Considering that on these Apple devices the Apple store is literally the only entry point for running actual programs on these devices, I would say it is indeed pretty equivalent to "not being able to setup the computer".
Windows 11: lay-users can do literally nothing of value with their computer without signing in to an account they probably don't want
MacOS: lay-users can use the internet and download software provided outside of the app store without signing into an account that they probably don't want
Calling these equivalent would be quite an exaggeration.
Like, my point is that these devices are fully functional out of the box even without an account(but yes, it sucks that you need one to unlock it fully)