“Dividing notebook price ranges into fifths, or quintiles as the statisticians call them, Apple already has a 29% share of the U.S. market for notebook computers in the highest quintile — up ‘stunningly,’ notes analyst Toni Sacconaghi Jr. of Bernstein Research, from 8% three years ago. In the consumer and education market (i.e. excluding business computers), Apple share of the top quintile notebook market is nearly 46%,” Phillip Elmer-Dewitt reports for Fortune.
“While other PC makers have been lowering their average selling price, Apple has been steadily increasing its price premiums relative to the rest of the market — great for keeping profit margins high, but not so good for growing market share… If you look at the high-priced markets Apple chooses to play in, says Sacconaghi, you see that it already has a surprisingly dominant market share — without much room for growth.” Elmer-Dewitt reports.
“‘Accordingly,’ Sacconaghi concludes, ‘we believe Apple faces a trade-off in its Mac business over the next 2 – 3 years: either lower price (and margin percentage) to sustain share gains, or retain its current price premiums and face slowing unit growth,'” Elmer-Dewitt reports.
Full article, including a graph from Berstein’s report showing the rapid growth in Apple’s share of the premium notebook market from 2000 to today, here.
MacDailyNews Take: Developers should take note of the fact that many more people (and those that are most likely to spend money) have Apple Macs than most people think.
@UH-OH
sounds like fuzzy math to make something seem more impressive than it really is
It’s no fuzzier than the math in Excel.
It’s also no fuzzier than the math that Microsoft uses when talking about their “sales” of Vista/Zunes/whatever.
Apple has an alignment change coming in the not so distant future, where it is said the MacBook Pro and MacBook line will “merge.”
The lineup plugs a huge hole, where consumers will now get a 15″ option without Apple sacraficing too many Pro sales. The lineup will all come in the same housing design (delivering more economies of scale to Apple). Here is the lineup:
13″ MacBook:
Two configurations. The main break between the two is that the base model comes with an Intel video, while the high-end comes with an nVIDIA or ATI video chip set along with more RAM HD storage
Price:
– Base, $1,099
– Extended, $1,399
15″ MacBook:
Again, video is the big break between the two models, along with base storage and RAM capacities.
Price:
– Base, $1,499
– Extended, $1,799
17″ MacBook:
Video and storage (RAM and HD) are the breaks, as per normal.
Price:
– Base, $1,999
– Extended, $2,499
Overall, these are substantial price breaks for the lineup, while giving the consumer – for the first time – the ability to step into a 15″ Apple laptop for $1,499, vs. the $1,999 required today. It gives consumers the ability to tote around a MacBook that “looks” and “feels” Pro, while for the true Pro, these prices allow them to:
A. Get more for less
or, more likely
B. Spend the same amount and get more
One more product in the lineup that is missing:
13″ MacBook nano:
This is the much rumored “thin” enclosure, and will not contain a HD, and instead will be sporting 64 GB of Flash memory, but will contain an ultra-thin optical drive. Target weight is under 3 lbs, and it is getting an ultra-thin display as well. Many customs onboard this product to make it truly ultra-thin and ultra-light. It will also contain a Penryn processor an Santa Rosa mobo.
Price:
– $1,799
Only one configuration to start with, and of course, storage cannot be upgraded, only memory.
@Dell Luv
Dell
1: Matte screens – Good If that’s what you prefer.
2: 5 year FREE warranty – Good Free?? I doubt it.
3: XP – sucks, but usuable or use Linux for free. – Bad Agreed.
4: Fully featured hardware or not, your choice – Good Why would I want crap?
Apple
1: Glossy – annoying, no choice – Bad There is a choice on the Apple laptops.
2: 1 year free, 3 year paid – Bad Not as good as the five year, but not bad.
3: OS X – great OS – Good Agreed.
4: Premuim hardware only, limited choice of configurations – Bad So it’s bad that you can only choose high quality components???
Dell <strike>wins</strike> loses
MW=friends. Friends don’t let friends use <strike>Dulls</strike> Dells
The reason you exclude business computers is to evaluate the market share for people who get to make their own decisions (no IT control) and have to pay out of their own pockets. Looks like about 46% of consumers do the research and make rational decisions.
Hi I’m Stu with an f, can you say STFU!
FUD and Trolls today, Wow! Gloss vs Matte, who gives a crap. 17″ MacBook? no such thing, its the MacBook Pro.
At work I use a 19″ Cintiq with a matte screen, and the diffused glare drives me crazy, so guess what kiddies it really makes no difference! In fact it would probably me less annoying if it was glossy.
And this lame article, can’t these bozos see that Apple is successful BECAUSE they have bucked the traditional wisdom that these guys spout. They don’t aim for the bottom of the barrel, like Dell does. Think Different!
MW = month
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as in, must be that time of the month, don’t trolls usually wait until Halloween?
For those who must have matte. See the following.
http://www.protectcovers.com/screen_protectors.htm
Buy it. Install it. STFU.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”grin” style=”border:0;” /> F=Frell
en
Matte finish is #220 sandpaper away.
Just a little elbow grease.
The funny or odd thing is that the Bernstein report sounds postive for Apple, while Fortune’s take is negative.
Look at Quintile 1-3 in previous years to see what’s really going on. All that’s happening here is that Apple Macs are getting more expensive relative to the competition.
As the quintiles don’t correspond to equal numbers of PCs sold, only equal price breaks, the percentage numbers are fairly meaningless. If Apple are the only people left selling overpriced PCs, they will get 100% of that market.
Can that be right? 46%? Wow.
“Can that be right? 46%? Wow.”
Yes, and don’t forget, 100% share of notebooks with a fruit on the top cover sold by companies based in Cupertino.
Apple’s business model is to sell good quality merchandise with high margins. Their innovative products allows them to increase their market share. Increased market share allows them to buy components for less and reduce the price of their products to compete better with their competitors.
The iPods evolved that way and now dominates the market AND maintain a good margin.
No-one else gets it and that is why Apple is poised to do the same in notebooks and then for the whole PC industry. Likewise for the cell phone market.
“Apple’s business model is to sell good quality merchandise with high margins. Their innovative products allows them to increase their market share. Increased market share allows them to buy components for less and reduce the price of their products to compete better with their competitors.”
Except that this data says that the trend has been for everybody else to decrease prices at a rate far greater than Apple, leaving Apple almost alone in the highest price segment.