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Holiday season hits Apple hard

updated 12:00 pm EST, Wed January 3, 2001

While retail PC sales in December fell by 24 percent from the year-ago period, according to PC Data, sales of Macs suffered far worse than the industry average, falling by nearly 40 percent. Among the more popular sectors showing significant growth this holiday season were MP3 players, PDAs, webcams, CD burners, and digital cameras.

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01/03, 12:30pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Apple Too Predictable

Hey - everyone knows by now, don't buy an Apple computer the two months before the January and July MacWorld conventions, because, as usual and on schedule Steve Jobs trots out his new Macs then and only then.....but then fails to meet the delivery schedule....which means postponing the buying of an Apple computer by consumers, which means "whoops!" the next MacWorld is almost here, think I will wait for Steve to show off the next new Macs.

Apple is too predictible in its marketing, does not meet deadlines and there is not much new in their somewhat overpriced wares....

P.S. I own 5 Macs....waiting to buy another one....

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01/03, 12:48pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
I agree

the only people buying Macs in December are the ones who don't know about Apple's release schedule...and since few people buy Macs who aren't already using them, that is a pretty small group. Apple should spread its product releases around, like it did this year with the PowerBooks in February and the iBooks at AppleExpo.

And for pete's sake, stop releasing brand new products right after the holidays or too late in the education purchasing season!!!

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01/03, 12:51pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Expected

This should come as no big surprise.. they put their stake in the ground that they were going for the consumer dollar and s**** the professional/business person.. and this is what they get for that attitude. Professional sales don't gyrate with the market or the season.. consumer sales certainly do.The imac has played it's run and now what? Actually listen to buyers and give them what they want? Nah...

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01/03, 01:25pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
still hope

I hope Steve tries something Different for his keynote. The last several have been snoozers (I was there) even when he introduced new hardware. Sales figures; marketshare; x number of more developers to the platform; here's the prez of some company to say how excited he is; look how fast photoshop is; our computers are good enough to eat; wanna see a new commercial.
The people at the conference, and especially the keynote aren't "consumers".

We need to know when 9.1;when OSX, and how much. When can we get the new hardware (really). What is Apple going to do about the education market. I could go on, there are many questions.

My point (finally) is that the Mac community wants Jobs to talk to us like we're intelligent, and tell us what he plans to do to keep the Mac a viable player in the industry. I don't mean giving away secrets, but addressing head on some of the major concerns we have.

I realize that Macworld conference is not a shareholders meeting, but I don't believe the attendees want a lovefest either. I'm done

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01/03, 01:29pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
I like my G4, do you?

I like my G4MP 500 & ACD just fine. I don't want another one. I do want OS X & the Essential Reality glove thing. When Steve? When? When?
START
SOS
NEED OS X!
STOP

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01/03, 01:44pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
PC Data are misleading

First of all, Symantec Antivirus 7 is on their top 10 christmas list, Command and Conquer is at #1...

Their point of sale market watching delivers no appropriate context to industry trends, and I distrust their analysts immensely because over the last three years since the imac they have shown an overwhelming cynical bias towards Apple products in their reports.

Consequently, Accpac, Intuit and Lucas Arts have shifted away from supplying mac products based on PC Data research - influencing many people's decision to not buy Macintosh, and thereby decreasing market potential for Mac software. The same goes with scare mongering like the 40% drop. This is fodder for cynics.

And it is manipulation from on high, if you ask me.

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01/03, 01:53pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Reschedule Macworld

I'm surprised the dopes in Cupertino haven't realized this... why not have Macworld SF take place in November, BEFORE the big holiday buying season? Then bump MW New York to May (right after WWDC), BEFORE the big educational buying season.

"Duh... I dunno, Bubbah, but them there iBooks sure look purdy!"

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01/03, 02:34pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Too bad...

...Apple is no longer in the PDA or camera market.
Sounds like everone is skipping the computer purchase this cycle and buying add ons.
Do you think we'll see more accessories a la Sony Style?
An Apple MP3 player would get more mileage out of Apple Style than the Cube.

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01/03, 03:00pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Why sales are down

The reason that sales are down for computer manufacturers is because that everyone who wants a computer or the internet, now has it. There is no more need for the average American to buy a computer. Yes, the hardcore computer users are still buying the fastest systems, but the people who just want email, stock trading, and ICQ (the vast majority of current computer users) have no use for the latest hardware.

