>>Apple's continued survival depends attracting first-time computer buyers and Windows expatriots. How many of these people are going to choose a $1300 iMac over a $700 PC?<<
Dave -
That remains to be seen. I think the new iMac is extremely compelling. Sure, many people will only look at the price tag. But Apple doesn't need every single first-time buyer to decide to get a Mac. If they can get even five or six percent of those buyers, their market share will increase, not decrease. I believe that's what they're shooting for.
I don't think Apple's future lies in trying to compete as a maker of commodity products. They need to continue to innovate and to attract new buyers, and they won't do that by producing cheapo boxes, in my opinion. Or rather, they probably could do it by building cheap boxes, but it wouldn't help them in the long run.
A lot of people thought that iPod was too expensive, yet it's selling well. I'll go out on a limb and predict that this new iMac will do a lot better than the Cube, and could even end up being a smash hit.
It is disappointing not to see a major speed boost for the G4s, though. This new iMac is now as fast as any other Mac, apart from the dual 800.
- Allen
PS: Yes, I know what you're going to say. "Computers are commodities, and you have to accept that as a fact." I'd say that's only part of the picture. If there weren't more to it than that, then nobody would have bought the original iMac. |
