Apple Blames Low Mac Sales on iMac Supply Constraints

[macs4nw]

Originally Posted by Raftysworld

I feel like Steve wouldn't have allowed supply constraints like this to happen.

Got the meme, nevertheless Steve had a great supply-chain man, maybe that's what TC needs. One man can't run the company while at the same time securing components.

[blackhand1001]

Originally Posted by nagromme

I'm glad there's a company like Apply betting big on risky new design and manufacturing technologies... sometimes getting burned (like these low iMac supplies) and sometimes succeeding in a big way (milled aluminum casings across the board).

It's easy to just make whatever has worked before. But without this kind of innovation and risk-taking, we'd lose out on a lot.

Those risky design techniques on the imac provided no benefit to the user at all. Small form factors may pay off in laptops since they are portable but for desktops they only add to the price and reduce performance and provide nothing in return. Thats the problem with apples desktop line. It sacrifices far too much in the name of form-factor. The benefit of a thinner or lighter laptop is apparant as you carry that machine around. The benefit of something like the mac mini or imac being smaller or thinner is pretty much nothing. Heck most people would be happy with a mid tower since they aren't spending extra on a form factor they don't need. This is why you no longer see apple machines all over public schools like they used to be. Its not cost effective to deploy a mac desktop lab when you can buy 400 dollar dell optiplexes that perform just as well and don't have heat issues.

[-jc]

Originally Posted by 1Alec1

BS.

- The new iMac has non-removeable RAM, a deterrent for some users. And the SD card slot is on the back, WTF.

Just FYI, the RAM can be removed by the user on the 27" model.

[mrsir2009]

Originally Posted by blackhand1001

Those risky design techniques on the imac provided no benefit to the user at all. Small form factors may pay off in laptops since they are portable but for desktops they only add to the price and reduce performance and provide nothing in return.

...They look better on Apple's website...

[Marlor]

They lost one iMac sale from me.

When I realised I couldn't open the machine to change the hard drive, I bailed on my purchase of a 27" model. That's basic maintenance - like changing the oil on your car. The iMac is like a sleek car with no access to the engine bay.

That said, I bought a Mac mini instead. It's a joy to open and maintain (with the right tools).

[nuckinfutz]

Originally Posted by 1Alec1

Who uses DVDs? Anyone who uses a camera (except for Sony cameras) uses an SD card and probably wants to put the card in the computer. Anyone who knows what RAM is probably doesn't want to pay the Apple price for it.

Alec

It's simply not an issue. The DVD drive is far more pressing of an issue.

[baryon]

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

I reckon the sales would have been higher if the rMBP hadn't been released - As people who are in the market for a new MacBook Pro would opt to wait for the second gen retina, due to a price slash and first-gen bugs being ironed out. Once they bring out a second gen retina with a lower price tag, and possibly make the cMBP's a tad cheaper as well, sales will go way up.

That's exactly what I'm doing - well, hoping to do. Apple launched do many new products at the same time (new iMac, retina MBP, new iPhone, iPad, iPad Mini, iPods), people don't even know what to buy all of a sudden. I'm sure many people bought iPad minis instead of Macs, thinking that they'll hold off for a while and enjoy something cheaper until then. I have no proof of this but it's how I felt when all these new products appeared, maybe others feel like this too.

[macs4nw]

Originally Posted by MacRumors

Peter Oppenheimer noted that Apple has experienced significant constraints on the new iMacs, and was only able to ship them during December. Without these constraints, he says, Mac sales would have been higher....
Cook further addressed this in the Question and Answer section.
Cook also mentioned a few other minor factors, including the weak PC market and the impressive sales of the iPad. Apple sold more than 23 million iPads, and Cook said that some cannibalization was almost certainly a factor.

Article Link: Apple Blames Low Mac Sales on iMac Supply Constraints

The reasons we all knew, and expected.

And in light of all the factors mentioned during the earnings call, an even more impressive quarter.

[Brian Y]

Originally Posted by Marlor

They lost one iMac sale from me.

When I realised I couldn't open the machine to change the hard drive, I bailed on my purchase of a 27" model. That's basic maintenance - like changing the oil on your car. The iMac is like a sleek car with no access to the engine bay.

That said, I bought a Mac mini instead. It's a joy to open and maintain (with the right tools).

It might be more time consuming to open - but it's certainly possible. If anything, it's easier than the last one (don't have to spend an hour cleaning it).

[nuckinfutz]

Originally Posted by cxny

This is probably the biggest surprise of the numbers at least to me. What happened to the "Halo Effect"? It can't be explained by just the delay in production on iMac. All the recent news has been about iPhone sales but if Apple can no longer produce compelling computers then Cupertino, we have a problem.

