The Product Wars.....which side are you on?

With the release of Apple's new iPad tablet PC device causing mixed reactions but undoubted demand from fans of Apple and it's previous products, I thought I'd look back at the arguments that have raged over the years for which product from which manufacturer was better then another.

From the Console Wars (portable and plug-in) between Nintendo, Sony & Microsoft to Marvel vs DC there have been supporters on all sides who claim superiority.

Often there was no clear winner, different products offered different things. If I wanted more fun out of my console I'd choose Nintendo with the likes of Mario & Zelda. If I wanted superior gameplay and graphics I'd more likely go for Microsoft's Xbox 360.

What I want to know is, are any of you big champions of a brand and their particular products or do you select carefully based upon what you require a product to do for you?

Do you choose a Mac because you like Apple, or do you choose it because it has superior applications you need?

Were you a follower of Sony in the console wars or did you buy the console that was considerent the best?

Do you rush out to the shops the minute a new Micorosoft product is available?

 

IPad looks nice but I'm afraid by the time it gets to the UK and Europe the price will be prohibitive, at least for me. I usually don't buy something just because of the brand. I buy it because I need it. However, as brands go, I've had good luck with Sony products in the past. When I bought my PS2 it was because I wanted to play SW: Bounty Hunter and there seemed to be more games available for the PS2 than for the Game Cube (which was the other platform BH was on). I treated myself to a portable DVD player for this past Christmas and I went for a Sony even though Maplins had another brand that was cheaper. The Sony just seemed a better choice.
As far as Mac vs PC, I've always had a PC so I'd tend to stay with that unless I was in a job that demanded Mac usage.

 

I buy what works the most efficiently, and is the most compatible.

As far as the iPad is concerned, I feel that it is an over-hyped, over-priced solution
to a problem that doesn't exsist. Watching Steve Jobs (looking old and tired) standing
there trying to hawk this thing was sad.

 

Also on the iPad - I prefer a real keyboard as opposed to one on a touchscreen. I think if I was going to spend the money I'd put it towards a netbook rather than the iPad due to the lack of a tactile keyboard. (I know you can attach one but that kind of renders the device non-portable if it is a full-size keyboard. At least a netbook keyboard is already attached and a reduced size).

 

I've nothing against a touch-screen keyboard if it's big enough to press with fingers.

I can't type on my Nintendo DSi browser without a stylus and I've heard complaints from iPhone users about the difficulties of texting with fingers on a small screen.
The iPad should elminate that problem seeing as it has a large screen.

In the end as with all product battles, it comes down to what your preferences are.

The Mac vs PC debate for me is often settled by the fact I am a PC Gamer and I know Macs are not so good for gaming. They're great for media management and they can do some stuff a lot faster then a PC, but they are generally for a more limited market. That's great if you don't want certain things out of your computer, but I do.

With the handheld console decision I went for Nintendo since for years I've used the various Gameboy models and I know the games to be fun. Mario Kart & Super Mario Bros are great games and in addition to the touch screen and camera features included in the DSi model I felt I was maiking the right choice.

Sure the PSP has better graphics and can play movies, but from what I've seen its game choice has not been as interesting (it got GTA Chinatown Wars much later then the DS did).

 

in terms of computer I will go with what I can afford and what I can use. I don't have any particular manufacturer loyalty except that I prefer Nvidia to ATI and Intel to AMD, though I'll go with whatever is more appropriate. I don't like macs because I can't get on with the OS and I'd have to buy everything I use all over again and I just can't afford that. They're also more expensive and don't meet all my needs. So for me a PC with Windows is a must.

I have both the PSP and the DS Lite now, and I enjoy both. The PSP is great for watching videos on the go and has some good titles too, and the DS is just fun. I like both equally but for different reasons.

As for the iPad? I think I'll pass. It's too expensive and is very limited in what it can actually do. Sure, it's very nice and looks great, but I'm left feeling indifferent about it. I wouldn't say no to one though, but I'd probably only really use it for ebooks and I can get a Kindle for a lot less.

Also, there's this: Hitler reacts to the iPad

 

I've got a Windows laptop, but I'm looking to get a Mac. May as well, the software I use (Safari, iTunes, Final Cut Pro for example) is pretty much all Apple and my laptop is [insert rude word here] terrible. The only game I play is Football Manager and that's OSX compatible.

As for consoles, XBox all the way.

 

Would you get Windows with your Mac or go with Apple's Operating System?

 

Probably not. Too lazy to figure out how and dual booting takes up too much space on the HD for my liking. OSX works well enough, see no reason to change it.

