Apple to Introduce Cheaper Macs?

[fokket]

As for the fanboy thing.

Long story short, I posted a story about how it was a well known issue within countries using voltage between 200-240V had a sudden death of Airport Express.

During the early days people thought they were just unlucky
until someone noticed a pattern, the serial number ranged from

HS42***** to HS44*****

A website that recorded 1000+ cases of failure, an interesting fact was
that THEY ALL SUFFERED EXACT SAME PROBLEM. When these were circulated
on Apple support forums, when it got big, the thread was locked down
and censored, other AE Base station problems were discussed, but not
that specific problem. (alarm bells anyone???)

Apple continued to deny this by 'It's out of warranty' until folks in France took it to court.
However, Angry people's claim was based under
Apple knowingly selling a defective product. (which under French law,
period of warranty doesn't matter if the product is inherently messed up)

It was eventually settled (dunno it was outside or inside)
It was evident that Apple knew about this all the way along, but tried to keep this quiet. If Apple had a good defense and could afford to go public.

Guess Apple thought they could go without exchange and repair program since it occured in areas where the voltage was different and most people didn't realize what was going on. Heck
Mine had same problem in 2006, but didn't realize it was the case of this
until this year.


I posted about this on a Mac Forum, instead of hearing
'Apple's irresponsible yadda yadda'

I saw

'That's why you should buy Applecare'.


No wonder how Apple manages to sell their products and screw around customer at high cost.


don't get me wrong. my Macs have been stellar quality, NEVER HAD AN issue in 5 years, but that incident really set me off.

 

[4D4M]

Just because you use windows doesn't mean you can't be bought by Apple fanboyism....

...Because surely no one is that stupid enough. A BMW would run rings around a Bentley.

As for the BMW fans being rich white tennis/golf players, that's not a stereotype. That's the truth. Don't go hating on me just cos you can't afford a BMW and have to do with a cheap Honda.

And this guy has the nerve to call Mac users fanboys.

At least there's some valid reasons for our fanboyism. We appreciate great design and build quality, and the fact that Apple beats other manufacturers in customer satisfaction surveys. The same can't be said of BMW.

"Can't afford a BMW??" ANYONE can afford a BMW. I saw one for £500 at the side of the road the other day. It was a pile of crap just like the new ones are, but no doubt there will be no shortage of takers, because some fools live under the illusion that it's better than a Japanese car.

 

[dernhelm]

Here is a theory. When you buy a very expensive product, you force yourself to believe it was worth it. I bought some expensive computer speakers that I noticed was clearly defective, and yet forced myself to believe it was the best purchase I ever made.

Does this explain your love for BMWs too?

just kidding.

 

[4D4M]

Does this explain your love for BMWs too?

Ha ha... superb

 

[BMWFan]

And this guy has the nerve to call Mac users fanboys.

At least there's some valid reasons for our fanboyism. We appreciate great design and build quality, and the fact that Apple beats other manufacturers in customer satisfaction surveys. The same can't be said of BMW.

"Can't afford a BMW??" ANYONE can afford a BMW. I saw one for £500 at the side of the road the other day. It was a pile of crap just like the new ones are, but no doubt there will be no shortage of takers, because some fools live under the illusion that it's better than a Japanese car.

Except unlike Macs which have the same internals as PCs, BMW have performance optimised engines, chassis and suspension components. The M3 is THE standard, and the M5/M6 completely dominates everything in its class.

A Mac can get outperformed by a cheaper PC. A BMW will never get outperformed by a cheaper Japanese car.

 

[Anuba]

Yes, because running a business is all about market share and not about profits.

So you're suggesting Jobs is only in this for the money? He has no vision and personal goals beyond that? His life goal was to create a money making machine?

That's BS. Even Ballmer has other goals than making money.

Nobody outside Steve Jobs' brain knows what his personal goals are. But I'd imagine that when you have more money than you could possibly spend, you're getting old and have major health issues, then maybe you want to do "one more thing", like, say, one last shot at world domination, rather than die as the guy who failed to make a major dent in Microsoft's marketshare. He doesn't want Star Wars to end with Luke failing to blow up the Death Star and the evil Empire running the galaxy for another thosand years.

You have to remember that he was kind of a loser who had to come crawling back to Apple through an acquisition. His company was bought by a company on the ropes, kind of like Chrysler merging with Fiat. But after that, he has fulfilled his goal of creating his dream products AND enjoying massive commercial success. So where can he go from there? Keep making more well-designed products and sell them to the same 3% of the world population as always? Nah, time for the next step.

 

[bruinsrme]

I have a feeling there's going to be some resistance against lowering prices from current Mac users.

I personally have no problems with it.

Do you really think Apple cares you paid more las month than someone did this month?

The only resistance apple has seen in lowering prices is internal to Apple.
Perhaps sales projections are lower and they want to move inventory to allow a newer chip series to be introduced.