The reason Apple is down a larger percentage than other PC manufacturers is because Apple holds a smaller piece of the retail market. Therefore, if Apple sells 50,000 less computers, and Dell sells 50,000 less computers, Apple's loss percentage is incredibly higher than Dell's because of the ratio of their previous sales to the current loss. The market as a whole is slowing down, the effects just seem magnafied on Apple because their market share is smaller.

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01/03, 03:14pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Reschedule Macworld

echo: Reschedule Macworld,

I couldn't have said it better:

I'm surprised the dopes in Cupertino haven't realized this... why not have Macworld SF take place in
November, BEFORE the big holiday buying season? Then bump MW New York to May (right after WWDC),
BEFORE the big educational buying season.

"Duh... I dunno, Bubbah, but them there iBooks sure look purdy!"

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01/03, 04:10pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
So what?

I hate stats like this.

Dec 2000 PC sales down 24% from Dec 1999 PC sales.
Dec 2000 Mac sales down 40% from Dec 1999 Mac sales.

There is so much missing info and one month out of the year is hardly enough time to be truly indictive of anything anyway.

Besides, we all know that Mac sales will be up as soon as the new Macs are available. Some people have been postponing buying laptops for over a year anticipating the Powerbook G4. I know some people are waiting for new Macs with OS X preinstalled so that they will not have to turn around and buy an OS X upgrade in addition to the new hardware. Anyone who knows anything about the upcoming MacWorld did not buy a Mac in Dec.

I think it is much more significant that Windows PC were down 24%. Everywhere I looked there were great deals on PCs. Since no one is expecting any significant improvements to the Windows OS or PC hardware anytime soon, there are not many PC purchase orders on hold like there are for Macs. In fact the latest info P4 info indicates that most people are better off with a P3.

Windows PCs have pretty muched already maxed out for the average user; the hardware and OS have not made any significant improvements in the past year and none are expected in the coming year. Mac hardware and OS have not made any significant improvements in the past year either (the Cube looks different but functions the same as the equivalent processor in a tower enclosure; dual processor Macs with MacOS 9 are not a major improvement for many users), but the Mac world is expecting a lot to happen in the coming year.

Who cares about Dec 2000 sales? The 2001 sales are going to be what is important. PC sales are probably going to continue to be lackluster because there are few good reasons to buy a new Windows PC if you already have one less than 3 years old. Mac sales should go up because the reasons to buy a new Mac are growing.

I have a 450Mhz P3. Why should I buy a 1.2 Ghz P3? Am I really going to see an improvement with Windows ME and my business apps?

I have a 300Mhz G3 WallStreet Powerbook. A G4 Powerbook with OS X will be faster for business apps and everything else. If I install VPC 4.0 on it, it will probably run Windows ME effectively as my 450Mhz P3. I can think of lots of reasons to upgrade (only downside is that I lose a PCMCIA slot).

Replacing my 350Mhz G4 tower with a dual 500Mhz G4 with OS X would also be a reasonable upgrade.

Too bad I can not afford to update all my computers, but I will update at least one in the next few months. Which one depends on the details that come out of MacWorld.

I do not plan to ever buy another PC though; Windows is dying and Linux pales compared to the BSD in OS X.

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01/03, 04:22pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Um.. think please

from previous post:
Dec 2000 PC sales down 24% from Dec 1999 PC sales.
Dec 2000 Mac sales down 40% from Dec 1999 Mac sales.

I was hoping the previous poster would mention this - in Dec. 1999 the G4 had JUST come out. Mac sales were at an all-time high because new equipment had become available only the month before. This past December, we were waiting on new equipment. Combining this with the 24% overall market drop, what did anyone expect would happen to Mac sales? It's OK! There is plenty to anticipate in 2001, and I wish the media and others would stop with the continued "Apple's end draws nigh" c***.

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01/03, 05:23pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
I'm a cynic too,

But I dont' buy into the BS that the mainstream media feeds me. As is noted previously, simply stating sales figures without providing a context for them is misleading at best. Apple isn't in deep trouble...yet. They're on the ball with CDRW, they've got new products coming out, and it actually looks like Apple is learning from its mistakes now. Hopefully. I say they dump their inventory on the education market at or below cost, that is the best move they can make for improving their market share. Then its up to Apple with hardware, OS X. Then its up to the economy.

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01/03, 05:27pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Cube slightly slower

re:(the Cube looks different but functions the same as the equivalent processor in a tower enclosure)

Wrong! The cube has a 5400rpm drive, the tower a 7200. Probably due to heat issues.

