[Macworld]

Post your comments for The Mac keeps driving Apple here

[spacest]

mac drives, mobileme crashes

[bigh]

I wouldn't think the comments were about the iPod - Apple has made significant changes to the iPod without making such comments. And the touch is still extremely desireable.
It may have been made in regard to exotic changes to the laptop lineup, such as touch screens or a revamped form factor, but again, that has happened without such comments before.
My guess is a completely new device and a new market... That's the most expensive type of investment. Perhaps a video device that does for video what the iPod did for music. Perhaps some sort of other media device that's all new.
And, of course, it may mean a major overhaul of desktop forms. That's actually my best guess, since it's overdue. Maybe, just maybe, this is the preparation for a mid-range pro machine. I could see Apple developing a SOHO server that would also double as a media server (or even a mid-size computer). Perhaps something that can record media as well.
It's all a fun guessing game, but it certainly does seem that something fresh is on the way.

[fibercut]

spacest said:

mac drives, mobileme crashes

I am a firm believer that this is part of the reason Apple's stock took a nose dive in after trading hours. I know about Apple's new quarter conservative forecast but they have always predicted lower. So the drastic stock drop has to have more than one reason for the drop.

[mattt]

What's the story with the last column in that graph? The dark grey represents 2500 of what?

[Schneb]

I wish Apple will get on the stick and provide us a half-height MacProsumer model. Why do you think the Psystars are getting so much attention? Because there is a HUGE demographic gap that Apple is completely ignoring. It's ridiculous.

[GJG]

What people don't seem to recognize is that Apple has an excellent shot at hitting 10,000,000 Mac sales for this fiscal year. Now that would be a milestone!!!
Who cares about Apple's financial projections? Apple really has no choice but to try and manage the crazy expectations that arise if they don't low-ball their estimates in the hope of maintaining some sort of realism in the market. The problem is that most people don't understand what's really important financially. Sooner or later people will recognize that it's cash flow that matters, just like any other business.
When Apple's generated over $5.4B of cash on $3.7B of net income so far in FY08, Apple's likely to hit $7.5B of cash flow for the full year. It's not very long ago that Apple's total sales were at that level. And if you think that's wildly off, just consider what sales of 4,000,000 iPhone 3Gs in the fourth quarter are likely to mean in terms of cash flow (but those earnings will be spread over two years.)
They're already sitting on $20B in cash and short-term investments. The matter that does deserve some thought is what Apple's going to do with its cash hoard. That's becoming a real question that deserves a lot more thought and a better response than I've heard to date.

[MacKayaker]

So how about upgrading the long-in-the-tooth Mac mini and the Mac Pro could use some price drop. They have been charging obscene amounts of money for minor speed bumps on it. And finally - where is the ever-needed middle desktop system that would likely outsell the iMac and the Mac mini combined?

[Biallystock]

I love how many posters have rated the new iMac glossy as just what the market wanted, proved by increasing Mac sales.
A quick look at the graph shows the growth is all in the laptops and in fact desktop sales, including the iMacs have fallen.
IF and only IF Apple actually shaped its products to customer demand rather than their own fashion peccadilloes, the desktop market could take off just as much as the laptop market. Key products would be a better pricepoint mini, a better mini at the mini's pricepoint, a headless midi which has always been the computer of choice for business and studios, and finally a non-glossy iMac for the designer market.
After all in the forums the split for and against the glossy iMac is 50/50 with it appears as most of the for being non-professionals. Need I point out that amateurs usually only buy one machine for themselves. Professional studios buy multiple machines.

[Deromax]

I bet they will introduce a videogame console!

[Kriced]

Nah, It's going to be an iSegway.

[MacGod]

Remember, the Centrino 2 isn't the only chip Intel has introduced recently. I think there could be much more interesting possibilities with the Intel Atom: ultra-low power, designed for highly-portable, often touch-driven applications. UMPC hasn't taken off in the PC world, but that's because most of the platforms have tried to cram a (basically) full version of Windows into a tiny device. I think the iPhone and iTouch show that Apple is adept at choosing which features to include and which to omit, depending on the specifics of a given device.
And Biallystock: I don't buy your argument. Yeah, there is a market for a mid-range Mac Minitower, and to be honest, it's a system I personally would quite like. But that's not the current trend. People are moving to notebooks more and more (e.g. http://www.idc.com/g...=prUS21190708). I see it a lot as a student-I know exactly two people with a desktop computer; all the rest use notebooks. Factor in mobile businesspeople and so forth, and the trend solidifies. Apple makes best-of-class notebooks, and I think that factor is a big part of why they've seen such growth. They're ridden the mobility trend and have prospered from having done so.
I think that a Mac Mid-Range Minitower would cannibalise Mac Pro or iMac sales far more than it would bring in more switchers. People who dream of the Minitower always list specs like an 8GB RAM ceiling, two PCI slots, and room for two optical drives and 2-4 hard drives as their dream system. Well, that's not much less than what the Mac Pro offers. What you want is a Mac Pro, but cheaper. And I wouldn't hold your breath.
As for a cheaper mini? Apple has never really competed in the ultra-cheap sector. It's just not who they are. The mini is a half-hearted token nod to that sector of the PC market, and will never be anything more. Mercedes doesn't make a $12,000 car, Cartier doesn't make a $25 digital watch and Apple doesn't make a half-baked, ugly, $300 computer. And for a good reason-the profit margins would be razor thin (they are for all the low-end PC manufacturers), and every unit sold would hurt the brand image and create problems if and when things went wrong.

[Martian]

MacGod said:

... Mercedes doesn't make a $12,000 car...

Yes, $12,000 is at the very low end. But Mercedes does have the “Smart Fortwo” which is innovative, unique and modestly priced — kind of like a Mac mini-tower or an updated Mac Mini would be. And then there is the affordable BMW Mini.
The best argument against a mini-tower would be that it may sell well, but could possibly steal most of its sales from the iMac instead of PC’s, therefore wouldn’t generate enough new Mac sales to justify the cost of broadening the product line.
In contrast, I can find no decent arguments against an ultra-light/compact, full feature laptop (“…Air Pro”).
Personally, I bought a Mac Pro which is a bit more computer than I need. But I did buy it and that supports Apple’s position of not offering an alternative. But also personally, if the “…Air Pro” doesn’t come out by October, I am buying a PC for travel. Mac currently makes no alternative.

[rcpmac]

I don't see what your are asking for that a macbook doesn't already provide. There is video out for a larger @home/office display. performance, compactness, economy, style and the best OS in the world,
So what do you want? - 2" smaller? THAT is a luxury most only dream of ;)