Take Dell for instance, they will throw this amazing sale which will run 2 to 3 weeks. then the price bounces back to the original price but with much different hardware and processor.

But the scenario is more than likely that August and Semptember orders are being placed now. Perhaps Intel (wink wink) has something coming out that isn't on their current road map or that is being pulled in due to better yeilds than expected (wink wink).

 

[4D4M]

BMW have performance optimised engines, chassis and suspension components.

And other cars don't?

The M3 is THE standard, and the M5/M6 completely dominates everything in its class.

Each is equalled by rivals. Although the M6 definitely beats all others for most pig-ugly car in it's class.

A Mac can get outperformed by a cheaper PC. A BMW will never get outperformed by a cheaper Japanese car.

Lancer Evo X to name but one.

See, you're a fanboy, you just can't see past the badge...

 

[BMWFan]

And other cars don't?



Each is equalled by rivals. Although the M6 definitely beats all others for most pig-ugly car in it's class.



Lancer Evo X to name but one.

See, you're a fanboy, you just can't see past the badge...

Other cars do, but not to the extent of BMW.

M3 is unrivalled and so is M5. Both of them easily beat any offering from Audi including the R8

You must be joking if you think Lancer Evo X comes anywhere near the performance of M3 with it's smaller, less powerful engine and large AWD transmission losses.

I can't see past the badge? Aren't you a Mac fanboy? At least I have valid reasons.

A Mac is a Fiero with a bodykit.

 

[Anuba]

Do you really think Apple cares you paid more las month than someone did this month?

Apple may not care, but the customers sure do. Remember the iPhone $599>$399 debacle? Jobs had to write an effing personal letter to the user base to get out of that predicament.

 

[SactoGuy18]

Looks like I have to repeat myself again.

In my humble opinion, Apple cannot continue to buck the trend in regards to the prcing of their Mac notebooks and desktops. Given the poor economy worldwide, people are not as thrilled at buying a Mac, especially once Windows 7 comes out probably late this year. I've tried Windows 7 and frankly, unlike Windows Vista it is very fast, easy to use, and most importantly will run on everything from Intel Atom-powered netbooks all the way up to the latest high-end desktops with Intel's latest Core i7 desktop and Gainestown-core Xeon CPU's.

That's why I think Apple needs to seriously look at building a small tower case desktop costing somewhere between US$750 and US$1,100 depending on options, with a DVI-D and/or Mini DisplayPort video connectors. The price of the all-in-one iMac has reached frightening levels, especially with the circa US$2,000 cost for a 24" iMac in some higher-end configurations! With a small tower case machine plus an Apple-certified LCD panel from the likes of LG, Samsung, Viewsonic, etc. you could get a machine with simular performance for about US$600 to US$700 less.

 

[4D4M]

Other cars do, but not to the extent of BMW.

Most ignorant sweeping statement ever. I don't know where to begin.

M3 is unrivalled and so is M5. Both of them easily beat any offering from Audi including the R8

Who said anything about Audi?

You must be joking if you think Lancer Evo X comes anywhere near the performance of M3 with it's smaller, less powerful engine and large AWD transmission losses.

Have you actually checked the performance figures? Read any reviews? Stacks up quite well against an M3 that is "not as involving as previous generations with a disappointing gearbox". (Various reviews 2008/9)

I can't see past the badge? Aren't you a Mac fanboy? At least I have valid reasons. A Mac is a Fiero with a bodykit.

Yes I am. And I can laugh about it, and fully accept Apple's shortcomings while I'm getting my wallet out to buy their latest piece of eye candy.

You, on the other hand, seem to get quite upset if someone criticises the object of your affections.

 

[azentropy]

it would possibly help get people to try a mac.. become addicted and move up to a "bigger"machine...

Yes and no. That was a reason for the Mac mini. When it came out a bunch of my PC friends bought one with a 20" Dell Ultrasharp LCD (killer purchase program through work on the Dell). They are all IT people and loved it. After a couple of years it grew long in the tooth and everyone was ready to upgrade, also Apple moved to Intel during that time. While they loved the Mac OS they learned they wanted something more expandable than the Mac mini, something that could take more ram, bigger HD etc.

That is where Apple's huge product hole put them off. They learned the mini isn't the route they would want to go again, they already had a better display that what was offered in the iMac (and didn't want to pay for a display anyway) and the next option was a MacPro starting at > $2000 which was out of their budget.

Every single one of them went back to PCs because Apple does not provide a reasonably priced option for those looking to move up from a mini and already have a display they want to keep.

 

[Fizzoid]

A Mac can get outperformed by a cheaper PC. A BMW will never get outperformed by a cheaper Japanese car.

My Nissan Skyline says otherwise!

M3 is unrivalled and so is M5. Both of them easily beat any offering from Audi including the R8

SO you're saying the RS4 doesn't rival the M3? I'd be interested to hear your reasoning on that!