JW

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01/03, 05:28pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
VPC4 not a PIII-450

re: "I have a 300Mhz G3 WallStreet Powerbook. If I install VPC 4.0 on it, it will probably run Windows ME effectively as my 450Mhz P3"

Are you kidding?

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01/03, 05:35pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
VPC4 not a PIII-450

No he is not kidding.
Were you kidding when you cut and paste without reading the whole text?

He said G4 laptop. OS X and it PROBABLY will.

"I have a 300Mhz G3 WallStreet Powerbook. A G4 Powerbook with OS X will be faster for business apps and everything else. If I install VPC 4.0 on it, it will probably run Windows ME effectively as my 450Mhz P3. I can think of lots of reasons to upgrade (only downside is that I lose a PCMCIA slot). "

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01/03, 05:37pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Macworld in November

I agree macworld should be right around the time shopping kicks in for X-Mas.

I mean how else do you generate the heat for the Christmas shopping season? Intro the new products then so people have a reason to buy. The Summer expo is too early for this.
Late october or early november is best.

Computers and computer gear are bought prior to Christmas. Save the january shows for the Auto companies.

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01/03, 05:49pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
40% Is Not A True Guide

All I can say is what has been previously said here. Macworld timing contributes to Apple's slow December sales because any experienced Mac user knows NOT to buy in December, and any in-experienced Mac user are happy with what they have already.

I also feel that Apple should now think about it's quantatity of product line. Over the last two years Apple have been doing best when they had just the four product lines.....PowerMac, PowerBook, iMac, iBook. If they are thinking about mid-range products of Cube, and CubeBook, then they must lower the price of both the iMac and iBook, then price the mid-range at these prices, and then the professional releases should be about where they are NOW with these price drops. Apple should also trim the four options of iMac to three.

My approximate price recommendation would be.....

High end PowerMac.....$2500.00 (approx)
Mid PowerBook.....$2000.00
Low end PowerMac.....$1500.00

High end PowerBook.....$2500.00
Low end PowerBook.....$2000.00

Cube.....$1500.00
CubeBook.....$1700.00

High end iMac.....$1200.00
Mid iMac.....$1000.00
Low end iMac.....$800.00

High end iBook.....$1500.00
Low end iBook.....$1000.00

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01/03, 06:08pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
I'm for Affordable Macs!

Who doesn't love a mac? offer one at an affordable price and he will buy it in a snap! as for those who don't like the mac... thats too bad.

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01/03, 07:30pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
why nobody is buying macs

Nobody is buying macs because the MHz is essentially the same - if PowerPC CPU speeds had doubled over the past 18 months like the rest of the industry, people would be buying new Macs.

And no, I am not talking about the .5 vs 1.5 GHz perception problem. What I AM talking about is that if I already have an iMac/300 already, an iMac/450 isn't that compelling, but an iMac/800 would be. Worse, if I have a G4/450, a G4/500 is a joke.

And the cube (which nobody has an earlier version of) should cost about $900 for a G4 and $600 for a G3 version.

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01/03, 08:25pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Timing

I agree with an earlier post: Stop releasing new products a month after school resumes and again after holiday shopping is over! Talk about missing the boat twice this year.

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01/03, 08:45pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Media Nonsense

Remember that the flacks who write about Apple have to sell their work, and nothing sells better than stories of doom and gloom (actually, I guess taking a topic that could do with some enlightening debate and making a polarizing agrument out of it does sell more, but I digress). So it's not in the interests of the providers of supposedly neutral information to report that Apple is doing well.

Also, compare reports in the last few days that tell us (a) Apple has about 11 weeks inventory, and (b) that some G4 and iMac models are just not available any more. I'm not making a judgement about which is right, both are probably wrong, but they sure can't both be right!

Expect a flat year economically in 2001 and for Apple to ride it out comfortably with new hardware and Mac OS X. Expect the press to predict dire consequences and Apple to still be here, and profitable, in January 2002.

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01/03, 09:43pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
h**** no

a dual g4/500 with os9 doesnt come close to a p3/350 running windows ME...how would a slower system (PB g4-probably) come close to a faster PC with osx? i'm sure osx will speed it up quite a bit but that seems a little overoptimistic

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01/03, 10:28pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
new turf

I think the comments that the average American who was going to buy a computer already has one are right on target.

Plus, who in their right mind is going to be talked into buying ANOTHER new machine every 2 or 3 years! Sheesh! The average person spends maybe $500 on a TV set, and expects it to be around til after the dog dies..

