Apple to Begin Advertising Push Targeting Windows 7 Launch?

[AidenShaw]

If you like Win 7 just get a Mac and run bootcamp or as a virtual machine. Chances are your Windows install will run faster on Apple hardware anyway

Faster than my quad Core i7 mini-tower?

Most unlikely.

The myth that Apple can buy the same parts as others, yet build faster systems, shouldn't be repeated. It's silly.

 

[Fastshutter]

I think the stupidest thing in Windows 7 is that it can run Windows XP, which means that it's the only way you can get some programs to run on Windows 7.

I run Win7 64bit and use Windows XP virtually for 3rd party applications that only run 32 bit, such as the Cisco VPN client. It allows users to use all their applications until developers catch up.

And as everyone says, "it's still Windows", it's still going to bomb you with warning dialogs

Win7 has drastically reduced the amount of notifications, as well as redesignd the notification center.

, it's still going to make you run wizards, it still will require lots of 3rd party software, for example, for your WiFi card in your laptop,

Win7 has a fantastic new wireless & network connection application. No 3rd party software required.

you'll still have 4 icons in the task bar blinking and warning you about stuff you don't care about,

Like I said, redesigned notification area.

And then those drivers eventually run into some problem, you install another one, but the old one is somehow still there, causing conflicts, etc...

Win7 has gone further for device driver support than any other operating system before it, including OSX.

That's just my experience, and Windows 7 won't change all that.

It has been changed since Win7 Beta.

It will still be really darn slow if you don't format and reinstall it at least once a year!

Everyone format's and re-install's OSX for every upgrade, which is an 18 months cycle. I've formatted and re-installed XP once in 5 years.

And then you start tweaking the registry,

I've never tweaked the registry. 99% of Windows users don't.

and everything goes fine, until one day an installer won't install an important program for some reason, you don't even know that you did something wrong in the registry 6 months ago to stop an annoying notification or a useless program from starting at login.

I think your biggest problem Windows 7 is you don't know anything about it.

 

[Goona]

There's no reason to switch any more. It used to be OS X, but Windows is now easily better. Leopard and Snow Leopard have been steps in the wrong direction for Apple.

Yes that's why Mac sales have been going up since those two releases.

 

[Takeo]

Mac sells mostly increased because they can run Windows.

Says who? Source?

OS X is still a niche platform, and one that is incompatible with almost everything that has the words "enterprise" or "business" on it.

So?

 

[Goona]

Their numbers (especially in a recession) sugest otherwise. Record quarter after record quarter, positive growth forecasts out the next one, and an upcoming quarter that might be another milestone, not to mention their dominance of the Premium end of the market. Apple has been doing everything right, going from strenght to strength in all areas. While Windows 7 is as yet unreleased and untested in the market. Pre-release opinions mean nothing, especially in light of Vista. Until the first 3-6 months into it release, Windows 7 remains a huge question mark.

Why waste your time dude?

 

[mytdave]

Too late

I love Macs, I hope new models are introduced this month, and I think it's great that Apple will have a marketing campaign around Win 7 launch time. But it's too late. Apple has done well the past 3-4 years, but they really missed their golden opportunity to "stick it to the man."

The chance to really nail the competition was when XP was plagued by malware, and Vista was a complete disaster. What did Apple do? Nothing. I mean they trotted out a few new computers, and released some OS and App updates. But what they really did was divert all their resources to the iPhone/Touch. And those are great devices, but the Mac has languished during that time.

Now, Snow Leopard looks promising, and they finally got the Pro laptops right (except for the glossy screens), but the Mini is overpriced, there is still a huge gaping hole in the middle of the product line, the Mac Pro is out of reach of anyone really, and the iMac is only useful for the home market.

Apple should have released a full line-up of both "Pro" and "Standard" laptops, filled the friggin' huge gaping hole between the Mini and the Mac Pro, and pounded the market with advertising showing each unique advantage of the Mac platform instead of just making fun of MS/PCs.

It's now too late. Sure Apple will still sell some computers, but I think any huge gains in market share are over. Win 7 is "good enough" and the golden opportunity has passed.

 

[Mackan]

Schiller: 'it's still Windows...'

I don't get it. I only see empty childish arguments, and pure mocking, coming from Apple, regarding Windows. Most people with brains can see that. Oh wait, shouldn't have said that...

 

[*LTD*]

Yes that's why Mac sales have been going up since those two releases.

It seems the recent bunch of Windows trolls camping Apple fansites, and the regular one's too, (on the eve of Windows 7's release, no less) seem to have trouble following current events.

 

[peterdevries]

He only fails to mention that many of the people who will buy a Mac will eventually run Windows 7 on it. Mac sells mostly increased because they can run Windows.
OS X is still a niche platform, and one that is incompatible with almost everything that has the words "enterprise" or "business" on it.
For a lot of the so-called "switchers", the Intel chip and the Windows compatibility through Boot Camp, Parallels or VMWare were the reasons why they could "switch". (Without actually switching. They just bought a second platform with the bundle.)

