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Apple's Upcoming Product Transition

IJ Reilly said:
A nice theory, but I don't think I buy it. The iLife applications have always been included with new Macs but upgrades cost. Are you suggesting that all iLife upgrades from here on will be free for Leopard users?
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That hasn't always been the case though. iMovie and iPhoto both started out as free downloads like iTunes. It's possible they could go back that way to combat Vista's bundling of similar (in purpose) apps.
 
The New iMac and the new Macbook pro will share a single unified motherboard and chipset leaving the iMac only 1" thick.
There will be a 20, 24 and 30" LED widescreen.
It will, obviously, be optical glass with a chrome bezel having a design sympathy with the iPhone.

The MacPro will continue relatively unchanged.

Touchwheel Ipods will remain but re-housed in black and chrome but complemented by a iphone-esque Video Ipod.
Iphone Nano will be released.
 
To me, product transition implies one of the following:
  1. introducing a product completely new and innovative.
  2. introducing a product in a line that completely replaces another.
  3. altering a product in a line significantly in a way that has consumers change their behavior.
A couple of examples of each:
  1. New and innovative
    A true entertainment-center appliance based on the iTunes model.
    A Mac-based appliance, like Microsoft's new "Surface."
  2. Replacing a line
    A slim-laptop offering replacing the old 12" PowerBook.
    Augmentation of the Apple TV and discontinuation of the Mac mini.
  3. Altering a Product
    Shifting CPU production from Intel to AMD, or providing options between the two.
    Completely moving iPods to a widescreen touch-screen format.
 
If they're really that concerned about the iMac, they should stop making the line. It's a closed-system that doesn't provide much value (quicker obsolescence). They should focus more on the mini and Pro platforms and lower the price on monitors.
 
Chisholm said:
The transition to new iMacs could easily be seen as a problem. If they introduce the new iMacs with a 6 week lead time, that would pretty much be 6 weeks of near zero sales. Its happened several times before.
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Yeah, that's some bad news . . . question is why they'd announce early. Obviously knowledgeable people aren't buying iMacs, but if they announce them soon but don't deliver until Sept/Oct., then even unknowldedgeable people won't buy them.
 
Oh please I hope to God they transition to household products now..

MacBook Pro in my bag. iMac on my desk. iPhone in my pocket

iMacrowave heating my iMac & Cheese. iMacuum cleaning my house. While sleeping on my iPhoam-mattress....

Ahhh what a life that would be
 
IJ Reilly said:
A nice theory, but I don't think I buy it. The iLife applications have always been included with new Macs but upgrades cost. Are you suggesting that all iLife upgrades from here on will be free for Leopard users?
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What I'm saying is there will be no iLife per se.It will be integrated into Leopard.Not a separate app.Built in.Sort of like ( I hate to use this analogy ) Windows picture viewer.Or Windows movie maker.

Lets call it Leopard Media Viewer.Includes music,video,pictures,movies,and TV.

And remember QT is going full screen in Leopard.The Pro version is only for recording movies and exporting.

This in itself will cause a small downward spike in revenues due to fewer people buying QT Pro.

I'm also predicting iMacs with built-in TV ports for watching Television. Probably only in the 30" model.


Of course I could just be full of it too :)
 
Reasons for lower earnings for Product Transition

My belief for the reasons of lower earnings this quarter for "Product Transition" relates to the release of the new iMac. If they plan on selling the new iMacs at similar prices to the current iMacs, then earnings will be less because of increased costs due to newer technology components.

For example, if the iMac comes with better graphics card options, faster hard drive options, blu-ray drive options, 16x Superdrives (instead of the 8x), etc, the price for these components will be higher with the price remaining the same. Thus, creating lower earnings.

I strongly belief that Apple was going to realease the new iMac at the June conference, but decided to wait because of the strong sales last quarter. They had no motivation to upgrade the iMac's technology when they could sell the lower cost "older" technology with a higher profit margin. I also strongly belief that this is why they are waiting until August, so that they sell as much of the overpriced older technology to the new foot traffic in the retail stores due to the iphone.

