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Here's a reply from a NASA person on this issue on Quora:

What workstation (desktop / laptop) systems are used at NASA?
Does NASA use Apple computers? What is the typical workstation at NASA? How much flexibility do NASA employees have in their own workstation or other hardware they use in their work?
Answer:
Robert Frost, Instructor and Flight Controller in the Flight Operations Directorate
6k Views - Robert is a Most Viewed Writer in NASA with 350 endorsements.
There are two types of workstation:

A workstation that is integrated into a larger system for direct control or interaction with a system. An example of this would be the work stations used to send commands to a spacecraft.

A workstation that is used to perform job tasks that do not require an integrated cluster of identical machines. An example of this would be the desktop and laptop computers used in employee's offices.

The type of computers used for #1 are dictated by the design characteristics of the system. Employees usually have no say in that.
The type of computers used for #2 are dictated by the contractor that provides IT support. Currently NASA IT is handled under a contract called ACES by Hewlett-Packard. They provide a limited catalog of options employees can select from. Currently that catalog includes desktops and laptops from HP, Lenovo, and Apple. The previous contract (ODIN) primarily provided Dell computers.
Obviously if there is a justified business need, NASA can purchase a computer that is not in the ACES catalog.
Over the last few years, there has been a shift away from desktops to laptops (where the work allows) to better support an employee being able to have access to data at meetings and to work remotely.
My experience has been that Apple computers are quite common at the more research oriented centers and very much less common at the operations oriented centers. I personally use a Macbook Pro.

These Curiosity Lander scientists and engineers CHOSE the MacBook Pros.