Commentary

5 Years On, and I Still Prefer My PC Over My Mac

By Ben Stockton

Published July 2, 2024

I’ve had a MacBook for five years now, but I’m still a Windows fanboy at heart. I prefer PC over Mac … for the most part.

I’ve always been a Windows guy. The first PC my family ever owned was a Windows 95 HP Pavilion with a 166Mhz Pentium processor. Owning a Mac had never really been on my radar. As an adult, I’d stuck to my own custom-built PCs and cheap laptops that I could easily replace to use as a second PC. I never thought I’d have the opportunity to explain why I preferred my PC over my Mac since I didn’t believe I’d own one.

When I started working as a writer full-time, however, I decided it was time to upgrade. I’d had enough trouble with the laptop PC market, with a string of Lenovo’s left in my wake. It was time to buy a MacBook, and so I did.

It’s been 5 years since then and I still use the 13-inch MacBook Pro I bought back in 2019. When I’m home, however, I default to using my PC. My MacBook has its usefulness, but 5 years with macOS hasn’t changed my mind that my PC is better than my Mac.

Windows is a more polished operating system

Don’t raise your eyebrows at this, but I believe Windows to be the more polished operating system compared to macOS. I’ve had more bugs, more crashes, and more “odd occurrences” on my Mac than I have on my Windows 11 PC (and before that, Windows 10). 

That’s not to say that Windows 11 is perfect—it isn’t. It’s just nicer and more stable for me to use. I do encounter bugs, but they’re rare enough that they’re a surprise, rather than the norm. It’s easy to find files, install apps, make system changes, and do everything I need to do without causing me any problems.

Windows 11 is better than macOS (in my opinion)

On my Mac, however, it’s a different story. It has always taken an age to sign in. Apps crash at random. The interface is pleasant enough to look at, but cramped. Finder is atrocious to use compared to Windows File Explorer. Hardware functionality, like Bluetooth, is buggy at best. Each major macOS update adds new functionality, but I’d struggle to give you any that I’d recommend using.

I don’t hate macOS, but these issues add up to create a less-than-pretty picture over the last five years. I just don’t have the same problems on Windows 11.

Nothing tops the Mac build quality

That said, I’ve had a less-than-successful history when it comes to buying Windows PCs and laptops. As far as I’m concerned, nothing beats Apple when it comes to the build quality of their products.

A rather memorable example is an $800 HP laptop I bought for university. Within 5 months, the metal display hinge broke through the plastic, making it impossible to close (or open) without causing more damage. I sent it off for repair, but the warranty request was rejected—I was blamed for the damage. Taking it apart on its return, the smallest, thinnest bit of plastic you could imagine was keeping the metal hinge in the plastic surround on the side that was unbroken. 

Nothing beats the feel and build quality of a MacBook

I’ve owned several PCs and Windows laptops since, all at different price points. While my own custom-built PCs trump all (after all, I get to determine the build quality there), nothing else has matched the quality of my MacBook. No broken hinges at least, although I have had to replace the charging cable a few times. 

Windows has a richer variety of apps and games

My Mac doesn’t have too many apps on it as I use it primarily for work. It has a few web browsers, Spotify, some image editing tools, Apple’s own apps, Microsoft Office, and not much else. I know that I could install other apps via the App Store, where there’s a pretty good selection to choose from.

However, the one app I use more than anything is Parallels, and that’s to boot up Windows. Why? Because, more often than not, I’ll choose to use a Windows app over a Mac alternative.

It’s Excel, but not as you know it

Office is a good example of this. I have Microsoft Office installed on both operating systems, but compared to the Windows version, the Mac alternative is poor. It lacks some functionality, the user interface isn’t as appealing to use, and it (in my experience) is slower and clunkier overall.

Windows is a more popular operating system, so it’s no surprise that it offers more variety and strength when it comes to apps. Games are another obvious example—gaming on Mac is almost an oxymoron, with very few games that you’d want to play available. 

My Intel Mac is Obsolete

There’s a problem with my analysis, however, and it’s one I’ve avoided mentioning until now. My MacBook has an Intel processor, and it’s one of the last that shipped with one before the switch to Apple Silicon. From everyone I’ve spoken to and everything I’ve read, Apple Silicon-powered Macs are a significant improvement over their Intel counterparts.

That, plus five years of improvements in the tech market, makes my MacBook obsolete. Does that make this whole comparison unfair? Well, no—there are plenty of older Macs out there running with Intel processors. That will continue for some time, too, with Macs having a much longer serviceable lifespan than their Windows equivalents in my experience. 

A lot of the problems that I’ve had with my Mac are ones I’ve felt since the beginning, too. If Intel Silicon has improved some of these, then great. For me, however, they just point to another conclusion: Windows is better. At least for me.

Choosing a Mac or a PC (or Both?)

There’s nothing wrong with Macs. Far from it, I still think that they’re the best-made computers that you can buy. macOS is easy enough to get your head around, too, even if some of the design choices still confuse me (looking at you, Finder). 

For me, I’ll always prefer my Windows PC, but that doesn’t mean I hate my Mac. It’s still my primary work machine when I’m not at home, and it has been for five years now. I can see myself upgrading to an Apple Silicon MacBook at some point, too. Get a Mac with enough power to run Windows in Parallels without slowing things down and you’ve got the best of both worlds.

All in all, my personal preference is Windows, but my Mac hardware is hard to beat. What about you: do you prefer a Windows PC or are you Apple through-and-through? Let me know in the comments below.