Game_Hunter said:
It seems to me the problem for Apple since the early to mid-nineties as far as their strength in the PC market has been mindshare. Now with the success of iPod and the iTunes Music Store as well as high profile stories about the good in their new OS and the bad in their competition's they are positioned well for a new assault on the market. Problem: they are underpowered. Now don't go throwing a fit. They ARE underpowered and NOT price competitive.
No fits here. With the success of the iPod and marketing deals with HP, Pepsi and AOL, Apple is in its best positions ever to win new customers. Sadly, their lineup is ill equipped to exploit it.
Game_Hunter said:
Entry Level Desktops = Colorful eMacs starting at 599 (Revive the colors fun and match them to the iPod Mini colors)
These should have two RAM slots accepting up to 2 GB of DDR RAM running at 333 Mhz and start at a default 256 MB of RAM or they will seem sluggish. The FSB needs to be upped to 533 Mhz. If they want to jump up more slowly they can do 266 RAM/400 Mhz FSB but they need to up this. Consumers are not as computer dumb as they used to be and they look at these as standard specs along with processor type and speed which brings up the next thing. They should up the G4s in these to at least 1.25 Mhz and within another 6 months 1.42 Mhz. No excuse for a slow system. All of these major performance ups could be achieved at a new price with only a modest margin hit I'm sure. Other things like being Airport ready and the video/sound cards/hard drives require no change. I'd keep the two models idea running. Basically one cheap starter system (599) and the more professional but still reasonable upgraded system with DVD burning and maybe slightly higher default RAM (maybe 899). To meet these prices they could maybe drop the cheaper eMac to a 15" CRT but this is dangerous as many consumers have now become accustomed to 17" monitors which are competitive with 15" monitors in pricing.
Am I undertanding you correctly here? G4s still in the eMac? If so, no FSB faster than 167 MHz. Motorola has been stalled there for years. If we're lucky, the new 1.5 GHz g$ they recently announced will have a faster FSB, maybe 200 MHz.
I like the idea of colors but 5 is too many. As I recall, that hurt them bad with the original iMac. Check that, their inane requirement to have to buy them in sets killed them. Typical Apple. 2 or 3 colors would be good, just make them in the top 2 or 3 colors of the iPod mini.
Game_Hunter said:
Prosumer Desktop = iMac?
While I know there are people who like these I would personally drop them all together in favor of a line of single processor G5s at similar price points. The cost of them doesn't jive with people's ideas about the cost/performance ratio and their design makes upgrading or customizing not possible. For an entry level computer this is fine but for a Prosumer machine it isn't acceptable. There are no PCI slots and these max at 1GB of RAM. You also can't change out the video card. Nasty. These are overpriced eMacs with flat panels and nobody is buying them.
If you want to keep them drop the 15" model and lower the prices on the 17" and 20" by about 300, make Bluetooth default and then make the max RAM 2GB. This wouldn't drive their sales much but it would make them more attractive.
If it were me I would create a new two system line of Macs based on the single processor G5 tower designs using perhaps what was the bottom rung 1.6 Hz G5 as the starter system and then a revived single processor 1.8 G5 as the upper end unit. These are upgradable and seductive to consumers. At the old iMac price points including a 17" Apple flat panel these would be DAMN sexy purchases. (G5 1.6 Ghz + 17" monitor = 1699. Oooo...Aaaaa). My only other suggestion would be to change the name and tower look to distance it from the POWER Macs. You don't want any mistake about where the POWER lies in the line-up and this could have that effect if Apple wasn't careful. Save the Power Mac name for the true power systems. I'd also speed bump them to 1.8 and 2.0 in October or so to get in on those folks who buy a new computer for Christmas as a tax write off before they have to give the money to the government in the next year.
Perhaps the iMac's design could be revived in a few years as a replacement to the eMacs when no one want's to see a CRT or traditional BIG monitor anymore and the manufacturing cost of the flat panels comes down low enough to make sub 1000 USD iMacs realistic. Apple was a little too early on this move and the demand for consumer sales of the eMac have shown this.
No doubt, G5s are needed here yesterday. Dual processors in the PM and single in the iMac. I love the current iMac form factor but maybe it is just too costly for Apple to sell them competitively. I would love a small tower (no more than half the current PM size, smaller if possible) that I could upgrade the video card and maybe even a PCI slot. Ship the damn thing with 512MB and leave me 2 slots open (need RAM in pairs for a G5).
Does Apple really want to attract switchers? I think many people consider Macs but then they think about transferiing all their files, will peripherals work etc. Put a program in place to help these people. Offer it through Apple Stores, CompUSA and use it to attract new resellers. For a small fee ($100?), bring in your old PC and you'll be shown how to move files, obtain drivers for your existing peripherals (if needed), basic OS training and select software. The fee would boost margins for resellers and give them the opportunity to sell additional hardware and software. Would probably be a bitch to run, but would probably move people to switch.
All those nice QuickTime training movies Apple has for Panther, iPhoto, iMovie etc. on .Mac, put them on the damn hard drives of all new Macs. Market them as free training and shout from the rooftops how great the iApps are. These apps solve problems people buy computers for.
Here's an example, my niece was in a play last week and about 11 family members attended. Most had a digital cameras and took pictures. I took 29 pictures. Within 90 minutes of returning home, I had them edited and posted online at my .Mac site. Sent out an email and the replies flooded in. How did you do that so fast? How do I do that with my PC? Put that in a TV ad, that would sell Macs.
Game_Hunter said:
Final thing. I think Apple should consider entering the camcorder market with a digital camcorder based on mini-hard drive technology. Apple's already on the cutting edge of the computer side of home movie making for consumers. They should levy that and their iPod prestige to branch into this consumer market as well. Apple has made their computer the best "digital hub" money can buy and branched out of that limited position with the iPod by reaching into the digital music market. Now I think they should reach into the digital video market as well. The iCam could effectively work with Windows easily without giving away iMovie to the Windows crowd but really shine when plugged into the Firewire on a Mac. This is an opportunity Apple should NOT miss out on.
There. I've said my piece. Now when Apple calls I'll gratiously accept their job offer. 🙄
I disagree. Unless Apple can add something that current camcorder vendors don't do, then it makes little sense. It is far from Apple's core competency and would likely fail. They don't have the technology and would have to license it which would lead to an overpriced offering. Partner with Sony or one of the other players to make a more Mac friendly camera. Sell it with special pricing or rebates.
Don't hold your breath waiting for Apple's call. They are interested in head up your ass marketers, those who create inane schemes to sell older technolgy and protect their higher end units. Apparently, they would rather sell small amounts of high end, high margin units than move millions at lower margins.
