latest computer, I’d recommend an Apple. But for most people, getting a $400 year-old model every four years is as good as getting a $1600 brand new model every five... and a lot cheaper.
Next year, you may have a point: Microsoft seems intent on keeping obselete computers off the market by refusing to sell new XP licenses; only the newest, most powerful machines will be able to run Vista well. But that’s a wad Microsoft will only be able to blow every few years.
Er, I can buy last seasons model all the way back to VERY old Macs in a number of places. Apple only sells NEW machines through licensed dealers. There is a vibrant market for used and refurbished (I just bought one - from Apple) Macs. So much so that it keeps the price up. (In the states we call that supply and demand). Fact is, even as far back as the G4 processor series will run the latest Mac OS. That means Apple is consciously supporting three processor families that go back 10 years. Apple literally trash canned the G4 and G5 in favor of a completely new (to them) processor architecture, yet I can still run OS X on my G4, G5 and Intel Duo Core.
That's not really true. Last year's $1600 pc used quality capacitors, power supplies and other components. This year's $400 pc has the same CPU, but the motherboard was made by some random factory in China, with electrical components from a factory that stole the electrolyte formula in the capacitors so they leak in 9 months and a power supply that can't regulate the voltage properly.
Many, if not most, Windows crashes are related to hardware problems