That does suppose that Psystar ever managed a market presence that registered on the radar of the buying public, and not just we geeks who read tech news.

The thing is buying a clone and buying the genuine article are different markets. (obviously) I've always said this when an Apple vs PC flame thread heats up, I believe people who buy Macs are after a single product where they get great support a well made machine and providing they buy Apple approved peripherals and accessories they will work straight out with minimal fuss. Yes you pay a premium but when work is your focus time is money.

People who buy a PC are more tinkery, they don't mind the odd driver hickup if it means they get the latest kit. I don't want to say they're all gamers but that factors in to it.

They're different products and comparing them is not as black and white as fan boy's on either side make out.

Whilst it would be nice to think that 95% of the planet are PC-tinkering gamers - I don't believe that is the case. People who buy PC's either just want a computer and don't want to get ripped off, are using them at work as part of a huge corporate network and/or don't think that paying nearly £2k for a dual-core PC with a slow graphics card is a good use of their hard earned cash. Yes there are the tinkerers and the gamers, but given that PC gaming has fallen on its backside I fear that they are a minority who frequent forums such as this.

The reason why Psystar were selling under-specced PC's need only read the hackingtosh websites. The lack of driver support for anything besides the hardware that has appeared in an apple product means that choices are limited. Apple hardware is behind the times anyway, so Psystar didn't have a hope.

People buy PC's because they know no different, they use them at work/school and see a different UI and get scared...Unless businesses and schools use something else, the average consumer won't be immediately happy with anything else.

I have to agree. The people here are the exception and not the norm. The average person wants a computer that they can switch on, so some surfing, WP and gaming, print the odd photo and looks like what they use at School / work
The only way that esp linux will get a good toe hold in the consumer market is if Linux was the default used in schools. However schools are loath to do this partly due to support issues but also because if a student goes for an interview for a job and cant show that they have MS familiarity they would be at a disadvantage to those who can

Having said that the people that would buy a “fake” Apple would be the more computer savvy. If the average person was to get an Apple they will go to a store / Apple web site and would probably not even think of getting it from a 3rd party

Actually in experience people don't see why they should buy an expensive PC or Mac, when they can get one for <£500.

Good point.

Top notch support? Efficient work flow? Great build quality? Great looking? Holds it's re-sale value well? A great OS? I guess non of these factors mean anything unless you have bleeding edge components.

You aren't going to get bleeding edge components for under €500.

Most people's idea of top notch support is a friend or relative who works in IT. I know that none of my friends of family would ring a support line or go back to the shop, without first seeking my advice. Apple's support, here, is either a send-away service to a third party European hardware repair service or taking it back to MediaMarkt or Saturn, like any other manufacturers hardware - and it costs more here than in the UK!

Again, most people wouldn't know a work flow from a Crossflow.

Great build quality? No offence, but the build quality on the 4 or 5 PCs I've replaced in the last year was great - they had all made it to at least 9 years old with all original components and still in good working order, nothing rattled or squeaked. What more do you want?

Yes, they are great looking, but that is a matter of taste. A couple of the people who replaced have bought all-black, shiny piano black finish machines with matching monitors. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Resale value? If you are planning on buying a PC that will be replaced every 8 years or so, you don't really care about resale value.

I do have an iMac, what made me buy?

• The OS, but I know it had a different OS and wanted to try it - Windows XP had driven me away from Microsoft, and I'd been using Linux as my main desktop OS for 4 years, so I was willing to give it a try.
• The price was competitive - it cost about 20% more than an "average" PC on the high street, with a 24" monitor.
• It used laptop components, so used less power than a normal PC.

Resale value, looks and build quality didn't come into it. As I have never re-sold a PC, the looks didn't match any of the other machines I have and I assumed, for that price, if my cheaper machines last at least 8 years in an operational condition (I have some with are still running after more than 15 years), then the iMac should be at least as reliable.

Today?

• Having used OS X, I know it is very nice, but it isn't worth a price premium to me - but all of the tools I use are available on Windows, Linux and OS X and work pretty much the same on all platforms.
• The prices are no longer competitive. Instead of being within 20% of an "average" PC (with monitor), they cost nearly 200%! They are no longer good value for money.
• Other manufacturers are catching on to this are working on lower power consumption in general

To get back on argument, the average user won't spend 2K on a PC, when they can buy a functional machine for a quarter of that - and I don't mean Apple kit here, I mean gaming machines, workstations etc. as well.

Looks are important for some users, but look at what most of the manufacturers are producing these days, in the low end to mid range market. They may not be up to Apple standards, but they do get the average person to stop and go "oooh, shiny!"