$499 Headless iMac?

[pigwin32]

"It's not THAT ugly." - Interpreted version: It's ugly.

That's just being rude, so it's a little plain but I'm sure it's got a nice personality. Oh wait, no, it's running Windows, you're right, it's ugly.

 

[B_Gates]

Opinion-People will generally not switch unless they have a reason to. Example: crashes,viruses,spyware,ad-ware. Its the classic if it aint broken dont fix it. I hate to say this, but most windows users who arent what you would call "computer savvy" are quite ignorant when it comes to technological change. The responses ive gotten from some late 30's-40's windows users when i said "im getting a mac" was,"big mistake" or something along those lines. So i followed with "why" and got nothing but blank stares. You see people who arent computer savvy get into a confort zone with their computer. Computers to them are scary because they dont understand them but they need it to do various tasks for them and in a way they rely on them. So they dont like change and that is Macs biggest obstacle. Its not design,its not cost,its not a fancy name. Its bridging the gap to a un-edjucated person whos afraid of change because in fact when it comes to technology they dont know whats good for them. Flame suit on take it as you will

Give me a break, I know plenty of tech savvy people who use windows & have no issues.

Apple's biggest obstacle is not un-educated person who’s afraid of change. Its competing with the Intel hardware. Apple make great looking pc cases & a great looking OS but its hardware just doesn’t match up with Intel. So in reality you would think Apple pc’s would be cheaper, no they’re slower & more expensive. This is why WINTEL sells more pc's, good product with lower price always wins.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

At this pricepoint getting some well engineered and beautifully designed Mac machine is great, but I worry a little about the G4 processor. Not that it is a bad thing, it makes my Alu PB run pretty nice, but just looking at the competing Windows boxes, all with much higher speeds it is going to be tough terain. that is of course: UNLESS THE NEW DUAL CORE G4 processors are to debute in this thing, that might just shift the balance a bit.......

Further thought on the G4 vs. the G5 in this new box. It could be more of waiting till the newer lower heat G5 cpu's come in to use before we can make that leap.

 

[Photorun]

Compaq SR1220NX
3 PCI slots
DVD-ROM drive
CD-RW drive
5+1 Audio
Modem
9-in-1 media card reader
WinDVD
Photoshop Album SE
Works
Money

http://shop2.outpost.com/product/4200744

Not to flame, but the mini-mac doesn't seem to be that great a deal at $499....

You conveniently left out the shared video memory and the lack of anything coming CLOSE to the iLife suite... not to mention DAMN is that thing ugly.

It's already clear of one thing after reading the peecee lusers apologists posting in this thread, there's no accounting taste when you clearly have none.

And the FUGLY rather worthless Celery-on processored P.O.S. machine you referenced has a FLOPPY drive... LOL!!!

 

[Photorun]

Give me a break, I know plenty of tech savvy people who use windows & have no issues.

Apple's biggest obstacle is not un-educated person who’s afraid of change. Its competing with the Intel hardware. Apple make great looking pc cases & a great looking OS but its hardware just doesn’t match up with Intel. So in reality you would think Apple pc’s would be cheaper, no they’re slower & more expensive. This is why WINTEL sells more pc's, good product with lower price always wins.

Actually no, people who aren't educated about shopping out overall computer experience, who will buy flim-flammery advertising and marketing like peecee makers use all the time (Dell's customer support commercials come to mind, HYSTERICAL, and blatantly false advertising)... there's one born every minute, and you can be that one goes off and buys a peecee.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

Opinion-People will generally not switch unless they have a reason to. Example: crashes,viruses,spyware,ad-ware. Its the classic if it aint broken dont fix it. I hate to say this, but most windows users who arent what you would call "computer savvy" are quite ignorant when it comes to technological change. The responses ive gotten from some late 30's-40's windows users when i said "im getting a mac" was,"big mistake" or something along those lines. So i followed with "why" and got nothing but blank stares. You see people who arent computer savvy get into a confort zone with their computer. Computers to them are scary because they dont understand them but they need it to do various tasks for them and in a way they rely on them. So they dont like change and that is Macs biggest obstacle. Its not design,its not cost,its not a fancy name. Its bridging the gap to a un-edjucated person whos afraid of change because in fact when it comes to technology they dont know whats good for them. Flame suit on take it as you will

You hit on something here. I bought the other half an eMac from a user here on MR because of spy-ware and that sort of issue. He has an iPod, so I was hoping for the best.

