Yeah, Apple's advertising can suck in the less technical, I agree, and people do buy them based on their looks. You can't deny that their Mac Pro and Macbook Pro line are good products though for the creative professional. I bought my Macbook Pro because there simply wasn't anything better in the 17" workstation class range of laptops for my $3000 budget cap. I was close to getting an HP Elitebook, but they got too expensive when I spec'd them out to be similar to the Mac. The HP is thicker and heavier too, although HP's have accidental spillage and drop coverage. Apple has their stupid Applecare that costs $299 for 3 year coverage that does not cover accidental spillage or dropping. I just have to be careful.
As a photographer who has to work with about a thousand 30MB+ RAW files after every wedding, fashion or product shoot, the wide gamut and high resolution screen is a godsend. It was a difficult decision, as I've been a PC user and Apple/Mac OS hater for the past 15 years, but I thought I'd give it a go. The learning curve has been steep, but it's working out ok....so far. I'm starting to like Snow Leopard more than XP (yes, I know XP is getting long in the tooth). I'm going to give Win7 a try though.