Nice numbers

[MacHeadCase]

I dunno if any of you guys saw these latest numbers on market share, Macs Defy Windows' Gravity (http://blogs.eweek.com/applewatch/content/channel/macs_defy_windows-gravity.html)?

We all knew something was moving in the computer market share but to this extent? Pretty amazing!

Consider this: Apple's retail market share is 14 percent, and two-thirds for PCs costing $1,000 or more.

Should I repeat those numbers? The share data is for first-quarter brick-and-mortar stores, as tabulated by the NPD Group. Apple's market share is but one measure of success. Sales growth is way up, while Windows desktop PC sales are way down.

"In notebooks they're growing two times the market," said Stephen Baker, NPD's vice president of industry analysis. "Windows notebooks are pretty much flat right now." ...

Awesome... :cool:

[Zoolook]

I dunno if any of you guys saw these latest numbers on market share, Macs Defy Windows' Gravity (http://blogs.eweek.com/applewatch/content/channel/macs_defy_windows-gravity.html)?

We all knew something was moving in the computer market share but to this extent? Pretty amazing!



Awesome... :cool:

You do have to wonder what would happen if Apple was able to put together a budget package for a whole system (slightly larger Mac Mini, with desktop components and a screen, mouse, KB) for $700 for example.

[MacHeadCase]

Oh yeah! That would be really something wouldn't it? The rest of the industry would really be scared then.

[Kilted]

I totally agree. However trying to out guess his Steveness is a frustrating business

[Zoolook]

He does have a bit of a dilemma. Apple has an image of being upmarket and of high quality. If the bar is lowered, it could possibly impact that image and make the product less desirable.

However you only have to look at iPOD to see that covering all sections of the market is highly rewarding. iPOD shuffle, mini and classic really work well together for example.

[MacHeadCase]

Very sound points you make, Zoolook.

[Sherman Homan]

ditto that Zoolook. Apple achieved a marketing coup with a device that is both high-end and common with the iPod. That doesn't happen often in any industry. Stevie's challenge is to come up with a mid-range computer that has the Mac caché. I think it can be done, but he hasn't called me lately...

[Ryan]

I think that it would be nice to introduce a 17" iMac. Make it around $800 or so, so you can appeal to people who want the quality of an apple product, but don't have the budget to shell out $1200 for the cheapest desktop. I don't think that it would "tarnish" apple's image at all, it will just expand who apple markets too. I can see many positives to having a lower model desktop.

[MacHeadCase]

Well the Mac Mini was supposed to target that sub-$1,000 market but... well... I...

*cough* * cough* never took it seriously. :blush:

[Ryan]

Yeah, I mean an all in one system like the current iMac in a 17" model. The mini is a cool idea, but I don't think it's worth the money.

[Sherman Homan]

The mini is an example of how hard it is to hit the sweet spot. I have listened to people emphatically say that a mini isn't really a Mac, they want dual monitor support, they want one PCI slot for their USB collection, they want to not use a putty knife to install ram...

[iKitten]

I think that it would be nice to introduce a 17" iMac. Make it around $800 or so, so you can appeal to people who want the quality of an apple product, but don't have the budget to shell out $1200 for the cheapest desktop. I don't think that it would "tarnish" apple's image at all, it will just expand who apple markets too. I can see many positives to having a lower model desktop.
I agree, I was really surprised when they discontinued the 17". :uhh:

[bobtomay]

A mini with the specs of the 24" iMac and I think I'd be all over it.

[MacHeadCase]

But wouldn't we mistake that Mini for a waffle iron? I mean it would become a tad hot with 256MB of video RAM... :w00t:

[Kilted]

Maybe you could have a popcorn maker built in for all those films

[MaDDoG]

I personally don't want many people owning Apples. I like the fact that all those virus and trojan and worm and etc writers pick on normal PC's. If Apple Macs become too mainstream then the focus will undoubtedly be shifted and I don't want to be in the cross hairs.

Food for thought.

[MacHeadCase]

In fact, at the risk of getting a bloody nose here for what I'm about to say, I would say that the MacBook Air makes me feel the same way as the Mac Mini does.

Sure, I'm amazed at how thin that notebook is and how very sexy it looks. But...

I'm not too sure it is practical, wireless networking is not my cup of tea (I feel the technology needs to mature, stabilize a bit and the security has to be foolproof) and when you look at the price, the special peripherals you need, etc.

Not for me. But the MacBook Air is very far from being sub-$1,000 anyway. :sleep:

[MaDDoG]

I just don't think it very practical. sure it is thin but my MBP isn't exactly thick. Was there really a market for it or is it more of a gimmick?

