25+ year former Mac user says Apple sucks and why



Windows versions get upwards of around 10 years of support, even longer in some cases like what occurred with Windows XP, supported for nearly 13 years (and in some cases is still getting support).
There are still 10-13 year old PC towers that are still running today with Windows XP on them. Find a Mac that is 10-13 years old and still running a supported Mac OS version. You can't because Apple doesn't support their older hardware nor supports OS X versions older than 4 years old.
http://regmedia.co.uk/2014/03/14/statcounter_small.jpg
XP is going down only because Microsoft finally had to retire it and end support. The Win7 & 8? is SUPPORTED on 32 bit hardware. Apple's PPC processors and 32 bit Intel were rapidly forgotten.

Annual operating system upgrade hell

A new OS X version UPGRADE gets released annually, with a maximum of around 4 years of support per version. Apple rolls new features and software bloat with each new OS X version which cripples most of their older/slower hardware. The upgrades are REPLACEMENTS of the entire operating system (not patches), with kernel, partition changes and firmware updates that are beyond most of their unsuspecting naive install base to handle when it breaks. If you don't upgrade, your denied security updates in 3 years. If you upgrade after 3 year AppleCare is expired or after your standard 1 year warranty, your paying out of pocket if it bricks.
Most experienced Mac purchasers know to buy the most powerful hardware in the area they require, because Mac's are not upgradable and the annual OS X upgrade bloat slows them down.
The core software and hardware was designed to work perfectly together before a new machine goes to factory for production. Apple even touts this as a selling point why their platform is better, however it goes and screws all that up soon afterwards with substantial core/UI changes that interrupts people's lives, looses their data and slows down their hardware. For a platform that is supposedly more friendly to new computer users, it's just not the case.

Microsoft announces support cycles. Apple doesn't, ambushes users

3 year old OS X 10.6 is currently UNSUPPORTED by Apple, makes up ~20% of OS X users per Net Applications where all OS X versions combined is only 6.5% total market share Apple refuses support, 1 in 5 Mac's vulnerable
Apple really screwed OS X 10.6 users who upgraded to 10.7, didn't warn them during the install process that 10.7 had no Rosetta compatibility for their PPC processor based software. Hundreds of thousands of people were asking support how to revert their machines back to OS X 10.6, dragging their machines into Apple, because they needed their software to work LIKE RIGHT NOW!
The annual OS X upgrades tend to break your third party software and hardware drivers, many have to pay for software upgrades and/or buy newer hardware as some makers won't supply drivers for their older hardware despite them still working fine.
Almost every OS X version one upgrades their Mac annually to robs the machine of performance. Many newer Mac's now come with non-upgradable RAM, so the machines performance can't be increased to counter the software bloat.

Even the neutral exFAT format Disk Utility does can't be hardly read on Windows.

Problem was fixed for OS X 10.7+ but not for the 20% on 10.6, see what I mean now about Apple? 2011 was a mere 3 years ago, 10.6 was being sold on NEW machines back then. Apple just forgets you exist after 3 years and hopes you upgrade your machine or gets malware so it breaks and you can then be sold a new one.
Microsoft gave a free exFAT download to all Windows XP users, a 12 year old operating system.

Higher than normal hardware turnover rate, hardware obsolescence built in

I've replaced my primary Mac computer 4 times and the operating system 9 times in the same 13 year period my $1000 Dell Pentium XP tower (+ $500 for monitors/keyboard/mice) using friend has had his.

    eMac - died 3 years/obsolete due to operating system version, clogged with dust (can't clean them) ~$1,000.

    PowerMac G5 - made obsolete in ~3 years because Apple didn't release a OS X 10.6 version for PPC processors, otherwise it being a tower with replaceable parts, can clean the dust out, SHOULD HAVE lasted 10 years. ~$6,000 with 30" displays w/AppleCare.

    15" MBP - died 3.5 years due to cooling fin clogging as Apple had no process in place to inform users to clean or provide cleaning to prevent overheating. Won't let user self clean the cooling fins without violating AppleCare. Also the keyboard on their laptops is weak cheap crap. ~$2500 w/AppleCare

    17" MBP - (2011) EDIT Despite using the best of care, cleaning the dust out annually, using external devices for input, raising the hind legs a little to make sure there is adequate airflow under the machine. The 2011 machine just recently died on Black Friday 2014, 3 years 8 months from purchase. The cause was a failed dedicated GPU like many Mac users are reporting due to over-application of thermal paste. (see below) ~$3500 w/AppleCare.
My XP friend has had a much more reliable computer at a much lower price for far longer with less trouble than I had with Apple. XP might have gotten malware, Win 7+ hardly does. Apple is a hardware company using software (and planned hardware obsolescence) to force rapid turnover. High Price <> Quality or Longevity.
For instance Intel HD graphics are substantially behind their dedicated graphics cousins.

