Apple is focusing on what consumers are interested in - IPods & Iphones.

No matter what you think about Macs, most consumers aren't interested and could care less what Apple's plan is for the Mac since everyone (except for a tiny minority) uses Windows - including Ipod & Iphone owneres.

Apple has lost the OS battle - they're doing the smart thing and focusing on what does make them money - music.

I just bought a new 24" IMac Desktop and being a die hard windows guy forever, have to say that this is computing "civilized".
Vista does suck, I bought their best and the office prog too and vista was a total drag.

This IMac is elegant and I'm never going back.

I agree that Apple is focused on the consumer, but there has to be a place for the Mac. It's a cash cow with great margins and huge customer retention. I am still hoping for new laptop models. The MacBook Pro dual-core came out in October of 2006. That's really poor for Apple who tend to rev products very quickly.

I own 4 PCs and just bought my first iMac, mainly for photography applications. I hope to find out if all of the bluster about the OS is true (i.e. more stability, no virus worries, etc.) Overall, Apple is still a very small slice of the personal computer pie, and no matter what the Apple board does that is unlikely to change. Therefore the greater focus on the peripherals is not that surprising to me.

Apple should make a red mac for AIDS in Africa.

I agree with the Times. I have two desktops and two laptops of the PC family. One of each with Vista. Vista is more stable and somewhat more functional than XP. However, we purchase a new Macbook Pro for my son which has given me a first hand look at Apple. Cutting to the chase, my next purchase will be an IMAC. Comparing the Apple OS to Vista is like comparing Tiger Woods to a club pro...same basic shots but no finesse. The new Macs are stunning. Apple is really missing out by not promoting the new Mac to people considering a new machine. I think they could be a lot more innovative in their advertising so they at least entice people to take a look.

I think Apple could win over people if it just found a way to showcase the Mac to the masses. Ex. Setup displays in every mall in America with someone there to show people how easy it is. I would wager a huge percentage of people have never in their lives used a mac. I know personally the only experience I had was in college, we had a computer lab that had both windows and mac and if the windows were full I would be forced to use a mac. I never got the mac bug but mostly because I didn't know what I was doing being used to windows my whole life.

Our entire household dumped multiple Windows machines late last year in favor of the iMac. We now own three iMacs. With the coming holidays I anticipate one or more Apple laptops arriving at the front door. Windows never again!

Yes Apple focuses on what makes them the most money, like any business should. The PC is a mature industry, the iPod-type is a new industry, with potentially higher repeated sales due to breakage or damage.

It's quite possible mobile computers may replace even laptops.

Quite frankly, I don't see this as the end of the battle, despite what JimmyQ has posted above.

The OS battle is just getting started; the iPod was forever simply an insertion point into the Windows dominated market. The success of the iPod (to this degree), I would say, was unexpected.

This being said, the iPod was and is a learning device for traditional Windows users: a chance to have the Mac "experience," just like Neil Mathienson did (also above). The path of Mac sales is following the iPod sales, just in a much less noticeable way. The Mac OS will debut when it has the iPod users in its hands, and devoted to the "Mac" way of life.

Perhaps this is what Mac seeks to do in the upcoming release of OS X Leopard--show off the OS, and then drive Mac sales as hard as possible in Q1 of next year.

Also: music is not where the money lies--compare the profit of a new iPod on the profit of new Mac.

I retain that the OS X debut is up and coming... and Apple might just catch us all by surprise. After all, the iPod did.

Michael Cowdrey

Im not sure Apple has it all wrong. A Mac failure? Whatever...

Last I looked, the Vista launch has not gone smooth, so the OS war is anything but over. The OS war simply changing (I prefer Linux RedHat). Vista problems open many doors for a closer look at Apple Macs. Meanwhile, Apple's share of the PC markt is 3%, up from 2% in 2004. The numbers may be small, but its a 50% increase with recent sales up 30%+ annually.

If you are an Apple shareholder, Macs dont look so bad. Macs dont look bad to new PC buyers either...Last time I was in an Apple store, I had a long line to try the Mac of my interest. Finally, Mac attack ads confirm design simplicity and high functionality. Steve Jobs has vision, M. Dell is barely waking up, and I dont even know who is behind HP. I might buy an HP at work, but the Mac steals home plate every time.

