Upcoming mac "ultra portables" to replace macbooks?

2

Comments

  • Reply 21 of 46
    onlookeronlooker Posts: 5,252member
    Apple dumped the ultra portable once already, and it wasn't too long ago. I don't see them wanting to take a risk on what was an obvious mistake in market perception again this soon. It's hasn't changed enough in two years for them release another one. I would chalk this up as total BS rumor.
  • Reply 22 of 46
    kareliakarelia Posts: 525member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    Apple dumped the ultra portable once already, and it wasn't too long ago. I don't see them wanting to take a risk on what was an obvious mistake in market perception again this soon. It's hasn't changed enough in two years for them release another one. I would chalk this up as total BS rumor.



    Very possible it is BS, but I see so many people wanting a successor to the 12" PowerBook. It's one of the most sought-after discontinued laptop, and one of the value-retentive Macs ever made. I see the average 1.33 or 1.5 GHz 12-inchers selling for $800-1000 on eBay, even eighteen months after the PowerBook's decommission. Considering that the 12" PowerBook is so popular, Apple would be foolish to leave such market opportunities solely to personal resale.
  • Reply 23 of 46
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    Apple dumped the ultra portable once already, and it wasn't too long ago. I don't see them wanting to take a risk on what was an obvious mistake in market perception again this soon.



    I don't see an Apple ultra-portable notebook or a multi-touch Mac tablet as a mistake.
  • Reply 24 of 46
    dudditsduddits Posts: 260member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by regan View Post


    Just curious. As an...um Cat....don't you find it hard to type with no segmented digits or opposable thumbs?



    I do, actually, and thank you for the concern. Opposable thumbs, independent digits, and readily available chocolate chip cookies are three things that certainly make typing easier for your species than mine. However, like all things, you learn to adjust, and after awhile it’s not so bad.



    The iPhone interface, incidentally, is quite cat friendly, a quiet acknowledgment by Apple of the growing numbers of cats using their products. NDAs prevent me from disclosing all the juicy details, but let’s just say the next time you see someone flicking on the surface of their iPhone, think of your cat. (Sadly, licking at the screen did not meet with the same enthusiasm in human focus groups.)

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by regan View Post


    Anyway...I agree that an ultra portable is cool an all.....IF checking email and surfing the web is all you do.



    But as a CAT, I am sure you don't need it for doing heavy graphics work like I do.



    For me...an ultra portable is not on my list. I want MORE computer for my portable laptop. I think if I just wanted to lug around a laptop to surf the web and check email...I'd get the iphone which fits into your pocket!



    Me, I like a slightly bigger screen(not too small not too big 13" is perfect). And I want to be able to watch movies, edit movies and do all my work on the road.



    An ultra portable with no optical, a really small screen...and probably a small flash hard drive would not cut it for me.



    But for a web surfin Cat such as yourself....its purrrrrr-fect. :P



    I think you’re probably right: a modestly-powered ultraportable would satisfy my portable computing needs, but for someone doing more intensive graphic work, not so much.



    Of course, Apple may choose to make the ultraportable ultra-expensive and powerful. However, if it is designed to fill the niche between the iPhone and a more robust laptop – with users viewing their bigger laptops as desktop-substitutes - then users might buy both: big laptop for “serious work,” ultraportable for surfing and typing, transposing the desktop/laptop relationship to laptop/ultraportable.



    Frankly, whether the ultraportable will be powerful and expensive or weak and cheap, they are both compelling options for the likes of meOW.
  • Reply 25 of 46
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Duddits


    Frankly, whether the ultraportable will be powerful and expensive or weak and cheap, they are both compelling options for the likes of meOW.



    It happens when you drink milk doesn't it?
  • Reply 26 of 46
    onlookeronlooker Posts: 5,252member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ireland View Post


    I don't see an Apple ultra-portable notebook or a multi-touch Mac tablet as a mistake.



    I never said anything about a Mac Tablet?



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Karelia View Post


    Very possible it is BS, but I see so many people wanting a successor to the 12" PowerBook. It's one of the most sought-after discontinued laptop, and one of the value-retentive Macs ever made. I see the average 1.33 or 1.5 GHz 12-inchers selling for $800-1000 on eBay, even eighteen months after the PowerBook's decommission. Considering that the 12" PowerBook is so popular, Apple would be foolish to leave such market opportunities solely to personal resale.



    So was the cube. Once it was discontinued everybody that liked the idea was all raving about it, and so were the people that bought one, but It's still not a market that has proven itself. The Mac Mini is living proof of that. They just did it again but still no bites. Which is all the more reason for them not to make the ultra portable again.

