When you’re choosing the technology for your office, a huge decision is whether you’re going to use Windows-based PCs or Apple’s Mac products. Both offer a full range of desktops, laptops, tablets, and smart phones that integrate with each other. But, which is better for a small business?
Our IT Consulting Team at Technology Visionaries often assists small businesses in choosing the best technology that fits their company. It needs to be reliable, scalable, and offer a combination of affordability and flexibility.
We often steer our clients towards PCs rather than Macs because of some important limitations and drawbacks of using all Apple products that could end up reducing their IT capabilities in the future.
PC vs Mac for small business… which is better?
While many people think Macs are more virus-resistant than PCs, which is one reason they consider the technology for their office, that isn’t the case any longer. According to The Mac Observer there were nearly 250,000 new instances of Mac operating system malware just in the first quarter of 2017.
That’s just one misconception that’s changed over the years, along with a few others.
In this article, we’ll go through the main reasons that we don’t recommend Macs for small businesses and tell you everything you need to know before considering a switch from Windows to Apple for your office.
Our 5 Reasons that Small Businesses Shouldn’t Choose Mac Devices
Mac computers make up about 6.9% of all computers sold worldwide and the Windows operating system has a market share of about 82.55%. Which system do you think most software makers design their products for?
At Technology Visionaries, we believe in using the best technology to get the job done and we help our clients ensure that their investment in technology, both hardware and software, makes sense for them not only today, but also a decade or more down the road.
If you’re wondering whether your office should go with Mac’s iOS operating system or a Windows PC, here are some important considerations for you.
- Macs Have a Higher Level of Complexity and Cost
If you use an accounting program like QuickBooks, you may find that it’s not quite as easy to run on a Mac operating system as it is on Windows. Because software makers tend to design for the larger Windows market first, the porting of those same programs to Mac systems can be clunky and more complex.
You may have a software that is vital to your office, but it doesn’t run on a Mac system, meaning you’ll have to purchase another software program like Parallels or Boot Camp that will allow you to run a Windows environment on a Mac computer (Yes, you’ll need to buy the operating system too!). Another high cost is replacing a mouse or keyboard… you can only buy the Apple brand, which is expensive, unlike Windows, where you have several manufacturers and price options.
- Windows Have Caught Up in Performance
Several years ago, the Mac operating system did have an advantage over Windows. It was less buggy, graphics programs like the Adobe suite of design software ran more smoothly, and it was much easier to do things like connect it to a printer or scanner. But now Windows has caught up.
You no longer need a Mac if you work in graphics design. The connection to peripherals like printers is also just as smooth now with Windows as with Macs. The new Windows 10 is a major leap in efficiency and productivity.
- Macs Have Less Warranty & Repair Options
Windows computer manufacturers like Lenovo, Dell, and HP offer next-day onsite warranties, giving you peace of mind that you’ll have the hardware support you need when you need it. You can’t get that with Mac computers.
It’s also more difficult to find places to repair Macs when something goes wrong, and often you’ll wait much longer on parts that aren’t as readily available as Windows parts, especially if it’s an older system that’s no longer supported by Apple.
- More Difficult to Onboard New Employees
With Windows making up more than 80% of the computers being used, there’s a good chance that new employees won’t have Mac experience. This means you’ll have additional onboarding time and cost because you won’t only be training new hires on their position, but also how to use a computer operating system that they’re not familiar with. This can be a drag on productivity while staff are trying ramp up the Mac learning curve.
- Compatibility with Customers and Vendors
Have you ever tried sending a customer a Numbers or Pages document instead of Excel or Word? Numbers is the native Mac spreadsheet program and Pages is their version of Word, but you most likely won’t find many outside your organization who can open those file formats.
Most of your vendors and clients will be working on Windows PCs, so if your office is using Macs, you’ll have to be the ones that adjust your workflow so they can read your invoices or purchase orders.
Need Some Help Planning Your Office Tech?
We’ve consulted with many companies over the years, and we know which hardware and software are the best investments. Contact us today and let’s talk tech! We’ll be happy to give you our best advice.