Jason Unger

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If you've been paying attention, you might have noticed a major shift in the attitude toward two of the biggest technology companies by a few of the Web's biggest publications/communities.

Last week, after Bill Gates delivered his presumed final keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), most of the conversation on major tech sites like Digg and Engadget focused on how much Gates has done for the industry, how he's not as bad as his reputation, and generally what a decent job he's done at Microsoft.

It's surprising, especially with the number of Apple fanboys that visit both sites.

On Tuesday, Apple announced a number of new products at MacWorld, many of which have already received criticism and skepticism.

Apple's decision to charge $20 for standard apps for the iPod Touch has a lot of Diggers pissed off.

Spartan225:

This is stupid. Didn't they learn anything from the iPhone price drop? Like honestly how do you justify this? There is no NEW hardware it is just a software update! It isn't even a price reduction like the iPhone, they are flat out saying…hey these guys get this for free….but you guys you have to PAY. This is just ridiculous.

derekvof:

That is absolutely obnoxious that after just spending $400 on a frickin iPod Touch a couple months ago, they want me to drop $20 on apps that should have been there in the first place. It's not about the $$ as much as the insult to those of us who went out and supported them with our hard-earned money in the first place, dealing with all their f!#$@# bugs in the software, and offering feedback and advice on how to make the product better. We damn well DESERVE to get these applications and it royally P*SSES ME OFF!

The new Macbook Air, the super thin laptop with no replaceable battery or optical drive, has CrunchGear's Devin Coldewey arguing that the system is "basically useless."

This is a pretty big shift in online sentiment. Microsoft has always been the big-bad company, suing startups and putting out crappy products, while Apple (and Steve Jobs) are icons to be emulated.

So what's going on? Why has the mood shifted?

My two cents is that Apple isn't thinking enough about what the consumer wants. For so long, they've basically been able to build their products the way they want to and get a relatively small user base to open their wallets, no questions asked.

But the whole iPhone brickgate, lack of commitment to Apple TV, and continued problems they have pricing their products has their users riled up … and looking to Microsoft? Hell, the Zune 80GB has gotten a lot of good reviews.