Intel Core Duo Price Drops in May?

[amac4me]

Mac prices will not drop

I doubt that Apple will drop the price of their systems for the following reasons:

- Apple would like to prevent the mentality that customers make likely take if they passed the price drop to its customers: "if I wait, I can get the system cheaper in a few months". This would impact sales, something that Apple will want to avoid

- A drop in price would allow Apple to expand its margain per unit sold, the investment community would welcome that

 

[supremedesigner]

It's gonna make it tougher for me to keep waiting out a Merom-powered 'book! I just yoinked the "G" key off of my G4 'book this morning--just another reason to upgrade sooner 😀

B

Do you mean I4 instead of G4? 😛

 

[babble]

New poll on Times on Greatest Builders. Steve is in the list:

http://www.time.com/time/2006/time100/walkup/poll/

 

[alfismoney]

I would assume people are giving it a negative rating because they don't belive the savings will be passed onto the consumer. I doubt this will happen because Apple can't differentiate on hardware and keep the prices artificially high anymore, well one would hope not but with Apple who knows!

Jay

agreed, i think apple will have trouble keeping its prices as inflated as they used to now that financial analysts can simply go to the dell website and find out how badly apple is overcharging. while a small number of whiny consumers can be ignored, a large number of wallstreet traders being able to take a closer look at your numbers has a strong effect on the bottom line. my vote is to look for a speed bump in the MacBook Pros shortly after these prices go into effect rather than a price drop. apple sure does love that 1999 price point...

as for speed bumps in the macbook, this also seems a bit unlikely. apple obviously knew about these price drops before we did and was probably planning on using the new 1.66E duo that intel will be rolling out in may or going straight to the low voltage chip to save money and laptop weight. there are a few pieces of evidence for this one: bumping the 1.66 straight out of the MacBook Pro (imagine the cries of anger if the mac mini were running the same processor as the low end pro book for $1300 less) left the chip open for usage in the MacBook without overlap. apple also just released a 'fast' pro book for the first time in several years and would probably be hesitant to match what had been the low end macbook pro (1.8 duo) with the consumer book on its introduction. people would complain and negative press is exactly what apple is trying hard to avoid with the migration. Apple also has historically reserved faster chips for the pro machines despite them being widely available (iMac vs PowerMac G5 usage, iBook vs PowerBook G4 usage) until several months after the pro machines received their speed bump. Although the 1.8 is a possibility for a BTO option, or maybe stock in a 1399 version of the MacBook, I still vote for the entire machine being designed around the low voltage 1.66 duo and unable to use the standard 1.8 duo from the start.

 

[MrCrowbar]

New poll on Times on Greatest Builders. Steve is in the list:

http://www.time.com/time/2006/time100/walkup/poll/

Right next to George... Vote Steve!
EDIT: Lol i thought that was G. W. Bush there. Lol sorry

 

[IlluminatedSage]

well, i have been a apple customer for years and would actually love apple to create a more dynamic chip set and speed involvement for their computers.

For them to allow the option of buying 2.33 as a chip would be great. so would passing along the chip pricing savings along to the customer.

why? to stay more competitive with other pc makers. im actually tired of waiting 9-18 months for a model refresh.

it would be a big forward step to allow incremental upgrades in processor speeds for us, the consumers, when the chips are released to market by intel.

this would be a great thing. keeping apple forever on the forefront of speed for those who desire the most power.

 

[Some_Big_Spoon]

Hi, you must be new here. 🙂 Death, taxes, and Apple over-charging.

So this is why the Macbooks will be released in May...

This better mean that Apple won't up the prices.

 

[~Shard~]

This was always one of the issues that came up when Apple first announced it would be moving to Intel - would they be able to keep up with Intel's quicker product revisions and pricing? Gone are the days of 6 months between product refreshes, minimal speed bumps and constant pricing. That was the PPC era - let's see if Apple continues to keep pace with the Intel era by not ignoring this.

 

[Collin973]

Well, I hope apple does something: either up the processor speeds or lower the price. I'm not buying my MBP till June or July anways. By then, hopefully the bugs are worked out too. Any one have any thoughts on that time frame? Is it a good time to buy or should I wait to see if theirs a revision in August? (Need it before sept.)

--CP

 

[Stella]

yay, more profits to apple. Can someone tell me when the macbooks will be available for order, not delivery, just order.

No one can, not outside of Apple anyway.