    Mac resale value is SO much higher than a PC that I would not call attention to the fact that it still sells at a lower price a bonus. If it sold for more than it was originally then you may have something. Might I remind you the Cube still sold well for a few years after it's discontinuation also. But again the MIni is porobably going to be discontinued. Again.
  • Reply 27 of 46
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ireland (me)


    I don't see an Apple ultra-portable notebook or a multi-touch Mac tablet as a mistake.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker


    I never said anything about a Mac Tablet?



    So you don't think a Mac Tablet would be a mistake, cool. Finally he gets it.
  • Reply 28 of 46
    kolchakkolchak Posts: 1,398member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    So was the cube. Once it was discontinued everybody that liked the idea was all raving about it, and so were the people that bought one, but It's still not a market that has proven itself.



    Big difference between the 12" PB and the Cube. The Cube was officially discontinued and not because it was obsolete. The 12" PB survived from January 2003 to May 2006 (not the two years ago you claim) and was updated at least twice during its lifetime, not something you'd do with an unpopular model. A model that lasted almost 3 1/2 years had to have sold pretty well for it to be kept around so long. The only reason it's not around anymore is because it was superseded by the Intel-based Macbooks introduced in May 2006, which Steve apparently feels is close enough in size and weight. Do you have any proof that the 12" didn't sell well, or is this just a personal perception?
  • Reply 29 of 46
    onlookeronlooker Posts: 5,252member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Kolchak View Post


    .........Do you have any proof that the 12" didn't sell well, or is this just a personal perception?



    It's gone isn't it.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Kolchak View Post


    ...... The only reason it's not around anymore is because it was superseded by the Intel-based Macbooks introduced in May 2006, which Steve apparently feels is close enough in size and weight.......



    Do you have proof of that, or is just your perception?
  • Reply 30 of 46
    aisiaisi Posts: 134member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    I would chalk this up as total BS rumor.



    AppleInsider has a similar rumor about a future ultra-portable.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    Apple dumped the ultra portable once already, and it wasn't too long ago. I don't see them wanting to take a risk on what was an obvious mistake in market perception again this soon.



    They dumped the PowerBook 2400, too.



    Ultra-portables only account for a few percent of notebook shipments but notebook sales are growing quickly, the investment will be less and less risky. The same couldn't be said about the Cube and the Mac mini.
  • Reply 31 of 46
    mcarlingmcarling Posts: 1,106member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    Apple dumped the ultra portable once already, and it wasn't too long ago. I don't see them wanting to take a risk on what was an obvious mistake in market perception again this soon. ... I would chalk this up as total BS rumor.



    Good points, but Apple's share of the laptop market is much larger now. That makes a more diverse product line both possible and desirable.
  • Reply 32 of 46
    kolchakkolchak Posts: 1,398member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    It's gone isn't it.



    So is the iPod mini, and nobody can accuse that of selling badly. What about the eMac? That's not around, either. Your assertion is hardly proof and I suspect you can't produce any. You still try to dodge the questions. If it was such a crappy seller, why did they keep it around for 3 years 4 months? Why not let it fade away after a year? Isn't it telling that they kept it around until the Macbooks were introduced to replace it? Did they really need to keep it around since they could have made do with the 15" Powerbook if necessary? Why dedicate the engineering resources to update it not once but at least twice and produce four separate models of it?
  • Reply 33 of 46
    dudditsduddits Posts: 260member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by onlooker View Post


    Apple dumped the ultra portable once already, and it wasn't too long ago. I don't see them wanting to take a risk on what was an obvious mistake in market perception again this soon. It's hasn't changed enough in two years for them release another one. I would chalk this up as total BS rumor.



    I know I may not be an elephant, but my memory is good enough that I can remember that Apple also dumped their original "portable" computer, and it was not because the public was not interested in laptops. It was because the technology itself wasn't ripe. The original Mac portable was an ungainly beast and as much as customers were craving a mobile computer, they simply could not hold their noses long enough to buy that one. Similarly, the public craves ultraportables, but only once the technology has caught up with expectations. Apple's prior ultraportable was a monstrous hybrid more at home in a Greek tragedy than a metrosexual's backpack. It didn't fail for lack of demand; it failed because it sucked. Now that smaller components are more competitive with larger ones, Apple's next attempt will be more capable, stylish, and successful.
  • Reply 34 of 46
    boompubboompub Posts: 15member
    Food for thought and maybe let's think a little differently...