Using OS X/iOS upgrades to cripple hardware

Steve Jobs, the founder, got kicked out of Apple by the CEO John Sculley he himself hired from PepsiCo. After many years of exile, and after several ineffective CEO's of Apple, this is the Steve Jobs sales pitch to get rehired as CEO.
"If I were running Apple, I would milk the Macintosh for all it's worth — and get busy on the next great thing. The PC wars are over. Done. Microsoft won a long time ago."- Steve Jobs
Jobs declared his Mac's dead, says "we lost" to Microsoft, trying to shift users to iPad

Milking extended to Apple's iOS product line as well.

"You mean my two-year-old iPad can't take this year's software?"
The Mac only makes up 6% of Apple's current revenue, the iPad 10% and the iPhone a whopping 68%! Why? Because they can cause a 2 year hardware turnover rate by slowing your device down.

Removing/crippling hardware/software lines as they exit

Can't self-remove the storage with sensitive files if the machine won't boot.
Filevault passwords have to given up to get the machine repaired. With "Fusion Drive" (aka hybrid) the SSD portion is on the logicboard. SSD's and flash drives can't be securely erased (unlike hard drives can). NSA says grind or melt them. Nice huh? Confidential Data Not Safe on Solid State Disks
Xserver gone. XRAID gone. 17" MacBook Pro gone. MacBooks gone. Hobbling hardware performance. Anti-glare screens gone too, to the dismay of many.
Apple released that abortion of Final Cut Pro X that had Hollywood screaming and many running to Avid on HP Workstations.
Windows Pro versions have downgrade rights to the previous versions, not Mac's.
Apple announces end of Aperture, their Pro level photo editing program.

Apple is constantly changing interfaces, requiring a slew of adapters to get everything to work and then it doesn't work well or long as they just drop hardware lines. Go in to get a replacement monitor for a three year old machine, it's gone.
Apple employs a severe expensive hardware and software Stockholm Syndrome Effect with their annual change up that is unlike anything seen on Windows.
The general attitude in Apple Stores is if you can't/won't replace your iOS device every two years and your Mac every three years, it's all your fault. They don't care how they treat you because they got a brainwashed fools right behind you they haven't burned yet.

People are being sold on the looks and the fad status, "Look at me, I'm fabulous, I've got a fashion product". Apple's hardware isn't any better than others, it would be if there wasn't so much dust clogging planned obsolescence built in, annual OS X upgrade bloat crippling performance.
Mac users typically make up dozens of reasons/excuses why it's better, but no clear reasons why the world far and wide has rejected their platform. Every year when Apple changes up OS X, hardware or software (like FCPX) there is yet another huge outcry on the Apple forums.

Apple dupes people into buying quality and doesn't deliver. See what Reddit says!

Mac users have to run Windows and keep their skills up as 99% of the business world uses it. The software selection on OS X is poor, it's expensive because of the lack of competition, due to the decreasing market share.

Treat fellow human beings like dirt. Forced U2 download anyone?

Took 3 years to fix a active iTunes exploit they knew about and was [used by suppressive regimes all over the world] (http://citizenlab.org/2013/03/you-only-click-twice-finfishers-global-proliferation-2/)
David Rice, head of Apple Product Security, ex-NSA guy, never left it seems.
100% access to the iPhone suspected AND CONFIRMED Backdoors in iOS devices, bypasses encryption
Governments, law (crooked or not) and hackers can download a iOS devices FULL CONTENT, and location data, remotely, without your knowledge!

Apple enacted location tracking without telling anyone and the Webcam activated remotely with no light
Brainwashes it's workers. AND Psychological tricks used on customers
"A modern surveillance state isn't so much being forced on us, as it is sold to us device by device, with the idea that it is for our benefit."

Apple product crime spree
Apple responsible for 14% of NYC crime Jealous people pour liquid into Mac's keyboard or try walk off with the machine.
Ripping iOS devices out of people's hands is common. Police warn people to not to use their Apple devices in the open.

Mac's have been getting malware. It's rather easy since 20% of the platform is unsupported for security updates and that's only going to increase when 10.10 is released and 10.7 is ignored. Apple never learned, 500,000 Macs and HQ pwned.
Windows is more calm, consistent and stable, security updates come out fast and not three months to 3 years later like with Apple. Microsoft may be wrong at times, but it corrects itself to market forces and doesn't ignore older hardware. Apple forces you to do things their way EVERY FRIGGING YEAR and uses updates/upgrades to slow down your machine, trap your files into only their formats and backups. No TimeMachine for Windows!

"Tie all of our products together, so we further lock customers into our ecosystem," - Steve Jobs.

With Windows PC's one has a choice of hardware vendors. Mac's have a very limited hardware line and have been removing products as they switch to the more profitable and rapidly disposable iOS devices.
I was supportive of the underdog Apple for LONG TIME (since the Apple IIe) but finally just had enough of the "New Apple" abuse, the built in planned obsolescence, the constant mistreatment and manipulation of their customers.

Buying into Apple is buying into a problem, it's not buying to solve a problem.