$800 Apple Laptop - Is It For Real ?
- 6
- Add a Comment
One of the best things about Apple is the way the company can garner rumors in anticipation of the release of any new product. Apple has been the leader in innovative features which has been demonstrated by the iPhone and Macbook Air. [That is the laptop that fits into a standard office manila envelope and is the thinnest laptop on the planet.]
But as I have written before, pricing has always been the main reason why the PC is the most popular computer. Most experts will agree, to a certain point, that the quality of Apple products and their operating system is superior to the PC and Windows. I’m not looking for another one of those Apple vs PC debates. My feelings are buy what you want and like, no matter what the cost.
But for Apple to give the PC and Windows a real run for the money, they need a reasonably priced laptop for the masses who don’t want to spend a fortune to get onto the Internet, write a letter or two and play a few games. So if this rumor of a $800 Apple laptop is true, This could be the biggest announcement in the companies history. According to this article:
An $800 laptop would be the first sub-$1000 laptop offered by Apple, and would signal a shift from Cupertino to target a broader range of price sensitive customers for the first time. Whether this laptop is a sub-laptop or ultra-portable we simply don’t know, it could be Apple more aggressively pricing their new Macbook range, or it could be a completely new laptop altogether, presumably utilizing the much discussed “Apple Brick” manufacturing process (pic above). What we do know is that there will be four additional price points, so unless the updated versions of existing lines are offered with more options, we would presume that Apple may actually launch an entirely new laptop.
The other rumor is that these new toys could be shown on October 14, 2008 at a special event to introduce their new product.
Comments welcome.
6 Comments
Blad_Rnr
October 10th, 2008
at 7:08am
“…who don’t want to spend a fortune to get onto the Internet, write a letter or two and play a few games”
Isn’t that the iPod Touch?
Ron Schenone
October 10th, 2008
at 8:02am
Hi Blad_Rnr,
I believe you are correct.
Tedious
October 10th, 2008
at 12:51pm
Apple has a 10 year history of making at least 22% net profit on every physical/tangible product they sell. Why would they change now?
In the non-Jobs era they played with the margins - raised to over 50% on some items (like the “Macintosh Classic”) and lowered in others and it put the company in turmoil. Low-margin items couldn’t keep up with demand (causing costly increases in cost to try to keep up, decreasing profitability), and high-margin items rotted away in Sears showrooms unsold.
If Apple lowers the price of the Macbook, it’s because they figured out how to lower the cost of making it. Their net profit never goes below 21%.
The only thing Apple needs to do to increase market share is to keep doing what they are doing and bide their time.
The “PC” has historically sold more because:
a) A “PC” is a generic malleable term that can be applied to any number of models from any number of manufacturers, and a Mac is a specific model of electronics from a specific manufacturer.
Saying PCs sell more than Macs is like saying that cars sell more than Dodge Vipers.
Microsoft has fooled people into thinking a Dell and an Acer is “the same” because they both outsource their OS to Microsoft rather that writing their own.
Worse than that, they’ve convinced Dell and Acer that they are not merely customers of MS’s licenses, but “partners” somehow. (How’s that for a partnership? I buy something from you AND pay for it, and you tell me how I should design my product. What exactly am I getting as a partner?)
…and
b) Corporate purchasing. In the 80s, “The Enterprise” were the ONLY ones buying computers. In the 90s, The Enterprise bought most computers. In the ’00s, they buy more than half. In the ’10s, the enterprise will (for the first time) buy fewer computers than “consumers”.
Studies have shown when people make their own purchasing decisions, 2 out of 3 buy a Mac - even at the current prices.
Making cheaper boxes will not increase profitability. Market share without profits is needless busy work.
Corporations will always buy from the builder who is the lowest bidder, and in the ’10s, fewer and fewer computer builders will be outsourcing their OS as it’s now the most expensive “part”.
AAPLs stock will ebb and flow, but total units sold has been steadily climbing for 40 consecutive quarters, each one at a 22% profit.
Ron Schenone
October 10th, 2008
at 1:29pm
Hi Tedious,
Thanks for the explanation and for sharing this information with us.
Regards, Ron
Partners in Grime
October 12th, 2008
at 12:08pm
And consumers are making good choices for a change.
Ron Schenone
October 12th, 2008
at 1:54pm
I believe they are.