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by snowwrestler 3520 days ago
Depends on how you value the features and build quality of the case. Apple laptop cases are extremely expensive (each one is individually machined from solid aluminum), but the result is a top-notch combination of strength to weight ratio.
2 comments
TheSpiceIsLife 3520 days ago
I've bought three Apple laptops, and will probably continue to buy them. But....

Machining a laptop chassis from solid aluminium isn't what makes Apple laptops expensive. Sure, it does add to the cost.

What makes Apple laptops extremely expensive is the ridiculous mark-up Apple charge.

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astrodust 3520 days ago
You call it "ridiculous", but it's not like they charge you a bunch of money and give you nothing. You get a single vendor for operating system and hardware, free support at their retail stores, and free updates to the operating system.

People these days whinging about "extremely expensive" have no idea. Computers used to be stupidly expensive and ridiculously slow, no matter the brand. We've been spoiled by these vendors willing to sacrifice everything to slash costs and margins.

Do you want a good keyboard, a great trackpad, and a durable metal housing? Be prepared to pay more than you would for some system built out of what was salvaged from the garbage bins of Dell's factory.

Every single one of these alternatives listed is over $1000, and that segment of the PC market is tiny. Most get all dizzy at the thought of spending more than $500 on a laptop, that's what the industry's conditioned people to think.

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NEDM64 3520 days ago
If you go to the "good stuff" like Toshiba Tecra, Lenovo ThinkPad (except they are worse nowadays), etc... you'll see how expensive they are
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photogrammetry 3520 days ago
It doesn't matter how well they machine the aluminum if the case is going to separate on the slightest impact because it's so flimsy [2].

100% of the "extremely expensive" machining processes are done by robots. They're just marked up 300-400% by Apple because, well, they love money.

[2] https://discussions.apple.com/___sbsstatic___/migration-imag...

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snowwrestler 3520 days ago
I dropped my Macbook Air, which is quite thin and light, from about 5 feet up onto a tiled bathroom floor. It hit on a corner at the thinnest end. The corner bent a few mm and the lid doesn't quite close correctly. But it woke from sleep no problem and I have used that laptop for more than 2 years since.

It would be great if Apple could engineer a completely indestructible 3 lb laptop. I'm pretty darn pleased with the durability for its portability.

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photogrammetry 3520 days ago
It would be great if they engineered such a laptop. Since they don't want to try, though, other manufacturers are doing it for them. Those companies are also taking pretty solid amounts of their market share, too. [4]

[4] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12843775

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snowwrestler 3520 days ago
As someone who owns both an Asus and a Mac, the build quality is not comparable.

The Asus was $150, though, so it's not a big deal if it breaks easily.

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