[MacHeadCase]

That's a very good question indeed. It could be to showcase to the world what Apple engineering can do though... I dunno, last time I had lunch with His Steveness he talked about his private jet instead... :thumbdown:

[Zoolook]

Well the MacBook Air has been a big seller, and that's hard to argue with. I know people personally (mainly women) who want it and are happy to give up their bulky Dells and HPs. The 'Pro' moniker of the MBP might actually put off people who may think it's more than they need, and the Air is certainly sexier than the plastic MacBook.

[MaDDoG]

My wife doesn't find thin sexier thats why she chose me...I'm thick.

[iKitten]

My husband would like a MacBook Air, he really likes the form. Since he can use my MB when we travel, it isn't essential... 'specially at the price!

[MacHeadCase]

Yeah kinda pricey for what you get, me thinks.

[MaDDoG]

I see you are a star now MHC.

[MacHeadCase]

Yeah I think it's 'cuz I have over 100 posts? I saw it appear when I went over the 100 post mark.

[MaDDoG]

Oh ok. I guessed that may have been the answer. I was just checking the member lists. Boy they have quite a banned list already and a familiar name or two amongst them.

[MacHeadCase]

Really? Ooh! Gotta check that out! :tongue_smilie:

[MacHeadCase]

Yep, it is because I have over 100 post. This member (http://macapper.com/forums/member.php?u=6) here too has over 100 posts and has a star on his member badge as well.

[MaDDoG]

Starry starry night.......

[MacHeadCase]

Starry starry night.......

;)


:)

[MaDDoG]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dipFMJckZOM

[MacHeadCase]

As reported by CNET (http://news.cnet.com/8301-13505_3-9951795-16.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1040_3-0-5), something else (http://ostatic.com/162900-blog/free-software-better-on-os-xss) that adds to the good news.

I switched to OS X and find it to be an overwhelmingly more enjoyable computing experience. I still have my free software UNIX shell, my free software programming language, my free software ports system, my free software editor, and I run a bunch of free software Linux virtual machines. The vast, near-total majority of computer users aren't programmers. Of the programmers, a vast, near-total majority don't dare in the Land o' Kernel tread. As one of the people who actually can hack my kernel to suit, I find that I don't miss the ability in the least. There, I said it. Hang me for treason.

So if we get more developers, we get more software. We get more software, we get more choices. We get more choices, we might get even more switchers... Capiche? ;)

[MaDDoG]

Lets get developing then guys. But make it good and make it strong. No Windoze style programs thanks.

[MacHeadCase]

Well looks like the MacBook Air will be getting a bigger SSD hard drive... soon (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080526/tc_afp/skoreaelectronicsitsamsungchip). :biggrin:

[MacHeadCase]

Starry starry night.......

Move your cursor around (http://nuiman.com/log/view/swf_test/)... Pwetty... :wub:

[MaDDoG]

Was that the Mars probe I see....

[iKitten]

Move your cursor around (http://nuiman.com/log/view/swf_test/)... Pwetty... :wub:

LOL ~ very nice. :laugh:

[Peter Craddock]

The problem with Apple's pricing is also an international one.
In the US, they don't have anything sub-$1000 that I find worth much.
But in the Eurozone, they don't have anything sub-1000€! (well, the low-end MacBook)
Apple's pricing in Euros has always been a rip-off, and it's always been like that for the Brits too.
The minute Apple starts thinking internationally, there will be many more people ready to buy Macs here in Europe. Because right now, even I, as a Mac-addict, have trouble thinking about purchasing a computer. I'm a student, and don't have all that much cash lying around. Couldn't Apple give me some thought?

Note: I actually wrote an e-mail to Steve Jobs with a whole argumentation about that (and it includes hard numbers):
Dear Mr. Jobs, or whoever may read this e-mail,

My name is Peter Craddock, and I am a Law student in Brussels, Belgium.

In my family, we have known Macs for over a decade, and all five of us owned separate Macs for the first time in December 2006. We are one of your usual "Mac families", one could say.

But we live in Europe, a continent in which Macs are not quite as present as in Northern America. The main reason for this is a very simple one: pricing.

I know you must take into account transport and a number of additional taxes before a product can reach European ground, but is such a high price difference still necessary throughout your product range?
To illustrate, a 2.2 GHz white MacBook (arguably one of your most "aggressively priced" computers) costs $1299 (tax excluded – how much more tax to add?) on the US Apple Store, but costs $1513 (tax excluded – there are an additional $318 of tax) on the Belgian Apple Store (when applying the current exchange rates in Calculator). Is this $214 difference justified (perhaps more if there is more tax to pay)?

