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It's funny. Laugh. Businesses Apple

What to Expect from Macworld Tomorrow 49

Posted by pudge from the finally-some-reasonable-rumors dept.
Steve writes "The Mac fellows at iThings.de have posted an entertaining read about what could happen on Tuesday at Macworld in San Francisco." That's pretty good. Also at the top of the reading list for such Apple rumor satire is Crazy Apple Rumors.
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What to Expect from Macworld Tomorrow More

What to Expect from Macworld Tomorrow

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  • What not to expect: (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 06, 2003 @12:57PM (#5026010)
    Precipitous price drop on Powerbooks, since I didn't just buy one.

    ~~~

  • Goals... Plans... they're fantasies, they're part of a dream world... -- Wally Shawn

    Just like Apple rumors.

  • Prices (Score:1, Redundant)

    by TheCrimsonUnbeliever ( 638597 )
    I am hoping for a drop in price - There is still no "bottom end" mac for people who would like to use them but do not have the money (I could get a decent PC for 500£ but a decent mac is at least 1000£)

    This is the only thing stopping mac dominating the world
    MUHAHAHAH...*cough*

    • Re:Prices (Score:3, Informative)

      by Draoi ( 99421 )
      Wrong on two counts - you can get a crap PC for $500. iBooks start at $999 which is not bad for a laptop. You can also buy a brand-new (non-swivel) iMac from $799
      • You note I am working in the £ and not the dollar - You can get cheap mac's but to convert I think OSX would be the key - and OSX on a 'non-swivel' iMac is slow
        • Load the thing to the brim with RAM and anything with a G3/400 or more is good enough for non-number-crunching application use.

          If you want games of pro-apps, you'll need some more, but for many users it's ok with that.
      • I got the basic model of the iBook (USD 999). While speaking to the apple sales guy on the phone(the intenet store crashed) he tells me that the laptop will be "almost unusable" in that configuration. I need to upgrade the memory to at least 384 Mb of RAM for it to boot properly.

        Having used both a $999 Apple laptop and a $999 intel based laptop I can safely say that you get most bang for the buck buying the intel based one...

    • Re:Prices (Score:4, Funny)

      by ivan256 ( 17499 ) on Monday January 06, 2003 @02:10PM (#5026477)
      Yeah, I'm sure Apple would make tons of profit if they went after that "people with no money" market.

      • Re:Prices (Score:1, Insightful)

        by snyperm ( 534788 )
        seems to be working for Dell... But seriosuly, Apple should dispense with the huge profit margin, hell maybe even take cue from consoles and sell at a slight loss to increase what they really need right now: market share. With market share thye get more weight to throw around, more users, and the possibiltiy of more sales in the future.

        • Selling at a Loss (Score:5, Informative)

          by Oculus Habent ( 562837 ) <oculus.habent@gm ... Nom minus author> on Monday January 06, 2003 @03:47PM (#5027233) Journal
          The difference with Apple and consoles is huge. Consoles have huge cash reserves from previous successes. Also, the money they lose in selling boxes is quickly recouped in the income from license fees on titles. Apple doesn't get $10 when you buy Photoshop.

          Additionally, if you start selling at lower prices, get a bigger market share while making a loss (or a very slim profit) and then raise prices when you have market share, you become everything that Wal*Mart is.

          For my last point, you should also take note that Apple's hardware sales support not only production, but the OS and all the iApps you could ever hope for. Think about where the $1,799 goes for the 15" flat panel iMac with SuperDrive:

          15" LCD screen
          800 Mhz G4
          60 gig HD
          GeForce 2
          Ethernet, modem
          DVD-R (RW, though not well advertised)
          Mac OS X
          AppleWorks
          iMovie
          iDVD
          iPhoto
          iTunes
          iCal
          iSync
          Sherlock
          Mail
          Plenty More...
          • I think you replied to the wrong comment.
          • For my last point, you should also take note that Apple's hardware sales support not only production, but the OS and all the iApps you could ever hope for.

            As the saying goes, "the first one is free...". Seriously, people who shelled out $129 for the 10.2 upgrade know all too well that the full lifetime cost of owning a Mac is definitely greater than the upfront box cost. For that matter, the one apparently absolutely true rumor about MacWorld is that improved versions of the iApps will come out...but that there will be an upgrade cost there, too. This is not to say that there is anything wrong with attempting to charge for the upgrades, only that I wouldn't use them as my only argument for why the hardware sells at a premium. Macs cost more because people are willing to pay more, and that's basically the whole story.

