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Are Mac users snobs? “The Street” thinks so

Steven Parker   on 18 February 2008 - 12:39 · 106 comments & 42165 views

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Think you’re cool with your MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, or Mac Pro? US stock Market news site “The Street” has news for you: they think you’re a snob!

Time for some light hearted fun that hardcore Mac users might not appreciate. Mac news site “Insanely Great Mac” has uncovered a video clip from stock market news site, “The Street”, guaranteed to send any touchy ‘superior’ Mac fanboi into such a lather they might start seeing spinning beach balls of death wherever they go, although many of the uncovered traits are quite complementary.

Taken from research conducted by Internet advertising research firm Mindset Media, Insanely Great Mac says that the research “found Mac users to be more liberal, less modest and more assured of their own superiority”.

Mac users strong enough to watch The Street’s video clip without getting so offended they’ll smash their screen will discover the 2 minute and 18 second video says the following: Mac users “self centred, arrogant, conceited”. Out of the Mindset Media study of 7500 Mac and PC users, “Mac users do really think they are superior”. They think they are “self important, extraordinary and more intellectually curious”.

View: Full Article @ iTWire

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(1 reply) #1 n301 on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:41
I love it, haha
#1.1 mrmckeb on 19 Feb 2008 - 06:46
I think I love it more...
#2 digitalsoft on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:45
Ouuuch hate to say it but i think its true!
#3 carmatic on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:47
yeah, i have to agree with this, but i dont think that spelling it out like that is really necessary...
#4 LTD on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:49
Taste for premium goods, more disposable income, etc.

Plus, Windows makes it so easy.

Hell, I don't even pump my own gas!

(j/k . . . pure, pure flamebait by Steven Parker here, but I guess news is news. But is it really??)
(4 replies) #5 lammmetak on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:49
we ARE superior where the elite computer users
#5.1 LTD on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:51
Make sure we can spell, though!


#5.2 kravex on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:26
(lammmetak said @ #6)
we ARE superior where the elite computer users


Not when it comes to grammar.
#5.3 LTD on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:06
(kravex said @ #6.2)
(lammmetak said @ #6)
we ARE superior where the elite computer users


Not when it comes to grammar.


LOL. Swift.
#5.4 QuarterSwede on 19 Feb 2008 - 01:20
Hahaha, it's funny because it is true.
(6 replies) #6 on 01 Jan 1970 - 00:00
#6.1 LTD on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:50
Really.

Thats' entrapment. Nasty, nasty. Staff who encourage such behaviour deserve a few warnings themselves.
#6.2 Neobond on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:57
Hey SniperX, Bite me!
#6.3 SniperX on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:23
(Neobond said @ #4.2)
Hey SniperX, Bite me!

Bite you? Eh? Is this an insult in some language that I'm not overly familiar with? I really need to stay abreast of modern day insults...
#6.4 jgrodri on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:50
#6.5 Dakkaroth on 18 Feb 2008 - 18:33
Flame-bait is HOT!!!
#6.6 Swordnyx on 18 Feb 2008 - 19:14
(SniperX said @ #4.3)
(Neobond said @ #4.2)
Hey SniperX, Bite me!

Bite you? Eh? Is this an insult in some language that I'm not overly familiar with? I really need to stay abreast of modern day insults...


You're a snob.
(2 replies) #7 Citrusleak on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:55
I'm sorry, but I have to agree w/ this. It seems like Mac people are always the ones wearing expensive suits, thinking that they're all that, and acting like they are superior because of their computing choice. I have seen it because I went to Macworld, but at the same time a lot of them aren't stuck up and are just fun to talk to.
#7.1 kupang on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:00
i somehow agree with u dude.. especially "a lot of them aren't stuck up and are just fun to talk to" .

19 minutes with 13 posts and counting...
#7.2 NeoTrunks on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:20
(Citrusleak said @ #7)
I'm sorry, but I have to agree w/ this. It seems like Mac people are always the ones wearing expensive suits, thinking that they're all that, and acting like they are superior because of their computing choice. I have seen it because I went to Macworld, but at the same time a lot of them aren't stuck up and are just fun to talk to.


