AAPL had already been down a couple percent before the event started, and the dow started dropping at the exact same time as AAPL - apple did only drop a couple percent more than the dow did during that time.
Check the chart below yourself. Fact is, AAPL dropped quite a bit more than the market did as a whole, starting at the time of the event. All times are Eastern:
Here's why they don't want to come down in price...it's all their R&D. For instance this directly from the MacBook "Design" page #2:
"There’s a story behind each part. Take the thumbscoop, for example. It’s the indentation that allows you to open the display. If the scoop is too deep, you put too much pressure on the display to open it. If it’s too shallow, you struggle to open the display. It may seem incidental, but if the thumbscoop is well designed, it makes the difference between a bad experience and a good one. The challenge of the thumbscoop was to create a crisply machined scoop that was still comfortable to use. The designers at Apple worked on hundreds of versions of the thumbscoop — even examining them under an electron microscope — to get it right."
Under an electron microscope eh? That bit of marketing is assuming that no-one knows what an electron microscope does or how it could be useful in this application. The answer is that it would be of zero use and that is just BS apple marketing to make you fanboys drool.
"OMG acer doesn't use dem fancy TEM microscopes, lollolololol"
What purpose could imaging the 'surface' of aluminum at the atomic level serve? Coming from someone well informed in this subject the answer is that it would serve no purpose. And saying they made hundreds of version?
"Well this latch is too big, lets make it smaller. Oh, well it's too small now, lets make it a size between the two. BINGO, that seems like a good latch groove!"
I hope you people aren't stupid enough to fall for this type of thing and actually use it to justify being ripped off by Apple. I guess it shows that you don't have to be all that smart to make money.
The prices of Macbooks never went DOWN when our money was worth more, so why is it going up now? Let me guess, you're a brain-dead mac fanboy right?
Thanks for the economics lesson.
I don't recall the Canadian dollar being worth significantly more for a significant amount of time. I thought it was near even with the US dollar for a while. That said, you and Aheneen would do well to drop the insults.
The $1299 Macbook: does it, or does it not have a BL keyboard?
This suggests the illuminated keyboard is not in the less expensive model, while this most positively declares its presence. Which department didn't get the memo? Was it the marketing department or the retail channel?
By the way based on specs and price, why would anyone buy the $1600 model?
Apple always drops during an event so that's nothing to worry about.
The lack of a firewire port is not good. Here is the feedback I sent to Apple not that it will do any good.
FEEDBACK:
I love the new MacBook designs EXCEPT for ONE BIG PROBLEM on the MacBook.
Why the heck did you drop the firewire port. BIG PROBLEM, I can't connect my video camera anymore, I can use my firewire drives and I can't use Target Mode to migrate and repair problems.
Why Apple, Why.
I would have been much happier to have had one USB and one Firewire port rather than two USB ports.
I really think your going to loose sales because of this. I know that you've lost mine.
I don't recall the Canadian dollar being worth significantly more for a significant amount of time. I thought it was near even with the US dollar for a while. That said, you and Aheneen would do well to drop the insults.
Yes well I think our 'monopoly money' was worth either more than the US dollar, or close to it (i.e: significantly higher than it was previously) for at least a year. A lot of companies adjusted prices for the strength of the Canadian dollar, and Apple was not one of them. Even though the dollar is lower than it was it is still stronger than it used to be way back a few years ago.
There's just no good reason for this except to drive people to the MacBook Pro. Insane.
+1. Jobs likely figured that, now that the gfx performance on the MBs is no longer completely horrible (i.e. Intel integrated), he had to add in another artificial distinction between the two lines. As if expandability and screen size weren't enough.
Sux, and will continue to suck so long as Steve has it stuck in his head that you don't deserve a 'real' notebook 'til you're willing to cough up $2000+.
OK - I'm not usually so categorical about such things, but the lack of firewire really is a complete deal-breaker. I never thought I'd say this about an Apple product, but that's the reality.
The points people have made about audio, and to a lesser extent video and older peripherals, are perfectly valid. These users will now be priced out of the Mac market, and hence tempted by cheaper PCs.
