Apple brutally attacks Microsoft, Windows PCs in new ‘Get a Mac’ ad (with video)

Mac Daily News ^ | Thursday, August 21, 2008 - 11:40 AM EDT

[Swordmaker]

Apple has begun airing another new "Get a Mac" ad, "Off The Air," on U.S. network and cable television.

In the ad, "PC" is confronted by "Mac" and a Mac Genius who explain that dumping a Windows PC and switching to a Mac is easier than ever since when you buy a Mac, the Apple Store Mac Genius will transfer your files from your old PC to your new Mac for free.

At this point, Apple makes one of their most brutally honest points ever, as "PC" responds:

Oh, no, no, no, no... My frustrated users don't need to hear about that. See, fear of switching is the foundation of customer loyalty for PCs.

"PC" then rolls down a fake color bar chart over the camera and makes a continuous "beep" noise as he takes the spot "Off The Air."

MacDailyNews Take: Bill Gates "PC" loves badly faked things. Poor simulations are his life.

Apple "Get a Mac" ad: Off The Air

See the ads in various sizes and qualities via Apple.com here.

[edh]

“Are you through?
Got it off your chest? “

I’ve got a lot more things to say, but I need to get to sleep :-)! And I don’t speak opinion....I speak fact :-P!!!

[Spktyr]

Considering that you can’t get Crysis to run at full frame rate on most sub-$2K retail PCs... probably about the same as for a Mac Pro.

Um, the iMac isn’t a G4 PPC. The iMac is now (and has been for a while) a Core 2 Duo running at the latest released speeds. Again - where can I get a retail all in one for $1000 less than the $1199 iMac, which is a 20” LCD with a 2.4 gHz, latest revision Core 2 Duo?

And your much vaunted AMD dual core? Yeah... considering it takes THREE AMD Phenom cores to keep up with one CRIPPLED E7700 Core 2 Duo chip, well... good luck with that.

You really should keep up with this sort of thing.

Oh, and when did Apple release the Quicktime and Aqua libraries for Linux? I must have missed that.

Almost none of the Apple libraries are available for Linux... but all the Linux ones are available for Mac OS X. Therefore, you can get Linux stuff to compile and run on a Mac... but it doesn’t necessarily work the other way around. Or has someone magiacally ported coreimage, coreaudio, and the rest of the Apple libs?

Perhaps YOU should learn a few things and get out of your old VAX and PDP-11 world.

[Swordmaker]

Also, please tell me where you can get an all-in-one like the iMac for $199. I’d be anxious to hear!

I want to know where I can get someone to pay me $401 to accept a small form factor PC like the Mac Mini from them. I'll take a dozen and buy a nicely decked out Mac Pro with my earnings.

;^)>

[edh]

“So, managed to “tweak” all that DRM in Vista out of the system yet?”

No, we are still removing the filthy, sludge, crapware known as Quicktime and Safari that is installed with overpriced iTunes.

[Spktyr]

Halo may be old, but lots of people STILL play it. They just released a patch to it last week.

The sequel, Halo 2, just came out for Vista not long ago... and it blows. Mostly because you have to run it on Vista. The original xBox version is outstanding, but console FPS lack the precision of keyboard and mouse shooting.

I tried Warhawk on the PS3. I found it annoying. Perhaps you should try the G4TV Game Of The Year, Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Which runs native on Windows and Mac... but not on Linux. I’m currently plowing through the single player version of that.

[edh]

You can get VMware Fusion for the Mac which does an EXCELLENT job of running XP under OSX. If you are going the Mac route for whatever reason, I highly recommend this.

And by EXCELLENT, I mean, EXCELLENT....

[Spktyr]

Mmm, yes, overpriced iTunes.

iTunes is free. And as for crapware - Quicktime looks like the world’s best code compared to, say, Real, or that disaster known as Office 2007.

[Swordmaker]

No, we are still removing the filthy, sludge, crapware known as Quicktime and Safari that is installed with overpriced iTunes.