Make up your minds. I thought we didn't care for suits and always just dressed in some jeans and a t-shirt.
(1 reply) #8 vetmarkjensen on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:57
Wasn't this research by Mindset Media posted as FPN back in Janurary?
http://www.neowin.net/news/main/08/01/17/m...mselves---study

At least this one has a video to watch.
#8.1 bobbba on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:40
Yes it was.
(2 replies) #9 seta-san on 18 Feb 2008 - 12:57
this is too true. when i was younger i used to be a mac zealot. since highschool i've been using PCs and realized what a douche i've been.
#9.1 jgrodri on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:58
are you saying you were a douche and therefore used a mac or that you were a douche and also used a mac? I ask because i think this article fails to differentiate that. I don't really see something wrong with buying a hybrid car or purchasing organic goods, it just so happens that said attitude in excess leads to being a smug.
I find the results contradicting... mac users who are more environmentally conscious also buy five pair of sneakers a year? I can't really imagine someone buying 5 pairs of sneakers, on the other hand.. 5 pairs of footwear is not really much of a stretch.
#9.2 Joshie on 19 Feb 2008 - 04:12
(jgrodri said @ #9.1)
are you saying you were a douche and therefore used a mac or that you were a douche and also used a mac? I ask because i think this article fails to differentiate that. I don't really see something wrong with buying a hybrid car or purchasing organic goods, it just so happens that said attitude in excess leads to being a smug.
I find the results contradicting... mac users who are more environmentally conscious also buy five pair of sneakers a year? I can't really imagine someone buying 5 pairs of sneakers, on the other hand.. 5 pairs of footwear is not really much of a stretch.


Believe it or not, there's more wrong with going hybrid and organic than you're aware of.
(3 replies) #10 Chicane-UK on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:22
Argh - this is so ridiculous it boggles my brain.

I use a Mac and I consider myself to be a typical geek, just like any computer enthusiast - I can happily spend a whole day just tinkering with my computer, surfing the net - I wear jeans and a t-shirt, I enthuse about technology, I like gadgets.. i'm no different to a Windows or Linux just because I happen to use a Mac from time to time.

I've met my fair share of eliteist Windows and Linux users in my time! The point i'm trying to make is there is no class system between computers / operating systems - there are plenty of people who fit into ALL categories who use each system - be it evangelist, fan boy, or just USER.

I'd say i'm different from the typical geek in some respects in that I have interests outside of the computer, I have a social life, I have a girlfriend, and I shower regularly!! But I did all that before I had a Mac!
#10.1 theyarecomingforyou on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:55
(Chicane-UK said @ #1)
and I shower regularly!!

Yup, you certainly stand out from the rest of us here.
#10.2 iCeFuSiOn on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:06
I agree with you as well, I just switched last month and I act no differently today than I did two months ago. I'm still enthusiastic about Windows, Linux, and Mac as well, if anything it gives me more experience to help others now that I know all three platforms. I don't wear a suit, I don't have my nose stuck up in the air, and I certainly don't run around preaching a platform like it's a religion.
#10.3 Dakkaroth on 18 Feb 2008 - 18:42
Well, at least it's good to know that there are people without sticks up their butts here.
(2 replies) #11 +GreyWolfSC on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:23
Instead of throwing gas on a fire, I'll complain about the nasty looking new layout with extra ads.
#11.1 GEIST on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:04
(GreyWolfSC said @ #11)
Instead of throwing gas on a fire, I'll complain about the nasty looking new layout with extra ads.