I think the computer industry needs a new business model: one which isn't predicated on decay, trash and re-buy! I'd like to see more nimble software which is better-behaved, perhaps modular, and which really REALLY uses those clock cycles, not wastes them

J

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01/03, 11:54pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
The Speed Has Doubled!

In November 1998 I bought a 233MHz iMac, and in August 2000 I bought a 450 MHz iMac so in that 21 months, the clock speed had almost doubled! If I had bought a Grahite 500 MHz instead of the 450 MHz, then it would've more than doubled, but I wanted the indigo colour because I have a graphite G4.

The PowerPC still runs rings around the Wintel III whatever the clock speed, so when will Intel finally make a processor that out paces the PowerPC??? If you people clock speed only, then go and buy your eMachine with a Celeron 750 MHz processor, and I hope that you enjoy it! ;)

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01/04, 01:56am | report spam | close Reply | delete
The PC Data Process

It is important to understand that PC Data's conclusions are based upon their "panel" of participating retailers. The panel includes the biggest Mac catalog resellers, and also includes CompUSA... but it fails to consider the rest of the Apple channel. This often leads to inaccurate conclusions when they attempt to draw general conclusions.

Consider one retailer that PC Data does not have on its panel.... the Apple Store. The Apple Store has become a major part of the Macintosh sales channel in the past twelve months, yet PC Data has no idea how sales in the Apple Store for December 2000 compare to sales in the Apple Store for December 1999.

I have subscribed to the PC Data reports for more than a year now (to help make decisions at Keyspan) and have been able to compare our actual sales results with PC Data's reported sales results. While they always have the trend correct (up or down in a given quarter), they are not successful in correctly measuring the scale of the rise or fall.

Don't take the report of a 40% drop too seriously.

Mike Ridenhour - Keyspan

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01/04, 08:42am | report spam | close Reply | delete
Re: h**** no

"a dual g4/500 with os9 doesnt come close to a p3/350 running windows ME...how would a slower system (PB g4-probably) come close to a faster PC with osx? i'm sure osx will speed it up quite a bit but that seems a little overoptimistic"

What are you talking about? A single G4/500 (or even lower Mhz) with OS9 will easily outperform a P3/350 with Windows ME for almost everything that people use computers for.

VPC 4.0 is great. It really is much faster and seems to do a better job of utilizing memory (do not use with Virtual Memory on though). I know this may sound weird, but Windows under VPC tends to be more stable for me than Windows on a real PC. Maybe it is because the emulated PC hardware is more reliable than real PC hardware?

The OSX Public Beta runs many things faster than MacOS 9. Developer releases since then have reportedly been optimized and streamlined significantly. The final release will be even better. Due to the nature of OS X and VPC, I think that VPC will be able to take great advantage of OS X improvements. I am not sure about VPC 4.0's current ompatibiolity with OS X, but Connectix is usually good about releasing timely updates for VPC and I am sure that they will have it 100% compatible in time for the release of OS X.

There seems to be a lot of speculation right now about what processor will be in the G4 Powerbook that we all hope will be announced next week and so I am not going to add to it. However, since the original statement being debated was about Mac hardware to be available in 2001, I think it is safe to say that a G4/600 Powerbook is a realistic probability. So if we have a G4/600 Powerbook running OS X and VPC 4.0, my money would say that it run Windows ME better than a P3/350 PC.

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01/04, 08:45am | report spam | close Reply | delete
clarification

I just looked at my last post and I want to clarify.

I am not saying that we will have a G4/600 PB next week, but it seems reasonable that we will have a G4/600 PB available before the year is out.

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01/04, 12:31pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Common Sense?

To me, I would be a complete idiot to buy a discounted Mac right now, when new likely cheaper models are rumored. Ill wait, thanks.

I also think Apple has shot themselves in the foot by lowering prices. Now their new models have to beat the currently discounted prices of the old models.

Also, my 233 mhz rev B Imac does wonderfully with large Photoshop files. It is too slow for games, but for $200 I can get a gaming cobnsole that is designed for games. I think there will come a day (If it isnt already here) that computers are plain and simply fast enough. For most people, the computer they have on their desk is plenty fast enough for everything they will ever want to do. You dont need a 1 Gigahertz processor to do a school paper, surf the web, or play solitaire. What really is lacking in the world is bandwidth.

Maybe Apple should give up on hardware and go head to head with Microsoft on the Wintel OS side (OSX for Windows? - is that blasphemy?).

Blah, blah, blah--I could go on forever...

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Holiday season hits Apple hard

updated 12:00 pm EST, Wed January 3, 2001

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