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Mac vs. PC – The Great Support Cost Debate
There has been a recent explosion of articles rekindling the Mac vs. PC wars, this time coming at it from the standpoint of the costs to support in the enterprise. The initial article I read pointed out some factors in favor of the Mac in the enterprise, noting that Mac’s were more stable, and easier to troubleshoot, therefore, in a nutshell, less expensive to support.
Round one: Mac.
A counter article then mentioned that you have to take into account the fact that Mac’s may cost over two times more for base models than PC’s and that cost should be included.
Round two: PC strikes back
Another article brought up that Mac’s are only less expensive if they are not forced to integrate into a PC centric network, noting that Sharepoint does not work seamlessly and Microsoft Office for Mac does not play well with PC Microsoft Office when it comes to file formats.
Round three: PC’s seem to have Mac on the ropes
Yet another article debunks statements form prior articles and I discover that an entry level Mac can indeed be had for only a small amount more than a comparable PC, and for more powerful computing options, the Mac may even be cheaper than the PC when fully loaded up with features.
Round four: Mac recovers and counters…
And then I stopped reading. Why? Well, it became obvious that a simple concept was in play here: personal preference.
Yes indeed, PC’s and Mac’s can play together, and can co-exist peacefully. At the end of the day, happy users are users who have the computing device that best suits their needs, and IT departments will need to grow beyond the single box mentality and embrace the concept of the heterogeneous network.
The days of setting a single device as the standard because that is ‘easier for IT’ really should be over. Ease of IT management is not a proper way to set computing policy. Don’t limit productivity because you are not comfortable with a certain tool! IT exists to support users and ensure that there needs are met, and having a computing device that best works for you is part of meeting your productivity needs.
It’s time to put an end to pointless Mac vs. PC battles and start talking about Mac AND PC as part of the tool kit we use to keep users happy and productive!
Happy computing!
Richard Brunke