Don't forget the icky 'show additional Information' box.
#11.2 simon360 on 18 Feb 2008 - 20:27
It's the same amount of ads as before, just moved one, and you can hide the "icky additional information" box, so I don't really see the problem here.
#12 Neoauld on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:24
reminds me of a joke
Why are mac users so skinny
cause they spend all their energy trying to convince pc users that theyre better

really..mac users over compensate for hte fact that they are an insignifcant minority
i know mac users at work..and they just constantly push the mac propaganda on ppl
(1 reply) #13 seta-san on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:31
i think maddox has it right.

maddox
After the recent Apple conference, Mac fans were elated. One person was quoted as saying "I've had a Macintosh now for a total of 35 days, and I'm really excited to be part of the Mac community." Part of the Mac community? It's a computer, not a social movement, as s hole! I feel like Apple is not just selling computers, they're selling a way of life, and I'm not ready to be that heavily invested in a product.
#13.1 daPhoenix on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:36
(seta-san said @ #13)
i think maddox has it right.

Maddox lost his edge years ago.

On that note, why is this "News", it's more like trolling than anything else - if I posted something like this about USA or PC users I would get banned or infracted in a second.

I guess a different set of rules for different people here on neowin.
#14 Vveazel on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:35
"Mac users are x, y z." And?
#15 elvenseven on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:36
In b4 mac zealots.
#16 ikyouCrow on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:52
regardless of what anyone here says, i used to "preach" the gospel of the Macintosh to Windows user i came across. talking about the superiority of the PPC and the Mac OS and the ease of use and the interface.

but then i started to look at what Windows was turning into and Mac OS stagnating and realized that there's more to the whole Windows universe than what we (at the time) Mac users knew about it. things like ease of use and other trash like that.

then i saw the price difference and started building my own machines and realized how cheap it was to build a similarly spec-d machine as compared to buying something with no customization potential.

looking back at it, i was pretty creepy and even managed to convinced one of my friends who now is still enthralled by Mr. Jobs' undeniable RDF.
(4 replies) #17 Davebo on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:53
It's the truth - they are snobs.

They aren't very computer savvy, either, and now that they're in a x86 world, they are going to be the "malware poster children" of the 21st century....

#17.1 bobbba on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:50
nice stereotype, thanks for your contribution...
#17.2 Swordnyx on 18 Feb 2008 - 19:20
lol thats not true I have a lot of friends who are snobs but also know some stuff; they just show off like hell like a Mac user is supposed to.
#17.3 ikyouCrow on 18 Feb 2008 - 20:48
are they snobs because they own a Mac or are they snobs because owning a Mac says they have money?

like Alienware users..... *ducks under cover...

Last edited by ikyouCrow on 19 Feb 2008 - 16:48
#17.4 Swordnyx on 18 Feb 2008 - 22:06
(ikyouCrow said @ #17.3)
are they snobs because they own a Mac or are they snobs because owning a Mac sys they have money?

like Alienware users..... *ducks under cover...


So true.. Alienware users = Mac addicts x2.

But for the Mac costs money thing, my laptop costs 2,800. More than a MacBook Pro, and way better. I'm not a snob cause I have a better computer, but for some reason all the Mac guys think my PC is weak or something and that their underpowered shiny boxes are better. So arrogant.
#18 naap51stang on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:54
I've always thought the majority of Mac people thought they were better than everyone else......but, considering just about every HollyWIERD movie to come out has Macs......doesn't surprise me one bit.
(4 replies) #19 Neobond on 18 Feb 2008 - 13:58
LOL @ all the Mac users voting this article down
#19.1 vetmarkjensen on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:11
They might be voting it down because it's been posted in Front Page News already...
#19.2 vetHurmoth on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:22
I voted it "down" because it isn't news. All it is is an article to bash Apple fans. Even the article itself states, "Time for some light hearted fun that hardcore Mac users might not appreciate." What kind of response were you expecting? Apple fans coming in here admitting to being a snob?
#19.3 +Mephistopheles on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:42
(Hurmoth said @ #19.2)
I voted it "down" because it isn't news. All it is is an article to bash Apple fans. Even the article itself states, "Time for some light hearted fun that hardcore Mac users might not appreciate." What kind of response were you expecting? Apple fans coming in here admitting to being a snob?

Agreed. This 'article' is pure flamebait and shouldn't have been posted to begin with.