Originally Posted by BMWFan
You must be joking if you think Lancer Evo X comes anywhere near the performance of M3 with it's smaller, less powerful engine and large AWD transmission losses.

M3 0-60mph: 4.6 seconds, Evo X FQ360 0-60mph: 4 seconds. Near, no, beats it, YES!

I suggest you Google for some facts next time before spouting such rubbish, you're only making yourself look foolish

 

[BMWFan]

Yes and no. That was a reason for the Mac mini. When it came out a bunch of my PC friends bought one with a 20" Dell Ultrasharp LCD (killer purchase program through work on the Dell). They are all IT people and loved it. After a couple of years it grew long in the tooth and everyone was ready to upgrade, also Apple moved to Intel during that time. While they loved the Mac OS they learned they wanted something more expandable than the Mac mini, something that could take more ram, bigger HD etc.

That is where Apple's huge product hole put them off. They learned the mini isn't the route they would want to go again, they already had a better display that what was offered in the iMac (and didn't want to pay for a display anyway) and the next option was a MacPro starting at > $2000 which was out of their budget.

Every single one of them went back to PCs because Apple does not provide a reasonably priced option for those looking to move up from a mini and already have a display they want to keep.

People still buy stuff from Dell???

 

[BMWFan]

My Nissan Skyline says otherwise!

SO you're saying the RS4 doesn't rival the M3? I'd be interested to hear your reasoning on that!
M3 0-60mph: 4.6 seconds, Evo X FQ360 0-60mph: 4 seconds. Near, no, beats it, YES!

I suggest you Google for some facts next time before spouting such rubbish, you're only making yourself look foolish

Because straight line performance is all that matters right?

 

[OllyW]

People still buy stuff from Dell???

Yes, more than 4 times as many as those that buy computers from Apple.

 

[NT1440]

Because straight line performance is all that matters right?

Hilarious statement coming from you of all people who nitpicks one point like its all that matters (2GB RAM in the MBP for instance).

Do you see the similarity there?

 

[Fizzoid]

Because straight line performance is all that matters right?

Nope, I'd put my Skyline against a M3 on track any time, and the FQ360 is a pretty good track car. Better as a track car than it is a road car IMO as the clutch is so stiff. You made a sweeping statement about performance and are quite clearly wrong, next!

 

[Anuba]

SO you're saying the RS4 doesn't rival the M3? I'd be interested to hear your reasoning on that!

I'd hold out for the RS5, due in 2010. 450 bhp V8, retractable spoiler, optional DSG 7-speed (a VW group exclusive that Ferrari only wish they had). Many shift stick virtuosos have tried, but nobody has ever beaten a DSG.

 

[4D4M]

Because straight line performance is all that matters right?

I think you'll find your beloved M3 is beaten on more than just straight line performance, if you bother to read some reviews.

But like the man says, you don't read the facts before spouting your rubbish.

You've had your bottom spanked, now run along.

 

[BMWFan]

I think you'll find your beloved M3 is beaten on more than just straight line performance, if you bother to read some reviews.

But like the man says, you don't read the facts before spouting your rubbish.

You've had your bottom spanked, now run along.

To be perfectly honest, the Evo X Fq360 won't beat the M3 in a straight line drag race. From the dig, the AWD is an advantage but that advantage won't last long due to AWD transmission losses and crappy torque curve. M3 has an insane top end and will reel in and blow past the Evo X.

 

[Fizzoid]

To be perfectly honest, the Evo X Fq360 won't beat the M3 in a straight line drag race. From the dig, the AWD is an advantage but that advantage won't last long due to AWD transmission losses and crappy torque curve. M3 has an insane top end and will reel in and blow past the Evo X.

Because straight line performance is all that matters right?
Edit: FYI
BMW M3 E90 Quarter mile 13.19 seconds
Evo X FQ360 Quarter mile 12.672 seconds
Taken from 'Fastest Laps'

 

[nplima]

I want to play "make a car analogy" too!


Mac is... VW Eos (2.0l petrol)
Dell is... Seat Leon (1.9l diesel)

 

[iSamurai]

My thoughts:


1. Cheaper macs... in response to M$ blatant ads?

2. "a shift towards netbooks"... alright, but it's pointless selling old (stock) macbooks at a cheaper price than the current macbook if that's what they're gonna do. sure, it may outperform any netbook anyday but it's too heavy~~

3. how sincerely, if that's the word, or genuinely, is apple with this cheaper macs idea...? coz seeing their mark up is 50% and discounted apple stuff still burn big holes in your wallet (yes but I still like mac stuff), how does apple define cheap?



edit: oh, err... why are we talking about cars here lol??

edit 2: "began offering educational institutions a 2GHz, 20-inch aluminum iMac for $899."
oh. so that's where UQ's stockpile of macs in the faculty of science came from. I've gone to the right uni.