Has Microsoft taken a huge bite out of Apple

Has Microsoft taken a huge bite out of Apple

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Just watched Microsoft windows 10 event, completely blown away by Hololens, surface 4 and surface book not to mention new Lumia 950 / xl. Is this a game changer ordering new hardware for Xmas and might even try and get fit with new Microsoft band, get in there

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ghm
By TaxTeddy
07th Oct 2015 08:28

After 6 years on Apple Macs...

.... we migrated back to Windows 8.1 this year - and seriously impressed.

I got tired of Apple's increasingly frustrating 'walled garden'. It really is a case of 'Apple's way or the highway'.

We're planning to move to Windows 10 after this year's tax return season is over. We already link Microsoft Surface tablets to our main machines. Slick.

Microsoft have really raised their game and (as Apple used to say) 'it just works'.

 

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By cparker87
07th Oct 2015 09:10

Did it ever change?
Microsoft > Apple

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By JCresswellTax
07th Oct 2015 10:16

It would certanly appear so looking at their logo!

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By mrme89
07th Oct 2015 10:29

I was seriously impressed when I tried out the Surface Pro 3. I didn’t think it was worth the money though and I opted for a Dell Laptop.

 

I still have an Iphone 5s. It would take something special to get me to change my phone from an Apple. It’s simple to use and I’ve spent a small fortune on iTunes!

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By Jackie0802
07th Oct 2015 11:04

I think I may be a ludite

I remember being in awe of Mac owners.  I always felt that they were members of an exclusive club that I, a humble PC user, was denied access to. It was  a 'them and us' affair in my mind. A few years ago, starting with the Iphone, I started dipping my toe into the hallowed water.  Now, after several Macbooks, Ipads, Iphones and Imacs I am still waiting expectantly for the light to come on. As I type this from a PC I can honestly say that I don't know what all the fuss is about.  I feel let down and tricked.

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By carnmores
07th Oct 2015 11:28

there is now a surface book (as opposed to tablet)

that will run at a speed 50% than a Mac Air book ! one of the other things that looks amazing is the docking station for the Lumia 950xl , just plug your phone in and voila you have a computer , certainly for 365 etc . I have my eyes on a surface 4 tablet . I have one of the original surface  tablets which I sue to watch iPlayer etc andreply to emails on the move hen large attachments are required

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Replying to ireallyshouldknowthisbut:
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By User deleted
07th Oct 2015 11:42

Fundamentals...

carnmores wrote:

that will run at a speed 50% than a Mac Air book !

 

50% what? Faster or slower?

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By carlh
07th Oct 2015 11:42

PC > Apple, been in IT for 31

PC > Apple, been in IT for 31 years and have used every product that both companies throw at us. both have their uses, but pc just edges it. 

however being also a MSE, TechPartner, do not touch win 10 until next year and then look very closely at the setup/installs. 

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By carnmores
07th Oct 2015 11:54

i slipped up there bananaman

FASTER of course and i am holding off from W10 on my old W7 laptop, tho i have W8RT on my original surface 

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Adrian Pearson
By Adrian Pearson
08th Oct 2015 09:51

Microsoft have all of the pieces coming together

I have a Windows Phone, 2 Surfaces (one "normal" and one Pro) and a desktop Windows PC. I also have an Xbox (for streaming movies and music, via Groove music pass) and a Microsoft Band (which is good for golf tracking). All have almost identical interfaces right now and will get more identical once Win 10 universal apps are everywhere. All of the devices are tied together beautifully with OneDrive for shared data and sync pretty seamlessly.

Work-wise, we use Office365 (using desktop and web office apps interchangeably), SharePoint, Skype for Business, OneDrive for business, Yammer and Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Our apps are stored in Microsoft datacentres and they also host Virtual PCs (in Amsterdam, so EU).

OK, you are bored now, I know, but the point I am meandering to, is that Microsoft have all of the pieces of the jigsaw and have, at last, almost put it all together - in a way nobody else will be able to.

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By chatman
08th Oct 2015 09:57

No. Apple has always been about the marketing.

No. Apple has always been about the marketing, not about having better products (except the first iPod).

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By carnmores
08th Oct 2015 11:01

thanks Adrian

i'm heading your way , see you at the 19th for a low alcohol snifter ;-)

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By Howard Marks
08th Oct 2015 11:10

Separate lives

Apple for personal stuff, MS for work.  The only crossover is my phone, iPhone 6+, it's just too user friendly to consider ever switching.

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Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
08th Oct 2015 12:41

What about reliability

For me the problem for me with windows based products are that they dont last. Once a PC gets over 3 year old they just seem to fry become prone to errors and get riddled with problems so have to be replaced at least twice as often as Apple products.

I have a IPAD that is 4 years old now and works as well as it did when I bought it apart maybe only now has 80% of the original battery life.

Everyone I know who has upgraded to Windows 10 has had major problems as a result of it resulting in a lot of downtime. You dont get that with Apple they just come out of the box and work.