Read the rumours ( by "May") - but don't be disappointed when they don't materialise on the given dates, like a lot of people here.

 

[~Shard~]

It will be interesting to see if this news has anything to do with the timing of the Intel iBooks. Perhaps Apple is waiting for this price drop in order to make the Intel iBooks more cost-friendly, and so that they can offer them at a lower price. I initialy thought we'd be seeing the new Intel iBooks this month, but perhaps now it won't be until June... Or, perhaps this story isn;t related to the Intel iBooks at all, and Apple will just continue on status quo and will not pass any savings onto the customer at all... 😉

 

[weldon]

I think that we will see Apple use these speedbumps and price drops as a natural way to differentiate the consumer and pro lines. I would expect to see revisions in June that include speedbumps for the MacBook Pro line at the same prices and the lower speed chips in the consumer MacBooks at lower prices.

What will be tricky is if Apple is willing to discount prices during those awkward "in-between" moments when wholesale prices have dropped, but faster chips haven't arrived yet. You know Dell, with their famously high number of inventory turns, is in a much better position to drop prices in step with suppliers. Apple has improved their inventory turns a great deal over the last few years, but they still have a ways to go to catch up.

 

[deadturtle]

It will be interesting to see if this news has anything to do with the timing of the Intel iBooks. Perhaps Apple is waiting for this price drop in order to make the Intel iBooks more cost-friendly, and so that they can offer them at a lower price.

One can only hope.

/me crosses fingers and toes
(and any one's else fingers and toes, just for good luck!)🙄

 

[Flash3441]

Intel is setting the stage for Merom

Well the Meroms are coming out later this year making these core duos obsolete so this comes as no big shock. When Merom is released, the Core Duo prices will probably go down even more. I hope Apple keeps using Core Duo processors in the mini and iBook systems even when Merom comes out for pricing purposes.

Can anyone tell me what the advantages are of Merom over Core Duo, other than being 64bit? It's been stated that it will increase battery life because it runs cooler but by how much?

 

[tmornini]

I can't wait for Apple to pass the savings onto themselves.


(?)

This (apparently) sarcastic comment appears to presuppose that Apple's *current* margins on the MBP are already what the company and its investors have come to expect.

It's very possible that Apple will "pass on the savings to themselves" in an effort to dollar cost average and achieve target margins. It might be that current margins on MBP are below what Apple needs.

--
-- Tom Mornini

 

[Mac Fly (film)]

Two possible reactions!!

1. Oh no!! I just bought a MacBook Pro!! Damn!!😡

2. Yes!! I was looking for a new notebook. Now I can get this!! And save too!! Woopeee!!😀

 

[j_maddison]

Moore's Law has nothing to do with economics.

Supply and demand control pricing.

Apple has positioned itself as a premier computer brand, and they set system prices based on what they think a consumer will pay. If they think high-end laptop buyers will pay $3-4k for a great portable system (fully loaded), that's what they'll sell it for. In the past, Apple seems to find the top end sweet spot pricing-wise, then continue minor speed bumps and upgrades to systems to keep people buying at that price point.

If you establish a marquee brand, keeping the price high actually ADDS to the perception of exclusivity and quality. It also means not playing the "whore-'em-out-at-razor-thin-margins" game all the other PC makers play.

Cheaper components will NOT mean cheaper systems. It will mean room for other peripheral improvements within a system, or just more net profit for Apple, or, more likely, a combination of the two.

Apple will sell cheap laptops at right around $999, high end laptops around $2,000-3,500, iMacs in the $1000-1700 range, and high end towers for around $2,000-4,000 or so (properly loaded w/RAM, HDD, etc.). The prices have not really dropped much for these types of systems since Steve Jobs return, not will they in the foreseeable future.

Systems will, however, continue to improve in raw computational power within those price points in order to remain competitive. But don't be looking for $999 MacBook Pros anytime soon. Or ever.

Apple doesn't apply traditional supply and demand, and they don't always fully load their products either. I fear you have some false hope there. Mind you some good points, and I hope you are right and the level of componentry increases in relation to the cost benefits Apple achieves through discounted componentry.

jay

 

[jdechko]

The logical thing might then be to speedbump the Intel Macs at that time while retaining the prices.

I think this is the most logical choice (assuming that the faster chips are available). A previous poster hit the nail on the head that Apple has found what they consider to be the "sweet spot" for pricing. I can see a MacBook 1.83 at $999. Whether or not Apple can will be seen.

