Exclusive photos, video from Microsoft Store grand opening - Page 4

I wonder how many of the people at the grand-opening of the MS store were paid actors...

Nice to see you here, Steve Ballmer. Welcome to hell.

Quadra,

Microsoft's attempt at copying the Apple Retail Stores will be about as successful as their Zune was at copying the iPod. It will be a sad failure that Microsoft never admits to. They will keep the stores open, even at a loss, because they can afford to lose a little $$$ here or there more easily than they can afford the perception of failure. This tendency will ultimately be their undoing.

Thompson

Apple should just shut down the company and give the money back to the shareholders.

We all look forward to seeing droves of upset PC fans bearing virus-laden computers lining up for a shot at the Gurus. It's gonna be one heck of a show.

Seriously, MS does not have an original thought in their collective noggins......if it wasn't so blatant, it would be commical....this truly is Ballamer's last stand (Sorry Custer!)
Brasso

If you believe that the computer is nothing more than the sum of the hardware, then you are correct.

If you believe that the computer is the sum of the hardware and software, then you are sorely mistaken. I am definitely willing to pay more to run all platforms (Linux, MS, and Mac OS X) simultaneously, with the Mac OS as the daily interface. Can't do that on any hardware other than a MAcintosh. A premium experience, if ever there was one.

Thompson

You are one providing the BS, since MS, Dell, Apple, Lenevo etc., all talk about 'premium market' in their shareholder meetings and providing feedback to analysts and investors.

Additionally every Tech reviewer uses the same terminology. Do not hate the player, just hate the game!

Maybe you need to read these links:

http://business.theatlantic.com/2009...ter_market.php

http://www.pcworld.com/article/16896...er_market.html

http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/20...et-in-june.ars

And 90% of the food service market can likely be attributed to fast food chains. It doesn't make the quality of the food any better, it just speaks to people's desire for the cheapest products (and tendency to buy whatever they happen upon without any product research). No matter how much headache those products cause for them (long term health problems in the case of food).

In my eyes, marketshare means far less than quality workmanship.

Those milled aluminium MBP chassis seem more premium than the cheap plastic cases of other vednors. Their mutitouch trackpad and mouse seems more premium than the simple single touch trackpads and simple mice of other vendors. The IPS displays with LED-backlighting seems mroe premium than the LCD-backlighting and TN displays of other vendors AIOs. I have to say I will never buy another notebook that doesnt have a backlit keyboard, I havent seen that on a $400 notebook yet. The Magsafe power adapter surely has saved more than a few repairs for people. The silent fans, PVC and mercury free components seem like premium components over noisy fans and environmentally unfriendly materials. The feel of the glass trackpad and Apple keyboards is more comfortable than on other machines.

Don't start getting all pedantic on me. You know what I meant. Better yet, you know what YOU meant when you used the word "scared" FIRST in the thread above. Within the context that it appeared, you were implying that Apple was beneath Microsoft's concern. It is in THAT context where I disagree.

Call it concern, call it being aware, wary, cautious, whatever. Pick whatever word you want, instead of "scared", and in my opinion the context you placed it in was completely wrong. Apple is coming on like gangbusters, and Microsoft needs to be very aware.

Thompson

I could see this happening "Look mom now we can come visit the store that crashes every 10 minutes and witness it on the largest wall of lcd panels ever".

LOL

Apple is loving this I am sure.

I have not had flu in 15 years, but that does not mean millions of people do not suffer from Flu every year.

Haven't you ever heard that "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery"?

I wonder how locked the PCs being demoed in the store will be locked down and if they will have internet access like in Apple stores. I dont think there is any locking to the Macs in the Apple Stores, but think that Win7 will have to be locked down hard in order to prevent people from loading viruses.

I find Apples build quality to be a fair bit better than most PC's on the market.

Lots of plastic in the PS space. Lots of aluminum in glass in the Mac lineup.

