People can mock all they want but Apple need to do this, as MacBooks are simply too expensive for the edu market. Now they did try with the whole 'use iPad as a computer' thing but failed. I think this is a good move.
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Apple to Launch 'Low-Cost' MacBook Series Next Year to Rival Chromebooks
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I think it was more of an inability for local IT staff to actually build out a curriculum to take advantage of the iPad. Education IT is almost universally underfunded and in huge technological debt.
Therefore, easier to keep on keeping on with the browser based initiatives and take the free chromebooks Google keeps throwing at school systems (in a pathetic attempt to build brand/ChromeOS loyalty).
I doubt it will be cheaper than the mac mini, probably just a slightly differentiated replacement for the current m1 MacBook Air at it's sale price of around $800
Too much for the edu market. Apple need to produce a cloud based device that runs purely off iCloud.
If it's on sale in Germany it's around 900€. 899-919€. something like that. Never ever have I seen one for 780€. Congratulations! Where are you located and where did you buy it?
Obviously it will also impact iPad sales if this occurs.
"So here's a Chromebook that costs twice as much but has an Apple logo on it." That's what will happen. Yes, it will be the cheapest macOS laptop ever, but still not crack the budget Chromebook market. PRICE.
Is it really a “market” if there’s no profit in it? All Apple needs to do is make a device that is within reach.
I expected to hear it. I think it is nonsense.
Apple doesn't even have three tiers of smartphones. Additional tiering comes from selling the old models and occasionally having a factory producing old models switch to use new parts when it doesn't require retooling (e.g. iPhone SE).
This would be them tooling up a new factory line to undercut their best selling Mac line with a model made of crappier materials.
It makes sense to do something like this. You lose the youth somewhat when you lose their early computing experiences and what they know. Apple used to dominate in education.
That being said, I'd be shocked if this thing was below $699. Perhaps if they could make an 11" MacBook that is basically an iPhone inside? Like not even the current iPhone chip but like a generation behind. Do A16 which will be used in the base iPhone coming out later this month. It only has 6GB RAM. Do 64GB storage. Use a lower resolution LCD display. Put that old crappy 720p webcam in it with tinny speakers. And have a smaller battery. IDK why they would make it metal. Just make it white plastic and then maybe they could get it down to $499 for education institutions only, minimum 10 orders or something. Call it the MacBook E.
That being said, I'd be shocked if this thing was below $699. Perhaps if they could make an 11" MacBook that is basically an iPhone inside? Like not even the current iPhone chip but like a generation behind. Do A16 which will be used in the base iPhone coming out later this month. It only has 6GB RAM. Do 64GB storage. Use a lower resolution LCD display. Put that old crappy 720p webcam in it with tinny speakers. And have a smaller battery. IDK why they would make it metal. Just make it white plastic and then maybe they could get it down to $499 for education institutions only, minimum 10 orders or something. Call it the MacBook E.
I wouldn't mind the return of the eMac or those white plastic Macbooks from 2010
Folks are assuming an M level chip. The intial developer Mac mini was based on the A12Z. One can envision a low cost education computer with an A16 or so chip, base Retina display, 6 GB RAM, 128 GB SSD being available for $499 or less. Likely no more expensive to make than a 2024-25 iPhone SE 3. These specs would not lure many away from current Macs or iPads.
Yeah Apple used to be for the People, especially going to school, but they would rather market to being a Luxury Brand instead and Charge the Customer up the ass for dinky upgrades. Now when the economy is tighter they want to capture the market with in other categories. Meh. Fail. and Fix the dumb iMac design and make a console gaming platform.
How about a small screen iPad in a laptop format with touch screen and pencil geared for the educational market? Sounds like a revolutionary idea!
That was not terribly cheap either, adjusted for inflation that was over $1500 in 1997
I doubt that Apple would compete directly on price. $500 seems unlikely. Just getting a lower price than the current MBA would open up a much larger market. They would probably pickup some of the higher end of the Chromebook market that way.
Yeah, that was my guess, if they release something "cheap" will be the most obsolete mac ever 128/4
You are right, apple
For a long time I been saying a M1 or better 12" MacBook would be way more capable then earlier i3 or i5 12" MacBook laptops. Given that everyone loves the 13.3" MBA it's quite probable that Apple has been looking at the Mac laptop marketplace and thought they need to lower the starting prices of Macs to grow their marketshare. As you describe it pegged against the current netbook competition you are probably spot on.
Just look at the technical specs of the earlier 2017 model, anyone here that doesn't think a AS SoC based 12" MacBook wouldn't eclipse it completely in many ways?
Unless this thing isn’t going to be a Mac, it’s getting an M series. Keeping the M1 production line going dramatically improved the ROI on Apple Silicon development.