As you have might have noticed in the last couple of weeks Microsoft and Apple have escalated their ad war, each by returning salvos on the key points they are trying to make.
Microsoft is attacking price for performance (the Apple tax), while Apple is drilling the virus vulnerability, bloatware (not really Microsoft's fault but their hardware partners), and reliability. Both Microsoft and Apple's point views are really based on perception, I could argue both ways, but when it comes down to the eco system (number of applications) and price point I would buy a Windows machine. As I have said many times my Lenovo X60 with Vista is rock solid. That does not mean I have not been eying a MacBook Air (the design is outstanding), but if I spent the money I would surely run bootcamp to have access to all the Windows applications I use. I just priced a Lenovo X301 on sale for $1389 with 128MB solid state drive and 3GB of DDR3 memory, although it only has 1.40GHZ processor which is slower than a 1.6GHZ 128GB MacBook Air ($2,299), but $800 cheaper. $800 for design and a 12.5% increase in processor speed, I am not sure I am game but others might see the value.
What I find interesting are the views from the Apple blogosphere, some the venom against Microsoft is pretty sad (just look at the comments on any Microsoft reporting), however I do have to commend Apple Insider for trying to take a more balanced approach. Even though they are slanted towards Apple, which I understand, they try to provide a both sides. Today they reported a study today by BrandIndex which found; Microsoft overtaking Apple in value perception when Microsoft started airing their ads. In the end the study does not tell us whether it will translate into sales for Microsoft and its partners, but I laughed when I read the last sentence; "Apple is still expected to ship fewer Macs in spring than it did last year but in line with expectations reflecting the economic reality rather than the effect of an attack by Microsoft". This is classic Apple to downplay expectation and probably a smart move.
A Major Reason I Love Lenovo ThinkPads
I have been using ThinkPads since the late 90's and have always been very happy with the design, durability and IBM service. I feel I am probably in the minority but I love the trackpoint, it works for me not to have to raise my hands while typing to use the mouse functions.
I have not had to use the depot warranty service for several years now. At the beginning of this year the middle latch of my 2 ½ year old X60 tablet fell out and I lost it. The latch pushes up and down through the LCD panel case so you can lock the panel to the keyboard base in either standard clamshell mode or reverse tablet mode where the LCD is exposed.
The reversible latch (at the top of this picture).
I finally planned some time where I was not going to need my X60 tablet; I was going to be away for the weekend and planned on using my VAIO P. I called Lenovo/IBM (IBM currently provides the service in the US) on Tuesday, they shipped a return box which I received on Wednesday. Thursday evening I took my machine to the local UPS store; IBM received the machine on Friday, repaired and shipped it back on Saturday for delivery on Monday morning. This level of service makes the rather dull but business looking ThinkPad a winner and the fact that Lenovo has so far kept IBM's design philosophy and build quality is what keeps me coming back.
My X60 is 2 ½ years old; it has worked very well with Windows Vista and is working even better with Windows 7. At this point I have no need to move to a newer model for the foreseeable future…
Posted by sskarlatos on November 13, 2009 at 08:36 AM in Commentary, Lenovo, Thinkpad X60, Windows 7, Windows Vista | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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