> one can purchase a similarly spec'd laptop for a fraction of the cost of a MBP
Is this true? Do you have a spec sheet? My own research suggests for about the last 5 years Apple hardware has been pretty competitive.
I'm on you with this. These comparisons are usually made only looking at CPU, RAM and disk, without taking into account that there's quite a lot more to a laptop. Once you take into account the rest of specs, similar high-end laptops are on the same ballpark of cost.
Yes my work dell matches or beats my personal MacBook pro specs in terms of ram and cpu. I’m sure it costed way less too! Oh but it’s the worse computer ever.
The dell is an abhorrent disgrace in every other matter. It weights two tons, is unable to dissipate heat because surprise surprise bulky plastic is bad for that, is filled with weird bugs, has a bizarrely large spacing between keys on the keyboard, a bad screen, bad track pad, terrible battery life, etc
Things that are incredibly profitable are by definition not loss leaders.
>Even with high retail price, margins are low.
Is this true? Being as how one can purchase a similarly spec'd laptop for a fraction of the cost of a MBP makes me skeptical. I'd assume they're killing it on their laptops.