Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

HP Branded iPod and Music Store

Originally posted by Lanbrown
Most people buy the cheapest PC they can and Apple is not in that space. Next, they will need to buy new apps and most importantly, most users are stupid and cannot adapt to change.
Click to expand...

Not true. Most people look for a low priced computer and go to the shop that sells them and 99% are upgraded to more than they thought.

Apple doesn't use that selling policy. Maybe they should. Go to the dell store and try to buy what you want and the price really zooms up. When you ask them to choose for you . Watch the pricing. Only industry wants cheap throw aways.

Low end systems are often not too upgradeable. ie 20 Gb HD did not work to replace 1.7 GB drives and so on...
 
It will probably be called the iPod still, to go along with their best selling PDA line, the iPaq.

It will be the same hardware, at the same price, with a little HP branding.

They will just have that much more retail saturation, ie: Staples, OfficeMax, etc, where HP already has a great retail presence - places that don't care about getting Apple authorzed.
 
Here is the hPod, in all it's familar and reassuring grey PC glory ^_^ :

EDIT: Anyone know what HP blue is so I can update my fake? ;-)

hpod.jpg
 
Originally posted by adamfilip
IPod will be Blue and not called the IPOD

"The way we look at it, HP will be reselling an iPod device," said Schiller, who noted that the device will display the Apple logo at start-up and will work with all of the accessories made for the white-hued Apple varieties.

Schiller said HP's promotion of the iTunes Music Store through its PCs is a "multiyear, exclusive" deal.
Click to expand...

Apple logo every time it starts up...NICE! So much for people not knowing it's made by Apple...

Also, multi-year exclusive on the ITMS..So no other annoucements like this with other manufacturors for a while...but who cares

Cheers,
Hughdogg
 
Yes. HUGE indeed.


Looks like Apple realized they made a mistake many many years ago by keeping the Macintosh to itself. They see the same thing happening with the iPod if they don't take a different approach.

Maybe if Apple hadn't done this deal and opened up the market, another superior product would have fallen by the wayside and become a minority market.

As others have mentioned too, maybe his will make the Music Store come to Canada a little quicker. Now there will be more reason, as now there is not only 1.5 million computers that come with iTunes pre-installed, but more like 10 million. Time will tell.
 
Good idea....but HP had better do something about their little "Shwicon2k" program that's tied to their media card readers. It has screwed up iTunes for large numbers of people running HP and eMachine computers over on the iTunes threads at Apple Discussions. I've had to tell dozens of people to turn it off at startup to get iTunes to recognize a cd.:(
 
Originally posted by ShadowHunter
Put down the bong and step away. That's it...nice and easy.
Click to expand...

Heh. Hey, I love my Mac, don't get me wrong... I'm curious though... sooner or later if you develop enough cool products and software for (what traditionally is) the competition, then inevitably they have to look at their aging (now 20+ year) business model...

Basically, I don't see the hPod as a 'gateway' to Apple the way the iPod might be (which I'm not convinced it is, but that's the popular/official concensus), but a nifty alternative for the other 97%.

Making profitable peripherals to cater to 25% of the other 97% (I dunno what marketshare HP has in the Wintel market, I'm just guessing) is better than fighting the seemingly uphill battle they're currently facing with the Mac platform.

It certainly would be more profitable.
 
Mind blowing

HP had a $73 billion turnover last year. That sort of clout is immense. I dont know how many Windows iTunes have been dowmloaded, but the software was basically launched out into the internet with a big fanfare and is floating around being picked up as people buy iPods, read the associated press and sort of stumble into it. With this HP deal iTunes will be literally rammed down the throats of an audience of millions and those millions cannot turn a blind eye, or think "Apple, sod that."

Fair play, no pun intended, but Steve Jobs, how did he keep such a straight face when the mini iPod price wasnt applauded at the keynote speech, How did he contain himself when he was pointing at the 30% market segment knowing that he had a $70 billion dollar company backing his strategy for Apple to probably take that whole 30% market by hook or by crook.

Respect!
 
Originally posted by Frobozz
At this point hell has frozen over, Phill Parcells is coaching the Cowboys, and I'm waiting for a swarm of locusts...
Click to expand...

No, hell froze over yesterday when the Redskins announced Joe Gibbs was coming back!! :)

This is awesome for Apple. When it comes down to it, a company needs money to stay in business. And Apple's approach to the MP3 market is just that - MAKE MONEY!!! You have got to wonder how much profit Apple is making on each iPod - probably at least 75% on each unit. Meaning that the 40 gig iPod probably only cost Apple about $125 to make, yet they sell it for $500. Couple that with Pixar's outrageous profit (and I am sure Jobs uses some of that income in conjunction with Apple) and I could care LESS that Apple still only retains a 5% market share. It means that Apple is still solvent and will therefore continue to be THE #1 computing innovator.

Now, how long do you think it will be before HP starts offering an "alternative" operating system named Panther? heheh - ya never know!
 
Here is the hPod, in all it's familar and reassuring grey PC glory ^_^
Click to expand...

I don't quite understand that sentence. We have 4 PCs in this house and none of them are grey. We have 1 Blue, 2 Black, and 1 Green.

Must be a mac thing.....

On the flip side, another great thing for Apple is guess who is going to pick up the manufacturing cost for these things....HP.

Really helps them get their product out and not cost them a cent.

Good for them. If they make them more affordable I am all for getting one.
 
My guess as to what happened:

Apple approached HP/Compaq asking about pre-loading iTunes on all of it's machines. The concession that HP/Compaq wanted was the iPod. Apple agreed, as while not all HP/Compaq customers will immediately have the HP iPod, all of them will have iTunes.

