Not long after I started with COH in 2006, my supervisor left his position. I had been primarily doing tech support but now had the added responsibility of IT purchasing, which he had been taking care of. Many purchases involved, and still do, working with newly hired professors who are provided startup funds typically spent on IT equipment. Commonly requested items included, but were not limited to, desktop computers, laptops, scanners, cameras, and, later, tablets. Years later, I noticed an interesting trend starting to develop. More and more professors were opting for Apple products vs. Windows/PCs. I estimated that when I started purchasing, approximately 80% of the computer requests were for PCs and 20% for Apple/Macs. Later on, around 2018-2019, I looked at the data again and found the opposite to be the case: about 80% of the requests were for Macs.
What changed the tide? Increased marketing by Apple, perhaps targeting the educational sector? The introduction of the first iPad in 2010? Note Apple's stock price began its meteoric rise around that time. Word of mouth; e.g. one professor gets an Apple, which sparks an interest amongst other professors, and now everyone needs one? Understandably so as Apple products tend to be more aesthetically pleasing and more user-friendly than the competitors.
I've been a Windows user since 1990. After I began doing purchasing for COH, a year or two later, I fell for a phishing scam and my University 'PCard' credit card was compromised. I took as many security measures I could to prevent that from happening again. But, over the years, my card information was stolen a couple more times, likely due to website data breaches. So, with the understanding that Apple products tend to be more secure/less likely to be hacked, I eventually decided to make the switch to a Mac sometime around 2015. Since then, I've stuck with Apple computers for work but still use Windows computers for personal use. And, my cell phones have always been Windows/Android-based.
Here are a few takeaways when considering Apple vs. non-Apple (PC) products:
- In terms of hardware, there aren't many significant differences 'under the hood' between them and PCs.
- Despite popular belief, Apple computers tend to develop hardware issues about as often as PCs.
- Apple computers generally cost more than PCs. Depending on the specific model/configuration, you may end up spending 25-50% more for a Mac vs. an equivalent PC.
- While it didn't use to be the case (we're talking 10-15 years ago), nowadays, most file formats are easily transportable between the two Operating Systems (Windows vs. MacOS).
Given everything I've written, I must admit I've now officially joined the 'Cult of Apple.' I just bought an iPhone.