The only problem I see with the MAC is another author that wants to make Apple the new company to hate.

Macs are worthless. Plain and simple. Macs are only appealing to those that cant understand that a computer is a tool, not a showpiece. You cannot do anything other then media on a mac. Apple doesnt even use their own product to host their web site. So if you actualy know anything about computers(basicly technical stuff which fuels developement of future technologies) you will never buy a mac. Stop bashing on windows like its an evil empire

Michael said...
"Perhaps this is what Mac seeks to do in the upcoming release of OS X Leopard--show off the OS, and then drive Mac sales as hard as possible in Q1 of next year."

That makes sense to me. I'm waiting for Leopard to come out before I buy a Mac. I think a lot of people are doing the same.

I still can't believe they dropped the exciting Lifesaver colors for boring IBM silver. It's craziology! :-)

I think you pretty much hit the nail on the head: no one has the dedicated responsibility of the Mac product line.

Retail is an important key. But they cannot and should not be everywhere. They are marketing as premium products and as such they should be selective.

Best Buy is a good first step. They do need someone dedicated to that relationship.

I think they should also consider Radio Shack. They have over 6,000 locations throughout the United States, and competing on price has never been their strong suit. Having a product with good margins is right up their alley.

Target and Costco (both of which already sell iPods) are other possibilities worth exploration.

I feel that the MAC OS is by far, the best desktop OS ever written...end of discussion. However, who cares? Not the user at large, not business and unfortunantly, not Apple. This is another example of the developers creating something wonderful and the suits failing to market it. Why in Gods name is Apple continuing the control the platform? It's now running on Intel, for the love of Pete, let us put it on our own boxes!

Skatedude, yer a jerk

Only thing worthless is your comment skaterdude.

You can do a whole lot more than just media on the mac. What do you think they make the programs for mac on? They are made on a mac. Plenty of programmers use macs for coding. A lot of law firms use macs for legal work. I know plenty about computers as can be judged by my certifications and choose to use a mac. So if you actually knew anything you would understand the advantages a mac has other than spouting off some half comment about their only use being media.

RELAX!

Leopard is due next month.

The MAC will surge again.

As will the iPhone with a huge improvement in Mail and integration of its apps from Leopard.

I run my entire business on Mac's. You can do everything on a Mac. Windows techs have trouble because they don't know UNIX, which Mac is built on.

Since I even run Windows on my Mac's, for those programs that require Windows, I know I have the best solution.

I Vista were build on UNIX, Windows would get 100% of the market but since it's still basically a DOS based OS - I think Microsoft failed big time. They don't have another 5-7 years to roll out a new OS. By that time Mac and Linux will have 50% of the market with momemtum.

Anyway, PC's will be a thing of the past as computers get smaller. The iPhone is just a glimps into the future of computing...

Macs main market is people who don't have the interest or ability to fully leverage their underlying hardware. The Mac OS is an easy to use, eye pleasing subset of what a more capable user would require in their OS.
I am obviously not a fan, but am also agreeing with the article. Though their are lots of posts here by wankers who had a PC and switched to a Mac and love it. Those people probably didn't put much thought into their original purchase of a PC and just chose to go with whatever was cheapest.
If Mac could reduce their prices a bit, they might be able to tap the demographic including grandmas, low income families, and fine arts students (in other words, people who don't have computers). These people just want something simple that will let them read email, look at photos or discuss fine art .... or whatever it is that people do with Macs.
Seriously though and margins set aside, the price of a Mac is a pretty high barrier to low-level PC users who might otherwise switch. A low price version of the Mac hardware (I doubt you could scale back OS functionality any further) might be popular.

Well... I was an Apple beliver... but now have moved over to MS Vista camp and will never go back to Apple. The PC/OS runs MORE programs that I NEED, faster, and for a better cost. I found the MACs just so limiting, MACs are full of Empty BLING (Paris Hilton quality) with not Guts! And who wants to pay for a name... not me!

I can see the iPhone taking a dive very soon, as the big phone companies take them on.

