Live Coverage of Apple's Education Event in Chicago

[deanthedev]

Although this could be interesting, I really wonder what Apple is trying to achieve here.

Education is definitely not a market where you can make money in, so it goes against the belief many people here have that Apple is only interested in chasing profits. History has also shown that there's no loyalty from K-12 to later in life. People don't keep using the same device they used in school - they will buy what they like, which ends up being mainly a Windows machine followed by a Mac. So it's not like this is going to be a future revenue driver either.

We know why Google is doing this for free - they want your kids data. What does Apple want?

 

[JosephAW]

That logo makes it look like a hair was on my phone. Good job.

Me too!
[doublepost=1522161549][/doublepost]Nothing on Periscope yet.

 

[Bentron]

No spoiler free keynote link? Or am I just overlooking it...

I was wondering the same... Can't see a thread.

 

[Abazigal]

I’m really hoping they’ll update the Apple Pencil.

1. It functions just fine but it should attach to the iPad somehow.
2. Allow it to charge while attached to iPad. Inductive or whatever.
3. Ditch the removable cap that is easily lost.
4. Make it able to determine when it’s not in use so it is not trying to connect to Bluetooth and draining the battery.

There is a reason why Apple released an overpriced leather sleeve which has a separate compartment for the Apple Pencil which stores it separately from the iPad. Think about it.

 

[berrymetal]

But who cares?
We won't see any decent refreshes from Apple and who knows if we will see any decent refreshes in the future.
And every update that appears is worse than the last update. No more ports, no more sdcard, no magsafe, flash soldered, RAM soldered and limited to 16GB (MBP) - but it gets more and more expensive.
Apple isn't the company to produce a flexible, upgradeable/repairable and powerful machine anymore, it has become a pure toy company. I'll wait til WWDC and if there is still no decent upgrade for Mac Pro/MBP I'm done with Apple.

Oh I beg you please don’t leave Apple, PLEASE!!!

 

[ProwlingTiger]

I was wondering the same... Can't see a thread.

A THOUSAND SPOILERS AND NO THREAD! GODS NED!

 

[willmtaylor]

Although this could be interesting, I really wonder what Apple is trying to achieve here.

Education is definitely not a market where you can make money in, so it goes against the belief many people here have that Apple is only interested in chasing profits. History has also shown that there's no loyalty from K-12 to later in life. People don't keep using the same device they used in school - they will buy what they like, which ends up being mainly a Windows machine followed by a Mac. So it's not like this is going to be a future revenue driver either.

We know why Google is doing this for free - they want your kids data. What does Apple want?

Umbrella effect.

Get products and familiarity in the classroom then students will be comfortable and more likely to invest in the Apple ecosystem later on.

 

[swingerofbirch]

James' Schedule is my preference over James's Schedule. But that's just me.

 

[yaxomoxay]

Refreshments? iPanini confirmed!

 

[joeblow7777]

Seriously hope people don't complain up a storm if they don't announce new products other than education related products. Wait till WWDC, this one is for kids and education...

People will no doubt complain as Apple presents exactly what the event promised all along. Some people just can’t take a hint and are still expecting something big and geared towards the general public.

 

[moabal]

How about an update to the Mac Mini? That could be positioned for education.

 

[Boomish69]

Pity there is no live TV, be good to see, Apple have a huge mountain to climb, they have left it far too long!

Now the schools and business I look after all use G Suite, and are buying Chrome Books in big numbers, (ordering lots at one school this week). Easy to configure any PC to Come OS and supported quickly via Google Admin. Meanwhile Apple support for iPads has been nothing but terrible, I've tried my best to promote Apple and persuaded IT techs they aren't that bad and they certainly work well in the classroom, apps are great but there are so many problems with setup & management unless you pay for a 3rd party configurator like Jamf. We use the free Meraki and it works but only just.

Unless Apple today release a competitive cloud operation to G-Suite and solutions to the shared device they have no hope despite any price reduction on iPads or MacBooks.

 

[rcooked]

Although this could be interesting, I really wonder what Apple is trying to achieve here.

Education is definitely not a market where you can make money in, so it goes against the belief many people here have that Apple is only interested in chasing profits. History has also shown that there's no loyalty from K-12 to later in life. People don't keep using the same device they used in school - they will buy what they like, which ends up being mainly a Windows machine followed by a Mac. So it's not like this is going to be a future revenue driver either.

We know why Google is doing this for free - they want your kids data. What does Apple want?

I'm not convinced you can't make money in education - as a school district CFO I'd say tech can be very profitable. Especially on the software side.

The other piece that might be more difficult to measure is exposing students to a particular brand while in primary education. They then become comfortable with a certain hardware/software combo, and people don't seem to like change. So, I think it can be profitable in the short and long run as students grow into adults.

Not debating the merits of either system, I've just been in the room on these conversations when looking at ecosystems.