The 2 major factors against Apple were cost of products, but I looked at the service pro 3 and that it was chatty against the mac book and they were the same price, I would only consider the service Pro if it were half the price of Apple. The next problem is compatbility of software on Macs, which now is less of an issue with cloud products taking over and the possibility to duel boot the system.

So for me as my Windows products fall down I will be replacing them with Macs as I think they are a much more robust product with a longer shelf life and run pretty much problem free.

Whilst I am sure MS are looking to redress the their problems for me they need to do a lot more to restore my faith in them. 

I maybe unlucky but i am I never seem to have a laptop last beyond 2 years before they pack in.

I suppose its a look like Sage they dominated years ago until better things came along and they lost there way. They have a lot of good developments coming out, but talk and promises are cheap the stuff needs to work without issue for people to restore the faith they once had in their products.

Remember these shows are meant to impress and most of the stuff they demo are not fully functioning products ready for release.

 

 

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Replying to DJKL:
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By User deleted
08th Oct 2015 14:00

But ...

Glennzy wrote:

For me the problem for me with windows based products are that they dont last. Once a PC gets over 3 year old they just seem to fry become prone to errors and get riddled with problems so have to be replaced at least twice as often as Apple products.

I have a IPAD that is 4 years old now and works as well as it did when I bought it apart maybe only now has 80% of the original battery life.

Everyone I know who has upgraded to Windows 10 has had major problems as a result of it resulting in a lot of downtime. You dont get that with Apple they just come out of the box and work.

The 2 major factors against Apple were cost of products, but I looked at the service pro 3 and that it was chatty against the mac book and they were the same price, I would only consider the service Pro if it were half the price of Apple. The next problem is compatbility of software on Macs, which now is less of an issue with cloud products taking over and the possibility to duel boot the system.

So for me as my Windows products fall down I will be replacing them with Macs as I think they are a much more robust product with a longer shelf life and run pretty much problem free.

Whilst I am sure MS are looking to redress the their problems for me they need to do a lot more to restore my faith in them. 

I maybe unlucky but i am I never seem to have a laptop last beyond 2 years before they pack in.

I suppose its a look like Sage they dominated years ago until better things came along and they lost there way. They have a lot of good developments coming out, but talk and promises are cheap the stuff needs to work without issue for people to restore the faith they once had in their products.

Remember these shows are meant to impress and most of the stuff they demo are not fully functioning products ready for release.

... at 1/4 the price Windows gear is twice the value!

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Replying to lionofludesch:
Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
08th Oct 2015 21:51

They are not 1/4 of price though

Old Greying Accountant wrote:

Glennzy wrote:

For me the problem for me with windows based products are that they dont last. Once a PC gets over 3 year old they just seem to fry become prone to errors and get riddled with problems so have to be replaced at least twice as often as Apple products.

I have a IPAD that is 4 years old now and works as well as it did when I bought it apart maybe only now has 80% of the original battery life.

Everyone I know who has upgraded to Windows 10 has had major problems as a result of it resulting in a lot of downtime. You dont get that with Apple they just come out of the box and work.

The 2 major factors against Apple were cost of products, but I looked at the service pro 3 and that it was chatty against the mac book and they were the same price, I would only consider the service Pro if it were half the price of Apple. The next problem is compatbility of software on Macs, which now is less of an issue with cloud products taking over and the possibility to duel boot the system.

So for me as my Windows products fall down I will be replacing them with Macs as I think they are a much more robust product with a longer shelf life and run pretty much problem free.

Whilst I am sure MS are looking to redress the their problems for me they need to do a lot more to restore my faith in them. 

I maybe unlucky but i am I never seem to have a laptop last beyond 2 years before they pack in.

I suppose its a look like Sage they dominated years ago until better things came along and they lost there way. They have a lot of good developments coming out, but talk and promises are cheap the stuff needs to work without issue for people to restore the faith they once had in their products.

Remember these shows are meant to impress and most of the stuff they demo are not fully functioning products ready for release.

... at 1/4 the price Windows gear is twice the value!

Service Pro 3 I looked at was same price as a MacBook for me there was no comparison between the 2
I don't think at any point Mac are 4 X the price

Maybe 40% more expensive but last more than twice the time
I know people who are using Macs that are 10 year old.

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Replying to DJKL:
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By paulwakefield1
08th Oct 2015 16:38

I think you have been unlucky

Glennzy wrote:

I maybe unlucky but i am I never seem to have a laptop last beyond 2 years before they pack in.

 

I think you have been. Current laptop is 3.5 years old and desktop is 5.5 years old. That is not atypical in my experence.

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Replying to DJKL:
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By chatman
09th Oct 2015 17:34

Extremely Unlucky!

Glennzy wrote:
I maybe unlucky but i am I never seem to have a laptop last beyond 2 years before they pack in.

Either you've been really unlucky or you're doing something really wrong.

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By SteveHa
08th Oct 2015 12:57

Linux FTW

Personally, I'm a Linux guy (I have no choice but W7 at work). Despite common perceptions, Linux is cleaner, faster, and safer than both of MS or Apple on the same hardware, it doesn't get borked every time there's an update, and it's completely open (and free).

 

As far as I'm concerned, no contest.

