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Why the month long wait for rMB and 6 month wait for Apple Watch?

A

AdonisSMU

macrumors 604
Original poster
Oct 23, 2010
7,330
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What happened to announce and release?

I noticed that Apple doesn't announce and release items anymore. Who wants to wait a whole month or six upon the announcement of a new device? What is the point of that? Is the reason Apple is doing this to limit people's ability to trade in their product for the newer device? Is anyone else annoyed by Apple's strategy of announcing too far in advance of an actual product coming to market?

I noticed with the rMB that Apple is waiting a month to release the product. With the watch it's been 6 months. I don't like that. MSFT and Google and Samsung used to get criticized for not doing the announce release that Apple had typically done.
 
Last edited:
AdonisSMU said:
Why the month long wait for rMB and 6 month wait for Apple Watch?
Click to expand...
To give people time to post countless redundant threads, discussing every minute aspect of the products being released, attacking their features or lack of features, second-guessing Apple's business strategy and future, complaining that other Apple products are abandoned since they weren't updated, debating and hypothecating about future chipsets, cooling systems, battery life, screen size, color, RAM capacity and prices.

After all of that nonsense, including a few dozen polls asking what color or configuration others plan to select, or if they plan to stick with their current Macs (even though what others do has zero effect on what any one individual should do), the release dates will be imminent, which means dozens of more threads about in-store availability, shipping times, ordering problems and last-minute "I can't decide what color to get" posts.

All of this important work takes time, so Apple pushes product release dates out far enough away from the initial announcement that people can have a fair opportunity to be absolutely sick of hearing about the new products before they ever see them. :D
 
It's only one month for the new MacBook. It's not that long of a wait.
 
AdonisSMU said:
What happened to announce and release?

I noticed that Apple doesn't announce and release items anymore. Who wants to wait a whole month or six upon the announcement of a new device? What is the point of that? Is the reason Apple is doing this to limit people's ability to trade in their product for the newer device? Is anyone else annoyed by Apple's strategy of announcing too far in advance of an actual product coming to market?

I noticed with the rMB that Apple is waiting a month to release the product. With the watch it's been 6 months. I don't like that. MSFT and Google and Samsung used to get criticized for not doing the announce release that Apple had typically done.
Click to expand...

In the case of the Watch, Apple knew they had to announce the product...even if it wouldn't be ready for 6 months. That's a rare case where they'll do that. As for the new rMB, I think it's just a matter of ramping up production.

This is not something Apple regularly does.
 
GGJstudios said:
To give people time to post countless redundant threads, discussing every minute aspect of the products being released, attacking their features or lack of features, second-guessing Apple's business strategy and future, complaining that other Apple products are abandoned since they weren't updated, debating and hypothecating about future chipsets, cooling systems, battery life, screen size, color, RAM capacity and prices.

After all of that nonsense, including a few dozen polls asking what color or configuration others plan to select, or if they plan to stick with their current Macs (even though what others do has zero effect on what any one individual should do), the release dates will be imminent, which means dozens of more threads about in-store availability, shipping times, ordering problems and last-minute "I can't decide what color to get" posts.

All of this important work takes time, so Apple pushes product release dates out far enough away from the initial announcement that people can have a fair opportunity to be absolutely sick of hearing about the new products before they ever see them. :D
Click to expand...
It just seems like a pattern is forming. However, these are new product lines so Apple typically takes a month before they release new product lines now that I think about it more.
 
If they wait until last minute to announce, people complaint about the secrecy. If they announce 6 month ahead of time, people complaint about the wait time to purchase. CAN'T PLEASE EVERYBODY. :rolleyes:
 
Mrbobb said:
If they wait until last minute to announce, people complaint about the secrecy. If they announce 6 month ahead of time, people complaint about the wait time to purchase. CAN'T PLEASE EVERYBODY. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

I quite liked Apple's announce and release strategy in the past. However, as stated before with new categories they will traditionally was a month or 6 before officially releasing it depending upon the product and the timing.
 
AdonisSMU said:
I quite liked Apple's announce and release strategy in the past. However, as stated before with new categories they will traditionally was a month or 6 before officially releasing it depending upon the product and the timing.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure how well that would have worked this time because of the need to prepare new spaces and fixtures for the Watch. At a minimum it would have created pages of threads speculating on the meaning of every little construction detail. :rolleyes:
 
More likely, Apple has been having a harder and harder time keeping things secret in the past few years - with supply chain leaks. So, instead of having leaks and rumors swirling for weeks and months; Apple can get ahead of the game and tell its own story the way it wants to. And, the built up publicity and anticipation over the month or so of waiting is an added bonus.
 
Update existing product? Wait to announce so you don't stall current sales. Introducing new product? Build up as much demand as possible for strong launch and sustained momentum.

Good thing you weren't waiting for the Chevy Volt to go on sale. Years.
 
Regarding the Watch...they waited months after announcing the iPhone and iPad as well. Allows them to prepare stores for the launch, build up production, get their distribution channels in order, and perhaps most importantly, build anticipation and hype amongst the public.
 
I am quite excited about the new MacBook, so the wait is annoying for me. I wish we could at least pre-order.
 
Mr. Buzzcut said:
Update existing product? Wait to announce so you don't stall current sales. Introducing new product? Build up as much demand as possible for strong launch and sustained momentum.

Good thing you weren't waiting for the Chevy Volt to go on sale. Years.
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Funny thing is...I was one of those who was waiting for the Chevy Volt by the time it was released I had lost all interest in cars.
 
Manufacturers will often announce upcoming products in hopes of stalling competitors sales. In this case, perhaps the hope was to delay people from buying competing products with the hype about Apple's forthcoming devices.

Perhaps those who are in the market and were after something Apple didn't offer would wait and become more interested in Apple's product.

Myself, I see nothing of interest in either the new MacBook or the Apple Watch. But others might.
 
Probably to generate hype before release, and so they can put out a nice press release describing how their day one sales numbers are huge.

Also, Core M has been out for months, so it takes sales away from other manufacturers.
 
Freyqq said:
Probably to generate hype before release, and so they can put out a nice press release describing how their day one sales numbers are huge.

Also, Core M has been out for months, so it takes sales away from other manufacturers.
Click to expand...

Macs have never been HUGE sellers though.
 
GGJstudios said:
No, only a million or so per month. Definitely not a big seller. :rolleyes:
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That's nothing compared to what Dell and others are selling each month. They have never reported sales of MBs right after their initial release in the way they report iPhone sales numbers and iPad sales numbers (if they are good).
 
You obviously didn't preorder the original PowerBook 17". :) That thing came out months later than promised.
 
GGJstudios said:
To give people time to post countless redundant threads
Click to expand...

Wow, burn. And I largely agree.

After all of that nonsense, including a few dozen polls asking what color or configuration others plan to select, or if they plan to stick with their current Macs (even though what others do has zero effect on what any one individual should do)
Click to expand...

I don't fully agree with this. Though the redundant polls on color or configuration get old, getting feedback from others about their usage habits or workflows can help a person who is unable to make a final decision.
 
It's not a coincidence that the Watch is being previewed on the same day (April 10th) the Macbook comes out.
 
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