So, Are you a Mac or PC?

I buy my clothes at Boscov’s, not Boyd’s; my cars at Toyota, not Lexus; my coffee at Wawa, not Starbucks.

And I buy my computers and peripherals anywhere that is not Apple.

My relationship with the material world comes down to three things: Practicality: Do you do what I need you to do? Price: Am I getting the most for my money? Principle: Do you really think I care what my purchase says about me as a person?

No, I do not.

Unless it says that I am not gullible enough to pay a premium for a brand name that makes me look cool, cocky and carefree. I’m not any of those things, and no brand will make it so.

Apple and its sycophants are just too arrogant for me.

It starts with the closed architecture that screams “no one can do it as well as we can.” Right. Which is why Apple only has about 12 percent of the PC market share in the United States. Sure, every PC now uses the Apple-led graphic interface, but the vast majority of consumers choose the Microsoft version. Some of us still use keyboard shortcuts to avoid having to reach for a mouse. We know how to delete a file without dragging it into a trash can. Our computers are tools, not fashion statements.

PC users have more software choices, more hardware choices and better gaming experiences. PCs are easy to build and upgrade. They are much less expensive. They are not immediately rendered obsolete by the next big Apple product. I am typing on a Logitech keyboard and viewing what I type on an LG monitor; I will print this piece out on an HP printer for proofreading; everything is working great with a Dell computer. And I had to stop and look up the brand name on each device, because I couldn’t care less.

I work with a designer — that’s right, a graphic designer — who figures one could build a PC to match Apple’s premium tower computer for about $1,500 less than what Apple charges; or, as he put it, “another computer and a half. One could argue that’s the price for putting it all together, but seriously, putting a computer together is just plugging things in. It’s harder to swap a tire on the highway.”

And here’s the clincher. Microsoft Office. Period. End of debate.

I will give the Appleheads this: An i-anything ingrates better with i-everything than do products from competitors. Sell your soul to Apple if you must, but my Samsung more than holds its own against your iPhone, and I love my Kindle Fire.

Oh, yeah, about that Kindle Fire. I know Amazon discounts the device as a loss-leader to lock me into becoming an Amazon customer. But my Kindle apps work great on my Dell PC and my Samsung phone. To me, Apple is aristocratic; Amazon, working-class.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I just glanced at my Timex and see that it’s time for lunch. I’m off to Wawa.

Mark Eyerly is Drexel LeBow’s executive director of communications. In fact, he coined the name “Drexel LeBow.” He’s not actually as uncool as he would have you believe.