 

[willmtaylor]

But who cares?
We won't see any decent refreshes from Apple and who knows if we will see any decent refreshes in the future.
And every update that appears is worse than the last update. No more ports, no more sdcard, no magsafe, flash soldered, RAM soldered and limited to 16GB (MBP) - but it gets more and more expensive.
Apple isn't the company to produce a flexible, upgradeable/repairable and powerful machine anymore, it has become a pure toy company. I'll wait til WWDC and if there is still no decent upgrade for Mac Pro/MBP I'm done with Apple.

Do you feel better now?

 

[yaxomoxay]

I'm not convinced you can't make money in education - as a school district CFO I'd say tech can be very profitable. Especially on the software side.

The other piece that might be more difficult to measure is exposing students to a particular brand while in primary education. They then become comfortable with a certain hardware/software combo, and people don't seem to like change. So, I think it can be profitable in the short and long run as students grow into adults.

Not debating the merits of either system, I've just been in the room on these conversations when looking at ecosystems.

If apple wants to make money in education it needs to be able to provide rental textbooks in iBook (available for all devices) with pencil support and ability to store notes that can be exported. This is even more true if they find a way for the teacher to augment the book itself (maybe with teacher’s notes, calendar integration etc.)

 

[thebeans]

Although this could be interesting, I really wonder what Apple is trying to achieve here.

Education is definitely not a market where you can make money in, so it goes against the belief many people here have that Apple is only interested in chasing profits. History has also shown that there's no loyalty from K-12 to later in life. People don't keep using the same device they used in school - they will buy what they like, which ends up being mainly a Windows machine followed by a Mac. So it's not like this is going to be a future revenue driver either.

We know why Google is doing this for free - they want your kids data. What does Apple want?

Of course there's money in education. The hardware in schools is definitely not free. Whichever company makes the hardware makes a profit. I work in education. We may get a discount because of volume but we pay plenty for the products we implement. Windows desktops, Windows laptops, Chromebooks, iPads (for the younger kids) Google may not charge much for the OS on Chromebooks but they do charge. And the hardware costs of course.

 

[yaxomoxay]

Al Gore is in attendance

 

[jazz1]

I don't know why, but I'm streaming "My Morning Jacket" so the Macrumors Coverage seems like a live streaming event

 

[JohnApples]

Seriously hope people don't complain up a storm if they don't announce new products other than education related products. Wait till WWDC, this one is for kids and education...

HAHAHA! Thanks for the laugh!

On a more serious note, I am intrigued about what this supposed “student ipad” will be like.

 

[yaxomoxay]

Political comment by Cook. I bet he’ll run for senator one day...

 

[macduke]

This reminds me of the good ol' days on MacRumors before there were live feeds. Clearly this is inferior but nostalgia is weird like that. I like this.

 

[bunnicula]

Although this could be interesting, I really wonder what Apple is trying to achieve here.

Education is definitely not a market where you can make money in, so it goes against the belief many people here have that Apple is only interested in chasing profits. History has also shown that there's no loyalty from K-12 to later in life. People don't keep using the same device they used in school - they will buy what they like, which ends up being mainly a Windows machine followed by a Mac. So it's not like this is going to be a future revenue driver either.

We know why Google is doing this for free - they want your kids data. What does Apple want?

I'm not sure the loyalty angle isn't valid at this point. You get a kid used to a walled garden in grades K-12 and they'll likely take it with them to college. That's a big market for sales. If they go to college and somehow change their minds, well, that's up to the rest of the marketing team. I dunno. I think that the loyalty thing was more true when it was just about desktop/laptop computers, but Apple is all about phones/iPads, and other more "personal" tech now.
[doublepost=1522163190][/doublepost]

This reminds me of the good ol' days on MacRumors before there were live feeds. Clearly this is inferior but nostalgia is a weird like that. I like this.

Me, too. Funny, eh?

 

[willmtaylor]

If apple wants to make money in education it needs to be able to provide rental textbooks in iBook (available for all devices) with pencil support and ability to store notes that can be exported. This is even more true if they find a way for the teacher to augment the book itself (maybe with teacher’s notes, calendar integration etc.)

I’d buy that.

 

[yaxomoxay]

This reminds me of the good ol' days on MacRumors before there were live feeds. Clearly this is inferior but nostalgia is a weird like that. I like this.

Go deeper into it. From now on you get info from Mac Life... on paper

 

[mi7chy]

Umbrella effect.

Get products and familiarity in the classroom then students will be comfortable and more likely to invest in the Apple ecosystem later on.

Not automatic though. Mac SE was crap coming from Apple IIgs. Back then the internet was mostly text based BBS, Usenet, Compuserve, etc. and graphical text scrolling on Mac SE was atrocious compared to Apple IIgs dedicated text mode. That drove a lot of smarter Apple users to PC and Linux where those platforms are dominant today.