If having only 5% of the annual volume sales is considered as the OS battle being over, then so be it. Even if Apple's market share goes to 10%, there will still be criticism that it has lost the OS battle, even though this will quadriple its stock price, or thereabouts. The seeds have been sown, and the market share gains will come. One can compute quite easily. If Apple grows at 50% more than the Windows OS platform each year, how many years will it take Apple to surpass 50%, if indeed that is the level one considers to have "won". It is the momentum of market share gains that count. Also, as the industry is already very matured especially in the large enterprise market, Apple is concentrating on the SBEs and other focussed markets like education, media, etc. There, its market share is probably higher than its broad average of 5% which everyone likes to quote. Bottom line, Apple is a very profitable company overall and without the OS, the iPods and iPhons etc wold not have been successful. It is the whole package that counts, and the overall profitability which is driving its stock price. If Microsoft has truly won the OS battle, what has been its gains in its stock price? Zilch.

Mac ? Are you talking about MacDonalds..

If I divide these comments here into two camps and bought Microsoft stock say 5 years ago (for example based on Jason's comments of the death of Apple's products), and likewise Apple's stock at the same time, I wonder how I would have done now ?

Skatedude, you got no idea what you talking about. Apple is hosted on Macs.. called Xserves. Using Apache, which runs on every Mac. The store also uses Web Objects, another Apple technology.

Just to give you a sample, using XTools (Apple development IDE for Macs) you can write Python, Ruby, Java, JS, AS, C (and many other languages) - all native with complete access to every library. OSX is UNIX. All of UNIX. It's a developer's dream machine. It's no wonder most of the Ruby on Rails team uses a Mac.

The MAC OS has been around as long as the Windows OS. To date, Vista has been installed on more systems than Mac has ever shipped... ever. Pick any significant company in the world, and most of their desktops (90%) and most of their servers (60% - 75%)run Windows. Do you guys really think that is do to the fact we han't seen a Mac? If you put more Mac stores out there, we will suddenly get it? A Mac is a PC with training wheels. It has 3% of the market, it will always have 3% of the market, and if you knew anything about the computer industry, you'd know why.

My hobby is photography and I intend to buy a Mac soon.

With that being said, lets be serious. Until recently (intel platform) Mac was not an options for many business. As a former software developer and software consulting company owner, if you were not in the graphic design / journalism business, Macs were a toy. Almost no serious development tools ran on a Mac and if it was not for their ability to run Windows, they would still be in the same boat.

I hope Apple presses on because Windows is a piece of crap and it never seems to get much better. Unfortunately it is running the world.

There's a very simple reason that the Mac will never have a large percentage of the market. It is that only a small percentage of the human race appreciates excellence in both the tools that they use, and the work that they produce with them. The majority are willing to settle for mediocrity and can see no benefit to reaching beyond it. Life is enriched by fine design and high quality workmanship. It's a shame that most people will never know that joy.

I am a Windows user and have been for the past decade, having previously cut my teeth on a Mac. I like being able to choose what goes into my computer and being able to do it myself if I want to. I like the fact that I can build or buy a computer for considerably less than it would cost to get a Mac.

If I were just now considering getting a computer, the Mac might be a bit more appealing to me. But with all the time I've spent on my computer (or computers, as the case is) and everything else I have (parts, software, games, etc.), I am sticking with what I've got. Barring any major complications, my computer and my OS will still be up to the task for some time. I can repair, upgrade and replace as I see fit. And I can still use (most of) my software - both old and new.

Sure, Macs can now run Windows. But why buy the "superior" computer if I'm going to use the "inferior" operating system? Or why not just buy all the software I use again (or a similar program for those that don't have a OSX counterpart) for the Mac and toss what I have now away?

OSX, Windows, Linux. Three ways to get the job done. I've made my choice and I'm sticking with it. I'm not saying that one choice is right or that one is wrong. I work with what I feel is right for me and not what ad men, benchmark worshippers and silicon cultists think I should have.

-

On a side note, when is Apple going to bite the bullet and announce that the Newton's coming back? Seriously, it has to be in there somewhere. Ever since the iPod added video, pictures and games to its capabilites, Newtone sprang to mind. Now we have the iPhone.