Also the attention to detail. The way stuff fits together. The way the ports are built into the computer. I don't see flimsy shit, flippy flappy port covers and that kind of stuff. Just looks like care was given to what they were trying to achieve.

You can't expect that with low margin PC stuff.

And like what was said above, the software experience is also a big factor. The way iLife works so well.

MS fanboys.. chaaaaaaaaarge

I love how they claim Apple is not a threat and Apple is doomed but they keep coming here and criticize everything Apple does but when MS do the same thing it will become the smart thing.

Well let's see... does it have the appearance of a blatant copy of the Apple store paradigm? You bet.

Did Apple come up with the idea of a botique store for electronics? Nope.

Microsoft is like a sports team that won several championships and built a dynasty, but now the rest of the league has figured out their strategy and the wins aren't coming anymore. The old strategy stuck for a while thinking the losses were fluke, but it's now obvious that something new has to be tried.

This store concept, and Windows 7, is the equivalent of a team rebuild. Microsoft is losing the young consumers to Apple products and they must work to regain MIND-share more so than MARKET-share at this point, because today's college laptop users are tomorrow's large company purchase decision makers.

Apple is so beneath MS that that Im sure this store idea was a coincidence, just like aspects of Win7 looking like OS X and how the Zune concept was a coincidence. Im sure Extremeskater and the other troll boy believe that.

I'd rather have the market-share of the percentage of population with a brain and trace of intelligence within it than the 90%.

I agree with this sentiment. I have no problem with Microsoft emulating the formula that has made Apple one of the most successful retailers on the planet (and number one by revenue per square foot metric). If they are bound and determined to enter the retail experience at all, they would be foolish not to learn from the best.

So rather than bitch, I am here to showcase my skills of prognostication: the MS stores will do well for a time, until the novelty wears off, and then they will be a loss leader. I will come back a year from now and say "I told you so."

Thompson

Tell that to the industry. The industry recognizes Apple as a Premium market player. Don't get all cooked over it because I'm just parroting facts.

Is it me or does Ballmer look like Peter Boyle from Young Frankenstein? "I am the monster!"

I run a computer business in Los Angeles and I'd say about 95 percent of computers that come through my door are PC's running Windows, and they are laden with SPAM, adware, and spyware. Just the other day for 'stuff and giggles' I installed Windows on one of my partitions... didn't install an anti-virus program because I didn't plan on using the Windows side of my Mac all that often... two days later I open Internet Explorer and within a few hours of use I have around 30 popups randomly opening every few minutes. To say viruses aren't an issue for any computer is silly.

Don't you just love anecdotal evidence that's assumed to have majority representation?

Yeah, I guess all the personal and corporate PC users like paying money to McAfee, Norton, and other AV software vendors because they enjoy paying for things that do nothing.

<[QUOTE=RoboNerd;1505960]Well let's see... does it have the appearance of a blatant copy of the Apple store paradigm? You bet.

Did Apple come up with the idea of a botique store for electronics? Nope.>


No one quibbles with whether others have opened boutique electronic stores first, but there is a serious question of copying a competitors trade dress.

Not sure if MS will follow through with their threat to put these right next to existing Apple stores but if they do and if they look like this, you can be sure of a lawsuit by Apple. Nothing prevents you from opening up a store right next to a competitor (unless there are clauses like that in your lease agreement), but you aren't allowed to attempt to 'confuse' a shopper by copying the materials, design, arrangement, etc. ... look up trade dress and you see what I mean.

Extends from packaging to store design to, and I quote, 'the method of displaying wine bottles in a wine shop'. Similar protection as for trademarks ...

You mean the way the new MacBooks look exactly like the MSI Wind? (COINCIDENCE?)

http://www.msimobile.com/level2_productlist.aspx?id=3

How can that be???

I agree. It will be interesting to see if they can be profitable. Genius Bar visits are often warranty issues. I've had a graphics card and hard drive replaced in my 24" iMac over the last almost 3 years (Yeah AppleCare!), so they are NOT a profit driver. If they have any benefit, it will be preventing people from trashing their crash-prone, virus ridden PCs and going to the Apple Store.