That's hardly the worst of it, however. I have an entire newsroom full of reporters that I was planning on trying to persuade the boss to switch to MacBooks (he'd never cough up the dough for Pro models.) Not anymore. Supporting them would be insane without target disk mode. Even if they make target disk mode function over USB, it'll be far slower, and my time is money. I can easily envision this hitting other markets than publishing, like education, for example. Apple have just lost potential sales to an entire department of my company.
Way to cheap-out, Steve. I hope consumers buy a ton of them. Producers certainly won't.
Yes well I think our 'monopoly money' was worth either more than the US dollar, or close to it (i.e: significantly higher than it was previously) for at least a year. A lot of companies adjusted prices for the strength of the Canadian dollar, and Apple was not one of them. Even though the dollar is lower than it was it is still stronger than it used to be way back a few years ago.
Well, you said the bottom end macbook was $1050 Canadian. It was $1099 US. If the two currencies were near equal around that time, chances are you were getting the better deal.
The $1299 Macbook: does it, or does it not have a BL keyboard?
This suggests the illuminated keyboard is not in the less expensive model, while this most positively declares its presence. Which department didn't get the memo? Was it the marketing department or the retail channel?
By the way based on specs and price, why would anyone buy the $1600 model?
If I was going to buy the $1599 model I might skip it and go to the 15" Pro. Larger screen, no shared video memory and who cares about an extra 45 grams at this point. The problem is that it $500 more after paying for Apple Care.
Oh, one more thing Why can't they toss in that $19 remote after your paying this much for the computer?
Well, you said the bottom end macbook was $1050 Canadian. It was $1099 US. If the two currencies were near equal around that time, chances are you were getting the better deal.
Sorry, that price was WITH educational discount. All prices i've listed are WITH educational discount. The low end macbook is now 1150 with edu discount.
Sorry, that price was WITH educational discount. All prices i've listed are WITH educational discount. The low end macbook is now 1150 with edu discount.
It'd be interesting to know what percentage of Apple's MBP and MB sales are genuine pro users.
If the glossy/firewire combo of changes seriously disrupts sales I'd imagine the 17" MBP will either be matte or have a matte option when it emerges in November and that there'll be a matte option on the next MBP revision.
That's hardly the worst of it, however. I have an entire newsroom full of reporters that I was planning on trying to persuade the boss to switch to MacBooks (he'd never cough up the dough for Pro models.)
I guess i'm irked by the UK/US price difference. Which i don't honestly think is all down to VAT or importing or doing business in the UK. In the past comparable prices have been pretty close bar the cost of the 160Gb Apple TV which is still a rip off price here in UK-land.
What bothers me more is the HD camcorder, external hard drives and Cinema displays which are now in effect redundant if you consider the new Macbook at the new state of Apple computing. As I've read on this forum this seems like a needless way of differentiating the Macbook against the Pro version and a way of forcing buyers to go for the pricer option. It's even more weird when you consider that they've keep both an original plastic macbook at cheaper price point and the 17 pro in the overall product family. For a company that prides itself on the aesthetic this seems frankenstein like lineup, much in the way my Alu Imac, has a matching Alu keyboard and then nice gloss white mighty mouse to spoil the effect.
Someone please tell me it's me!!!!!
It's you. The price is based on trending of exchange rates plus VAT. Apple doesn't hedge currencies, so they price products at the expected average exchange rate for the future. Things have actually gotten significantly better over the last two years.
Currently, the $ is getting stronger relative to the GBP, so prices in GBP will go up slightly.
[QUOTE=John F.;1322757]So it's true, the $1299 and $1599 MacBooks don't have any FireWire. That is a complete rip-off at that price-point. Many older Mac users who want to trade in their Apple notebook and who have FireWire peripherals won't be able to buy a cheap Mac notebook newer style.
Exacly...what am I gonna do with my 2,5" firewire external harddisks? Block both USB ports with an Y-cable???
The price and design show the new macbooks as Mac Book Pros - just with left out ports. Where's the Macbook for the masses, the world's most wanted cook Macbook? Ah, just bye the 999 plastic book?? At least it's got firewire...and..I'm sure a combo drive...
Check the chart below yourself. Fact is, AAPL dropped quite a bit more than the market did as a whole, starting at the time of the event.
I did check the chart - at most AAPL was only down about 3% more than the dow, as I said a couple of points. I guess we just don't agree whether three percent is "quite a bit more".
