Do you use original brands or not?

[Doloresy]

When it comes to electronics brands, in how far do you guys use the original accessories (chargers, headphones, etc)? I got an iPad & MacBook, and I only purchase original Apple accessories, but my friends are always telling me off that I pay too much for those. How do you go about it?

[Satcomer]

Well it really depends. For Mac accessories I generally look to OWC. I get my RAM from the (while other Mac users love Crucial). Most all old time Mac users 99.9 % say not to get extra RAM from Apple. Heck even one made up the site memory price check site RamSeeker.

Also Some Mac users love getting gadgets from Logitech and Griffin Technology. Personally I spend a lot of time at ThinkGeek.

Just search around on the net and get a cool price comparison Safari widget like InvisibleHand.

[ElDiabloConCaca]

...but my friends are always telling me off that I pay too much for those.

What you pay for a piece of technology is nobody's business but your own; to which I would retort to said friends, "Why do you care how much I pay for something?"

With that being said, I typically buy Apple accessories, except, like Satcomer said, when it comes to upgrading a machine's internals -- ALWAYS 3rd-party RAM, ALWAYS 3rd-party hard drives, etc. Apple charges a premium for these items, more than likely covering the "trouble tax" -- meaning it takes time for a consumer to upgrade a hard drive and/or RAM in certain machines (take a look at the Mac mini), and therefore people are willing to pay a premium so that they don't have to do it themselves, or so that the machine comes loaded with what they want without having to upgrade it after the purchase.

I like the look and feel of everything working seamlessly. Call me stupid, but I like my white earbuds flowing out of my white iPod and my white MacBook. I like my Apple-branded "milk carton" iPad case more than I like 3rd-party cases. They just look great, are simple, and flow with the entire design of things. Design and consistency is big in my book, and for some strange reason, makes computing that much more enjoyable (which a lot of "modders" and home-brew enthusiasts just don't understand).

[Giaguara]

For things like laptop chargers, I stick with the originals.
For the other components - depends.
RAM generally from 3rd party (except for the Mac Mini Server, it was good enough to get it from Apple with some extra installed).
Headphones... if I need extras, whatever I've got around as spare may do, anything from shure somewhere to Old Navy's techno hoodies. (a few weeks ago I was looking for a fleece at their clearance section, but ended up picking a few different colors of those. Pretty awesome idea, and I'd have paid for the $ 8 for it even without headphones.. at least now I don't have to search for a pair).
Cases... whatever fits my mood. I've got a few cases for both the Macs and iPods somewhere, but when the MacBook Pro travels it goes to a Muji backpack with a built-in laptop compartment, and iPods stay in the pocket currently.

[ljohnson]

You could check out NewEgg.com that a good page to get accessories for your macbook and ipad.

[icemanjc]

Like everyone said before, I also use non-Apple RAM for my Apple computers. When it comes down to hard drives, I'm always looking for the best sale which of course doesn't usually come from Apple, but I stick with Western Digital so I know I'm always getting goof quality equipment. I also don't think Apple has the best variety of headphones, thus I have bought earbuds from Klipsch and Altec Lansing.

When it comes to monitor adapters and such I buy Apple brands because I've always had terrible problems with non Apple adapter. Problems that range from being really fuzzy to not even working at all.

Generally I don't go cheap when it comes to things for my computer. I pay a premium for things to work all the time. I can't have things fail in a middle of a major project, it's a waste of money and time. If Apple has that product I'm looking for and it is just as good as any other company's product out there then I will buy from Apple. The price makes up for itself over time. Apple's customer care is definitely a big part too, they have always taken very good care of me.

[XNTH]

I personally look at quality. I would rather pay more for high quality accessories than save some money and have to replace them in six months. Original Apple accessories are almost always high quality. There are also other great brands out there, but quality is my number one consideration.