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AS
By AS
08th Oct 2015 13:27

Surface Pro 3

The Surface Pro is very powerful. My wife has a Surface Pro 3 (i5, 8gb ram and 256gb disk) that is connected to 2 4k screens and the whole setup runs really well. She ends up with 3 screens -the 12" surface pro and 2 27" 4k external screens. Most laptops would struggle to run 2 4k screens and most desktops would also struggle. She has an identical set up at home and in the office so she just takes the surface pro with her and plunks it into the docking station at home or at work.

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By cparker87
08th Oct 2015 23:48

But Glennzy

You probably pagger your windows gear hours a day and only watch your special videos on the ipad for 5 minutes. 

Of course the iPad would last longer!

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Replying to Paul Crowley:
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By User deleted
09th Oct 2015 12:26

Only 5?!

cparker87 wrote:

only watch your special videos on the ipad for 5 minutes. 

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By carnmores
09th Oct 2015 12:03

you have looked so hard Glenzzy

that you call it a Service its SURFACE ;-)

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By User deleted
09th Oct 2015 13:29

May be not 4x

... I exaggerated for effect, but you can get a fully servicable business Windows machine for £300/350, you will be looking at £950/1000 for a Mac.

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By Cantona1
10th Oct 2015 21:10

Crap Browser


I am surprised on-one has mentioned the new internet explorer or the edge.  No wonder why Fire fox and Chrome have taken over IE. I am not upgrading to Windows 10 soon.

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By listerramjet
09th Oct 2015 15:05

no fence sitting here!

Windows 8 was horrible.   Windows 8.1 an improvement.  Windows 10 is back on track.  The ribbon is still painful, but Office 16 is awesome.  Also not a fan of the subscription model, but loading it is exceptionally straightforward, and at least it keeps me up to date.  Overall, I would agree that Microsoft is coming back strong - but I do think they will co-exist happily enough; until someone comes along to usurp both of them!

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By louisVW4
09th Oct 2015 17:29

The difference between apple and MS users is...

PC users love to hate MS, but use it just the same, while apple users are simply fanatical, and will queue all night to buy whatever apple tells them ...at an exhorbitant price!  

The only 'industry' differentiator I see is the majority of 'creatives' use apple.

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Replying to Duggimon:
Red Leader
By Red Leader
21st Oct 2015 12:34

applications

louisVW4 wrote:

PC users love to hate MS, but use it just the same, while apple users are simply fanatical, and will queue all night to buy whatever apple tells them ...at an exhorbitant price!  

The only 'industry' differentiator I see is the majority of 'creatives' use apple.

Are there applications that are only available on Apple, e.g. music composition?

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By carnmores
10th Oct 2015 12:00

just been reading an article on PCMag (very sad i know)

on which processor to have on  S4T  , i think it came down on iCore5 rather than 3 or 7 , this is where i get completely lost 

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Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
20th Oct 2015 11:09

Windows 10 is just pants.

I upgraded about 4 weeks ago. Upgrade worked fine but since then started to go downhill. Outlook keeps crashing and having regular problems sending emails.

One Drive now only has half the files it once did as a lot seem to now be missing.

Laptop now runs a lot slower and battery life reduced by a big chunk.

So have MS taking a bite out of Apple, have they my a*se.

This laptop is about to go out of the window and I am going to stomp down to the Apple shop.

and for the record my special videos are viewed across all platforms.

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Replying to Matrix:
AS
By AS
20th Oct 2015 11:39

Windows 10 is not pants

Glennzy wrote:

I upgraded about 4 weeks ago. Upgrade worked fine but since then started to go downhill. Outlook keeps crashing and having regular problems sending emails.

One Drive now only has half the files it once did as a lot seem to now be missing.

Laptop now runs a lot slower and battery life reduced by a big chunk.

So have MS taking a bite out of Apple, have they my a*se.

This laptop is about to go out of the window and I am going to stomp down to the Apple shop.

and for the record my special videos are viewed across all platforms.

 

I have now updated 2 PCs and 3 laptops to Windows 10 and the upgrades went smoothly. Everything has worked fine since then apart from having to update the graphics card driver on one laptop. One of the PCs is very old (it used to be Windows XP > Windows 7 > Windows 8 > Windows 10) and that is the only machine which is now showing some performance issues e.g. Outlook takes longer to start up. I am going to wipe it and do a clean install which hopefully will sort out the performance issues. Overall I am very happy with the way Windows 10 works. It is much better than Windows 7 or Windows 8.1.

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By carnmores
20th Oct 2015 11:21

what are your PC specs

despite my enthusiasm  have delayed upgrading , were you on W7

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Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
20th Oct 2015 11:51

at Carnmores

My gear is decent spec - Laptop was Samsung i5 processor which cost £600 

Desktop is Lenovo Bad Boy - I7 Turbo set me back nearly a "rio".

Both bought as Window 8 machines then upgraded to 8.1.

Both might be available very cheaply soon as I am to put my foot through them.

 

 

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By carnmores
21st Oct 2015 11:26

@Glennzy

thanks  , I keep the office window open for such occasions and the bin is below ;-)

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