I wouldn't say that Mac hardware and software is substancially better than anything else you could get. Mac computers are using more and more of the same stuff that PCs are made of. Claiming that Mac software is better is only a matter of opinion. You can look at a million different things. If you want something that is compatible with everything,(software and hardware) and has tons of support...windows is the way to go. If you want security and efficiency use BSD or Linux. If you want to be coddled and never have to worry about upgrading hardware or using different versions of software, get a mac. I also think it is insane to spend tons of money on a mac system when that same amount of money could be put to better use. I do not want to have to buy a whole new computer system everytime I want an upgrade. And open source software is great, and free.