Where are the Apple Pro Product Advancements?

[Velin]

For those of you who wanted the Jenny Craig version of an iPod Touch, grats, your day has come. After dropping your $500, revel in your ability to comfortably iPhad surf TMZ and Perez Hilton while you “tweet” about pr0n.

The rest of us have meaningful stuff to do. This is why we use Apple hardware and OS X, to get stuff that matters done, quickly and efficiently.

So where’s our media event? Apple, you best be working on:

1. upgraded hardware across all Mac lines: SSDs are here, so are high-density DVDs a la Blue-ray. Where’s the support? We pay bleeding edge prices for Macbook Pros and Mac Pros -- you better show the under-the-hood horsepower improvements if you still want top dollar.

2. OS X -- Snow Leopard was good and reasonably priced. But better get moving on the next version. M$oft has many billions in the bank and is gunning for marketshare. If you divert resources to the iPhad OS and the Perez Hilton surfers, you’re going to get your clock cleaned when it comes to OS X. Then let’s see what happens to your Mac sales, you know, the products that matter. PS permissions in a networked environment still suck. Wasn’t Snow Leopard supposed to fix this?

3. monitors: Is the 27” iMac it? Apple, aren’t you embarrassed companies like Dell and NEC are way ahead on product releases, with H-IPS technology and a decent array of monitor offerings? Why don’t we have a large Apple display that has fantastic resolution, thin, can effortlessly switch from portrait to landscape, and finally give us something that uses display port? Woo, display port: it may be good, but not now. Not when I have to buy multiple adaptors for DVI and VGA displays because there’s not a damn thing on the market justifying displayport and minidisplay port. Perhaps you’re willing to cede billions in display marketshare while you work out the kinks with your casual websurfer/tweeter/gps/email/prOn/gamer noonereadsthesestupidtweets thingamagig, or whatever it’s supposed to be used for. Noted.

4. mac audio: it still sucks. Can you please, at long last, give us something resembling prosumer audio, instead of these lame jacks that come with $3K computers? No one likes having to run out and drop a grand on cards just so an end user can get some decent audio I/O.

The people with budgets know computing hardware technology is a *cheap* line item. The real expense is people (salaries + healthcare) and property (rent + utilities). If Apple’s pro lines suffer because you’re dithering around with your new TouchToy, we’ll simply divert dollars to products that assist us in getting stuff done.

Here’s to hoping playtime is over and you get back to working on things that matter.

 

[Cindori]

todays event was only about mobility. sorry if you was misinformed.

 

[Bubba Satori]

Apple is getting out of the traditional computer business.
It's all about music players, phones and toypads now.
Sorry.

 

[Icaras]

These forums seem almost divided into two worlds now. This Mac Pro forum is very civil compared to most rest of the forums now because of all these new consumer gadgets Apple has been releasing. I can barely stand the iPad forums. Even the Macbook Pro forums are getting out of hand there is obviously an overlap of consumer/pro customer base there now.

 

[eawmp1]

Did you really think Jobs was going to dilute the iPad message with upgrades to products that have a small niche? You will get your upgrade eventually, but has been stated above, Apple is less about computers (particularly workstations) and all about consumer electronics.

 

[BillB50]

From a business perspective, it is very hard to ignore the revenue stream that a device like an iPad or iPhone produces. As stated in today's rollout - there are now three distinct streams of revenue (stores) - music, digital books, and the app store. Add to this a tie-in with a wireless carrier and you have a much more lucrative deal than someone like myself who makes a one-time purchase of hardware/software that is supposed to last three or four years.

 

[nanofrog]

Apple is getting out of the traditional computer business.
It's all about music players, phones and toypads now.
Sorry.

Unfortunately, this is the direction they're headed, given the products they're releasing. Portable devices and consumer grade systems, and all really intended to be proprietary. The reason is simple: There's substantially more money in this market than workstations and servers combined for Apple.

MP's are definitely a distant afterthought, and on thier way out IMO, given the low sales numbers and direction of Intel's chip designs.

