Your lips were like wine,
If you'll pardon the simile;
The music was fine
If a bit Rudolph Friml-y.
I think you can compare any one thing to any other one thing. You can discuss what are their common features and what features they have that are not shared.
So it seems to me "Can't compare apples and oranges" is often used just as a polemic device, trying to attack your opponents by claiming what they are saying cannot be said.
Kind of like how you don't judge a fish on how well it climbs trees.
So, to stop using similes: You can compare CPUs. You can compare memory chips. You can also compare memory chips and CPUs on, say, power consumption. But you can't compare memory chips to CPUs in terms of MIPS. If you try, then it's appropriate to accuse you of comparing apples to oranges.
But apples and oranges are both good food, so we can compare how much calories you get forjm them, or vitamins etc.
https://archive.org/details/bim_early-english-books-1641-170...
Apples and oysters are still things you can eat, but they're at least further apart than two fruits. The book also cites the similar expression "chalk and cheese".
From thefreedictionary.com for contrast:
> contrast to examine differences; a striking exhibition of unlikeness: The contrast of styles intensified the impact of the paintings.
> Not to be confused with: compare – to liken; relate; examine similarities: compare the shades of blue
You can’t compare apples to oranges unless you talk about their similarities (round objects, fruits, etc). Similarities don’t offer any new value to the conversation of apples and oranges. You can “contrast” apples and oranges (red, orange, better, worse). Which adds new analysis to the topic.