Overpriced iTunes? Right. Sure. (shaking my head and twirling my finger near my right ear...)

[Swordmaker]

You can get VMware Fusion for the Mac which does an EXCELLENT job of running XP under OSX. If you are going the Mac route for whatever reason, I highly recommend this.

And by EXCELLENT, I mean, EXCELLENT....

Aside from your tagline, that's the most intelligent thing you've written so far.

[edh]

“The original xBox version is outstanding, but console FPS lack the precision of keyboard and mouse shooting.”

True, but I just think it is better on a console...playing Halo on a PC just isn’t as fun for me...

“I tried Warhawk on the PS3. I found it annoying.”

For whatever reason, I stuck with the game for a month and have fallen in love with it...only three other games stole so much of my time...those being Pirates! and Civilization II + the re-release of Pirates! a few years ago. Warhawk’s learning curve is steep....too steep one may argue...however, once you get the gist of it, it is VERY VERY VERY hard to put down.

“Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare”

It got too old, too fast for me. My stepson loves it...I typically play the role of “annoying, mouthy jagoff on open mic” when he’s playing death matches online....imagine that :-)!!!! I was shocked that it actually had the Soviet National Anthem in it too :)! Even the original Summer Games didn’t have that :-)!

[edh]

“Considering that you can’t get Crysis to run at full frame rate on most sub-$2K retail PCs... probably about the same as for a Mac Pro.”

Give me $2K and I can solve that easily.

“Yeah... considering it takes THREE AMD Phenom cores to keep up with one CRIPPLED E7700 Core 2 Duo chip, well... good luck with that.”

Funny...I do not see this performance issue at all. I run a lot of engineering apps and my quad core AMD processor (9950) is slightly better than a similar Intel machine. I’d like to see how the apps might run under OSX, but Xilinx, Mentor Graphics, Altium, and Altera don’t support Mac. Same goes for games.

“Again - where can I get a retail all in one for $1000 less than the $1199 iMac, “

You said $199 in your post. And I pointed you to the dual core Athlon @ Newegg for $199. For your average user, that machine will more than suffice and the $1000 can be used for various upgrades.

“Oh, and when did Apple release the Quicktime and Aqua libraries for Linux? I must have missed that.”

Who cares really!!!! They’re fairly useless anyway!

“Almost none of the Apple libraries are available for Linux... but all the Linux ones are available for Mac OS X.”

You stated that some applications can be compiled for Apple and not for Linux. Given that your libraries are Apple specific, then yes, you are correct. My point is, who the hell cares aside from Apple zealots!

“Perhaps YOU should learn a few things and get out of your old VAX and PDP-11 world.”

I know a thing or two about computers...and, sadly, I have emulated a PDP-11 in an FPGA for a friend. What synthesis and simulation tools can I use on a Mac running OSX that will allow me to do the same?

[edh]

“Overpriced iTunes? Right. Sure. (shaking my head and twirling my finger near my right ear...)”

Sorry...should have been clear here...I meant the iTunes store.

Also, yeah, I saw VMware Fusion in action on a Mac and I was stunned by the performance...kudos there...but the silly, little white box it was running on looks more like a cute, rectangular shot put than it does a computer.

[Liberty2007]

to be honest I have not tried that yet. I am building a HTPC if it gives me too much hassle then I will use linux. btw the average user probably isnt going to be able to get xp or win98 to do that lol. Getting all new equipment for the HTPC except for the home theater system

[edh]

“Same goes for games.”

Crap...didn’t *exactly* mean this BTW....I need to get to sleep.

[guitarplayer1953]

What are the new mac pc’s running now for? The reason I've built all of my pc is the cost saving. The only thing I have not built is the Acer 17inch laptop I'm using now.
thanks

[Swordmaker]

. . . but the silly, little white box it was running on looks more like a cute, rectangular shot put than it does a computer.

