Apple Has a Great Eco System, But Lacks in Areas for Business

A discussion about Apple's Mac, iPad, and iPhone products for business use.

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2/16/20252 min read

As a combined Apple and Microsoft user, I found myself wondering about the need of business software products integrated into my daily use for communication and collaboration with family, friends, and clients - and then it hit me. Apple doesn't have a universally array of Office productivity apps like Microsoft or Google that are accessible and sharable from any platform. The walled garden of Apple strikes again.

Before I move forward, I would like to reveal which products I own and use on a daily basis. Mind you, I don't run out any buy every new Apple product upon release - I'm just not one of those people. I own a 2019 Macbook Pro, 2018 Mac Mini, iPhone 15 Pro Max, Apple Watch 6, and an Acer Windows 11 (2025) gaming desktop PC for content creation on my YouTube Channel, use of Adobe Suite Software and some personal gaming.

As I typed this, it made me realize that the only 'glue' keeping my Micro-Apple devices working together is either Google Workspace (used until early 2025) and Microsoft Office 365 (in current use) since Apple doesn't allow everyone into the Apple productivity workflow apps natively, nor do they play nice with the Big Boys of Office productivity.

*I moved from Google Workspace to Microsoft Office 365 in 2025 since Microsoft offered a better bundle of software and is $8 less expensive per month compared to Google Workspace. I'll provide a detailed review of the two in another post.

So, if I were to go all in with Apple's ecosystem, I would still be forced to use (and pay) for an office suite outside of the walled garden (non-natively run software) either through Microsoft or Google. On the other hand, using Microsoft Office 365 can be natively installed on my gaming PC or I can use Google Workspace while natively working from an Android phone or Chromebook. Another plus in the Android smartphone space is that Samsung natively uses OneDrive by Microsoft as its default backup storage, even without a paid plan, and offers Microsoft Office 365 Mobile apps right out of the box.

When it comes to the Apple standard of design for their products and ease of use, of course they win compared to other manufacturers. But we're talking using devices for business purposes and certainly lack in this department, which communication and universal use of applications across all platforms is a must for a business owner - and maybe installing 3rd party apps is a great solution in an all-Apple user environment or business.

My question is, "Why Pay More" for Apple branded products when there are plenty of equal to or better-than performers, from a business perspective, than a device that was created for creatives? Or even more interestingly thought of, creatives are also running a business model so why even invest in Apple to begin with since it's your own brand you should be concerned with, not the one you carry around as a label.

And now I am asking myself the same question.

Thoughts?