Well I have ended up with a great eMac as a backup for my PB. The reason was the way MS Office is handled between the Mac and the PC. Will probably never happen, but MS needs to have an Win setting with "fake" windows for the PC user making the switch.

 

[jcroft]

Give me a break, I know plenty of tech savvy people who use windows & have no issues.

Apple's biggest obstacle is not un-educated person who’s afraid of change. Its competing with the Intel hardware. Apple make great looking pc cases & a great looking OS but its hardware just doesn’t match up with Intel. So in reality you would think Apple pc’s would be cheaper, no they’re slower & more expensive. This is why WINTEL sells more pc's, good product with lower price always wins.

If Apple thinks the same way as you, they are doomed. Apple has to make people forget they're in the "comupter" business at all. They have to sell a solution, not a "computer." An applicance. A platform. Not a "computer."

Apple doesn't have to compete with Intel's hardware at all. Does TiVo have to compete with ReplayTV's hardware? No, no one cares what the hardware is. Does Nintendo compete with Sony's hardware in game consoles? Not in the eyes of the public. The general public probably doesn't even realize there's a processor in there. nor do they care. They only want to know what you can DO with the appliance.

"What games can I play?"
"What shows can I record?"
"How can I program it?"

Apple has to start thinking this way, and their marketing needs to get the general public thinking this way, too. Rather than:

"How fast is the processor?"
"How much RAM does it have?"
"How big is the harddrive?"

Apple needs people to think:

"Can I burn CDs and DVDs? Is it easy?"
"Can I listen to music? Is it easy?"
"Can I make movies? Is it easy?"
"Can I use it with my digital camera? Is it easy?"
"Can I write my school papers on it? Is it easy?"

Etc, etc. "What can I DO with it, and is it easy?" This is what Apple needs to sell people on. Not specs that no non-geeks really care about or even understand.

 

[macrobay]

i think it should be called, simply: macintosh

it would be perfect. and yea, i'm going to buy one.

 

[AidenShaw]

It's a case of content vesus form.

Perhaps, but for the "form-factor" obsessed laptops are also viable options -- it's not a question of mini-mac vs mini-tower.

(Plus, there are many SFF Windows systems available, such as http://www.littlepc.com)

 

[B_Gates]

If Apple thinks the same way as you, they are doomed. Apple has to make people forget they're in the "comupter" business at all. They have to sell a solution, not a "computer." An applicance. A platform. Not a "computer."

Apple doesn't have to compete with Intel's hardware at all. Does TiVo have to compete with ReplayTV's hardware? No, no one cares what the hardware is. Does Nintendo compete with Sony's hardware in game consoles? Not in the eyes of the public. The general public probably doesn't even realize there's a processor in there. nor do they care. They only want to know what you can DO with the appliance.

"What games can I play?"
"What shows can I record?"
"How can I program it?"

Apple has to start thinking this way, and their marketing needs to get the general public thinking this way, too. Rather than:

"How fast is the processor?"
"How much RAM does it have?"
"How big is the harddrive?"

Apple needs people to think:

"Can I burn CDs and DVDs? Is it easy?"
"Can I listen to music? Is it easy?"
"Can I make movies? Is it easy?"
"Can I use it with my digital camera? Is it easy?"
"Can I write my school papers on it? Is it easy?"

Etc, etc. "What can I DO with it, and is it easy?" This is what Apple needs to sell people on. Not specs that no non-geeks really care about or even understand.

You are correct about the other products like TiVo, but when it comes to computers people do, why apple & all the other pc mfg list the specs? It’s a marketing tool that works...

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

If Apple thinks the same way as you, they are doomed. Apple has to make people forget they're in the "comupter" business at all. They have to sell a solution, not a "computer." An applicance. A platform. Not a "computer."

Apple doesn't have to compete with Intel's hardware at all. Does TiVo have to compete with ReplayTV's hardware? No, no one cares what the hardware is. Does Nintendo compete with Sony's hardware in game consoles? Not in the eyes of the public. The general public probably doesn't even realize there's a processor in there. nor do they care. They only want to know what you can DO with the appliance.

"What games can I play?"
"What shows can I record?"
"How can I program it?"

Apple has to start thinking this way, and their marketing needs to get the general public thinking this way, too. Rather than:

"How fast is the processor?"
"How much RAM does it have?"
"How big is the harddrive?"