            Think about where the $1,799 goes for the 15" flat panel iMac with SuperDrive:

            15" LCD screen
            800 Mhz G4
            60 gig HD
            GeForce 2
            Ethernet, modem
            DVD-R (RW, though not well advertised)

            (I'm deleting the software list here for space.) OK, so I think we're talking $300 for the screen, $300 for the everything else on the logic board inlcuding the modem and ethernet, $50 wholesale for the drive, $50 for the video card, $50 for the mouse and keyboard and everything else including the box. $50 for shipping and handling. That's $800. $250 for the DVD-RW drive, and we get $1050. Call it $1200 once you throw in the software. Apple's gross margins are about 25% on these I think, so now the cost is $1500. Store margin would be about 20% for these, and you get that $1800 sticker price.

            If this were Dell, you'd be paying $1200 plus 10% mark-up or maybe $1350 without shipping. Now, I've replaced Mac OS X 10.2 with XP Home and the trinkets that Dell provides, and you could argue that the Apple is worth more. I wouldn't argue with that myself, but I don't believe for a minute it is because Apple is giving you a deal on the hardware. You pay the extra $400 or so because you *know* (correctly, I believe) that it is worth it to get a computer where everything truly "just works". I value my time fairly cheaply, but not cheaply enough so I want to spend 20 hours trying to get stuff to work that should work out of the box.

        • Re:Prices (Score:5, Insightful)

          by ivan256 ( 17499 ) on Monday January 06, 2003 @04:37PM (#5027656)
          seems to be working for Dell...

          Dell computers are not particularly less expensive than Apple computers. You'll spend between $700 and $5000 on a computer from either company. Sure, you can build a pretty good PC for around $400, but you can't get a full machine with monitor from dell for that cheap. They advertise a $449 machine on their site under "Hot deals" but by the time you get it into your cart it's basically stripped down and doesn't include any support or labor warranty. It also doesn't include a monitor.

          Apple should dispense with the huge profit margin

          Why? Aren't profits more important than market share? Who cares if you've only got 15% of the market as long as you're making money?

          I think it's nice to have a company like Apple around. They're willing to take design risks and charge the high prices that allown them to take design risks simply because they only target a small portion of the market. If it makes you upset that you can't afford a mac, you can always pick up a used on for a fairly reasonable price.

          • Re:Prices (Score:2, Interesting)

            by snyperm ( 534788 )
            I aplogize If i came accross as bashing Apple. However I don't want to label myself as a fanatic listing all the stuff of theirs I own and collect. I just really think Apple could benefit from more marketshare. I'm obviously not alone in this thought. It's really kind of sad that Apple only has around 5% of the market. Last I heard that was a generous statistic. If Apple were able to even so mch as double their marketshare the possibilities for expansion are trememndous. Obviously, some of this is debateable. If they had more marketshare they would have more users, more possible subscribers to .Mac and the possible new iApp packages etc. This would in the end allow them to develop even more than they have in the past. Apple is obviously aggressively targetting new customers with thier switch ads. They've recognized that most everybody has a comptuer now. There are no virgins to convert. It's now a dangerous game of stealing marketshare fomr competitors. This also means that these peopel have an existing investment in compeitotr software and equipment. The upfront price or the simple Apple hardware is idsconcerting to those used to buying a sub thousand dollar computer. Most Apple users recognize that we're paying for higher quality goods, or at leats an ease of a designer product and we're fine with that. But it's tough to convince peopel to swithc with such a daunting pricetag. Not ot mentino that faith i a horrible reaosn to stay with a ocmpany and in the end will only last for so long. Evntually, P companies will have a price/performance ratio that is impossible to ignore. Just my thoughts. I'm really just describing what I've obsered amongst many o my friends who certainly admire the Macintosh they see me using, but could never make such a huge leap at the current prices.
    • He makes a good point.
      I don't see any posts before this one that make it
      Maybe -YOU- (whoever mod'd this redundant) are using some sort of SuperModerator View Mode where you see invisible posts.

  • Psst... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 06, 2003 @01:24PM (#5026185)

    Apple's releasing a secretly developed video-enabled color-changing 19" Bluetooth/802.11g iPod-style Firewire 2 Web Address Book PVR/web browser .Mac handheld cellphone tablet; in other news, the rumor mill has tipped over, and caught fire.

  • It had better be good (Score:4, Funny)

    by sofo ( 18554 ) <sofoskiNO@SPAMgmail.com> on Monday January 06, 2003 @01:33PM (#5026240)
    Something like a quad-G4 machine with support for three 23" cinema displays and a case that floats 4" above your desk.

    Otherwise it will be more interesting hardware and clever software that I cannot afford.
  • how people find this Onion-style hyperbole funny. It's low-brow humor marketed as high-brow humor, and as a result it's audience either puffs it's chest in an "I get it, I'm so smart" kind of way when there's nothing to get, or they believe that the stories are true and act accordingly. It's also rather formulaic and as a result doesn't take much creativity to produce a "news release"; just stamina to keep churning them out.