Luckily the iMac 27 is quite the compelling computer.

[deanbo]

Supply constraints or lack of demand?

[Brian Y]

Originally Posted by deanbo

Supply constraints or lack of demand?

There's currently a month waiting time for one.

[Karma*Police]

Originally Posted by blackhand1001

I am sorry but apple sells 10 times as many laptops as they do desktops. The imac is not the reason mac sales were down 22%.

They also had one less week of sales this year which is huge. That's why they reported so many weekly comparisons YoY because a straight up YoY comparison wasn't fair. Also, I think Tim mentioned there was some cannibalization from iPad, but a 2 month drought of iMacs and one less week of sales for all Macs could easily account for the drop in Mac sales from last year.

[TouchMint.com]

Why did they even "release" in 2012? they got maybe 1 shipment out before the new year...

I ordered my iMac 2 hours after release and just got it 2 days ago. I am happy witht he iMac but why not wait until you have the stock to ship???

[Brian Y]

Originally Posted by Karma*Police

They also had one less week of sales this year which is huge. That's why they reported so many weekly comparisons YoY because a straight up YoY comparison wasn't fair. Also, I think Tim mentioned there was some cannibalization from iPad, but a 2 month drought of iMacs and one less week of sales for all Macs could easily account for the drop in Mac sales from last year.

Also - bear in mind there was a delay between the new ones being announced and the old one ones coming off sale, and being able to order the new ones. It was ~3 weeks IIRC.

[LastLine]

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

16% down is quite a lot though, and desktop Macs make up only a fraction of the sales of portable Macs...

Honestly, this isn't as true as you'd think. I work in an APR, and I'd say our iMac sales are probably 40% of our CPU sales. We're feeling the iMac constraints, trust me. This headline is, as they say, a no brainer.

[nuckinfutz]

Originally Posted by deanbo

Supply constraints or lack of demand?

Constraint. The iMacs have always had a fan club

[lali]

Originally Posted by 1Alec1

BS.

- It took Apple ridiculously long to update the iMac.

- If you go to an Apple store, there's that one iMac in the corner while the posters on the wall and the ads all tell you to buy something else.

I agree on both these points

someone else commented on the price; I make a very decent living, but find it hard nowadays to come up with enough disposable income to buy a nicely spec'ed iMac. The one I want is obviously the full-max edition! (but no way I am going for the 768gb ssd)

[cxny]

Originally Posted by nuckinfutz

Luckily the iMac 27 is quite the compelling computer.

Yup, I brought three 27" and my office is running a lot more smoothly! However - how long did I have to wait for these upgrades? How $$ they were! (not a big deal as a business but for a consumer almost $3000 is hard to swallow) If there is too long between upgrade cycles they will loose market share to upstarts.

[nuckinfutz]

Originally Posted by cxny

Yup, I brought three 27" and my office is running a lot more smoothly! However - how long did I have to wait for these upgrades? How $$ they were! (not a big deal as a business but for a consumer almost $3000 is hard to swallow) If there is too long between upgrade cycles they will loose market share to upstarts.

yup ..i'm going to be taking my Uncle Sam Savings and applying it towards an iMac 27 with Fusion Drive. The wait has been tough..I was ready months ago and then had to take my funds and use them for christmas and other stuff.

I do notice the reduction in glare on the new iMacs, now I just need to be patient and wait for a VESA mount for the them.

[1Alec1]

Originally Posted by deanbo

Supply constraints or lack of demand?

=true

[blackhand1001]

Originally Posted by nuckinfutz

yup ..i'm going to be taking my Uncle Sam Savings and applying it towards an iMac 27 with Fusion Drive. The wait has been tough..I was ready months ago and then had to take my funds and use them for christmas and other stuff.

I do notice the reduction in glare on the new iMacs, now I just need to be patient and wait for a VESA mount for the them.

There won't be a vesa mount. They didn't put the mounting holes for it.

[Lesser Evets]

Originally Posted by simonb76

Somehow I could see that coming considering most people are tight with their money in the present economy.

I wonder about that AND the price-vs-function of the iMac.

Apple should consider making sub-iMacs that are maybe 20" and less processing power and connectors to make something like an iMac-mini for $999. One USB3, one TB, one Ethernet, one headphone output, mono speaker, small camera, etc.

At the moment they supply a barely-mid-level machine at a price a little above worth for starters. A good machine, but most budget conscious people can go with the mini and regret nothing.

[cxny]

Originally Posted by blackhand1001

There won't be a vesa mount. They didn't put the mounting holes for it.

back to duct tape then...

[Peace]

I think Apple is in the middle of moving away from samsung = Constraints.