Yeah, from what I can tell Apple has been really really good at marketing, and then trapping their users while brainwashing them into thinking they are somehow better off. It's like technological Stockholm Syndrome on a mass scale.
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Slick marketing a product thats has a great user interface who cares whats under the plastic shell.
I will say their cpu chip tech puts intell to shame, but thats like saying you will only get 250k miles in a ford vs 500k in a toyota, either way you will want something new at the 10yr mark