Marco Arment on fanboy theory
Why is it that your choice of smartphone platform incites so much irrational anger and so many accusations of being a “fanboy” from people who use a different one? [...]
When people get defensive over their choices that you inadvertently cast doubt upon, and they don’t want to admit (to themselves or anyone else) that they made the wrong decisions, they will often attempt to convince themselves (and possibly everyone else) that your opinions are invalid by discrediting you.
Hence, fanboy: a derogatory term that means someone who is blindly and irrationally devoted to a product that I believe is inferior to what I bought when faced with a similar choice, and whose opinions and arguments can therefore be completely disregarded.
There’s certainly truth to this, but the thing that bugs me about the whole fanboy thing really comes from the definition given in The Loop that Marco linked to a few days ago.
Apple fanboy: Someone who is tired of technology being difficult and knows there is something better; someone that loves to get the job done instead of working on their machine; a person that isn’t afraid of breaking the status quo; someone that appreciates quality design and workmanship; a person that realizes cheapest isn’t always best.
Apple fanboys are commonly confused with the sensible people of society.
The problem with fanboys – and often Apple fanboys in particular – is not that they think their choice of gadget is better than yours, it’s that they think owning that gadget makes them better than you.
For the record, I like OS X but own a Windows PC. Next time I may buy a Mac. I use an old iPhone, though I don’t really like it as it’s so damned slow. I’m a big fan of Metro and Windows Phone 7, though there’s a good chance I’d buy an iPhone if I were in the market for a new smartphone right now. Not, I imagine, that this matters one bit. :)