 

[iSee]

Well, I rated this positive, because price drops are good, but I just got a new 2.16GHz MBP (actually, according to FedEx, they just delivered it to my house, and here I am stuck at work for several more hours 😡 ). I want $200 back! 😉

Just kidding (I guess). I'd most likely have to wait for a MBP revision before the price drop is reflected in pricing anyway, which I already decided not to do.

I makes me think though: As the post says, Apple normally keeps a product's price stable between revisions, despite cost savings due to components dropping in price. But now that they are more part of the mainstream PC market, are they going to be forced to drop prices more aggressively?

In February, say, the MBP was sort-of competatively priced with other Core Duo notebooks (to get the same features for much less, you had to get a much larger/heavier laptop, w/o iLife and OSX) But by May, after the Dells and Gateways, etc. drop prices, Apple's price Feb. price will seem ridiculous... Here's to aggressive price drops by Apple! *toasts thin air*.

 

[Phobophobia]

You're not paying for the components when you buy a mac. Plain and simple.

 

[p0intblank]

Could this mean a price drop for the Mac mini by summer? 😀

 

[plinkoman]

my predictions:

they'll bump the MBP up to 2.33/2.16/2.0 while maintaining the same price points of the 2.16/2.0/1.83 respectively. they'd probably do the same thing for the iMac.

the MacBooks will be able to take advantage of the lower prices and be able to achieve a $999 on the low end, be that a 1.66 solo or duo.

the mini will keep its specs and get a price drop to more along the lines of the G4's pricing.

 

[^squirrel^]

my predictions:

they'll bump the MBP up to 2.33/2.16/2.0 while maintaining the same price points of the 2.16/2.0/1.83 respectively. they'd probably do the same thing for the iMac.

the MacBooks will be able to take advantage of the lower prices and be able to achieve a $999 on the low end, be that a 1.66 solo or duo.

the mini will keep its specs and get a price drop to more along the lines of the G4's pricing.

I would have to back you up on that point.

Going on past history with Apple products they would probably keep the price of the MBP the same and just give it a speed bump.

Would be good to see the mini come down a bit as it's a little over priced at the moment.

However regardless if they do speed bump or on the off chance they lower the price of the MBP, i'm still holding out for the Merom.

There isn't going to be a major difference in performance to the average Joe ,unless you're video encoding or doing something processor intensive.

I know i'd be gutted if i bought a MBP in July and then in Aug/Sept they release the Merom. That would just put a bad taste in my mouth.

 

[alfismoney]

I makes me think though: As the post says, Apple normally keeps a product's price stable between revisions, despite cost savings due to components dropping in price. But now that they are more part of the mainstream PC market, are they going to be forced to drop prices more aggressively?

I think this is what we're all trying to guess. And the making of next week's MacRumors poll. i can see the options now. When Intel drops its processor prices publicly in May, will Apple:

a. bump processor speeds in the MacBook Pro/iMac
b. only drop MacBook Pro prices
c. drop all computer prices (bringing the mac mini back to 499)
d. thumb its nose at everyone and maintain the current status quo
e. maintain the status quo while it releases a new, exciting gadget to bury its penny pinching on page 2

 

[bit density]

my predictions:

they'll bump the MBP up to 2.33/2.16/2.0 while maintaining the same price points of the 2.16/2.0/1.83 respectively. they'd probably do the same thing for the iMac.

the MacBooks will be able to take advantage of the lower prices and be able to achieve a $999 on the low end, be that a 1.66 solo or duo.

the mini will keep its specs and get a price drop to more along the lines of the G4's pricing.

DING!

This would be precisely in keeping with the Apple Model. The Mac Mini may wait one more cycle before coming down in price. They may wait until core solo are even cheaper and there is a greater amount of UB software and there is a lesser dependancy on Rosetta at that level of user.

The Macbook will definitely have a core duo at the bottom range, again rosetta performance being the driving reason, but you may see artificial shortages of the lowest cost version to keep overall margins high, with shortages magically disappearing during the college buying season, likely to coincide with the next processor price drop.

In the fall I would expect the introduction of the Macbook Executive which will be smaller, thinner, longer battery life, using the ultra low voltage core models. And with the introduction of the the MacPro's late winter (shortly before and cointroduced with Adobe's CS3 and Leopard), the switchover will be complete. And then it will be time for...

One More Thing! (My guess is something that either competes in the Tablet or Ultra-Portable space, or possibly something for in the Living Room, rather than just the Dorm Room).