    Let's forget the 'laptop' concept for a moment and ponder about the rumours of the mac mini's demise. I will go WAY OUT on a limb and say that this so called ultra portable will be bundled with a base station (aka a form of mac mini). Essentionally this will be a multi-touch screen + RAM + Flash memory couple to a mac mini base which has a screen cradle + DVD Burner unit, power supply, etc. Bundle both of these rumours together???



    Okay you can flame me...
  • Reply 35 of 46
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by boompub View Post


    Food for thought and maybe let's think a little differently...

    Let's forget the 'laptop' concept for a moment and ponder about the rumours of the mac mini's demise. I will go WAY OUT on a limb and say that this so called ultra portable will be bundled with a base station (aka a form of mac mini). Essentionally this will be a multi-touch screen + RAM + Flash memory couple to a mac mini base which has a screen cradle + DVD Burner unit, power supply, etc. Bundle both of these rumours together???



    Okay you can flame me...



    I totally agree with you.



    I'm hoping Apple will revolutionize both the desktop and portable market with a Mac Tablet "To Go".



    Basically it's a Multi-touch™ Tablet with a docking station that can accommodate a keyboard and mouse.



    I'm not sure how they integrate an optical drive and power supply (brick probably) without turning it into some horrible HP-looking Frankenstein, but far be it from me to question the genious of Jonathan Ive and his team.
  • Reply 36 of 46
    onlookeronlooker Posts: 5,252member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Kolchak View Post


    So is the iPod mini, and nobody can accuse that of selling badly. What about the eMac? That's not around, either. Your assertion is hardly proof and I suspect you can't produce any. You still try to dodge the questions. If it was such a crappy seller, why did they keep it around for 3 years 4 months? Why not let it fade away after a year? Isn't it telling that they kept it around until the Macbooks were introduced to replace it? Did they really need to keep it around since they could have made do with the 15" Powerbook if necessary? Why dedicate the engineering resources to update it not once but at least twice and produce four separate models of it?



    Kolchak you just about gave me my response in your post. Actually I'll let your post respond for me.



    Actually Yes. I think it is telling. Telling me there wont be one.
  • Reply 37 of 46
    sllsslls Posts: 13member
    I currently own a 12" 1.5ghz powerbook & I'm anxiously awaiting an update. I'd like to see the 12" come back in to the fold.
  • Reply 38 of 46
    msnlymsnly Posts: 378member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Harsh Dose of Reality View Post


    I totally agree with you.



    I'm hoping Apple will revolutionize both the desktop and portable market with a Mac Tablet "To Go".



    Basically it's a Multi-touch? Tablet with a docking station that can accommodate a keyboard and mouse.



    I agree with both of you,



    Ultraportable with former mini dock



    Replace the mini with a minitower



    Thats my 2 cents
  • Reply 39 of 46
    iqatedoiqatedo Posts: 1,822member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Duddits View Post


    I know I may just be a cat, but I am very much looking forward to the ultraportables for the same reason I love my iPhone. The current laptops at around 5 pounds weigh approximately 50% of my body weight (I am a cat), and are therefore somewhat cumbersome. Try carting around a 75 pound desktop computer in your napsack and you begin to get the idea.



    The comparatively light iPhone, in taking over certain laptop tasks for me, is a delight. An ultraportable taking over every laptop task for me, would be that much more delightful. As with the forthcoming iMac, the sooner the better.



    Meow.







    OK! Why did you, as a cat, pur(sue) computing with Apple? Was it the mouse that attracted you or perhaps the nine lives that all Macs seem to have. Was it the need for companionship, Macs after all are sexier than a lot of humans or was it that you didn't want to pussyfoot around the neighbourhood's windows?! Was it freedom from the risk of nasty infections, a cat can't be too careful even with nine lives! Perhaps you just thought that (Charles) Darwin was kind to cats and didn't want to be dogged by inferior species.



    You can fess up, we won't tell!



    Please, please, an ultraportable!
  • Reply 40 of 46
    sequitursequitur Posts: 1,910member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by IQatEdo View Post






    OK! Why did you, as a cat, pur(sue) computing with Apple? Was it the mouse that attracted you or perhaps the nine lives that all Macs seem to have. Was it the need for companionship, Macs after all are sexier than a lot of humans or was it that you didn't want to pussyfoot around the neighbourhood's windows?! Was it freedom from the risk of nasty infections, a cat can't be too careful even with nine lives! Perhaps you just thought that (Charles) Darwin was kind to cats and didn't want to be dogged by inferior species.



    You can fess up, we won't tell!



    Please, please, an ultraportable!



    You belong in a pun-itentary.
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