It's not a matter of cheaper for me, but a matter of fitting my needs. I don't want to run AMD graphics cards, I need PCI-E, I want lots of internal storage, I want really high single threaded CPU performance.
I can't buy that from Apple in a desktop form-factor. So I have my Hackintosh.
That being said, I don't disagree that Apple hardware is nice. I have a rMBP 13 and intend on replacing it with a newer model Apple notebook soon.
I did. But now I'm running Yosemite under KVM, VT-d motherboard, dedicated videocard and USB3 hub.
You can get to a point where "it just works".
For months and months on end of heavy usage without a single restart or issue?
EDIT: to expand a little - I was developing/compiling all day long on my ~2008 MBP with it plugged into an external monitor, network, mouse, kb. I'd close the lid and walk home with it, then watch movies, torrent, develop some more, surf etc. Close lid, and repeat for months on end. The only time I ever restarted was for OS updates, I never had a single app even crash in ~2 years of doing that.
My hackintosh (and the windows 7&8 HP machines here at work) don't hold a candle to that.
Well all I can say that there are no crashes and no causes for frustration on my end.
"It just works" for me is - I don't have to think about it, it does not get in a way.
As a bonus: configuration of the VM can be put in a VCS, whole virtual disk can be snapshotted and reverted if needed.
Regarding Windows machines, I've had desktops that would be used for months at a time (mostly rendering) without a restart and never crash.
A pretty good way to test for reliability is to let Prime95 and Memtest86 run for a week or so and see if it fails somewhere along the line (obviously proper cooling is a must), many consumer machines will fail this test.
Would you found a company and make your primary product hackintosh servers? Are you willing to stand behind your 'perfect' configuration and give those customers years of support?
These guys are running a real startup. A vendor with that exact promise and a failed delivery could tank them.
1. Apples EULA does not allow OSX on non-apple hardware. 2. Some major updates can break customizations and require some modifications (bootloaders, etc) to be re-installed
I have no problem helping a friend set up a Hackintosh when they want to save a few thousand dollars (I have set up a few already) with the understanding that they need to backup before doing any system updates and expect things to break after updating.
While Hackintosh's work well for personal use as long as you are somewhat techy and pick the hardware carefully, (putting aside the EULA issue) it does not make sense for anything large scale.
Have you ever personally run a Hackintosh, full-time for a prolonged period of time?
It's anecdotal, but I can assure that once you're used to how OS X and the Apple hardware work together and never, ever, ever crash, using a Hackintosh is an exercise in frustration.
I had one of the known-best Hackintosh configurations in existence, and it didn't hold a candle to the MBP I had prior to it in terms of "it just works".
Sure, it was cheaper.
Guess what I did when that Hackintosh needed replacing? I walked in and dropped the coin on genuine Apple hardware without a second thought. I have never regretted it, and I'll never go back.