These forums seem almost divided into two worlds now. This Mac Pro forum is very civil compared to most rest of the forums now because of all these new consumer gadgets Apple has been releasing. I can barely stand the iPad forums. Even the Macbook Pro forums are getting out of hand there is obviously an overlap of consumer/pro customer base there now.

I usually stay out of those areas, but made the mistake of posting in the iPad thread. I was amazed at the difference in tone in that thread (seemed much more hostile to me, particularly some posts of personal attacks).

Did you really think Jobs was going to dilute the iPad message with upgrades to products that have a small niche? You will get your upgrade eventually, but has been stated above, Apple is less about computers (particularly workstations) and all about consumer electronics.

The MP didn't fit this event at all, and am actually surprised that some truly seemed to expect something on the MP given the focus/theme.

 

[Drag'nGT]

These forums seem almost divided into two worlds now. This Mac Pro forum is very civil compared to most rest of the forums now because of all these new consumer gadgets Apple has been releasing. I can barely stand the iPad forums. Even the Macbook Pro forums are getting out of hand there is obviously an overlap of consumer/pro customer base there now.

So you're saying it's Apple's fault they don't make a cheaper 15" laptop that isn't a Pro? Because if so, I almost agree.

 

[Velin]

Unfortunately, this is the direction they're headed, given the products they're releasing. Portable devices and consumer grade systems, and all really intended to be proprietary. The reason is simple: There's substantially more money in this market than workstations and servers combined for Apple.

Then where does that leave professionals who use Apple products because, at the end of the day, they work and are stable?

Surely Apple makes a decent profit on their Mac Pros, OS X Server, and high-end Macbooks?

 

[Icaras]

I usually stay out of those areas, but made the mistake of posting in the iPad thread. I was amazed at the difference in tone in that thread (seemed much more hostile to me, particularly some posts of personal attacks).

That's exactly what I'm talking about. Indeed, the difference in tone is amazing.

So you're saying it's Apple's fault they don't make a cheaper 15" laptop that isn't a Pro? Because if so, I almost agree.

Haha, well I'm mostly speaking about the 13" Macbook Pro, you know, Apple's "most popular mac". Cheap enough for most consumers, yet carries some pro features. However, I don't ever see Apple going beyond 13" for general consumer laptops.

 

[Hmac]

Here’s to hoping playtime is over and you get back to working on things that matter.

You mean they should be working on things that matter to YOU.

Ain't gonna happen. They'll judge the market, they'll make the devices, and the content that they think are will sell so that their company will be successful.

And you know what? Given Apple's success over the last decade, maybe, just maybe, they're smarter than you are.

 

[nanofrog]

Then where does that leave professionals who use Apple products because, at the end of the day, they work and are stable?

At some point, screwed. Seriously.

Surely Apple makes a decent profit on their Mac Pros, OS X Server, and high-end Macbooks?

In the cases of MP's and Xserves, the sales numbers are small, and eventually will be too small to sustain the development of such systems. R&D + manufacturing + profit divided by a small quantity will eventually get to the point it's too expensive to sell units at all. The end result will be no more MP's or Xserves.

In the mean time, Apple's going to milk them for every cent they can until the market will no longer pay for them. Users will eventually be forced to switch back to PC's. That may also be the time when Apple might choose to license it's full OS for other systems (as they'd still keep the lighter versions for portable devices closed to thier devices). That would depend on whether or not it's profitable though (such as the sales of Apple software like FCP are strong enough to motivate them to do so).

 

[bluebeemerboy]

re: Where are the Apple Pro Product Advancements?

Amen!

 

[alphaod]

The Mac Pro is Apple's flagship product. They'll keep it alive.

 

[alphaod]

At some point, screwed. Seriously.


In the cases of MP's and Xserves, the sales numbers are small, and eventually will be too small to sustain the development of such systems. R&D + manufacturing + profit divided by a small quantity will eventually get to the point it's too expensive to sell units at all. The end result will be no more MP's or Xserves.