From there, many of them will buy the Apple rather than the HP iPod. It gets Apple's foot in the door and into the back of people's minds.

Seems like a good decision on Apple's aprt.
 
Originally posted by brywalker
It will probably be called the iPod still, to go along with their best selling PDA line, the iPaq.
Click to expand...

Just a quick aside - a few years ago I bought my first MP3 player, which I still have, from Compaq. It's name? IPaq.

I have always wondered how the hell Compaq just ripped the name and launched their PDA's under it.
 
I was so surprised whenever I read this! But I'm very happy for Apple, HP, and all HP consumers who are going to easily be able to experience iTunes.

I guess this doesn't include Compaq, even though Compaq merged with HP a while back?
 
Originally posted by Frobozz
At this point hell has frozen over, Phill Parcells is coaching the Cowboys, and I'm waiting for a swarm of locusts...
Click to expand...

Now that's funny !
and damn if ol' Bill didn't almost get them there. Not a Dallas fan by any stretch of the imagination. but admire what Parcells has done.

And to keep on topic.. I too am wondering what these 'hpods' will look like. But it seems anything that gets the Apple name out their.. has to be good.
 
Originally posted by Pablo
From there, many of them will buy the Apple rather than the HP iPod. It gets Apple's foot in the door and into the back of people's minds.

Seems like a good decision on Apple's aprt.
Click to expand...

I don't see how you came up with your conculsion... why would the HP owner ever look at an Apple product if the 'coolest thing they offer' is available right from HP in the first place?
 
Originally posted by brywalker
I don't quite understand that sentence. We have 4 PCs in this house and none of them are grey. We have 1 Blue, 2 Black, and 1 Green.

Must be a mac thing.....
Click to expand...

Yes. This is an old mac joke.
 
Originally posted by brywalker
I don't quite understand that sentence. We have 4 PCs in this house and none of them are grey. We have 1 Blue, 2 Black, and 1 Green.

Must be a mac thing.....
Click to expand...

You are quite right - it is a Mac thing. Meaning, if Apple had not released the iMac in those oh so fruity colors, you PC folks would still be living in the bland, grey/beige computer case world. The only reason you have a Blue, Black, and Green PC is beause, as usual, Apple set a new standard and everyone else (PC companies) followed suit.
 
OUCH, Smack

What on Earth is this??

Please I hope this is a false announcement.

FIrst off Apple has invested WAY too much in porting over iTunes for Windows. Second, PC owners are already buying, bought, or plan on purchasing a new iPod! Trust me I'm one of them!!!! Can you say mini boys & girls??!

Now if this is some HP/Compaq branded iPod then it IS a clone in any sense and might be cheaper even if bundled with a PC and could tank Apple's own iPod sales and image!! Also, How many times had a superior technology company licensed not only its technology but its name on another branded product?? Lotus suspension on those harrible, yes HARRIBLE,(Jamaican tone starr), GM car (some 5 years ago) that tanked. Also, the long standing partnership of Eagle Talon AWD with Mitsubishi Eclipse AWD. Eagle had much more sales of the AWD version, until AWD wasn't offered and then Eagles other market brands caused it to go titanic. Mitsu is barely hanging on the Eclipse name. The Ford Probe/GT with Mazda MX-6......well the Probe is no longer here but the 6 is!!! This last point is opposite of the point I'm trying to lay down, but if HP/Compaq's sales don't show a benefit, then they'll back out with much lower losses than Apple. Then Apple will have to have new marketing in order to help the iPod have brand-servival.

If there are problems with the models shipped with HP/Compaq (God I hope not the Compaq brand - as its a shadow of its former self), guess whom gets the blame??? APPLE.

I'd rather see G5's and Apples OS X on COmpaq or HP computers minus the iLife products and full UNIX underpinings.
 
"The partnership, announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas calls for H-P to begin selling branded music players this summer that would, in effect, be iPods with the H-P name on the package."

"Schiller said the multi-year exclusive deal has Apple building the players with the H-P name and in colors that are more familiar to H-P's product line. Schiller said the deal involves the current line of iPods, but not the iPod mini, which could be added at a later date."

http://www.alwayson-network.com/comments.php?id=2333_0_7_0_C
 
rebranded means just that--rebranded. likely the exact same device, probably in a different color, with a different logo on it. HP actually has, IMO, far and away the best industrial design in the PC world. sony does really well with some devices, but HP is really quite good across the board. i think this is great for both sides. HP is partnering with the market leader in legal music downloads, and as a market learder itself in the PC industry, is positioning itself and Apple to be the runaway leader in digital music. the iPod is already a fabulous device, and HP has just saved itself from having to try to top it.
from Apple's point of view, this serves to strengthen the iTMS and the iPod. even if the stuff is rebranded as HP, people will still know where it originally came from.

as far as the hp branded iPod goes, i imagine that Apple won't let HP sell it for any less than Apple sells it for. this is nothing like the old mac clones, as a few have suggested. this is not an iPod clone, it actually is an iPod with a different name printed on it.
 
Quoting:

"Apple's shares rose $1.10, or 5 percent, to $23.69 and H-P climbed $1.19, or 5 percent, to $24.54 after the iPod deal was made public."

Nice ^_^
 
Having an Apple logo on start-up of a PC vendors product is similar to having the "Intel Inside" logo. Shows PC owners that Apple is a legit company in the market place. And having iTunes on the HP desktop does the same thing. Both Apple and HP stock are up dramatically.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back