From the mailbag

On May 18, 2010, at 10:25 PM, Richard Feder wrote:

Hi Steve Jobs,

I am now in the market for a new commputer and I keep hearing from my friends that I should get an Apple computer instead of the Windows machines which I have used in the past. My friends insist Apple is better, more reliable, and contains many extra feature. But when I went to the local Best Buy in Fort Lee, N.J., I was shown a Toshiba laptop for $399, while Apple starts for almost three times as much. And the sales guy there says there is not much difference — they are all made in China, by the same company, with the same parts. My question to you is why does Apple cost so much more, what do I get for the extra money, and could you be a good “salesman” and win me over? Also maybe I should get an iPad instead? Would that be enough for me?

Thanks and congratulations on being such an open and approachable CEO, you are a refreshing change from most of corporate America.

Richard

On May 18, 2010, at 11:38 PM, Steve Jobs wrote:

I don’t do sales. If you choose to get advice from some minimum wage worker at Best Buy, you will get what you deserve. Frankly, you sound like exactly the kind of penny-pinching fuckwit that we don’t want using our products anyway, so go buy the Toshiba and enjoy it while it lasts, because it represents the last of its kind. The times they are a changing, and very soon the all-purpose computer, where you can buy and run any software you want, will be obsolete, replaced by the iPad, which costs more and does less and only runs software made by Apple or approved by Apple and sold through Apple’s store. This is the future and it will be way better than what we’ve had so far, which is why legacy PC companies are freaking the fuck out. They see their messy “open” world slipping away and being replaced by the neat, tidy world where everything works seamlessly because, frankly, there are no seams. Everything comes from one place and works like a dream. No cross-platform development tools, no intermediary APIs, everything written in Cocoa. I don’t expect you to understand most of what I’ve just written because it is obvious that you are stupid. Anyway, I have instructed our Apple store people to put your name on our list of people to whom we will not sell products. In case you are considering having a friend buy a product for you, don’t, because as soon as you try to activate it or do anything that involves your email address, personal information, or credit card information, we will remotely brick your machine. I mean it.

Thank you and have a magical day. Much love,

Steve