Edit: You are aware that a significant number of staff members is using Macs, right?
#19.4 vetmarkjensen on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:03
(Mephistopheles said @ #19.3)
Edit: You are aware that a significant number of staff members is using Macs, right?
I don't think it matters if staff or members use any particular platform. This is just reporting the results of a study (and many attributes found were positive). Maybe worthy of FPN once. Just not twice, IMO.
(2 replies) #20 LTD on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:10
Paradise = not having to know anything about computers to be able to use and enjoy them. That is the goal of Perfect Engineering. We're not there yet, but Apple is heading in the right direction.




#20.1 Neoauld on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:56
(LTD said @ #20)
Paradise = not having to know anything about computers to be able to use and enjoy them. That is the goal of Perfect Engineering. We're not there yet, but Apple is heading in the right direction.


i remember an article where 2007 showed mac 3x as insecure as PC
right direction alright, DOWNWARD
faster apple dies the better, their advertising is all about bashing PC..not promoting theyre stuff
theyre worse than microsoft if you really look at them
#20.2 vetmarkjensen on 18 Feb 2008 - 17:30
(Neoauld said @ #20.1)
i remember an article where 2007 showed mac 3x as insecure as PC
right direction alright, DOWNWARD
faster apple dies the better, their advertising is all about bashing PC..not promoting theyre stuff
theyre worse than microsoft if you really look at them
You mean comparing OSX to Windows, not to PC hardware.

And where is that study? Because I am pretty sure if you give a person a Windows system and an OSX system, and told them to "get infected", the Windows box would be loaded with malware, and hardly anything malicious on the OSX one.

I know which platform I would feel more secure in. (and for the record, I don't use Windows or OSX, I prefer Linux - just commenting on your Windows/OSX post)
#21 Adequate on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:12
I'm kinda surprised no major s@$tstorm started yet...
#22 OblivionStalker on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:23
Just wait a little longer. when the Mac fanboys come...
(1 reply) #23 Khirzask on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:28
"[Mac users] are so smug, they like the smell of their own farts!"
#23.1 QuarterSwede on 19 Feb 2008 - 01:25
It's true, I do
#24 johnnyftw on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:48
Are Mac users snobs?: Absolutely.
#25 Gundamdriver on 18 Feb 2008 - 14:49
I agree, even I am a Mac user too.

Some Mac users just ignore the fact that products from Apple isn't 100% perfect, and argue that those defects are part of design. Also when Mac doesn't provide a certain function, some of Mac users will say "why do you need that?"...
#26 aStRaLgOd on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:06
Dude.... since when is this a technological news? I'm not a mac user, I'm 100% PC user, but this is just a pretext to cause a major bitchstorm...
#27 Harper on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:12
"I won't EVEN dignify that with an answer! C'mon, Muffy........lets go shopping, I have some sneakers I'd like to purchase. Where did we park the Prius?"
#28 KeR on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:22
Pure flame bait, not sure why a mod would post this on the front page...its hardly news?

But I also think anyone who can't laugh at themselves should be shot too . Its just that too many stories of this nature; that are mainly opinion based are making it to the front page, and to add to insult they are being promoted by mods, who should know better.
(2 replies) #29 winmoose on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:28
I often think Apple-ism and Scientology have a lot in common; brainwashing, regularly paying large sums of money, superiority complex, run by charismatic leaders etc.

Just kidding!

#29.1 Adequate on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:33
In b4 winmoose gets SP'd
#29.2 winmoose on 18 Feb 2008 - 17:10
In b4 winmoose gets SP'd


What does that mean?
#30 Flae_qui on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:43
yep so true... every owner i know has a "holyer then thou" frame of mind.
#31 rwphoto on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:46
That's something every PC user already knew! What does that say about owners of both OS's (like myself... are we confused, liberal or conservative...?).
(2 replies) #32 rage710 on 18 Feb 2008 - 15:55
I have a windows, linux, and mac computer, however I don't find myself to be a snob. Call me crazy, but I just like the os better than the others.
#32.1 Chicane-UK on 18 Feb 2008 - 18:07
I guess the Windows trolls are just glad to have the heat off the Windows Vista articles for a while - any chance to poke fun at Mac owners will be exploited to the maximum.
#32.2 RAID 0 on 18 Feb 2008 - 19:09
[quote=Chicane-UK said,#32.1]I guess the Windows trolls are just glad to have the heat off the Windows Vista articles for a while - any chance to poke fun at Mac owners will be exploited to the maximum.[/quote