    Oh well, nevermind. I'm curious to see what's going to be announced. Hope it's something spiffy, like a new color scheme. Or a phone or a new PDA. Or a two button mouse with a scroll wheel. You know, something that will "change the industry forever". But then again, I'm still waiting for the time travel function I was promised in OS8.
    • This particular article was not exceptionally humorous to me, but I figured most of us could use a bit of an antidote to the "serious" rumors that have been floating around. YMMV.
      • You're so gracious, Pudge: It was a really dumb article....

        I'm sorry if you rate this trollish, but it was less of an antidote than the replies it generated (including the one rated 2 - Troll).

    • It's not funny, but then...

      a) I presume they don't do this for a living.
      b) German humour. Hahaha. Gut, ja?

      That said, debunking Mac rumours is a long-standing and much cherished activity; my all-time favourite being the "net-booting G5 Palm". No way did I spend a chilly 48 hours in a cardboard box outside MY local AppleCentre when I heard that!

      Oh.
  • PowerMac - new, roughly 1.4GHz "loaded" unit at a loaded price (for bragging rights & rich customers). Little change on existing units.

    XServe - 1.25GHz, bigger disks, other small stuff

    XRAID - "shipping soon" announcement

    iBall - System that looks like a pair of (flat panel) iMacs with their (flat) base bottoms glued together. Includes dual G4's, special (iBall only) 3-D glasses, iDeck virtual reality software, & some cool-if-basic 3-D games.

    iWorm - security audit, remote admin, etc. software for OS X & OS X Server

    iPair - software to migrate/duplicate a Windows PC to a Mac (converting files, etc.) via ethernet, firewire, USB, or ATA. With a credit card & $99.00, it allows any MS Office (Windows) to be upgraded to Office X.

    iJobs - little red mini-CD filled with video clips of Steve Jobs proclaiming his MacWisdom to the MacFaithful. When spinning, Reality Distortion Field gets so intense that it may affect any computer it's loaded in like the Infinite Improbability Drive. One lucky MacFan will find his old Mac turned into a loaded quad-G5/3GHz; Windows PC's won't fare so well.
    • I'm waiting for the Xserve Cluster (Beowulf?)edition - it comes with a special connector to tie the Xserve to the one above or below it with multi-gigabit fiber. You'll be able to purchase a "rack spanner" for an extra $50.

      This would be the first step in creating a Cluster Computer - imagine a web server made of 42 Xserves, sharing traffic, distributing updates between each other with Rendevous, capable of dealing with down or failed servers, automatically re-distributing traffic to servers with more resources...

      Ok, so I'm crazy. Aren't you?

  • allapple.com make the best predictions (Score:3, Informative)

    by edLin ( 5192 ) on Monday January 06, 2003 @03:27PM (#5027086) Homepage
    This guy really knows what he is talking about [allapple.com].
  • There is a reason why Mac users shed their holiday pounds quicker than PC users. While PC user try diets and fail, Mac users fast ther entire week before the MacWorld Expo.

  • I can't wait for the little press slipups that come just hours before the keynote, like the iMac Time Canada article that got posted many hours before the keynote last year. That was truly classic. Maybe ATI will screw up again this year, or perhaps it'll be Nvidia.

    I'll be checking the rumor sites as soon as I get to the hotel in San Francisco tonight. Then I'll hit the sack and be in line for the keynote no later than 5am. Woo!

  • Apple and the rumor mills (Score:1, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Here's the problem with spreading lots of arbitrary rumors before a Macworld Expo, as I see it:
    1. Start lots of crazy rumors about new Apple products.
    2. ???
    3. People are disappointed because there's no iWalk or iPod 2 or whatever.
    4. Less profit for Apple?

  • iCal! (Score:2, Funny)

    by dman123 ( 115218 )
    During Keynote: Announce iCal 1.0.3

    3 Hours later: iCal 1.0.4 available for download via website

    2nd Day of MW Expo: Announce iCal 1.0.6 (iCal 1.0.5 was an internal release only), iCal 1.0.4 available through Apple SW Update

    End of MW Expo: iCal 1.2 released for only $129. That's only $129 for each new feature!! :-(

    No, but seriously... FireWire 800Mbps. Yea!

    • Faster iMac's with larger displays (or at least more resolution). Basically making them as good, or better, than the PowerBooks (sans portability).
    • Significant speed bumps in the PowerMac G4's. But still G4-based.
    • New iApp versions requiring a paid upgrade. Hopefully free with dotMac, a new Mac, or an OS upgrade.
    • Some sort of cell phone sync-ing device for most other cell phones. Or an Apple cell phone.
    • Free OS upgrades for dotMac subscribers?
    • An iBook-like tablet. Yes, I know this has been in the rumor mill for years, but since handwriting recognition was a Jaguar feature I think its a reasonable possibility now.

    (DotMac features are already somewhat announced on mac.com, so I won't get into those.)

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