 

I'm hoping to get a laptop with Windows 7 in the near future. It's meant to be a vast improvement on Vista, but that won't be difficult.
Vista has been nothing but a pain, I may also downgrade my PC back to XP.

 

I have both PC and Mac and to be honest I don't see me ever buying another PC again. I've had nothing but problems with every PC I have ever owned yet I've had no problems with my macbook.
In fact last PC we bought from day 1 it had issues, half of the Microsoft products weren't compatible with Windows. Funny that.

Also I don't game on my PC so gaming isn't really an issue, however I do web/graphic design so Mac works better for that.

As for gaming machines, I have gone through most of them at some point. Currently have the Wii which I only use for some games as I find it very difficult to control characters using the remotes (games such as Tomb raider I just became very frustrated with). I also have an XBOX, we went with this over the Playstation as most games were available on both, we have a BluRay player although it kind of does need replacing now as every so often come across a movie that won't play that Samsung won't do a firmware update for until 5 months down the road. The deciding point for the Xbox was I like to play Halo and as I don't game on the PC it kind of meant we had to get that.

As for the iPad at the moment I don't actually have a need for it. I have a 4 year old 80Gb iPod which still works, a MacBook and an iPhone. The only thing I can see me really using it for is ebooks which I don't have any of yet.

As for the touchscreen, I have never had an issue with my phone although I don't text as much as I did in the UK here in Canada I use my phone a lot for applications and for email and it has never been a problem. I think I had more issues with my Blackberry to be honest.

 

My trouble with Windows Vista has been getting non-Windows products to work on it. My Scanner won't install however hard I try and most of my older games won't run either. I suppose it's partly my fault for getting the 64bit version as most programs are 32bit, but things should still work. I refuse to buy new things just because Microsoft made an OS that wasn't back compatible like all the others were.

Windows 7 offers "XP Mode" which should allow me to be able to install everything I have trouble with.

One reason I do PC Gaming is because of the simplicity and ease of mouse + keyboard controls, plus it's easier upgrading a PC then forking out for a new console every few years.

 

My xbox has been pretty good, other than the one red ring of death and someone being stupid and sending us a broken one back rather than a foxed one.

We have a 64 bit Vista, hate it. Worst computer I've ever had, I no longer use it and handed it off to Mike and just use my MacBook. It isn't just games that are an issue on it, IE is. That hasn't worked properly since the day we got it. The 32bit IE crashes constantly and the 64bit couldn't install flash and most sites have flash on so you have to use the 32bit one. Case of which is the less of two evils?

 

You could just use a decent internet browser like Safari or Firefox?

 

Too many people pull that card, there is really very little difference between IE and anything else. I've had few problems with sites on IE8 apart from facebook, but that has had a problematic server for a long time anyway.

Firefox makes very little difference to page loading times or anything else.

In the end, a browser's function is to display web pages, any problems regarding speed and connectivity are likely to be down to your internet provider and/or your OS.

I'm pretty sure IE would work if I didn't have Vista, it worked fine on XP.

 

It doesn't explain why Firefox and IE are slow as hell and Safari's like sugar off a shovel...

 

A page taking 2 seconds to load or taking 0.3 seconds to load is hardly worth the effort of installing a new browser.

If I was getting 30 seconds or more loading times and Safari offered me instant access I'd choose it, but I don't have such problems so I don't need it.

Plus Safari is made for Apple products with Apple tech, and Apple stuff usually runs faster then PC stuff.

 

I said there were issues with using IE on Vista not that I choose to use it, how could I even use it if it isn't even compatible?
The only time I used IE on the desktop was to download Firefox. My husband uses IE still because that what he needs for work.

I use Firefox as my preference on the desktop from hell and Safari on my Macbook. That being said as I work in IT/Advertising I actually have IE, Firefox, Chrome and Safari installed because I need to test things with all of them as they work differently. Also IE works perfectly fine on my computer at work, the problem really comes down to what it is installed on.

 

In the end, as with all products, it comes down to what you need or prefer.

I had a disagreement a while ago with someone who claimed MSN Messenger (or Windows Live as they call it now) was "retro" and out of date, this person being a Skype user.
Skype is great if you want an internet phone and if you have a webcam/mic to have conversations with. If you don't have those things then Skype is nothing more then a version of Yahoo Messenger.
It's great if you prefer audio/video chats, but if you don't then MSN is prefferable.

Very few products available are completely superior in every department to all other rivals, it comes down to what you really want the most and which is best at providing those.