Mac vs. PC: Who Uses Them?

Hunch Blog | Blog Archive | Mac vs. PC: A Hunch Rematch – StumbleUpon.

I used to think that people who had Macs were just stubborn and argumentative, but then my computer broke down (for the 5th time) and I was forced to borrow/share my roommates Mac for a few days/weeks… I was hooked. After I replaced my old Dell with a MacBook Pro I have gotten excited when I see other people with Mac’s, and I always love to ask them when they made the switch to Mac, or when they found out how easy to use they are. 

From what I understand people who do a lot of computer gaming, or programing need Windows based computers, but otherwise Apple computers seem to be the best option. I don’t mean to jump to conclusions, but I do love my computer 🙂 and I plan to use it for a long time.

Below is a breakdown done by Hunch, that looks into defining a little better the different people who use Mac’s vs PC’s. I am posting this for fun, and I’m not trying to “convert” anyone to Apple who doesn’t want one, just trying to educate a little bit. Feel free to add your thoughts with a comment.

Mac vs. PC: A Hunch Rematch

Our latest data project was to analyze how self-described Mac and PC people are different. The infographic below, designed by the talented folks at Column Five Media, breaks it down. Keep reading after the Infographic for more background and analysis, including some comparisons to findings from 18 months ago when we first looked at this issue.

Oh, and once you’ve checked out the infographic, head back over to Hunch.com to create an account and get personalized recommendations that are customized to your tastes.

Back in ye olden days of Hunch — November 2009 — we explored the differences in personality, aesthetic tastes, and media preferences between Mac and PC users. Since then, the Hunch user base and question pool have grown many times over. The 2009 report started with more than 76,000 responses to its base “Mac or PC?” question. The same question now has nearly 400,000 responses. This is all in the context of the more than 80 million “Teach Hunch About You” questions which have been answered on Hunch to date.

Mac’s a mover and shaker. Since our original report was released, we’ve seen the launch of the iPad (and the iPad 2 already), the iPhone 4 for AT&T and Verizon, and the latest versions of various computer models.

In the PC world… Well, they stopped showing these commercials.

Only kidding! Most Hunch users probably know better than I do — I’m in the 25% of self-identified Mac people. Almost an equal percentage of Hunch users would prefer not to define themselves as Mac or PC people, thank you very much. But 52% are on Team PC. Surprised?

The percentage of PC people among Hunch users is a smidge higher now than we noted 18 months ago. Back then, about 48% of Hunch users identified as PC, and the percentage self-identifying as Mac was also a bit higher at 31% vs. today’s 25%. Still, the concentration of Mac fans on Hunch is more than double the amount of Apple’s estimated world share of operating systems (11% or so, according to Canalys).

Hunch users tend to think debates about operating systems are pointless, but Mac people are more likely to think weighing the merits of Mac vs. PC vs. Linux is important. Meanwhile, 13% of PC users draw a blank if you bring up the operating system debate.

Many PC people still use Mac products. For starters, it seems as if almost everyone has an iPod nowadays. Out of 95,562 Hunch users, 48% report that they either have an iPhone or are seriously considering getting one. Keep in mind that this is a long-standing question on Hunch that once answered, isn’t asked again. So we’re guessing there are many more Hunch users who now have the iPhone. Since it’s finally carried by Verizon, perhaps some of the 52% of Hunch users who weren’t interested in an iPhone have gone to the smart(phone) side.

Are these correlations true for you, or would you say Hunch data does not compute?