Apple needs people to think:

"Can I burn CDs and DVDs? Is it easy?"
"Can I listen to music? Is it easy?"
"Can I make movies? Is it easy?"
"Can I use it with my digital camera? Is it easy?"
"Can I write my school papers on it? Is it easy?"

Etc, etc. "What can I DO with it, and is it easy?" This is what Apple needs to sell people on. Not specs that no non-geeks really care about or even understand.

Thats a good point. But why not hit MS where it hurts. Not to make this a war but here me out. When an enemy has a wound in battle you go for the wound. You hit him where hes hurting. In MS's case it is spyware,ad-ware,viruses,bugs,non-compatibility with outside devices i.e.cameras and other peripheals. So id like to see Apple take a sucker punch at MS and start buy advertising such things as this, " Dont like viruses? Go Mac" or something like "Are you and your computer SICK of spyware and ad-ware?, Go Mac". Well you get the gist of it.

 

[Eric_Z]

Perhaps, but for the "form-factor" obsessed laptops are also viable options -- it's not a question of mini-mac vs mini-tower.

(Plus, there are many SFF Windows systems available, such as http://www.littlepc.com)

Yes, but they are usually more expensive then $500US though, the cheapest box in that link of yours is $1095US.

 

[jcroft]

You are correct about the other products like TiVo, but when it comes to computers people do, why apple & all the other pc mfg list the specs? It’s a marketing tool that works...

It doesn't work for Apple! It's been proven time and time again. So, they need to stop. It's only hurting them. They need to sell their product as an appliance, and not as a computer -- like they did with the iPod (after all, ti's a computer too, right?).

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

Perhaps, but for the "form-factor" obsessed laptops are also viable options -- it's not a question of mini-mac vs mini-tower.

(Plus, there are many SFF Windows systems available, such as http://www.littlepc.com)

But for some reason it appears that many of the "main stream" companies have stayed away. In the end the success or failure of the iMac mini will tell us if these companies were wrong.

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

While I certainly don't think that Apple people are smart and Windows peopel are stupid, you have to admit that there are a LOT of Windows computer owners who only own Windows for one reason: because everyone else does.

Most people have not activley compared Macs and PCs and chosen PCs. Most have simply adpoted PCs because that's what they have at work, or at school, or that's what their parents had, or whatever. Certainly there are exceptions, but this is true in most cases.

That doesn't make them dumb -- it just makes them followers.

Exactly. See, what you have going on these days is mom and dad buying their kids computers and boom more windows users. Its like a virus. Yes windows is like a virus. An un healthy organism spreading through the masses except this virus affects peoples ability to think streight. Go Mac

 

[jcroft]

Thats a good point. But why not hit MS where it hurts. Not to make this a war but here me out. When an enemy has a wound in battle you go for the wound. You hit him where hes hurting. In MS's case it is spyware,ad-ware,viruses,bugs,non-compatibility with outside devices i.e.cameras and other peripheals. So id like to see Apple take a sucker punch at MS and start buy advertising such things as this, " Dont like viruses? Go Mac" or something like "Are you and your computer SICK of spyware and ad-ware?, Go Mac". Well you get the gist of it.

Apple can't win a war with Microsoft. I've been following this topic since 1986. They can't win. It won't happen.

Yes, I think Apple should sell the fact that there is less malware on Mac OS X. I totally agree with that. But, making the goal to hurt Microsoft is making a goal you can't reach. The goal should be increased marketshare, more revenue, and happy customers. Those are goals Apple can actually reach, with the right marketing and products.

There's no point in fighting a losing battle.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

Thats a good point. But why not hit MS where it hurts. Not to make this a war but here me out. When an enemy has a wound in battle you go for the wound. You hit him where hes hurting. In MS's case it is spyware,ad-ware,viruses,bugs,non-compatibility with outside devices i.e.cameras and other peripheals. So id like to see Apple take a sucker punch at MS and start buy advertising such things as this, " Dont like viruses? Go Mac" or something like "Are you and your computer SICK of spyware and ad-ware?, Go Mac". Well you get the gist of it.

That works in the short term. But if the market share gets up there the hackers will then have new ground to try the worst on.

 

[jcroft]

That works in the short term. But if the market share gets up there the hackers will then have new ground to try the worst on.

That's not something Apple should be concerned about right now. Apple doesn't have a problem with malware and Microsoft does. It would take a LOT of marketshare change before Apple would have a malware issue. In fact I'd say it's impossible. Unless Apple can get, say, 40% of the market, they're probably not going to have a serious malware problem. And they'll NEVER have 40% of the market. So, it's a non-issue.

