Thoughts on Apple
Apple had their yearly WWDC Keynote speech this past Monday, and they made a bunch of announcements: New iPhone hardware, new iPhone software, new laptops, new OS X version, new Quicktime version, etc. There's a lot that's new and updated and shiny. Over the last couple days, while I've been napping and web surfing, I've been thinking about things, and there were two announcements at the WWDC that sadden me in regard to Apple and their overall philosophy.
My understanding of Apple is that they are (were) different. They are a different OS on different hardware appealing to different people. That began to change a few years ago with the move away from IBM's PowerPC chips to Intel's chip line, but that was seen as just a way to open the door for more cross-platform software compatibility. Indeed, it brought about things like VMware Fusion, Parallels, Virtual Box, Bootcamp and even WINE on OS X which allow you to run Windows software on your Apple hardware. This has been great for Apple in terms of market share and development.
During the WWDC a few days ago, two announcements were made which on the surface, are nowhere near as ground-breaking as a shift in processors and have been mostly ignored by the media or been praised as good things, but they are significantly more damaging to the idea that Apple is different. The two announcements concern the change in the laptop branding and in the OS X software price.
First is the change in laptop branding. Among the plethora of announcements, it was stated that Apple is doing away with the differentiation between the "MacBook" and "MacBook Pro" lines, and that all laptops would be considered "MacBook Pros" from here out. This sounds great, given the fact that the last few years have seen the differences between MacBooks and MacBook Pros steadily decreasing. However, it homogenizes their laptop lineup significantly, making computer purchase decisions for switchers more confusing. In the past, it was easy to recommend someone a Macbook or MacBook Pro based on their needs. The difference ere marked. MacBooks had integrated video processors and lower RAM capabilities, so they weren't recommended for gaming or D graphics work. The Pro line had discrete graphics cards, more RAM capacity and faster processors. Much better for higher end computing, and pricier as well.
Now that all laptops are MacBook Pros, the lines are significantly blurred between models. Some MacBook Pros now have discrete graphics adapters, others don't. Some have both and you can switch between them. Some have faster processors, others don't. Etc. Purchasing a MacBook Pro now is akin to buying a Dell Latitude. You really need to have a chart with all of the features available and find the one that fits you best, and what you need might not be near the price point it would have been previously.
The second change concerns the OS X 10.6 software. Everyone is crowing about the $29 price for a Snow Leopard upgrade while the full version price is $169. This baffles me. It's like the entire Apple community became befuddled by pixie dust. When OS X 10.5 came out, it cost $129. Period. [All prices for OS X here are for single-license client, not server, not family packs.] That's the full version, and you could upgrade from 10.4 with it, do a full wipe and install with it, whatever. It was $129. Apple has raised the price of the software $40 *and* they've started offering multiple types of purchases of the software, upgrade or regular. Just like Microsoft Windows. Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate Upgrade is $159 on Amazon.com right now. A full version is $239.
People, especially Apple users, absolutely blast Microsoft about this pricing policy. They used to crow about the fact that Windows users had to choose between 4 (or more) different versions of Windows and then had to choose between upgrade versions or full versions. They would say, "Sure, you can get Windows Vista Home for $99, but it's only an *upgrade* version. I spend $130 and get the *whole version*! ha-ha!" Now that Apple is doing exactly what Microsoft has been doing for years (albeit to a lesser extent, since there is still just one version of OS X client as opposed to basic, home, professional and ultimate versions of Vista), the Apple community is cheering.
Apple is using the safe hardware as Microsoft.
Apple is branding their laptops just like Windows-PC companies.
Apple is pricing their OS in a similar manner to Microsoft, and *raised* the price of the full version.
This is not something to cheer about. This is no longer Apple being different.
"Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss." - The Who
"He who does battle with monsters needs to watch out lest he in the process become a monster himself. And if you stare too long into the abyss, the abyss will stare right back at you." - Friedrich Nietzsche
My understanding of Apple is that they are (were) different. They are a different OS on different hardware appealing to different people. That began to change a few years ago with the move away from IBM's PowerPC chips to Intel's chip line, but that was seen as just a way to open the door for more cross-platform software compatibility. Indeed, it brought about things like VMware Fusion, Parallels, Virtual Box, Bootcamp and even WINE on OS X which allow you to run Windows software on your Apple hardware. This has been great for Apple in terms of market share and development.
During the WWDC a few days ago, two announcements were made which on the surface, are nowhere near as ground-breaking as a shift in processors and have been mostly ignored by the media or been praised as good things, but they are significantly more damaging to the idea that Apple is different. The two announcements concern the change in the laptop branding and in the OS X software price.
First is the change in laptop branding. Among the plethora of announcements, it was stated that Apple is doing away with the differentiation between the "MacBook" and "MacBook Pro" lines, and that all laptops would be considered "MacBook Pros" from here out. This sounds great, given the fact that the last few years have seen the differences between MacBooks and MacBook Pros steadily decreasing. However, it homogenizes their laptop lineup significantly, making computer purchase decisions for switchers more confusing. In the past, it was easy to recommend someone a Macbook or MacBook Pro based on their needs. The difference ere marked. MacBooks had integrated video processors and lower RAM capabilities, so they weren't recommended for gaming or D graphics work. The Pro line had discrete graphics cards, more RAM capacity and faster processors. Much better for higher end computing, and pricier as well.
Now that all laptops are MacBook Pros, the lines are significantly blurred between models. Some MacBook Pros now have discrete graphics adapters, others don't. Some have both and you can switch between them. Some have faster processors, others don't. Etc. Purchasing a MacBook Pro now is akin to buying a Dell Latitude. You really need to have a chart with all of the features available and find the one that fits you best, and what you need might not be near the price point it would have been previously.
The second change concerns the OS X 10.6 software. Everyone is crowing about the $29 price for a Snow Leopard upgrade while the full version price is $169. This baffles me. It's like the entire Apple community became befuddled by pixie dust. When OS X 10.5 came out, it cost $129. Period. [All prices for OS X here are for single-license client, not server, not family packs.] That's the full version, and you could upgrade from 10.4 with it, do a full wipe and install with it, whatever. It was $129. Apple has raised the price of the software $40 *and* they've started offering multiple types of purchases of the software, upgrade or regular. Just like Microsoft Windows. Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate Upgrade is $159 on Amazon.com right now. A full version is $239.
People, especially Apple users, absolutely blast Microsoft about this pricing policy. They used to crow about the fact that Windows users had to choose between 4 (or more) different versions of Windows and then had to choose between upgrade versions or full versions. They would say, "Sure, you can get Windows Vista Home for $99, but it's only an *upgrade* version. I spend $130 and get the *whole version*! ha-ha!" Now that Apple is doing exactly what Microsoft has been doing for years (albeit to a lesser extent, since there is still just one version of OS X client as opposed to basic, home, professional and ultimate versions of Vista), the Apple community is cheering.
Apple is using the safe hardware as Microsoft.
Apple is branding their laptops just like Windows-PC companies.
Apple is pricing their OS in a similar manner to Microsoft, and *raised* the price of the full version.
This is not something to cheer about. This is no longer Apple being different.
"Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss." - The Who
"He who does battle with monsters needs to watch out lest he in the process become a monster himself. And if you stare too long into the abyss, the abyss will stare right back at you." - Friedrich Nietzsche