I was using a laptop for 3.5 yrs. It was a black 13in macbook. I then thought I'd get a desktop to edit photographs but that I'd see about getting a PC because there is increased hardware value, customisability, and choice. But after months of hunting, I couldn't find one. So yesterday I just went into the Apple store in Covent Garden and bought an awesome 27in iMac. It's massive and aesthetically amazing. My friend (a PC devotee with a shit looking computer) said that I had paid a premium for looks. Well yes, I think looks are worth paying a premium for!
Anyhow most design conscious people that I know use macs, so I'm wondering if there are any PC diehards on this forum with a computer that looks better than the Dieter Rams-esque Jonathan Ives creations of Apple.
I'll echo fastfwd's...
I'll echo fastfwd's statement above.
But with that said, I can't imagine prioritising form over function for a tool like a computer. I don't view a computer any differently than the planers and sanders in a woodworker's shop or the spanners in a mechanic's garage. I just can't justify performing productivity tasks more poorly in the name of aesthetics. My first considerations will always be the functionality of software and hardware. And anyone that believes that Apple has cornered the market on software and hardware functionality needs to have their head checked. By any objective measurement, Apple hardware has some serious functional deficiencies.
I agree that in general computer designs are not attractive and are often downright offensive (see photo below). There are some exceptions of course but even the best computer designs are not objects that I want to display. IMO, keyboards, mice, and cords are all clutter no matter how thoughtful the design. The preceding hardware is necessary at minimum, but add printers, scanners, webcams, etc and one has a real aesthetic mess to deal with.
More to the point, to date I do not believe anyone has designed an aesthetically pleasing keyboard that functions as well as a 25-year-old buckling-spring keyboard. The fact is that most input devices are very limited in their ability to be aesthetically pleasing by their requirement to conform to usage practices or simple laws of physics. Apple's modern keyboards are a prime example of this IMO. They *do* look better than many keyboards available, but they suck in terms of day-to-day usage compared to a huge number of other options available. I refuse to type more slowly and make more mistakes just so that my keyboard looks better on the desk when I'm not using it.
For desktop computers, my solution to this problem is to buy the equipment that is most functional for my productivity needs and then hide it from view except when in use. I've found that hiding everything is actually quite easy with the exception of the monitor. Luckily, there are plenty of well-designed, high-quality monitors to choose from if one insists on having it permanently displayed. But there are even more high-quality monitors that are simple black box affairs that can retreat into a piece of furniture when not in use.
This solution is a cop-out to some extent, but households are filled with innumerable objects...how do we decide which ones to display and which ones to hide? I've decided for my homes that most electronics are better off hidden from view if possible. This allows me to choose them based solely on their functional qualities which I find gives me more satisfaction.
I've that same iMac, Lit Up...
Love it.
Your cynical friend sounds alot like my stepfather did when I purchased mine. Six months later he was pricing one himself. And he has every Microsoft certification there is to have.
The silly notion that Apple gets by on looks is just that, silly. The iPhone has given that argument legs to a certain degree of late I guess. But not Macs. They function better than PCs, and more importantly, are far more secure. The fact that they look like something out of 2001: A Space Odyssey is only the icing on the cake.
An alternative to the Model M keyboard
Demp945 - Like you, I'm a fan of the old IBM keyboards... But after 25 years of typing on one, I'd finally had enough of the clackety-clack noise it made -- plus I think I was just tired of looking at it -- so I found an alternative: the Logitech Illuminated Keyboard.
It's full-sized, it's very attractive, it has a dimmable backlight behind the keys so you can use it in the dark, it's wired (although there's also a wireless version that I wasn't interested in), it's quiet enough to use while others nearby are trying to sleep... AND the keys feel really good. Not the same as the Model M's, but similar enough that it was really easy to make the switch.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001F51G16
Waiting on my new Mac pro laptop!
Sure, there are many different computers on the market. But aesthetically and performance wise they are great. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. I think of it this way, how long before I need to replace it again?! For me it seems like the Macs out live the PC; in more ways than one.
Are you a designer or just...
Are you a designer or just like the pretty Mac cases?
Fact or fiction: Mac's don't usually run real manufacturing design software like:
Pro Engineer
Solidworks
Autocad
I use all these software packages at John Deere.
When I ask the CAD teachers about Mac's, they have nothing to say.
So then the old wives tale, that the Mac's are the "graphics computer" What gives there? I know a pro digital photographer that uses PC's. I don't know what real graphics are I guess?
When you rotate a complex part in Pro-E, what is doing more graphics related imaging?
So my PC choice is a 4 year old Sony Vaio VGC-RC310G
They are Liquid Cooled, and run the older XP software.
They still sell for 300-1000 on Ebay.
XP is still in use at John Deere!
I have an older printer port for my classic HP Laser jet.
An HP 2009 monitor looks just like the MAC monitor.
So hide the tower in a closet, and leave the keyboard, monitor, and mouse out.
My opinion is Mac's are lifestyle first, and usually used for surfing the web. Prove me wrong!
http://cgi.ebay.com/SONY-VGC-RC210G-D-Core-3GHz-1GB-RAM-320GB-HD-DVD-RW-...
Yes, I am a designer.
Like...
Yes, I am a designer.
Like I said, I do not have an educated opinion bc I have always used a mac.
When I do use a PC, I just miss the ease of use and familiarity.
And I have never had a virus.
I bought a mac simply because I respected my professor's opinion.
Not to turn this into a Mac vs PC thread, but....
I've NEVER understood the artsy-crowd's profound Mac bias. Friends & acquaintances always seem shocked-- shocked!-- to learn I use a PC.
Is THAT all it is-- the fact that the hardware looks a little cooler? To hear people, you'd think PC users were working at a great technical disadvantage.
Isn't it true that Macs suffer less from viruses simply because the pests who create viruses focus their wrath on PCS because the great majority of computer users use PCs?
I don't think it's a great...
I don't think it's a great majority of people who have PCs.
What I'm more aghast about is that there is not a single PC hardware manufacturer that can produce something that doesn't look like it belongs under the bonnet of a car. Apple is the ONLY hardware manufacturer that makes something that looks good. WHY is this?
I don't think it is true at...
I don't think it is true at all to say that Apple is the only company that produces an attractive computer. They definitely have a certain design aesthetic, but other companies make computers that are very attractive inasmuch as they are constrained by making them as functional as possible. For example, a MacBook has that magical unibody construction, but because of it, weighs in at 4.7lbs. In comparison, a Lenovo X200 weighs 2.95 lbs. One could argue that they aren't the exact same computer, which is of course true (the X200 has a ~1" smaller display) but the fact remains that the MacBook is a heavy beast for its size. In terms of attractiveness, many people love the Thinkpad industrial design and abhor suggestions to make changes to it (myself included).
One other thought on this debate: I'm unaware of any other discussion on this forum (granted I'm still very new) where enthusiasts discuss the wonderful design of a product MADE IN CHINA under deplorable working conditions (this includes Apple, Lenovo, and essentially everyone else). In fact, the only times I've read mentions to production outside of developed nations it is with derision. With some specific exceptions (Sharp, Fujitsu, Panasonic, Sony, perhaps some others?), computers are manufactured with peasant labour in countries with repulsive working conditions. Isn't this a huge contradiction when compared to furniture design and production?
Perhaps those in the design community that feel Apple is the only company producing noteworthy computers should start being more demanding or even innovate designs themselves.
If you need any help, please contact us at – info@designaddict.com