Interesting points, but you generalize too much. I don´t know anyone that has switched (and I know quite a few) and uses Windows on their Mac. All of them are true and full switchers and (like me) have never looked back.

Your point regarding enterprise and business is also only partly right. In the scientific and graphic design communities OS X and Mac has been around succesfully for ages.

In addition it is quickly gaining ground in other industries that are testing. My employer (3000 employees) is currently testing OS X as an alternative to Windows as are others in my industry (management consulting).

 

[*LTD*]

Schiller: 'it's still Windows...'

I don't get it. I only see empty childish arguments, and pure mocking, coming from Apple, regarding Windows.

Works like a charm. Perhaps MS should render itself less easy of a target. But as Schiller said . . .

 

[VoR]

No demand for it, especially in this market when it's difficult enough to sell desktops.

Judging by Apple's strategy (successful especially in a recession), they understand the market perfectly.

Maybe they'd have a much bigger market share if they sold a faster, cheaper, larger desktop machine - that still had the "that looks nice...and they made my ipod" factor that sells to average people?
Hard to say surely? They don't offer a large range of products - maybe they're more concerned about keeping the arrogant 'premium image' that you tend to point out in half your posts.

Their numbers (especially in a recession) sugest otherwise. Record quarter after record quarter, positive growth forecasts out the next one, and an upcoming quarter that might be another milestone, not to mention their dminance of the Premium end of the market. Apple has been doing everything right.

So you keep saying. Who the hell cares how 'huge, disgusting corporation X' does with it's finances? I'm concerned about the products I buy, and I certainly don't make any decisions off of a brand name.
I'm an IT enthusiast (maybe not a typical apple store customer?) and I don't think 'apple has been doing everything right', quite the opposite...

 

[Goona]

It seems the recent bunch of Windows trolls camping Apple fansites (on the eve of Windows 7's release, no less) seem to have trouble following current events.

A company keeps selling more computers with their operating system on them and they are moving in the wrong direction, what more do you expect from these trolls?

 

[Goona]

Maybe they'd have a much bigger market share if they sold a faster, cheaper, larger desktop machine - that still had the "that looks nice...and they made my ipod" factor that sells to average people?
Hard to say surely? They don't offer a large range of products - maybe they're more concerned about keeping the arrogant 'premium image' that you tend to point out in half your posts.



So you keep saying. Who the hell cares how 'huge, disgusting corporation X' does with it's finances? I'm concerned about the products I buy, and I certainly don't make any decisions off of a brand name.
I'm an IT enthusiast (maybe not a typical apple store customer?) and I don't think 'apple has been doing everything right', quite the opposite...

The amount of stuff they are selling, the amount of money the are making, having the highest consumer satisfaction rates in the industry would agree with you.

 

[Bubba Satori]

No demand for it, especially in this market when it's difficult enough to sell desktops.

Judging by Apple's strategy (successful especially in a recession), they understand the market perfectly.

Yes there is. A huge replacement market. I sell Macs and I know how much demand there is for an affordable tower. Those Apple customers are replacing there G4s and G5s with HP, Gateway and Dell $600-$1,200 PhenomII and i7 Quad core towers with 8-12GB memory, 1TB drives and Nvidia 200 or ATI 4000 video cards.

They don't want underpowered, unexpandable minis, iMirrors cause they already have ACDs and they sure as hell aren't going to throw away $2,499 for a single quad Mac Pro with an absurd 3GB of memory and a crap Nvidia 130 video card.

 

[*LTD*]

I'm an IT enthusiast (maybe not a typical apple store customer?) and I don't think 'apple has been doing everything right', quite the opposite...

You're entitled to your anecdotal opinion. Just make sure you're able to make te distinction between that and the facts.

 

[Vulpinemac]

OS X is still a niche platform, and one that is incompatible with almost everything that has the words "enterprise" or "business" on it.

Methinks thou art unaware of just what enterprise capability there is for OS X. There is far, far more enterprise software out there than you can imagine. I know a number of people who have Switched, many of them IT professionals; they do NOT run Windows at all any more.

 

[AidenShaw]

It seems the recent bunch of Windows trolls camping Apple fansites, and the regular one's too, (on the eve of Windows 7's release, no less) seem to have trouble following current events.

That's a great argument, never heard that one before....

 

[Fastshutter]

Their numbers (especially in a recession) sugest otherwise. Record quarter after record quarter, positive growth forecasts out the next one, and an upcoming quarter that might be another milestone, not to mention their dominance of the Premium end of the market. Apple has been doing everything right, going from strenght to strength in all areas. While Windows 7 is as yet unreleased and untested in the market. Pre-release opinions mean nothing, especially in light of Vista. Until the first 3-6 months into it release, Windows 7 remains a huge question mark.

You're mixing market segments. Apple is dominating in the Premium HOME market, but isn't much of a blip in the business market. Vista was an abysmal failure (in Microsoft terms) in the business market, but still creamed Apple there. Apple didn't make any ground in the enterprise sector, even against the terrible Vista. Good Job Apple!

