“There has been much talk about the threat that Apple Macintosh computers now pose to Windows PCs – or should we say Windows only PCs. Make no mistake, the talk is well justified, as recent market research shows. However, what hasn’t been talked about as much is the very real threat that Macs now pose to the Windows operating system itself,” Stan Beer writes for iTWire.
“Stories about Apple’s Boot Camp software and vitualization software from US startup Parallels, both of which allows Windows and Mac OSX to coexist on new Mac desktops and notebooks are already sending shivers through the collective spines Windows PC vendors. The new Macs are well priced, well made and now present an attractive alternative to the one dimensional PCs in the marketplace,” Beer writes.
Beer asks, “Who wouldn’t want a computer that could enable you to run all of your legacy applications as well as provide you with access to a bunch of new ones that are easy to use and come preloaded in a package that is comparable in price to the alternatives?”
“The issue for Microsoft is that all of a sudden its users who have bought their first Mac, will be exposed to a new operating system which will enable them to do most of the tasks that they have been doing on Windows. Plus the new operating system will be less susceptible to malware, easy to use and have excellent inbuilt features that home users like…”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Beverly M” for the heads up.]
MacDailyNews Take: Mr. Beer sounds like a SteveJack reader.
Related articles:
Dude, you got a Dell? What are you, stupid? Only Apple Macs run both Mac OS X and Windows! – April 05, 2006
Why buy a Dell when Apple’s Intel-based computers will run both Mac OS X and Windows? – June 08, 2005
This just in:
In order to keep some of its customer base from buying products from other manufacturers, reports from Dell Computers this morning speak to a new strategy: pimping their box.
Dell announced that it will install “lots of neon lighting” inside the case and provide windows so that users “could see the pretty lights” while they played… err… worked.
Dell also announced a service plan that starts at $4.95 for 1 year and $10.95 for 3 years to keep the neon from dimming.
They also have revamped their web site to make custom ordering less buggy, yet still remain as useful as always.
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Think about it:
PC suckers switch the the Mac and use Boot Camp/Parallels, thus spending money on Windows. Apple|1 Microsoft|1
A few years down the road, said switcher is not using Windows at all, and has been doing everything via OS X. Apple|2 Microsoft|1.
In the Long run, everything will make sense.
“Alas it’s true that Mac OS X won’t make serious inroads until it’s licensed out.”
Apple will not license out Mac OS X. There is absolutely no good reason to. When people think of Mac OS X, they think of lovely Apple hardware. Why ruin that just to grope after short-term marketshare?
If you want to use both Windows and Mac OS X, get a Mac. That’s the message Apple is sending.
PC suckers switch the the Mac and use Boot Camp/Parallels, thus spending money on Windows. Apple|1 Microsoft|1
A few years down the road, said switcher is not using Windows at all, and has been doing everything via OS X. Apple|2 Microsoft|1.
In the Long run, everything will make sense.
*********
That’s alot of assuming.. In my personal experience, my PC friend bought a mini about a year ago. He uses a KVM swith to share his monitor with his PC… He does use his Mac for iPhoto and especially iMovie which he swears by, but for everyday internet and email he still uses his PC. His biggest gripe is that there are still far too many websites and media files on the internet that are not Mac friendly. He also can not get used to the functionality of Apple’s Dock and prefers Windows Start menu.
So I have to disagree that Windows users will eventually phase out their Windows usage. I think it will end up being more of a split.
Are we all delusional?
“Most” computer users don’t know what an operating system is. You all know your Grand Ma, Mom or the guy or girl in the next cube that thinks the internet just comes with the computer. It’s that little blue “e” right?
Who here hasn’t dealt with that a thousand times? Now all of a sudden these same users are going to become computer scientists and know how to dual boot or use virtualization to use what ever Os they want? Sure they are…I was talking to the software manager of an office supply store looking for an upgrade version of InDesign CS2. They didn’t have that in stock but they did have version 7 professional. Really, InDesign 7 pro. Well it says Adobe on the box he says. Now this guys going to be a virtualization super star. I guarantee it.
And Macs are well priced? Sure, compared to the last Mac I bought and what I got, they are. They keep getting more power and more bells and whistles for the same money. A good deal indeed.
Unless you’re a PC user that thinks the internet is the little blue “e”. The lone little mini in its shoe box for $599? No way, for them the mini tower Dull with a monitor, keyboard, mouse, mouse pad, printer, t-shirt and free Hawaiian cruise all for $399 is a better deal.
You get what you pay for? Sure, I agree. But Apple doesn’t take over the market by selling Macs to us. We already have them, it’s the other 95% they need.
Now go out and convince the little blue “e” people that $200 more for less in the box of the cheapest Mac is really a good deal.
On second thought, I bet a “pie chart” commercial should do the trick.
Jimbo:
Not from the practical standpoint of hardcore gamers. There still needs to be much more support for video cards and drivers for the video cards for the Mac. And as for using a Windows video card for Boot Camp/Windows in a Mac? Not sure… if you can have a Mac card in for Mac, and a Windows card in for gaming on the PC side — maybe. Even tho it’s redundant and probably will not win anyone over. nVidea and ATI need to release video cards that work with both the PC and the Mac side and are very high-performance. A good range of them, budget minded and high-end. That is the most major issue with getting hardcore gamers to switch. And even then, there are other less important factors that could cause gamers to not switch. The same goes for sound cards but to a much lesser extent.
We’ll see what happens when the new towers come out. They will still need to be very price-comparable to an equivalent PC, or most gamers (young people) will not switch even if the customization issue is resolved.
If you are not a hardcore gamer or are not involved in the gamer/modder community, you will probably underestimate the importance of this. Let’s hope Apple doesn’t underestimate it if they hope to go after this market (to buy a Mac and use OSX, but use Windows for gaming).
And yes, I fall into both categories, though I hate Windows, but it is a necessary evil for most games. Sad, sad, sad…
And I won’t even go into what needs to happen to OSX to make it an effective hardcore gaming OS… Apple should probably stick with using Windows as a gaming platform, hate to say it…
Tom Cruise’s meatus,
“I want a computer that can make my bed, do my dishes and light my farts.”
Get a wife.
Interesting that Microsoft have started to give away Virtual PC for Windows users/
They obviously still don’t ‘get it’ because they have apparently limited it to only run versions of Windows 😮