Let me start off by saying that I take time about 3 or 4 times a year to try to convince myself that a .mac subscription is worth it. However, every time I look into it, I just can't do it.
I think the problem with the .mac service is that you can find almost all of these services elsewhere online, for free...
email, calendars, and bookmarks can all be provided for free by google.com... photos and websites take the form of flickr, photobucket, blogger.com, etc.
The online backup system sounds great, but (and this is off the top of my head), I think that it only has 1-2 gb of storage... I have a 250 gb harddrive at home... what happens to all my other information? how do I choose what gets backed up and what doesnt?
In my honest opinion, as easy and as appealing as the .mac system is, the bottom line is it's $99 a year for something that can be found for free elsewhere...
Brent
· 2 years ago
I agree mostly... I think that for the average consumer Mac user that wants a place to store family photos, documents and so on, a .Mac account is perfect. I think of it like Apple's answer to AOL. For the power user or one that deals in large files (photographers, designers, etc.), it's just not a viable solution at all. It just really depends on your usage requirements and what you will be needing from your Mac.
Brock
· 2 years ago
The answer to your question is "People who having nothing better to do with $90." Everything .Mac offers is offered elsewhere for free.
Brent
· 2 years ago
Well.. yes and no... The web, blog and podcast stuff with iWeb are pretty easy to use for the beginner.
Loweded Wookie
· 2 years ago
To those who say that these features are available elsewhere on the web I say this to you:
"They are found ELSEWHERE on the net."
They aren't all in one place. Sure you've got GMail or Yahoo Mail but these don't give you disk space.
You've got Flicker AND YouTube but not both in the same place.
But .Mac has backup software, access to software deals for other companies, free content such as sounds and jingles for GarageBand, and much more.
Tell me of one service that offers the exact same features as .Mac on the Net in ONE place and then maybe I'll accept your arguement.
Brock
· 2 years ago
"Tell me of one service that offers the exact same features as .Mac on the Net in ONE place and then maybe I’ll accept your arguement."
If not having a couple extra bookmarks is worth $90 / year to you, go for it.
JERRY TIPPY
· 2 years ago
can .mac synchonize 2 files in quickbooks pro 2007 for mac so that the same updated data will show on both machines without using 2 files
Kordal Sluthenger
· 2 years ago
Its like this. People who dont use .mac are missing out on a new mac experience. Sure there are services available on the web that offer similar features to some of the features in .mac. But as loweded has said, they are not together in one place - also those other services are not built into your mac. They dont integrate with iLife, they dont work just like everything else works on your mac.
To the people who dont understand the reason why .mac is pretty much an essential part of your mac experience I give you this scenario. Windows users who hear the rumours of a mac, and say why should they spend the extra x amount of money when you get everything on windows - They just dont get it ! They will understand after they've used it for less than an a hour.
.Mac is there from Apple to enrich what you do in iLife, to give the simplest backup solution and a great e/webmail service with the beauty of your mac.
Dont suppose you've noticed that if you or a friend are buying a mac, you get .mac 30% off their website says ;)
Andre
· 2 years ago
.Mac is also for those that are total Mac heads. I pay the yearly subscription fee just so my email can be @mac.com instead of @gmail.com. I don't use any other .Mac features. :P
Sue Ann Olsavicky
· 2 years ago
Sue Ann
Brock
· 1 year ago
The answer to your question is "People who having nothing better to do with $90." Everything .Mac offers is offered elsewhere for free.
peteramir
· 2 months ago
Being a Mac person for over 20 years, a .mac account is just another minimal service or application by apple that makes it reasonable to purchase, but just doesn't give you a service that you can't live without or get somewhere else for less or free all together.
All Comments
I think the problem with the .mac service is that you can find almost all of these services elsewhere online, for free...
email, calendars, and bookmarks can all be provided for free by google.com...
photos and websites take the form of flickr, photobucket, blogger.com, etc.
The online backup system sounds great, but (and this is off the top of my head), I think that it only has 1-2 gb of storage... I have a 250 gb harddrive at home... what happens to all my other information? how do I choose what gets backed up and what doesnt?
In my honest opinion, as easy and as appealing as the .mac system is, the bottom line is it's $99 a year for something that can be found for free elsewhere...
"They are found ELSEWHERE on the net."
They aren't all in one place. Sure you've got GMail or Yahoo Mail but these don't give you disk space.
You've got Flicker AND YouTube but not both in the same place.
But .Mac has backup software, access to software deals for other companies, free content such as sounds and jingles for GarageBand, and much more.
Tell me of one service that offers the exact same features as .Mac on the Net in ONE place and then maybe I'll accept your arguement.
If not having a couple extra bookmarks is worth $90 / year to you, go for it.
To the people who dont understand the reason why .mac is pretty much an essential part of your mac experience I give you this scenario. Windows users who hear the rumours of a mac, and say why should they spend the extra x amount of money when you get everything on windows - They just dont get it ! They will understand after they've used it for less than an a hour.
.Mac is there from Apple to enrich what you do in iLife, to give the simplest backup solution and a great e/webmail service with the beauty of your mac.
Dont suppose you've noticed that if you or a friend are buying a mac, you get .mac 30% off their website says ;)