Haters Gonna Hate

   You can hate Apple if you want. I did for quite a while, until I succumbed to my deepest impulse and purchased this device:

Apple has their flaws as a company, but no one's perfect. The fact of the matter is that they lead the electronics industry in their innovation. They are the gold standard that everyone else tries to emulate with their product design. They make the friendly, minimalist devices that everyone picks up in the retail store, and after fiddling with it for a few seconds, you say, "I want this." Steve Jobs and crew create magic in the modern age, and the only people who can argue against that statement are merely resisting their innermost desires.
   When Macs became all-in-one machines that you just had to hook a mouse and keyboard to, people wanted it, and other computer companies sought to copy the concept. When the iPod was introduced, its friendly interface and simple controls were the envy of all other mp3 players. The iPhone put all rivals in the cell phone industry to shame. Even on a bad network, it is the smartphone of choice, and the competition can only try to catch up with its success. The iPad, my opiate, the device that sunk my will to resist, is yet unrivaled. When new companies release their feeble attempts at competing devices, their only purpose will be to copy the standard.
   Their latest re-release of the Macbook Air is a slap in the face to the problems facing laptop computers. With the advent of flash memory, optical drives serve no justifiable purpose anymore, and spinning hard drives are too bulky to deal with in portable devices. The Air eliminates both in one fell swoop, and although it is not quite powerful and affordable enough to justify throwing out your existing laptop just yet, the mere implementation of such concepts allows the industry to move forward. Apple out in front, and everyone else just trying to keep up.
   I know some fan boy is reading this and saying, "Apple doesn't allow third-party operating systems or hardware to run on their computers, they're nazis!" or, "x device has more ram, it kicks your Apple equivalent's ass, and it's a third of the price." or maybe even, "Apple didn't invent x, y, or z! You don't know what you're talking about!" and that's fine, we are all entitled to our opinions. No one said you have to own Apple products, but you want to. The aesthetics of their electronics are the most eye-catching, the durability and lifespan of their computers and laptops far surpasses most other developers, and they have some of the best customer service around.
   What it boils down to is price and familiarity. The reason they have any competition at all is because their products aren't as affordable as most alternatives, and most people have gotten so used to using Windows that they aren't willing to make the switch to OS X. I could argue that there is a good reason for the pricing, but the fan boys won't hear anything of it. I could also argue that the functionality of Windows vs. OS X  is virtually identical, but the mental gap between the two has been steadily increasing for far too long.
   Anyways, it's always your own decision. People can buy whatever they want, and I am not ashamed to admit that I have a Sony Vaio with Windows 7, which I love. So yeah, take this entry for what it's worth.