“Windows 7 officially launches in two days,” Wilcox reports. “But what has the geek world been babbling about for the last 24 hours? Apple. Firstly, there were rumors of new iMac, revamped white MacBook, new Mac mouse and updated Mac mini — all products Apple unveiled early this afternoon. Secondly, late yesterday, there were Apple’s blow-out fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter results: $1.67 billion profit and 3.05 million Macs shipped, the majority notebooks. Apple outperformed Wall Street’s consensus, blasting past the econolypse’s effects like it was business as usual.”
Wilcox reports, “Exactly who is talking about Windows 7 today or will tomorrow? Or gasp, on launch day — Oct. 22nd?”
MacDailyNews Take: Luddites with a fetish for freshly-painted antiques?
Wilcox continues, “Apple’s new product release timing is clearly deliberate, designed to pull attention away from Windows 7. But Apple also is looking to pull away Windows PC sales at the high end, where Macs are strongest and PCs are weakest. Surely, Apple executives realize that the PC industry is hoist with its own netbook petard… Netbooks are a plague, because they dramatically lower ASPs and margins and pull away sales from real laptops.”
Wilcox writes, “Yesterday with record Mac sales and today with new Mac products, Apple has declared — at least for holiday 2009 — war on the entire PC industry.”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Elsic1975a” for the heads up.]
Maybe they’ll announce the iTablet on the 22nd. That would truly obliterate Windows 7!
Yeah, but at least those Windows users will have their “launch parties”…
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Looks like the WOW started 2 days early.
The only question is when do the MacBook Pros get upgraded to quad core?
Ah, yes. TODAY it’s all over the Web about Apple. TOMORROW will be in the newspapers (and more detailed Web articles about Apple hitting on all cylinders). Beautifully timed pre-emptive strike. Well done, Apple!
An Amazing New Apple TV and a 16GB iPod touch with an iPhone 3Gs type Camera would just kill all Windows 7 News Buzz.
It would be like oh and Microsoft released Windows Vista 2 or 7 or something unimportant today.
Wilcox is embarassing himself. Apple’s earnings release date is like clockwork. It’s the same week as last year. What is his problem? And, of course, Apple does release new product in as many quarters as possible, to keep up the buying momentum, and in order to maximise the impact, they tend to launch new product close to the beginning of a quarter. Not always, but if they can manage it, they do. I mean, these products are not going to launch before the back-to-school buying season, as they like to use that to move out old inventory. Product launches are very predictable nowadays, and they are not predicated upon MS.
Mojave Vista 7™ — There’s gonna be a “Wow!” this time! Really! This time we mean it!™
Headline alternative: “Apple eats Microsoft’s launch”
@Hee, hee
If you are stuck with Windows, any time that they miraculously manage to get Windows to suck less, (even just an itsy bitsy less) it is reason to party. Have another drink! It helps you to .. .. .. .. .. forget.
“… war on the entire PC industry.”
No prisoners. No mercy.
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I have to say, the analyst-speak in that article sounds completely contrived to me. Apple launched the slew of new products less because of Windows 7 and more to do with the iMac et al being ready – especially after the earnings report to investors.
People planning for Windows 7 will probably buy it on the 22nd regardless of Apple’s moves in the market, to be honest. As such, those buyers don’t constitute much of a threat to Apple’s overall business as other consumers will have set out beforehand (plus current Mac users) to buy the new products from Cupertino anyway.
war.
“When you have to kill a man, it costs nothing to be polite.”
~ Sir Winston Churchill
@ LateRegistrant – HA! Brilliant!
With Apple’s Q4 financial blowout and this new product set, one can only imagine what Q1 2010 (the holiday quarter) is going to be. This *is* the tipping point, and we’re watching it happen.
Super excited today I just ordered two i7 iMacs.
Time to hoist the Skull & Crossbones above the Mac development building once again!
Well, the PC industry did try to bury Apple. Now, the PC industry wishes it were Apple. Funny how 10 years completely changed the landscape.
When Apple shows off the Mac tablet, that will crush the little Netbooks sales. If the tablet is a mobile media device that also runs the 85,000 apps, it is game over.
Emm, with the gut-wrenching realization that the new iMacs still don’t have matte screens, the forthcoming Windows 7 launch is a timely reminder that the Windows alternative, whilst not as good as Snow Leopard, may not be as pathetic as it used to be years ago. And they have matte screens. I’m not the only one who feels this way. See the close to 600 detailed petition comments at http://macmatte.wordpress.com – and add your comment there if you feel the same way.
@ MacMatte …so the lack of a matte option for iMac monitors somehow makes Windows 7 a more attractive alternative? Eh?
I’m guessing you went to the Non-Sequitur School of Logic…
Seriously, enough with the matte screens. Going glossy is more about prepping us for our Multi-Touch future. Capactive touchscreens need a protective layer, and by every example Apple has provided, glass makes Multi-Touch work like magic.
Something else to think about:
I wonder how many netbooks were returned just to go and buy a MacBook? Apples sales were dominated by their laptops… makes you wonder…
Amusing — but, isn’t it more plausible that instead, it was MS who manipulated Windows 7’s launch date in an effort to dampen the expected Apple buzz? Or to get some separation from Snow Leopard’s release? Or to be closer to Halloween to spur sales of Ballmer masks?
P.S. They did say that 50% of laptop sales WERE new to the platform (which reads, dissatisfied NETBOOK users, if you ask me)
I wonder what the margins look like when they are low and then the customer returns the product. They can’t sell it as new, so the margins are even LOWER… man it sucks to be in Dell’s shoes right now…
ROFLMAO