If it ever becomes an issue, Apple can worry about it then. For now, market the hell out of the fact that others have a problem and you don't.

 

[B_Gates]

While I certainly don't think that Apple people are smart and Windows peopel are stupid, you have to admit that there are a LOT of Windows computer owners who only own Windows for one reason: because everyone else does.

Most people have not activley compared Macs and PCs and chosen PCs. Most have simply adpoted PCs because that's what they have at work, or at school, or that's what their parents had, or whatever. Certainly there are exceptions, but this is true in most cases.

That doesn't make them dumb -- it just makes them followers.

If people are just followers then Apple would have majority pc market today, because they had it in the beginning & lost it to IBM pc that was cheaper & more open.

 

[AidenShaw]

You conveniently left out the shared video memory and the lack of anything coming CLOSE to the iLife suite...

Have you used a recent Intel Extreme system? You're not going to want to play games on it, but it's just as competent at surfing, email, photo editing and other tasks as anything Apple puts in a mid-range system.

What good is "iLife" unless you have a bunch of expensive digital toys? Not much, is it?

... not to mention DAMN is that thing ugly.

It's already clear of one thing after reading the peecee lusers apologists posting in this thread, there's no accounting taste when you clearly have none.

Glad to hear that the stereotype of Apple users being arrogant elitists isn't true anymore.

And the FUGLY rather worthless Celery-on processored P.O.S. machine you referenced has a FLOPPY drive... LOL!!!

That 3 GHz Celeron on a 533 MHz bus with real DDR memory would smack that 1.25 GHz G4 on a pseudo-DDR 133 MHz bus. Smack it hard.

Who cares if it has a floppy or not??? You don't have to use it, but it's there in case you want to.

As far as "ugly", I'm glad that you can be so sure from looking at a 100x100 pixel thumbnail. Since I always put the tower on the floor under the desk, I'm more concerned with "function" than "fashion".

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

That's not something Apple should be concerned about right now. Apple doesn't have a problem with malware and Microsoft does. It would take a LOT of marketshare change before Apple would have a malware issue. In fact I'd say it's impossible. Unless Apple can get, say, 40% of the market, they're probably not going to have a serious malware problem. And they'll NEVER have 40% of the market. So, it's a non-issue.

If it ever becomes an issue, Apple can worry about it then. For now, market the hell out of the fact that others have a problem and you don't.

Depends on whether uses malware as a selling tool or not. I look at hackers as a malicious bunch. Thumb your nose at them, and they will strike back regardless of "market share".

 

[uberman42]

Apple can't win a war with Microsoft. I've been following this topic since 1986. They can't win. It won't happen.

Yes, I think Apple should sell the fact that there is less malware on Mac OS X. I totally agree with that. But, making the goal to hurt Microsoft is making a goal you can't reach. The goal should be increased marketshare, more revenue, and happy customers. Those are goals Apple can actually reach, with the right marketing and products.

There's no point in fighting a losing battle.

In total agreement- apple is not driven by the lust to spurn Microsoft. that's foolish to think it that way and is a slight to what Apple is all about. It is driven by profitability- which breeds innovation towards perfection.

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

That works in the short term. But if the market share gets up there the hackers will then have new ground to try the worst on.

I really dont think you can predict where a hacker is going to target. I sort of see Apple as a company for the people and by the people if you will. Thats why i like Apple, and because of osx based on unix. Also with Apple everything just works and i, like many others, really like that. I dont see Apples growth threatening their stability and security in the Hacker world. Apple is very much a ma and pa type of corporation except turbocharged. I dont think they are a target for hackers and i cant see them becoming one because of growth.

 

[iJaz]

You are correct about the other products like TiVo, but when it comes to computers people do, why apple & all the other pc mfg list the specs? It’s a marketing tool that works...

So, why does the iPod outsell the Dell DJ and the other crap out there with longer battery life and better specs?

 

[macmax77]

Dude i am also a sytem administrator of the visual psychophysics lab. we have from sun sparcs, SGI reality/octanes, Xeons(windows/linux), to G4 and brand spanking new G5s. So i know how much time i spend on manually checking (just in case) for viruses, spams etc is close to 10 mins a week. As long you have regular system updates running and can take a little care of your machine...every operating system works just fine.

but as some one said COMMON SENSE IS THE 'RAREST' SENSE.

Wow , you are God