Most people I know are detracted by Macs because of the pricing.
Sure, Macs are a better product: I had a G3 iMac for 8 years before switching to a MacBook last year, and have loved the OS ever since upgrading to OS X whenever it was that it came out. I grew with the OS X evolution, and now use Apple products all the time. "Think Different" is a personal motto, applying to backwards watches, Dvorak keyboards, CV writing, …
Macs have always been a niche product, and I feel it's a good thing (too bad for the others though). After all, it makes you feel good and proud, and what other computer can give you that feeling?
But that doesn't mean Apple can't lower its prices once in a while to take into account its users who live across the Atlantic.

I felt it needed saying, even if I entertain a certain lack of faith in large companies and believe there is little chance of my e-mail even being glanced at more than once (as I have never received any response for all the feedback on OS X and iWork I have sent in over the past year).

Best regards,

Peter Craddock

And that was back in February.
Never got a reply.

[MacHeadCase]

Well the Canadian dollar has been at par or even worth more than the US currency for a good solid year I think and yet we still pay more for our Macs and Apple services. For decades the difference in currency was around 25-30% in favour of the US dollar.

I can tell you that when I renewed my .Mac account a couple of months ago it cost me $139 (plus taxes) while in the US it costs $99. I was hoping that the price would be lower this year because of the currency situation.

[iKitten]

Wow, Peter, that's a great letter! Now I'm interested in why the prices are so much higher in other countries. :huh:

[Peter Craddock]

Well well!!
Apple petitions the WTO

Finally, Apple is among a group of high-tech US firms that filed a complaint Wednesday with the World Trade Organization over European tariffs on three categories of high-tech goods, including flat-panel computer displays and some printers.

The taxes are as high as 14 percent in some cases, making US exports less competitive in the European Union, the Information Technology Industry Council argues.

Having received the complaint, the WTO now initiates a 60-day consultation period with the European Union, after which the US may ask a WTO panel to rule on the matter.

Specifically, the US is charging the EU with violating a 1996 WTO agreement that was supposed to eliminated tariffs on information technology equipment, such as flat-panel displays. But the EU argues that flat-panels can also be used for portable DVD players, not just computers, and are therefore exempt from the the 1996 Information Technology Agreement.

The EU further claims that it has the right to charge duties on other pieces of technology equipment, such as cable boxes that access the Internet, because those pieces of technology were conceived after the 1996 agreement.

The EU has offered to negotiate; the US has refused.
- Source (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/05/29/iphone_ramp_delay_itunes_movies_for_ukcanada_wto_c omplaint.html)

Still, it's not Apple changing their prices on the Macs. And they're blaming the EU.

[MacHeadCase]

Why don't they negociate? I don't understand why they make a complaint but refuse to negociate... :confused:

Peter do you see a reason for this?

Edited to add:

We do pay a premium here too. It's not clear why. The currency $Can vs $US is pretty much equal so I wonder where that extra cash is going. Although I have noticed that Macs have lowered prices and are almost the same now. But it used to be $400 and $500 diff or more, depending on the Mac model.

[Peter Craddock]

Because the US has always had trouble with countries not adhering to WTO rules like them.
Seriously.
To illustrate, the US started making "TRIPS-plus" agreements on intellectual property because they were worried the WTO agreement ("TRIPS") wouldn't be "strong" enough (basically, they want "more power to the creator, less to the rest of the industry", which most other countries don't want but many have to accept because of the USA's strength).

In this case, the US is (I suppose) a huge exporter of such goods, and these taxes therefore hinder US exports. So either manufacturers agree to make less profit and get competitive, or they maintain high prices and see their number of customers dwindle.

But I still don't understand the "refusal to negotiate".

Personally, I'd agree with the EU. But I'm completely biased.

[Sherman Homan]

I got to talk to a guy from Portugal who wants to buy a MacBook Pro, tricked out and set up the way he wants will be $3500 American dollars. He is here on business. The same machine in Portugal is 8,800 Euros which is about 13,000 American dollars.
:scared:
Seems that most of it is Portuguese import taxes.

[MacHeadCase]

$13,000??? OMG. That's a good used car. :O

[Sherman Homan]

He was thinking about buying it here and shipping it back. Warranties, taxes, etc. I think that Portuguese Customs are going to eat him alive. But yeah, you should at least get a set a tires and a tank of gas for something that costs 13,000 bucks!

[MacHeadCase]

I entirely agree. :thumbup:

[MaDDoG]

That is amazing. I thought $3000 Aud was alot. About $2900US for me.