You're the troll.
(1 reply) #33 JamesWeb on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:02
Flamebait, or TRUEbait?
#33.1 RAID 0 on 19 Feb 2008 - 00:08
I call Master BAIT.
#34 GEIST on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:06
Linux folks are far worse in that regard. Snap!
#35 Hell-In-A-Handbasket on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:29
i have to lol @ this article and the video

i use a mac

hate organic food
Drive a 00 Focus ZX3 ( Not a station Wagon or a Hybrid )
Dont care about the Environment
Dont use teeth whitening stuff
Dress in Jeans t-Shirt
Last Pair of shoes ( Black work Boots ) about 3-5 years ago @ Walmart
Doubtfull im a perfectionist

But i will admit, i am satisfied with my MBP, Use a Laptop, and actually paid for music online for the past 2 years ( only used a mac for little over a year

guess im not Hardcore, i got alot of work to do/change

i Agree with GEIST though, so far every Linux user i know personally, tries to Force their Linux Distro on people goign as far as Insulting them if they dont switch/use it/like it.
#36 Smethead on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:32
Seriously, this is stupid. Mac users aren't snobs. I have 4 or 5 mac users in my class and only one is a bit snobbish. He is however a great guy to talk with. I myself don't have very much money and I'm using a PC now, but am about to switch to Mac next year. Not because it's fancy, but because I have had lots and lots of problems with my current and former laptops and I know people with brand new laptops that just don't work well. Vista or XP doesn't matter. And then I see how easily all those things I can't get done work on my freinds' macbooks. I can get a new laptop if I pass this year, and since I'm not much of a gamer, I can as well get a macbook. I'm also a programmer to be, so with the macbook I can program for both OSes with ease.
I know Mac has it problems too. I'm not some kind of apple fanboy (don't even have an ipod). I just hate these stupid kind of threads/news posts. Let people buy what they want to buy. I think mac users and pc users should stop flaming each other. Both sides have positives and negatives. And what The Street did is wrong. It's like saying everybody who wears cloths from some kind of brand is a snob, while people can just whatever they like. I'm pretty sure those snobs exists, but certainly not the majority.
(1 reply) #37 Dashel on 18 Feb 2008 - 16:52

#37.1 Hell-In-A-Handbasket on 18 Feb 2008 - 17:30
lol
(1 reply) #38 Mikeparkie on 18 Feb 2008 - 17:27
macs are generally more expensive. so its logical to generalise that more upper class people would buy them. and obviously there is always an exception to the rule. Because computing is so 'personal' people will always get offended when they are put into a box.
#38.1 ikyouCrow on 19 Feb 2008 - 16:51
okay, but are they buying it because it "just works" or are they buying it because of the er... "upper class" price tag?
#39 needlegun on 18 Feb 2008 - 19:20
That's rich - Stock Market types calling Mac users snobs.... LOL.

Pot & kettle.
(8 replies) #40 RAID 0 on 18 Feb 2008 - 19:21
Are Apple users snobs? Maybe. One thing I do know fer sure, is that PC users don't go around trying to get people to change what computer and OS they use.
#40.1 evo_spook on 18 Feb 2008 - 19:23
No, they just go on trolling sprees trying to put the computer of their choice down.
#40.2 RAID 0 on 18 Feb 2008 - 20:28
(evo_spook said @ #40.1)
No, they just go on trolling sprees trying to put the computer of their choice down.


Oh I C. When ever someone does not agree, they're a troll. Yeah OK. Good one Evo, you really shed some light on this subject.

Last edited by RAID 0 on 18 Feb 2008 - 20:37
#40.3 evo_spook on 18 Feb 2008 - 20:53