There's more to come...

I've forgotten how many Macs i've bought over the last 15 years, but its been four in the past six years for daughters and grand children (with another computer due in Jan, when another grand daughter turns 10), and another three for myself, as I replace mine I past my extras to my sister and her family. According to Apples last quarterly report they sell about 19,000 computers per day, not bad for a niche player.

I've been in IT for 15 years, on the PC side. I bought an iMac and a Mac laptop a couple years back. I enjoy them, and then are certainly nice looking (especially the iMac), but I'd argue with anyone who says the Mac OS is easier or more user friendly. If I have work to do, I'm using a PC, even for areas the Mac is supposed to excel in, such as photo editing (photoshop). To me, the Mac is somewhat of a toy.

Macs are lame. the new imacs are p.c.s on the inside anyhow. intel core 2 duo and such. Except they lock everything down and make it so you can't repair, upgrade, etc on your own. I have edited video, photos, etc on both macs and pc, the experience is the same. I want to be able to upgrade my video card, ram, etc. play games, have 1000s of different software apps available(insteade of a couple hundred)customize my computer etc. choose what brand, type, quality components make up my system. whatever.., some people dont want to know anything, and just want to buy something "that works" and is stable and disposable...you get that whole cool metro image with the mac as a added bonus too.

Yes as posted above never fear Leopard will be here,

and New Mac Pros in the same time frame.

I have used MS since I was a pup,

but have been a Apple convert,and evangelist

for 6 yrs.

Everyone. EVERYONE whom I have helped

"see the light" has never NEVER returnted to MS.

Once you go Mac you never go back!

Ironically, here I sit...a pc owner... posting my comment from my osx based iPod touch. It won't take many more ipods like this one for it to replace my laptop.

As a company, Apple has never competed, They play a different game; smart, au courant, better, prettier, distant but waiting for you to come over...add your own descriptors, and have lived and died by not competing, but by playing the game the way that SJ plays it.

SJ is quite different than the drivers at SUN,Dell, Oracle, and MS. HP's original culture got lost long ago. These men play the way they play and built cultures around how they do it. Don't expect Apple to change.

G

I just bought a new laptop last week. Looked at apple but didn't buy because I need a large 17" screen. The Apple Laptop pricing for a large screen laptop was double what I paid for a PC. I have found Vista to be very stable and way much better than XP. If the Apple was just a little bit higher priced I probably wouyld have bought it, but they were much much higher priced then the HP I ended up buying.

I see this differently. Apple is carving out a niche in an area MS failed to recognize - digital media. Your life today is all about digital media - music, pictures, videos, tv, movies. And what is at the center of this revolution - apple.. Even PC owners now think about having a mac these days, even if as a secondary machine.. Sooner or later, as life becomes more digital, we will have to manage our digital world via a mac. Ofcourse, I'm no apple exec, but this is what I'd be after. Soon, so much of your media will be tied to all things apple, mac would make most sense to manage these assets. Mac's becoming a media appliance. Apple now owns the next generation.

I've considered a mac before and the lack of hardware choices makes me choose windows and linux. It's interesting that mac's support forums are full of the same stupid support problems as windows if you look. I'd love to pay for Leopard, but not for a shiny plastic box full of overpriced hardware.

Let's make this world a better place by creating "LinMacVis"

I am not business guru but here is what i think should be done.
#1
Apple guys should pay some attention to what they wear. It looks bad when your ceo is in jeans and you talk about that mac os has "best UI ever developed". People look at your appearance first before buying your product. First rule of sales i guess :-)

I like the way new MACS are but the question to ask here is that do i need my the computer for photo, video or chat? Apple people always failed to show the real business value of buying Mac.

#2
Windows is good OS but hey do i have other choice? The spend billions of dollars on marketing to show you the real business value of why you should buy windows.

