My very first Apple product was a black iPod Nano that I bought sometime during my first year of college in ‘02-‘03. I think it may have had a max size of 4GB. Seems so small now that I compare that to my iPhone 12 Pro Max of 256GB, but you never forget your first. I loved that thing and if I had that old-school 16-prong charger cable I’d find that it will still work today. This brings me to reason #1:
LONG-LASTING
The laptops I went through while in college were PCs because they were “affordable” and for absolutely no other reason. Okay, maybe solitaire (yes, back in the day that game came standard with the Windows operating system!). Otherwise, I hated everything that came along with owning a PC, specifically the viruses and the constant need for antivirus software! If I never have to deal with McAffee it will be too soon! And you guessed it, here comes reason#2:
NO VIRUSES?!
Granted, this goes hand-in-hand with my first reason. It lasts forever because it’s not susceptible to viruses the way PCs are and there is a good reason for that, in case you didn’t know. Windows makes a good portion of its profit not from the sales of laptops made by manufacturers who house its software, but by the programs that run alongside it and one of those lucrative markets are antivirus programs. Now any dummy can figure out that in order to need an antivirus program you’ll need a virus. See where I’m going with this? What incentive would Windows have to create an operating system that prevents viruses if it means you won’t subscribe to or purchase the most leading antivirus software there is that in turn gives a percent of the profit they make from you to Windows! Ah, the lovely cycle! And we already know it is entirely possible to have an operating system operate without viruses because MacOS has none. Show me one person who has a virus on their Apple computer and I could show you 100,000 easily who have real harmful viruses on their PC. Go ahead, I’ll wait… And while I’m waiting let’s look at reason #3:
COST
Now, I know what many of you are thinking, “this is the reason I’m not an Apple fan.” And I get your point but will respectfully disagree. It is true when compared to ‘other’ computers Apple can seem pricey even at their base model. But when you compare the cost and number of base model PCs you’d be going through in let’s say 10 years versus the one Apple computer that can literally last over 10 years without question (or issue) I’d bet you’ll find you’ve spent more on PCs. Especially, if you found yourself spending any money on antivirus software of which you don’t have to spend with Apple. So, don’t scoff at a $1,200 Apple computer because that is all you’ll have to spend on it for a good 10 years of your life if you chose never to upgrade again.
When I buy an Apple product I know I’m getting something that will last far beyond their next upgrade. So, when I choose to buy that next thing it’s typically not because the one I have isn’t working it’s only cause I’m an Apple fan and I want the cooler more powerful best thing they’ve added to the market Which brings me straight to reason #4:
THE UPGRADES | HARDWARE, AND SOFTWARE
I mean, if you watch any of the events Apple puts on at least three times a year plus their developer WWDC I really shouldn’t have to say more, but I will. From the first generation of anything Apple has released to their current iteration, you can see and experience an absolute ‘upgrade’ the way it should be. I mean, no one ever talks about Windows OS upgrades the way why do MacOS. And just the level of detail and care they put into design and power efficiency. I know what they do is for us. Windows could care less about the dozens of name and no-name brands that come out of the woodwork that has their operating system installed.
And Apple truly never disappoints with their upgrades. I have to fight with myself after every event not to want to buy their newest thing just to test it out! But I think I’ve grown a lot in the last 18 years that I’ve been exclusively living in an Apple world, which leads me to reason #5:
THE APPLE ECHO SYSTEM
When I think back to all the additions I’ve made to the Apple products I now own I love just how unencumbered I am by them and how seamlessly they work together. From my iPhone to my MacBook Pro, Apple Watch, iPad Pro, Apple Pencil, Air Pods, HomePod Mini, and Apple TV, they all just work and work together without me needing to do much of anything.
Now, I will freely admit Apple just wants my money. They are a business and money is how they stay afloat. But I cannot deny they sure do know the secret formula to get my money! If I was a millionaire, hell, if I just earned a 6-figure income I would buy every Apple everything and just use them all over my Smart house! Ain’t that the dream?
All of this is really just to say, I'm a tech fan of Apple stuff and as a writer of fiction I need the tools I need to "just work." I can't be bogged down with viruses or a slow machine that takes several minutes to boot up when I'm in the middle of a breakthrough on a chapter and I need to get the words down! I also don't need to be hit with the dreaded "blue screen of death" that surprisingly still exists in Windows?! Seriously...
So, if you're able to save up a couple of bucks and want to know what devices I use to do my writing, then be sure to check out the TECHNOLOGY category of my blog as I will be sharing all of that and more, because as important as the software we as writers use, it's only as good as the machine we run it on.