If you are referring to the Apple Mac Mini,
it is a fully functional Intel® Core 2 Duo 2.0 GHz (4MB shared L2 cache) computer with a 120GB hard drive, a fully functional 8x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW), with 1GB of SO-DIMM RAM (667MHz) with a 667MHz FSB. It comes with Firewire 400, WiFi 802.11.a,.b,&.g, built-in Bluetooth 2.0, USB2.0 X 4, optical digital audio in and out, and gigabit Ethernet. It runs almost totally silently at 28dBA. It weighs 2.9 pounds and occupies a 6.5" x 6.5" footprint that few Windows PCs can match. It's total volume is only 84.5 cubic inches. It sells for a mere $799

For 95% of computer users out there, it has more power than any of them will ever need. Quite frankly, e, it is far more powerful than my 47 pound Mac PowerPC Dual G5 Tower! You, yourself, said you were "stunned" by that little "silly, little white box's" performance—running TWO heavy duty operating systems at the same time.

The engineering required to put that much power into such a small package for such a low price is amazing... and you find it "silly."

Let's see what the PC/Windows world has to offer in a small form factor computer similar to the Mac Mini, shall we?

Advertised as the smallest Desktop PC, the Logisys LG-P635 occupies a 5.7" x 9.8" footprint and has a total volume of 93.2 cubic inches (11% larger than the Mac Mini). Configured to match the hardware of the Mac Mini:

Logisys PC LG-P635

• Processor Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo 2.0GHZ/4M/667FSB
  
• Memory DDR2-667 SODIMM 1.0 GB
  
• 120GB 2.5" SATA 5400RPM Hard drive
  
• Multimedia storage (Slot loading) DVDRW 4 in 1 combo drive
  
• Built-in bluetooth
  
• IEEE 1394 (Firewire 400) built-in
  
• USB 2.0 X 2
• Built-in wireless 802.11 B/G
  
• Built-in SPDIF Built-in SPDIF Digital Audio chanel
  
• Operating software Microsoft Windows Vista Business DVD
  
• Power supply 60 Watt DC 12V and AC 110V power adapter
  
• Keyboard none
  
• Mouse none
  
• Network Built-in high speed ethernet 10/100/1000Mbps LAN controller
  
• ROHS compliant European Union (EU) ROHS compliance
  
• VGA(Graphic) On-board Integrated Intel GMA 950
  
• Warranty 1 year parts and Labor.

Oh Phooey... we can't make it equal to the Mac Mini—the configuration page says that Bluetooth cannot combine with built-in Wireless 802.11—so we drop item #5 in the list above and deduct $79 from the price. And, of course it does not include the iLife suite of integrated software that comes with every Mac... Oh, well.

So, what does our Mac Mini matching small form factor PC cost??? Obviously, according to edh, it must be $1000 less than a Mac Mini. What was that price again? Oh, yeah, $799... and it probably should be even less because it doesn't have built-in Bluetooth or iLife Software. So how much less than a Mac Mini is this PC??? Hint... it isn't less expensive.

Logisys PC LG-P635 configured as close as possible to a Mac Mini: $1610.00!!!

Gee, edh, that is only $811 more expensive than the Mac Mini...

[blu]

Guess how many printers and other peripherals one can find, for free, on Craig’s list and various freecycle sites? The owners can’t make them work with vista, so they give the old printers and stuff away for free and buy new stuff!

Works for me...my Mac will run almost any printer as long as I can get a driver! I love vista...on other people’s computers!

[Liberty2007]

Works for me...my Mac will run almost any printer as long as I can get a driver!

lol thats funny, it works in vista too if you get a driver. Not big into printing stuff, but the disk that comes with my printer doesnt have vista drivers. I went to the company website...GASP! they have drivers for it.

[blu]

I went to the company website...GASP! they have drivers for it.

Well, there ya go, you're smarter than the average vista user!

[Mr. Blonde]

So your anti-apple zealotry = OK, pro-apple zealotry = bad? And I really don’t see any blind following of the Apple brand on here.

And owning an iPhone is hardly non-conformist these days. Out of a group of about 8 people I went out with last night, 4 had iPhones. If you want to be non-conformist get a Windows Mobile phone.