I would love to buy MAC some day but until then i am happy with Vista :-)

Dave - I find the post interesting, as I have seen quite the opposite effect in my daily life. While Apple exec's might not be pushing Mac's as effectively as they should, people on the streets sure are scooping them up. Here are some signs from my perspective that back that up to some degree - this is anecdotal evidence mind you:
- My university aged son asked for a 24" Mac desktop when he started school - he was given a choice of anything he wanted.
- My 12 year old has an iPod Nano - and now has asked for a Mac book (not getting it, but it's the thought that counts!)
- several of the circle of friends for my 12 year old have also recently bought Mac's of one flavour or another.
- Several big gaming companies have announced recently that they will start shipping all or partial titles for all upcoming new games releases. This is the most interesting indicator to me that the Mac/OSX is starting to get a lot of adoption. Games are always an indication of what people are buying for HOME use. If games are being sold, then it means kids and young adults are adopting the platform.

I agree Apple is missing the mark on not pushing the Mac's harder especially given what a flop Vista is - luckily I think consumers are ignoring the missteps.

To me, the most telling announcements made by Apple recently were:

a) Their name change from Apple Computer to Apple Inc.

b) That there are 200+ patents in the new iPhone that can generate a whole slew of new consumer products (iPod Touch is just the first).

My guess is that Apple is reengineering themselves as a true Consumer Products company ... remember what the Walkman did for Sony?!

Dave,
looks like mac-baiting works!
Who knew?

--Zack

Apple has not missed the mark in promoting the MAC.
First of all a company need to make $, & the iopd in all its flavors is a $ making machine, so it need lots of attention. The mac OS is so far behind the windows OS in market share that to focus on it when the public is not aware of how good it is is a waist of time & $.
As far as Steven Jobs is concerned he is a brilliant businessman & promoter, he knows how a product is to be made & marketed, just look how he sold us on the Iphone, just pure makating genius. As far as the Mac it is a marvel of technology, (I build machines) but like all computers its the applications that count not the OS or the PC, its just the applications in the PC. So while OSX may be better then vista or Win Xp, if there are not enough applications to install why even buy it. Remember the IBM PC, at the beginning of the PC era, it took Lotus123 to justify getting an IBM PC over a apple I. So when the developers will create enough applications for the Mac to equal the ones that are available on the Windows platform we will the can say why not go for a mac.
Except the real question we should as is how much better is the Mac to Windows that will force us to get rid of our investment in windows applications & buy mac applications. Remember IBM OS2, many claimed its a better software then MS windows 95 or NT, but the public was not about to switch because there was no real urgency to switch. Those that did were happy, but most people didn't & guess what windows did improve as will vista.
So relax, Vista will get better, The Mac will get more market share, Apple Inc will make more $ & we will continue to complain on MS Vista, but in the end all will be the same.

It's amazing how little knowledge many people have of computer history and how Microsoft got to the dominant position where it is nowadays. For starters, Mac OS appeared before Windows and Microsoft didn't succeed because of quality products.

Also, remember that most people who uses Windows, does so because everybody else around was doing so, or was forced to, whereas most people using Mac (or Linux) does so because they choose to do so (and know the alternatives).

For those finding Mac OS more difficult than their well-known Windows, keep in mind that, of course, if you try to use a fork as a knive, it won't work as expected and will be frustrating. Mac OS and Windows are different, thus you use them differently. Those who have never touched a computer before find easier to learn Mac OS than Windows.

Yes, I've a mac; I've done so for 13 years. Had real plug&play before many people had heard of it, and had no viruses in all this time. Yet I studied Computer Engineering using Windows and Linux; after which I *choose* to use a mac.

It's almost humorous to see posters like skaterdude and Ryan bash the Mac. It might be more amusing if it were not indicative of the dumbing down of America (and a number of other civilizations) that is gaining more speed each day.

Although Macs generally are comprised of premium hardware that, admittedly, tech-savvy consumers could compile themselves, their main strength is not in the hardware but in the OS. OSX (as of 10.3 at the latest) has proven to be a mature, Unix-based platform on which one can do every bit as much as (and actually more than) one can with the pitiful, sluggish excuse for an operating system whose ubiquity all but a privileged few must endure each day.

It is true that there are more apps for Windows than for OSX. That said, there are plenty of apps for the latter, and they tend to work and work well. Furthermore, for those who are truly tech-savvy (and not some twenty-something who is full of himself because he's built a gaming machine or two and/or has a MCP under his belt), OSX provides a very functional, dynamic IDE at no extra charge.

