“Steve Jobs may want to send Steve Ballmer a thank-you note. Microsoft’s marketing of its new Windows Vista operating system could pay off handsomely for the company’s old rival Apple,” Thomas Claburn reports for InformationWeek.
“‘We think Vista is good for Apple,’ ThinkEquity Partners financial analyst Jonathan Hoopes says in an e-mail. ‘As people upgrade their PCs, we expect them to increasingly consider the Mac alternative,'” Claburn reports.
Claburn reports, “‘We think Vista has established a ‘hardware upgrade’ mind-set among PC users,’ the report states. ‘Meanwhile, Apple’s strong retail store presence; all the buzz around the iPhone, the hugely successful iPod/iTunes combo; and Apple’s popular Mac ad campaign are likely to combine into a ‘maybe I should buy a Mac’ decision. In other words, we expect Apple to be a significant beneficiary of the Vista marketing effort.'”
“Whether or not a notable number of people really are switching from PC to Mac, Microsoft stands to benefit Apple marketing as well. Apple customers who want to run Windows using virtualization software like Apple’s Boot Camp, Parallel’s Desktop for Mac, or VMware’s Fusion will also be Microsoft customers, at least in the short term, since they will have to purchase a copy of Windows,” Claburn reports.
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “LinuxGuy and Mac Prodigal Son” for the heads up.]
MacDailyNews Note: Apple’s Boot Camp is a dual boot solution, not virtualization (see Parallels Desktop for Mac and VMWare Fusion). Windows runs at native speeds on a Mac via Boot Camp.
Microsoft’s pain comes a bit later than that of the box assemblers. On the day that Apple released Boot Camp, April 05, 2006, we wrote in our MacDailyNews Take, “Welcome to ‘Embrace and extinguish,’ Apple-style. The war ain’t over, folks. It never was. Now, a new chapter begins and today’s shot will be heard around the world! Don’t you just love the smell of napalm in the morning? This doesn’t hurt Microsoft (yet), but it absolutely puts Dell, HP, Lenovo, Toshiba, etc. into a world of pain… As Windows-only users buy Macs that will provide them their ‘comfort’ of Windows, they will experience Mac OS X and use it for the excellent Mac-only applications. We all know what happens when people are given the chance to really use Macs for longer than five minutes, they usually want to buy a Mac. These new Apple Mac hardware users will start out using Windows more than Mac OS X and end up using Mac OS X exclusively. Watch and see.”
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Microsoft’s Windows Vista: Five years for a chrome-plated turd – January 30, 2007
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31 switched friends/coworkers and counting since the release of bootcamp.
Bootcamp was a masterful move by Apple. It gives them the security blanket, and in their minds, a safe upgrade path.
I’m like a hero and the local apple store. Everytime I come in with a new friend I get greeted like Norm on Cheers.
His Steveness should send me a t-shirt or something.
Techs of the world unite!…
TELL EVERYONE THAT NEEDS HELP WITH VISTA: “NO! I WILL NOT FIX YOUR COMPUTER!”
I tell all my PC ‘friends’ that….”oh its Windows. Sorry you are SOL.
I only do real computers.”
At least Ballsy has the common decency to provide a reach-around!
To Hmmm…:
Nice classic SNL reference! I remember the the pull tab in the mix.
Can someone give me a good reason to pay for OS X when many flavors of Linux are free?
“Can someone give me a good reason to pay for OS X when many flavors of Linux are free?”
Yes. I’m capable.
To Duane:
Let’s put it this way. Linux is like that nappy old prostitute on the corner that you cn get for five bucks, with all the warts and scars and scabby dry vagina. OR you could get the Dallas Cowboy cheerleader (OS X), and when you push in it’s like butter!!
Duane: The quality and consistency of software is SO much better on OS X than on Linux. And, yes, I have used Linux. For two years exclusively before switching back to Windows briefly, then permanently to OS X 3 years ago. Linux is completely not user friendly, and if you want to, you can still run most *nix tools/programs on OS X.
Magic Word: One. One computer, all three major OS’s.
Yeah, I was tryin’ to say what Chaz said.
…are likely to combine into a ‘maybe I should buy a Mac’ decision.
Maybe isn’t good enough. You need to convince.
Where’s the tipping point that’ll finally bring PC fence-sitters to Apple?
DUDE!!!
Games, games, games that’s all my PC mates think about (and we’re all rapidly aproaching 40, I mean geez we’re not kids anymore). They’re all whining about how much it will cost to upgrade. A lot of them bought new PCs a couple of years ago and are upset they have to upgrade already. I’ve just finished using a G3 iBook (it died) been using it for 7 years to do real work not play bloody games. 7 years without an upgrade. I’m now on a new MacBook Pro, mmm heaven. I expect this to last around the same time. Still if it only lasts 5 years that’s better value for money over windows. And surprisingly it plays the odd game or 2. So short story, PC users (at least my freinds) are stubourn meatheads who think games, music, porn and copying DVDs is all a computer does.
Apple needs to port at least the top 20 games list to the Mac and stick them in the Apple Store window. Then you’ll suck in more PC users.
@TowerTone:
This is why Dr. Johnny Fever took Venus Flytrap aside in one episode of WKRP and said, “Come on, let’s go look at some Carly Simon album covers.” And why Venus was so eager to agree.
MW: “there” is one hot tomato
Less
Man I loved that show. And as hot as Loni was, Bailey was more my type…