In a rebuttal to the uninformed response by someone claiming that "MacBooks are better than all other laptops," please read this:
Let's do a brief overview of PARTS
1. Motherboard: Foxconn is ****. Bottom line, get over it. Look to ASUS for higher-end. MAC+Foxconn motherboard =/= high quality. Wake up and smell the coffee.
2. RAM: Hynix? It's a Korean brand but it's dirt cheap as well.
I'd say based on my experiences in browsing, shopping, and reviewing consumer reviews, about 5% of the RAM that's out there is actually of "lower quality" meaning that your system either just won't detect it or you'll get a BSOD until you remove it. But the other 95%? They're subject to quality control inspections so it's all the same.
As for difference BETWEEN RAM sticks? Look to the specs. Speed. Number of operations per clock cycle. For all you non-gamers out there, don't worry about this. DDR2 667mhz or DDR3 1033mhz depending on your needs.
Typical RAM bulk suppliers: Samsung, Infineon, Hynix
RAM bought separately: OCZ, Corsair, PQI, Transcend, etc.
Apple and the PC companies import RAM from the bulk suppliers. My Dell XPS 400 which I bought years back and my current Vostro 1500 came with RAM from Samsung. Both machines are/were good workhorses and I *never* had problems with the RAM.
Face it: Samsung's the biggest exporter of DRAM. So if I use a frivolous argumentative style, I could say that because Apple doesn't use Samsung, it's inferior. Doesn't fly I know.
Difference in quality between Mac vs PC here: NONE.
3. CPU - It's all Intel. Intel designs all the CPUs in this R&D centers all around the world then manufactures them in its factories located in New Mexico, Israel, China, and a slew of other places. The CPUs found in PCs and MACs are the SAME. Please don't say "Well what about the Power PC chip?" That was back in Stone Ages.
Difference in quality between Mac vs PC here: NONE.
4. Hard drive - I am going to sound like a broken record. Once again, PC companies and MAC order hard drives in bulk from other companies. MAC does NOT make its own hard drives. It just doesn't have the R&D resources to do so.
Typical hard drive manufacturers in no order of significance are Seagate, Western Digital, Maxtor (bought up by Seagate back in 2005/6), Samsung, Toshiba, and Fujitsu (may soon be bought out by Toshiba, stay tuned!). Don't argue with me on this part. I've been watching the market for some time now.
The same goes for SSD (solid state drives, e.g. flash memory hard drives). I have heard that the major manufacturers in the sector at the moment are Samsung, Toshiba, and Sandisk. This is where my information needs some slight updating. If there are any analysts/investors out there who can provide some insights into this, it looks as though Corsair and OCZ have joined the fray. I don't know when/where they obtained the R&D resources for the stunt, but it seems as though they're recent entrants.
P.S. My Vostro runs nicely on a Fujitsu 5400RPM. My external maxtor has lasted 3 years with no problems. Dell XPS - no problems.
Difference in quality between Mac vs PC here: NONE.
5. LCD Screens - About 75% of Apple's MACs are from LG (source: Korean analyst's estimate. Apple doesn't release these figures publicly). For Dell, I don't have an exact figure. But to take the Dell Vostro 1500 as my example, I would have to say the # is closer to 30-40%. I've seen Vostros come with screens from LG, Sony, and AUO.
If you the typical Apple fanboy frivolously assume from this that LG screens must be the best, think again. It depends on specs. You need to look at contrast (1000:1, 10000:1, etc), color gamut, color reproduction, brightness, etc. LCD manufacturers produce and export LCD panels with variable levels of each stat to both Apple and the PC companies.
Difference in quality between Mac vs PC here: NONE.
6. Case/OS - Ok, this is where the differences begin and end. Enough said, the debate about each OS's architecture stands. I won't go into it. Case? Pffft. I dont' make my own rigs, but personally, I've *always* been able to get better deals through Dell's website. The case has *always* worked fine.
Difference in quality between Mac vs PC here: DEBATABLE.
I commend Apple on producing solidly built exteriors.
As for the OS, I don't see anything impressive in the UI. Memory manager seems much better developed.
But I'm hearing better things about Windows 7.
*********************IN CONCLUSION************************
The difference between a typical Mac and a PC besides the OS is COSMETIC. You are paying the hefty 50-100% extra premium for a brand-name. Don't try to invoke the hackeyed "Mac is to Toyota as PC is to Hyundai" because it doesn't fly because:
1. Internal parts for Macs and PCs are virtually the same. I've gone over this part thoroughly enough. Besides, it's an invalid analogy to utilize since Hyundai manufactures all of its