People always try to insist that the stock price somehow "proves" that the market hates apple's new announcements, and today sure looks like one of the times there's no real evidence for it - apple generally went up when the market went up and down when the market went down.
Comments
AAPL had already been down a couple percent before the event started, and the dow started dropping at the exact same time as AAPL - apple did only drop a couple percent more than the dow did during that time.
Check the chart below yourself. Fact is, AAPL dropped quite a bit more than the market did as a whole, starting at the time of the event. All times are Eastern:
http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=A...urce=undefined
...
Here's why they don't want to come down in price...it's all their R&D. For instance this directly from the MacBook "Design" page #2:
"There’s a story behind each part. Take the thumbscoop, for example. It’s the indentation that allows you to open the display. If the scoop is too deep, you put too much pressure on the display to open it. If it’s too shallow, you struggle to open the display. It may seem incidental, but if the thumbscoop is well designed, it makes the difference between a bad experience and a good one. The challenge of the thumbscoop was to create a crisply machined scoop that was still comfortable to use. The designers at Apple worked on hundreds of versions of the thumbscoop — even examining them under an electron microscope — to get it right."
Under an electron microscope eh? That bit of marketing is assuming that no-one knows what an electron microscope does or how it could be useful in this application. The answer is that it would be of zero use and that is just BS apple marketing to make you fanboys drool.
"OMG acer doesn't use dem fancy TEM microscopes, lollolololol"
What purpose could imaging the 'surface' of aluminum at the atomic level serve? Coming from someone well informed in this subject the answer is that it would serve no purpose. And saying they made hundreds of version?
"Well this latch is too big, lets make it smaller. Oh, well it's too small now, lets make it a size between the two. BINGO, that seems like a good latch groove!"
I hope you people aren't stupid enough to fall for this type of thing and actually use it to justify being ripped off by Apple. I guess it shows that you don't have to be all that smart to make money.
The prices of Macbooks never went DOWN when our money was worth more, so why is it going up now? Let me guess, you're a brain-dead mac fanboy right?
Thanks for the economics lesson.
I don't recall the Canadian dollar being worth significantly more for a significant amount of time. I thought it was near even with the US dollar for a while. That said, you and Aheneen would do well to drop the insults.
This suggests the illuminated keyboard is not in the less expensive model, while this most positively declares its presence. Which department didn't get the memo? Was it the marketing department or the retail channel?
By the way based on specs and price, why would anyone buy the $1600 model?
The lack of a firewire port is not good. Here is the feedback I sent to Apple not that it will do any good.
FEEDBACK:
I love the new MacBook designs EXCEPT for ONE BIG PROBLEM on the MacBook.
Why the heck did you drop the firewire port. BIG PROBLEM, I can't connect my video camera anymore, I can use my firewire drives and I can't use Target Mode to migrate and repair problems.
Why Apple, Why.
I would have been much happier to have had one USB and one Firewire port rather than two USB ports.
I really think your going to loose sales because of this. I know that you've lost mine.
So sad, so sad, so sad.
I don't recall the Canadian dollar being worth significantly more for a significant amount of time. I thought it was near even with the US dollar for a while. That said, you and Aheneen would do well to drop the insults.
Yes well I think our 'monopoly money' was worth either more than the US dollar, or close to it (i.e: significantly higher than it was previously) for at least a year. A lot of companies adjusted prices for the strength of the Canadian dollar, and Apple was not one of them. Even though the dollar is lower than it was it is still stronger than it used to be way back a few years ago.
There's just no good reason for this except to drive people to the MacBook Pro. Insane.
+1. Jobs likely figured that, now that the gfx performance on the MBs is no longer completely horrible (i.e. Intel integrated), he had to add in another artificial distinction between the two lines. As if expandability and screen size weren't enough.
Sux, and will continue to suck so long as Steve has it stuck in his head that you don't deserve a 'real' notebook 'til you're willing to cough up $2000+.
...
The points people have made about audio, and to a lesser extent video and older peripherals, are perfectly valid. These users will now be priced out of the Mac market, and hence tempted by cheaper PCs.
