Without A Clue: Arik Hesseldahl and CNBC too...

About a week ago I read this trite. I thought about writing about it, but in my busy rush I didn't. Now I see the error of my ways now that people are talking about a segment that used the data that was on CNBC even though just about nobody bothered to even respond to the original set of lies.

Of course, I love picking apart easy pickings, so I'll jump right in.

Yes, $699 beats the $2,800 you'd pay for a Mac with a 17-in. screen. But when it comes to PCs, there's still a great deal more to buy.

Yeah. Like games. :P

First, there's security software.

No. There isn't. I don't run it, and even if I did, there is AVG Free.

No need for antivirus on the Mac.

There is as much need as there is on the PC, if not more. Further, to my knowledge, there is no free antivirus software for a Mac.

Next, let's say something goes wrong on the computer once the warranty expires and that it requires the intervention of a third party.

So the what-if of a Mac getting hacked is taboo, but not something going wrong with the hardware? And note that if something is wrong with the hardware, you are better off asking the Internet for help then any service, Apple or not, if you aren't going to be shipping it back to be fixed.

It's hard to replicate that bundle if you're a Windows user.

Um. No. iLife is nothing special.

But since Hesseldahl seems to not link the software he proposes we all buy to replace iLife very closely, I'll have to ignore his $520 bid of software and compare them directly, like any real journalist would do. But before I do that, I'll point out that he duplicated the price of software he mentions in his "bid".

The Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) machine in Lauren's case does ship with discs for Muvee Reveal, a video-editing program that usually costs $80, and CyberLink DVD Suite, which runs $104.

And then:

Add it all up and it's not hard to imagine Lauren's $699 computer costing something closer to $1,500.

Yeah, because I can do the math. That's about $180 over. I'm not about to let anything get past me, let alone some punk Mac fanboy who slips in some double counting on his own biased bids.

Now to sum up iLife in free Windows applications:

• iPhoto - Totally not comparable to Photoshop Elements. How about Windows Live Photogallery? And you know what, I'll throw in more then that, Paint.NET (if I was doing his math, I might as well say the Mac has to either buy Parallels, and Windows or Photoshop, on the spot now.)
• iMovie - Windows Movie Maker compares. Don't tell me it doesn't, I've used both.
• iDVD - Vista has Windows DVD Maker or something like that.
• iWeb - Windows Live Writer. If that's not enough you can go super high powered and getVisual Web Developer Express.
• GarageBand - Suck it, go with Audacity. Free tips on how to play music are online. But most who get a Mac will never use this program, or if they do, they will use it to put bad loops to music or videos online that anyone who has used the program can recognize a kilometer away.
• Then you polish all this off with the Zune software, crushing iTunes, Windows Media Player, crushing QuickTime, and Windows Live, crushing MobileMe, all for cheeper.

Of course, he keeps digging a deeper hole for himself.

But that doesn't include harder-to-quantify shortcomings. The HP's battery lasts only 2.5 hours on a charge, compared with eight hours for the 17-in. MacBook Pro, which also happens to be 1.2 lb. lighter and boasts substantially better screen resolution: 1,920 pixels wide by 1,200 high, vs. 1,440 by 900 for the HP.

Oh really? Then buy a PC that costs more. The "comparable" Mac costs $2800, not including iLife upgrades, OS X updates, AppleCare, and whatever else your logic brings, but I won't count... after all, it might cost, what, $100 for the software upgrade... that is, if you don't just buy another PC, and laugh at the fact that you still spent less then on the Mac, even with the figures Hessseldahl gave (excluding his doubled up numbers of course).


But enough ripping on him. Microsoft needs a little ripping here too:

Usually silent on such things, Apple did give me a comment on the Microsoft ads. "A PC is no bargain when it doesn't do what you want," Apple spokesman Bill Evans says. "The one thing that both Apple and Microsoft can agree on is that everyone thinks the Mac is cool. With its great designs and advanced software, nothing matches it at any price." Microsoft declined to comment.

The correct answer is not "decline to comment." The correct answer is to laugh. That is your comment Microsoft. Laugh at the notion that Macs are cool, and the world will laugh with you.