I am looking forward to the release of the new macs to get today's technology at a similar price of today's outdated iMacs. I can't wait for August 7th. :)
 
product transition equals decreased earnings because:
cost to apple of new ipod > current ipod. i think they are planning on having a significantly smaller profit margin. research has shown that the iphone costs about $280 for apple to make. drop a few things here or there and a new ipod could probably still cost apple close to $200 to manufacture. decreased profit margins on the ipod line that has fueled them for the past few years leads to decreased earnings.
 
jstoller said:
I would guess they're referring to the Leopard transition, scheduled to happen in October, which may cause people to put off buying a computer this quarter. That is how a product transition decreases earnings in the short term, though it will likely increase earnings in the following quarter.
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I agree. The same thing happened with Tiger.
 
It seems like a new iMac is probable? 20 and 24 in. models only now? However unless it's a complete overhaul of the iMac I don't see this as affecting "Product transition" that much.


Imo, Kiss the MacMini goodbye and say hello to (insert new headless mac here)

It seems Apple has had trouble creating a new product category hit that sticks outside of Laptop, Laptop Pro, Desktop, Desktop Pro, ever since the Cube?
 
Eraserhead said:
The reason they are doing this is that they are only selling 600k desktops, which probably equates to 200k Mac Pro's 300k iMacs and 100k Mac Mini's. Seeing as the iMac has 3 versions that's 100k each which probably isn't very profitable, especially as they all have different motherboards, they also have to use laptop parts which are more expensive.
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Apple sells about 1 Mac Mini for every 50 iMacs it sells.
 
mathwhiz90601 said:
But they don't announce new iMacs 6 weeks before release, they announce and release at the same time.
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But that is exactly what they have been doing of late. The original MBP was announced at least 6 weeks before they shipped, and PB sales fell flat.The iPhone was pre-announced (sort of) long before it was available, and may have cramped iPod sales. Leopard has been announced for October and is causing many potential customers to wait.
 
they should just give random Apple products away when you buy a Happy Meal at McDonalds.

i know when i was a little kid, i would beg my parents to take me to Mc D's just so i could get a new toy...i could care less about the food.

imagine all the little tikes (and adults) who would flock to Mc D's for a Happy Meal just to get a new, cool, random Apple product.

idk...just my thoughts.
 
shawnce said:
What bad news? They expect lower margins because they are going to refresh some products this quarter presumably using the latest chipsets, etc. which will cost them more then what they are currently using (thinking iMac and Mac Pro primarily here, I somewhat expect MacBook and Mac Mini to stay on the prior "generation" for differentiation and price point).
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Ding ding. I'd be willing to bet this is the reason.

The idea of lower margins because of more complex, cutting-edge devices and hardware falls nicely in line with AppleInsider's assertion that:

Appleinsider said:
The move is believed to be part of a broader, all-out blitz on the consumer electronics sector this holiday shopping season, in which a staggering array of gadgets from the Cupertino-based firm is expected to leave would-be rivals confused and unable to react.
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Don't you think?
 
Peace said:
I'm also predicting iMacs with built-in TV ports for watching Television. Probably only in the 30" model.
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What do you mean by "ports"? A coaxial connection? Absolutely not going to happen. Apple has a plan for TV -- and it does not involve a cable connection.

Apple has too much to gain from $1.99 downloads of TV shows -- and a possible subscription plan this fall -- to turn iMacs into DVRs.

If Apple made everything in the TV Shows section available for $29.99 a month and added live sports, award shows, etc., I would seriously consider getting an :apple:tv and dumping Comcast.

With or without a subscription plan, I think :apple:tv will gain the capability for direct purchase of TV and movie content before the end of this year.
 
If they're really that concerned about the iMac, they should stop making the line. It's a closed-system that doesn't provide much value (quicker obsolescence).
Click to expand...


That's how companies make money - planned obsolescence!
Apple wouldn't make much money if Macs lasted customers 10 years!
 
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