That's hardly the worst of it, however. I have an entire newsroom full of reporters that I was planning on trying to persuade the boss to switch to MacBooks (he'd never cough up the dough for Pro models.) Not anymore. Supporting them would be insane without target disk mode. Even if they make target disk mode function over USB, it'll be far slower, and my time is money. I can easily envision this hitting other markets than publishing, like education, for example. Apple have just lost potential sales to an entire department of my company.
Way to cheap-out, Steve. I hope consumers buy a ton of them. Producers certainly won't.
Yes well I think our 'monopoly money' was worth either more than the US dollar, or close to it (i.e: significantly higher than it was previously) for at least a year. A lot of companies adjusted prices for the strength of the Canadian dollar, and Apple was not one of them. Even though the dollar is lower than it was it is still stronger than it used to be way back a few years ago.
Well, you said the bottom end macbook was $1050 Canadian. It was $1099 US. If the two currencies were near equal around that time, chances are you were getting the better deal.
The $1299 Macbook: does it, or does it not have a BL keyboard?
This suggests the illuminated keyboard is not in the less expensive model, while this most positively declares its presence. Which department didn't get the memo? Was it the marketing department or the retail channel?
By the way based on specs and price, why would anyone buy the $1600 model?
If I was going to buy the $1599 model I might skip it and go to the 15" Pro. Larger screen, no shared video memory and who cares about an extra 45 grams at this point. The problem is that it $500 more after paying for Apple Care.
Oh, one more thing
Well, you said the bottom end macbook was $1050 Canadian. It was $1099 US. If the two currencies were near equal around that time, chances are you were getting the better deal.
Sorry, that price was WITH educational discount. All prices i've listed are WITH educational discount. The low end macbook is now 1150 with edu discount.
Sorry, that price was WITH educational discount. All prices i've listed are WITH educational discount. The low end macbook is now 1150 with edu discount.
Ah, that makes more sense then. Kinda sucks
If the glossy/firewire combo of changes seriously disrupts sales I'd imagine the 17" MBP will either be matte or have a matte option when it emerges in November and that there'll be a matte option on the next MBP revision.
According to Apple, it only comes on the $1600 model.
That's hardly the worst of it, however. I have an entire newsroom full of reporters that I was planning on trying to persuade the boss to switch to MacBooks (he'd never cough up the dough for Pro models.)
er... get the $999 model?
er... get the $999 model?
Kinda sad that we have to say that, but yeah. It's probably the best thing that came out of the event, 'cuz it still has FireWire.
...
I guess i'm irked by the UK/US price difference. Which i don't honestly think is all down to VAT or importing or doing business in the UK. In the past comparable prices have been pretty close bar the cost of the 160Gb Apple TV which is still a rip off price here in UK-land.
What bothers me more is the HD camcorder, external hard drives and Cinema displays which are now in effect redundant if you consider the new Macbook at the new state of Apple computing. As I've read on this forum this seems like a needless way of differentiating the Macbook against the Pro version and a way of forcing buyers to go for the pricer option. It's even more weird when you consider that they've keep both an original plastic macbook at cheaper price point and the 17 pro in the overall product family. For a company that prides itself on the aesthetic this seems frankenstein like lineup, much in the way my Alu Imac, has a matching Alu keyboard and then nice gloss white mighty mouse to spoil the effect.
Someone please tell me it's me!!!!!
It's you. The price is based on trending of exchange rates plus VAT. Apple doesn't hedge currencies, so they price products at the expected average exchange rate for the future. Things have actually gotten significantly better over the last two years.
Currently, the $ is getting stronger relative to the GBP, so prices in GBP will go up slightly.
Exacly...what am I gonna do with my 2,5" firewire external harddisks? Block both USB ports with an Y-cable???
The price and design show the new macbooks as Mac Book Pros - just with left out ports. Where's the Macbook for the masses, the world's most wanted cook Macbook? Ah, just bye the 999 plastic book?? At least it's got firewire...and..I'm sure a combo drive...
Check the chart below yourself. Fact is, AAPL dropped quite a bit more than the market did as a whole, starting at the time of the event.
I did check the chart - at most AAPL was only down about 3% more than the dow, as I said a couple of points. I guess we just don't agree whether three percent is "quite a bit more".
People always try to insist that the stock price somehow "proves" that the market hates apple's new announcements, and today sure looks like one of the times there's no real evidence for it - apple generally went up when the market went up and down when the market went down.