There is so much more I could say in answer to these obviously inexperienced, uninformed critics, but I'll sum up by saying that there are those here who have considerably more experience in this field than they do and who have seen that the systems they are deriding are not simply more stylish than PCs but that, because of Apple's uncompromising dedication to quality -- both in hardware and software -- Macs are far superior to PCs in every aspect but price. Since upgrading OSX is generally much less expensive than upgrading Windows, ultimately, you do get what you pay for with Macs. Not so with Redmond's toy and much of the junk on which it's installed.

One man's opinion...

Some interesting comments here; some spot on, some miss the mark entirely. Mostly the Mac bashers miss the mark. Apple has experienced steady growth since '97, holds 7% of desktop sales and 17% of laptop sales - a far cry from their 3% market share 10 years ago. They are consistently profitable, have higher user satisfaction than any other manufacturer and show steady growth in units and market share. Trends are even more dramatic among market leaders - last year Princeton University had 45% of new students purchase a Mac, making them the dominant vendor, and on par with new windows users. Other Universities show a similar trend, although the exact numbers vary.

Vista is a mess, but I'm holding out until after SP1. It makes sense to wait especially since my PC is only 3 years old.

Mac are good, but I'm a bit disappointed in the lower end. Unless you want to pay at least $1000, you can't afford it. Also, you have to deal with a closed system.

Apple needs to get down to earth. Let someone else install their wonderful OS in a cheap mini-tower. People need to configure their own systems based on need. Like the 1984 commercial, one size does not fit all.

It is amazing that most of the comments here perpetuate the old "mine-is-bigger/better-than-yours" debate, with little information and many exposed little egos.

Few, in fact, are much limited any more by availability of applications on the Mac and there
is scant concern that Apple may succumb to the competition and leave their customers hanging, as have other contenders to the MS monopoly.

As for cost, used computers that are adequate for most users to surf the web, do word processing, etc., can be had for next to nothing. Do you really need a Ferrari to sit in traffic?

Few mention the value of their time. A new PC can be purchased for less money than a new Mac, but if you were a writer you probably would want a keyboard upgrade and you certainly wouldn't want to read anything too long on that flickering, grainy screen.

Since PCs first hit the marketplace we have weathered a series of make-shift operating systems designed to help overcome the PCs limitations. They were too puny to run Unix. Today we are hampered not by the abilities of the PC, but by the commercial interests inherent to a monopoly.
Apple is the first company to meld Unix and their proprietary interface effectively. Microsoft is caught in a game of protecting their empire while competing with a superior product

1. Macs can run more, period.

In Mac OS X I can run X11 applications unedited and I can run old PowerPC Mac OS X apps. With a recent port of WINE, I can also run a great number of Windows applications without ever installing or by extension having to deal with any version of Windows. Or worrying whether or not I'll have any driver issues (sorry Linux).

Further, on the the hardware itself, if I absolutely must - I can run Windows too. Essentially Macs can do everything any old Dell or HP can do, and then some. I have more choice.

2. Whoever here said that Apple doesn't use their OS for their site is sorely mistaken. Apple uses Mac OS X Server's built-in copy of Apache. In fact all Mac OS X computers have a built in copy of Apache, including my dear little MacBook.

3. I don't understand how anyone, even the most idiotic among us, can tell us that a UNIX based operating system complete with a terminal and X11 support is for just newbies. What the heck!?

Oh wait, of course, they haven't any idea what their talking about. Most of these people are still imagining either a very early version of OS X such as 10, 10.1 or 10.2 with their limitations or Mac OS 9 and earlier systems and their inherent flaws never imagining for a second the possibility of any advances. Instead they go on thinking that we are all "just a bunch of fanatics."

Nonsense. Had the Mac not reached 10.3, 10.4 or the beta build of 10.5 I'm writing this on, it would have never attracted me. This is the finest operating system I have ever used, as was 10.4 before it.

4. I agree with the article, Apple is missing out on a HUGE opportunity and it is really very sad.