In the mean time, Apple's going to milk them for every cent they can until the market will no longer pay for them. Users will eventually be forced to switch back to PC's. That may also be the time when Apple might choose to license it's full OS for other systems (as they'd still keep the lighter versions for portable devices closed to thier devices). That would depend on whether or not it's profitable though (such as the sales of Apple software like FCP are strong enough to motivate them to do so).

Apple is a hardware company first and foremost; OS X is only a medium they use to sell their hardware. They will not exit the hardware business; OS X is their bargaining chip in order to get people to buy their hardware.

 

[maghemi]

*Snip* Whinge, Whinge, Bitch and Whinge

You know bitching on here won't actually change anything right?

Perhaps you should just simply divert dollars to products that assist us in getting stuff done if it upsets you so much. Seems like such a no brainer really if that's what important to you.

 

[gugucom]

In the cases of MP's and Xserves, the sales numbers are small, and eventually will be too small to sustain the development of such systems. R&D + manufacturing + profit divided by a small quantity will eventually get to the point it's too expensive to sell units at all. The end result will be no more MP's or Xserves.

In the mean time, Apple's going to milk them for every cent they can until the market will no longer pay for them. Users will eventually be forced to switch back to PC's.

agree, Apple have in reality already deserted the Mac Pro scene. Surely they would not sell their flag ship product a year into the life cycle with a serious design fault like the audio bug if they wanted to stay in that market.

 

[TheStrudel]

I think it's all going to come down to sales of Pro Apps, which are still doing well. After all, deskop sales are way higher than the year-ago quarter, though of course plenty of that is iMacs. Mac Pro still has life in it as long as the software sales remain strong.

As regards the audio bug, I think not enough pro users complained or cared about it. But we'll see what the 2010 model brings.

I'd hate to be relegated to just an iMac at this point.

But yes, there was no chance of a desktop announcement at today's event, and nobody informed (we've been tossing this around on the forums for a while) thought otherwise.

The past Mac Pro updates didn't earn events at all: 2008 and 2009 updates were simply announced online to no fanfare. It's not a press event. We didn't expect 2010 to be any different.

 

[nanofrog]

Apple is a hardware company first and foremost; OS X is only a medium they use to sell their hardware. They will not exit the hardware business; OS X is their bargaining chip in order to get people to buy their hardware.

Yes they are. But they've shifted thier focus from professional hardware to consumer hardware.

That's not leaving the hardware business, but following the more profitable course in the market. The proof is in their sales figures and resulting profits. The consumer side well out-earns the professional side (the entire desktop side, as Apple doesn't separate the systems out in terms of sales figures).

Not super easy to determine the sales figures, as the desktop clasification consists of iMacs, MP's, (and Xserves ?).

I think it's all going to come down to sales of Pro Apps, which are still doing well. After all, deskop sales are way higher than the year-ago quarter, though of course plenty of that is iMacs. Mac Pro still has life in it as long as the software sales remain strong.

This does have a bearing on it, but it's not the only one. Apple could choose to license their OS (full client and possibly server variants) at the time MP's and Xserves are too expensive to continue developing. Or port the software into a Windows version.

For the MP to continue though, it will eventually have to move to high-end desktop parts if Apple continues to use Intel. I don't see them using AMD, and not sure if P.A. Semi can get a fast enough chip developed in time (for a 2014 model).

As regards the audio bug, I think not enough pro users complained or cared about it. But we'll see what the 2010 model brings.

This wouldn't have been the case in the past. Apple would have taken notice, and tried to fix it rather than threats (smacman) or the "It's within limits" or other means of a brush-off.

Granted, I realize the consumer device market is where the big money is, but if they cared about the pro market, they wouldn't take this stance. So that's telling me the "writting's on the wall" so to speak.

 

[NT1440]

This Mac Pro forum is very civil compared to most rest of the forums now because of all these new consumer gadgets Apple has been releasing.

I don't know, OP certainly comes off as an elitist something or other.

There weren't even rumors of an update to the Pro line.

 

[Bubba Satori]

The Mac Pro is Apple's flagship product. They'll keep it alive.

So is the 30" ACD that was last updated 51 years ago.