Hunch.com looks at differences in Mac, PC users

Mac users are more likely to be young, tech-savvy urban-dwellers that enjoy throwing parties, whereas PC fans tend to skew older, are more conservative and say talking about computers is like “struggling with a foreign language,” according to a new study by Hunch.com, as reported by “TechNewsDaily” (http://macte.ch/a3Xg2).

Hunch.com — a site that makes recommendations based on preferences — suggests your computer choice can reveal a lot about your personality and personal preferences, from taste in movies and food to clothing styles. Hunch used 75 million answers to questions that it asked its 700,000 members to predict particular demographics, personality and other characteristics based on their computer type.

The aggregated data found that Mac users (typically ages 18 to 34) consider themselves more likely to be early tech adapters than PC fans, which is more likely to dominate the age 35 to 49 demographic. Mac people are also more likely to be vegetarians, enjoy indie movies, appreciate modern art and prefer designer, chic or retro clothing. PC people like Hollywood films, impressionist art and wearing jeans.

“We thought there might be some differences in how ‘Mac people’ vs ‘PC people’ value design since that’s such a core component of Apple’s product identity,” Kelly Ford, Hunch’s vice president of marketing, told “TechNewsDaily.” “And sure enough, that did play out with Mac people generally choosing more modern design options than PC people. However, what surprised us most is the extent to which there also seem to be deep personality traits that are distinct among the two groups.”

PC people are more likely to be team players, better at math, introspective and conservative (in politics, art and food — preferring white wine, strawberry daiquiris and sweet snacks over Mac fans’ love for salty things, red wine and gimlet cocktails), according to the survey. Mac people also find it important to be considered unique, which may be the driving personality trait that informs many of their choices in art, food, and even media.