Windows 7 is unreleased, but that doesn't mean the market hasn't been paying attention to it. All indications point to it's quick adoption in the enterprise sector. We'll have to revisit this discussion in a few months to see who is right

 

[DipDog3]

Haven't used Windows 7 yet.

Is it any good.

 

[Fastshutter]

Methinks thou art unaware of just what enterprise capability there is for OS X. There is far, far more enterprise software out there than you can imagine. I know a number of people who have Switched, many of them IT professionals; they do NOT run Windows at all any more.

Did those IT people switch at home, or at work? You don't need much Enterprise software on a home network

I also know IT people who have switched to Mac at home, with good reasons for doing so. At the same time, they dual boot Windows when they need to get their professional work done.

 

[Goona]

Haven't used Windows 7 yet.

Is it any good.

They say it's good but then again they said the same thing about Vista before it was released.

 

[cumanzor]

It seems the recent bunch of Windows trolls camping Apple fansites, and the regular one's too, (on the eve of Windows 7's release, no less) seem to have trouble following current events.

The pot calling the kettle black.

Labeling someone a troll doesn't exactly invalidates their argument. An argument speaks for itself. It's better to avoid ad hominems.

Anyway. Why is this news? Windows 7 will sell based on how much of an improvement it is compared to vista, EVEN if this improvement is just a matter of perception and opinion from some users. It's only natural for Apple to increase marketshare. I say yay! Seriously, people need to understand the fact that healthy competition is good.

 

[Vulpinemac]

Not really. We always recommend doing a backup, but most people just recommend the upgrade route to maintain all of their settings. The clean install is overkill for most people. Heck - there is a reason that "Upgrade" is the first option listed on the OS discs - its just more convenient. The only reason you should do a clean install would be if your computer was already having issues. Otherwise it ends up being more work than necessary.

You've also got to remember that Apple provided the 'Clean Install & Migrate' method, where rather than trying to adapt itself to the existing settings, it waited until after the install was complete, and asked if you wanted to import your applications and settings. This tended to be more reliable and more efficient than the simple Upgrade alone.

 

[*LTD*]

Yes there is. A huge replacement market. I sell Macs and I know how much demand there is for an affordable tower. Those Apple customers are replacing there G4s and G5s with HP, Gateway and Dell $600-$1,200 PhenomII and i7 Quad core towers with 8-12GB memory, 1TB drives and Nvidia 200 or ATI 4000 video cards.

They don't want underpowered, unexpandable minis, iMirrors cause they already have ACDs and they sure as hell aren't going to throw away $2,499 for a single quad Mac Pro with an absurd 3GB of memory and a crap Nvidia 130 video card.

Can't please everyone, Bubba. Apple goes after a segment of the market, and they've got them. If demand doesn't reflect majority demand, and if the numbers don't call for anything more, chances are it's not going to happen. Apple has a formula in place that is insanely effective, and which has enabled them to sell more Macs in a recession. The case that something is missing, or that they would do even better via a different or additonal strategy is thus all the more difficult to make.

Your customers, whoever they are, obviously in no way, shape or form reflect the bulk of Apple's market.

And please, quit telling us you sell Macs in every second hardware thread. I think it's great that you do and I'm sure you enjoy it, but no one really cares, and it doesn't really add any more to your credibility - which I'm sure will be just fine without it.

 

[3D0G]

I love Macs, I hope new models are introduced this month, and I think it's great that Apple will have a marketing campaign around Win 7 launch time. But it's too late. Apple has done well the past 3-4 years, but they really missed their golden opportunity to "stick it to the man."

The chance to really nail the competition was when XP was plagued by malware, and Vista was a complete disaster. What did Apple do? Nothing. I mean they trotted out a few new computers, and released some OS and App updates. But what they really did was divert all their resources to the iPhone/Touch. And those are great devices, but the Mac has languished during that time.

Now, Snow Leopard looks promising, and they finally got the Pro laptops right (except for the glossy screens), but the Mini is overpriced, there is still a huge gaping hole in the middle of the product line, the Mac Pro is out of reach of anyone really, and the iMac is only useful for the home market.

Apple should have released a full line-up of both "Pro" and "Standard" laptops, filled the friggin' huge gaping hole between the Mini and the Mac Pro, and pounded the market with advertising showing each unique advantage of the Mac platform instead of just making fun of MS/PCs.

It's now too late. Sure Apple will still sell some computers, but I think any huge gains in market share are over. Win 7 is "good enough" and the golden opportunity has passed.

I agree with most of this analysis. I too was disappointed that Apple went from being a computer company to a consumer gadget company with the never-ending iPod releases (are we all a bunch of friggin zombies with pods in our ears?).

But, it's also true that the iPods (along with getting people into the retail stores) really re-awakened the larger population to Apple and had a big impact in jump-starting the Mac sales a few years ago.

Still, Apple, time to rev the Macs...