Im not anti-Apple (as you know I own a few apple products) and whilst I agree they look smart and apple do great designs I think the major thing for me when it comes to Apple Desktops is the price, how hard it is to upgrade, and what you get for your £ you can get much higher spec in PCs. My own personal bug-bear with anything apple is how difficult it is to upgrade without it costing an arm and a leg.. thats if you can.. and dont have to buy a whole new machine. Personally I'd feel too restricted, and to be happy Id also need a PC.
You cant really compare M$ to Apple because M$ are primarily software designers and dont build complete systems.
In fact M$ in some ways have it tougher because they are seen as the major O/S supplier - they have the monopoly and therefore the regulators could be seen to come down harder on them than they do the others in some areas - Just like how BT cant get away with some of the stuff that the smaller operators can. Take for example bundling a web-browser or email client into their operating system.. yet Apple and even the linux distros can and do. Nor can they charge for service pack upgrades or else there would be a huge outcry. Think of the upgrades XP has gone through over the past >10yrs and its all free.
Design is down to the likes of Dell/Medion/whoever, and there are some pretty smart all-in-ones appearing on the market at a fraction of the cost of Apple, often with higher spec internals.
Dont get me wrong either by thinking Im an out and out MS fan.. because M$ do have their faults too that Im well aware of. I had my eyes open wide many years ago when I had to write a thesis comparing 3 different Operating Systems, and another module where we had to design a complete new network for a small graphics design company, right down to the machines and software. Apple arent totally whiter than white either.
At the end of the day, its horses for courses and both systems come into their own in different respects.
Apple do some fantastic stuff... its sexi as hell.. but it is overpriced for what you get.
There will always be debates between different operating systems and PCs -v- Macs. I see it as choice and its healthy that there are alternatives.
However, you are quite right, when you work hard for your money and you see something that you like and it appeals to you.. then I really dont have any problem in the slightest with someone getting what they want. Go for it.. and enjoy.. thats what computing is supposed to be all about