Apple entered the retails space with minimal retail competitors, although they did cannibalize a few small independent retailers and catalog/online merchants. And actually, the growth in iPod and Mac sales has increase 3rd party retailers, Best Buy most notably. But Windows has a plethora of outlets that they'll be competing against. And it's not like Windows is a big mystery to consumers, like the millions who never even tried a Mac before walking into an Apple store - often because of the iPod, and now iPhone, halo effect.

Then you've got hardware, where there is some new stuff, netbooks, touch screen PCs, but competition will keep those prices competitive (i.e. low margin). Gotta admit, Apple basically price fixes their hardware (Mac user since my Mac Plus in 1987 so this is experience talking, not trashing).

So MS has no halo effect, nothing new beyond Windows 7 (they're not making hardware other than the Zune, some keyboards and mice) and immense retail competition.

I say good luck Microsoft. I think you've created a big hole in which to pour more marketing dollars. See you next quarter for the earnings reports!

Let me guess! Microsoft?!

They offer backlit keybaords in their PREMIUM lines, not all their machines. Note that from the other PC vendors you can buy a more expensive machine that may actually have less performance than a cheaper one because the PREMIUM machine is thinner, lighter and has other PREMIUM features that increase the price.


I think its Dell that offers the thinnest MBA competitor now and I also think its Dell that has a line of PCs that is even greener than Apples, the difference being that Apple is EPEAT Gold across the board or nearly across the board, while other vendors only do it on their limited PREMIUM products, not the bulk of their sales which already make little profit so it would be pointless to add it.


I thought you had stated that Premium doesnt actually exist. Im not willing to look it up, but if that is the case, then my bad.

Well you've made an excellent point, and I bolded what I feel is the important.

That attitude of "we can afford to lose money" is what seems to be driving MS here. It's pure complacency. Part of that comes from the sheer laziness that MS' universal licensing scheme has afforded them. Eventually that "we can afford to lose" attitude will catch up with them and those billions in profit will gradually slide every year, as they are now. MS is in a very precarious position, and its deep pockets won't help them a whole lot when they're not producing the kinds of amazing producgs that others, with half of MS' resources *are* producing. MS has been in a steady downward slide for years now.

Apple on the other hand, is forced to treat every day as Game Day, for the simple reason that they've limited themselves (deliberately) to a particular segment of the market. This "limitation" actually works in their favour. It keeps them hungry. The Premium end is the Crown Jewel of retail and Apple has no choice but to hang on to it. This ensures maximum effort quarter after quarter, because the segment Apple is in currently is really all they have. For Apple, every day is a day on the battlefield. And it shows.

I think you might have some good points but the way you make them might detract from their validity.

In the first place, everyone enjoys a certain amount of validation - Apple fans love to point out when MicroSoft or others emulate Apple. The more blatant the copying - the louder the outcry, because they perceive hypocrisy in people like Balmer who states one position (i.e., software piracy is bad), yet seems to have little qualm about copying the things that Apple seems to have done right.

Windows fans - on the other hand - can rightly point out that the sheer size of MS market share - despite how one might characterize it or attempt to detract from it, is certainly impressive. I for one have a certain amount of MS stock that I have bought or inherited over the years and I sincerely hope that MicroSoft does everything it can to maximize its profit position.

It does seem like there is a recent shift in the balance that has been acknowledged for years - where the upstart Apple has certain fanboys that like to flout their ownership as proof of a relative superiority over those who have not gone Apple - while MS was always content to be raking in the dough despite being disdained in Apple fanboy eyes.

Now there is a kind of collective "I told you so" on the part of Apple fanboys which seems tilting in their direction with the recent wins in their columns through the developing iTune and iPhone dynasties. And, might I say it, nobody really likes to be told "I told you so" in that fashion.

Of course MS is not scared, but I attend the shareholder meetings and I can tell you that many of the small investors like me sometimes wonder if Mr. Ballmer has the correct vision. I sometimes fantisize about a really intelligent and rational appearing person (like Apple's Cook) taking the helm at MS and seeing what he could do to transform the company.

Say what anybody will, increased competition will only make it better for all concerned because MS and Apple really need each other to compete against. We should all really be secretly proud when we see Apple innovate and see MS and others smart enough to emulate what they do well.

You are correct when you say that bashing is pathetic - but that pathos is a two way street my friend. Apple is finding their way and although I can kick myself for never having converted any of my assets from MS into AAPL, I look forward to the day when my patience in MS will start to pay off again, as will others who have made their investments in Google, etc..

It will not only be better for those like me heavily vested in MS - it will be better for Apple as well because everyone will hopefully gain from the competition. I for one hope MS continues to do everything within its power to maximize their profitability - and if that means opening stores for image development despite a clear sense of public awareness of what exactly it is they will sell, I say do it!

At least they are not sitting around doing nothing - and I can tell you that not everything you have been lead to believe that comes out of Redmond is an empty promise or vaporware. It will just take someone with the correct cajones to allow the correct factions within MS to start emerging and taking center stage.

I'm more intrigued by the insanely huge American flags in one of the shots. Is MS on some sort of super jingoistic GO-USA! charge or something? How odd.

well you can't blame them for trying, so they're trying with every possible thing they think will stick

they will also be hosting birthday parties...cannot wait to see pictures of those...

You're making our point for us.
There are 3 categories of computers.
Low-end, low margin.
High end, high margin.
Custom.

In the car world, that breaks down into Ford, Mercedes and Nascar.
You know quite well where MS, Apple, and you fall into those categories.
Hot-rodded PCs are irrelevant to the argument.

Apple can buy Dell with pocket change, and will probably pass MS in market capitalization by end of 2010. MS will continue to bottom feed and follow.

If your stance is that premium is an opinion, then why does it sound like you are saying that everyone who thinks Apple makes premium products is wrong?

Why are Microsoft trying to be like Apple? I don't see the point in these stores.

They can do quite well by being for the 'every-man' as opposed to trying to snatch the premium end of the market. Windows does the job, and that's good enough for most and there's certainly money to be made in that segment. Apple is the best at what they do, Microsoft shouldn't bother wasting their cash on competing on behalf of vendors since they'll just lose anyway. If they spent their resources on making Windows better, there wouldn't even be an argument for switching - and the Apple Tax would be more than just a myth.

Some things I just can't understand!

I can't decide if your ignorant of marketing and business practices or purposefully being obtuse.
Lets look at this from a different angle. Compare a Toyota Corolla to a Bmw 1 series. The Toyota and Bmw both have internal combustion engines, tires etc. and probably share some components or at least components from the same manufacturers and parts vendors. The Toyota's quality in regards to durability and reliability and defects per car will most likely be superior to the Bmw. For many reasons though the Bmw is considered the Premium car and is priced according to what Bmw thinks the market will bear. To me the price of a 1 series is inflated and does not represent a good value for what you get. So does that mean it is not a "Premium" product or brand? No, because the market as a whole considers it a premium product weather or not they purchase or even cross shop that brand. Same point comparing Apple and Microsoft +Hardware Vendor. Many people who may never even look at an Apple product have a notion that it is a "premium" product. That is how marketing and market forces work. If there was not some sort of premium, real or percieved, quality Apple would not be able to charge a premium price. At least not for long.

You clearly have never been in an Apple Store. This thing is a photocopy. The exact same tables, the floors even the video walls from the original design of the first store. down to the including of and location of the Guru bars. Everyone borrows but they blatantly steal then doesn't even try to hide it then will try to make like they were first. If they had a snowball chance of being successful with this they will change in about 5 years to saying Apple copied the retail idea from them and their partners and their blind legions with believe them, even though the were there for the truth.