Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Desktops, OS, Software, Odds and ends, Apple, MacBook
Analysts: Windows 7 may boost Mac sales
Most electronics industry analysis is obvious at best and misinformed at worst, but this one made us chuckle. Analyst firm Broadpoint AmTech has released a report that claims that, rather than diminish sales of OS X, Microsoft's impending release of Windows 7 may actually help sell Macs. They cite the chart above, which seems to show a boost (especially after Vista) in Mac sales right after Microsoft releases a new OS version.
Now, even they admit they're making connections here that probably aren't there -- there are tons of factors involved in both sales of Windows OSes and Mac computers (we'd just mention that Windows 7 seems to be getting fairly good reviews so far, and while no one would argue that Vista wasn't a disaster, I'd argue that iPods and iPhones were much better "Mac sales helpers" after 2001 and 2007 than Windows would ever be), and there's no real evidence here that Microsoft's releases have any bearing at all on their competitors' numbers.
But it is a nice thought for us Mac faithful to hang on to anyway -- in the next few weeks, as Windows users vibe on their new and shiny and have their super fun release parties, we can know that if we just wait, Mac sales will eventually have their day.
[via Apple Insider]
Now, even they admit they're making connections here that probably aren't there -- there are tons of factors involved in both sales of Windows OSes and Mac computers (we'd just mention that Windows 7 seems to be getting fairly good reviews so far, and while no one would argue that Vista wasn't a disaster, I'd argue that iPods and iPhones were much better "Mac sales helpers" after 2001 and 2007 than Windows would ever be), and there's no real evidence here that Microsoft's releases have any bearing at all on their competitors' numbers.
But it is a nice thought for us Mac faithful to hang on to anyway -- in the next few weeks, as Windows users vibe on their new and shiny and have their super fun release parties, we can know that if we just wait, Mac sales will eventually have their day.
[via Apple Insider]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Andre said 4:40PM on 10-13-2009
Vista was what switched me to Mac. Windows 7 could do the same, since it's (again) really nothing new.
I wanted something new, and Mac did it for me.
Reply
Greg said 4:50PM on 10-13-2009
Thank you! Not enough people are pointing out that Windows 7 is Vista with a new taskbar. It's just as annoying, based on the same code as vista, and it runs at the same speed, if not slower.
Why would anyone bother?
Jordan said 5:13PM on 10-13-2009
Not enough people are pointing out that Snow Leopard is Leopard, that Leopard was Tiger, that Tiger was Panther, that Panther was Jaguar, that Jaguar was Puma, that Puma was Cheetah, all with a few new features. The same OS, re-written
ANYbody who has used Windows 7, even in Beta form, knows that it's snappy, responsive, easy to use, productive, and all around a good solid OS
I personally feel we may see some Mac switchers, switching back.
daytripper said 5:23PM on 10-13-2009
@greg
i don't think you have used windows 7 at all. I am currently using it on netbook (acer aspire one) and it runs better than xp.It uses less than 40% of my 1Gb of ram. Aero runs flawless even on the crappy intel graphics. Boot times for me vary but have all been around a minute. I know for a fact that vista can't do that ( i have tried to install it to see how it handles and it wasn't good). You fanboys are sounding more like a broken record.
dagamer43 said 5:36PM on 10-13-2009
@Jordan
I've switched back. I plan on buying a netbook when Windows 7 ships. I'll still keep my Mac around, but probably not as my primary computer.
puhsitch said 7:15PM on 10-13-2009
I bet that most people, once they make a decision to switch one way or the other, won't be too quick to go back again. They'll feel that they put too much time and money into it to give up. And who wants to deal with all that messy cognitive dissonance, anyway?
Personally, I've got way too much invested in the Mac to ever abandon it. It feels a little strange to say this, but the applications that I rely on simply aren't available on Windows. I don't even know if there is a close equivalent to Papers, for instance, on another OS.
Fernando said 8:12PM on 10-13-2009
@Jordan
Windows 7 is good but you need to get a grip already and get off your troll horse, it's not all that great. I'll be the first to admit that SL is pretty much leopard but a bit better, even Apple says that hence the name Snow Leopard. But to say that Windows 7 isn't just "the mojave experiment" in retail form is just stupid, come on everyone knows it's vista the way it should of been. I used it for a bit on my Boot Camp and went back to XP, why you say because XP is still better. I was running AION under 7 and it constantly crashed the game, in XP smooth as butter.
Jordan said 8:18PM on 10-13-2009
@Fernando: You're saying XP is better because of one game?
Fernando said 11:22PM on 10-13-2009
@Jordan
You are obviously missing the point. XP is a rock solid, great OS, very dated but still great. As a system admin with decades of experience, I know a lot of what I am about to say is personal preference, but still think are valid points. Vista's Network Center sucked and still sucks in 7, in XP it was nice and simple and worked KISS Microsoft KISS. The damn SKU's what the hell is up with that, is it really that hard for the king of bloatware to just bloat everything into one SKU? Damn transparency what is up with all the transparency, damn it's like I'm using a rap video OS, the show desktop thing on the bottom right is a nice touch but still way too much transparency. Flip 3D, are you serious? That's gotta be the most worthless app/window switcher ever invented, all show, no go; e.g I have 30 windows open I have to carousel all the way though to find the one I want? Shut down still takes a painfully long time and apps still hang at shut down, even SL at .0 had that under control. I have many other gripes but I would be here all night. ActiveX, IE, registry etc.... Fact of the matter there is really nothing new with 7, just what Vista should of been to begin with.
mabhatter said 3:49AM on 10-14-2009
I think people see Apple as moving forward and Windows as the "status quo". Microsoft has really lost the art of performing "surprises" of customer expectations. Once the deal is done and the new OS is out next week "on the record" then Customers will feel Microsoft's hand is set for the next 3 years.. (or more) while Apple already has this turn's pony running and is known for being first and tight-lipped about new surprises for customers.
Snow Leopard is almost to the "sure thing" point in that we're starting to find the ugly butt-crack bugs (like the account issue) and when Apple gets them fixed it should be a solid OS for 2 more years. Win7 isn't really on OEM hardware yet, so while it's pretty good in pre-reviews it's not "on the record" to start addressing what people like/dislike yet. What will turn people off to Windows is that in 6 months Microsoft will be advertising all the things "missing" from Win7 "coming soon in OctoWin." Microsoft doesn't do a good job of backing the pony running right NOW nearly as well as Apple does, and customers picked up on that with Vista.
From a customer stand point, Apple will probably put up a new pony in just under 2 years to Microsoft's 3 (at least). Going with the Mac pony is a bit ahead of Win7 now... and has more outlook to get that next pony out first which is what customers like... to feel like they're on the leading edge of innovation.
dukrous said 4:40PM on 10-13-2009
Weird...i don't see that at all in that graph. Instead, I see a dip after every release of a Windows OS but even that is just correlation since there's dips all over the place.
I'd wager that instead, we're seeing proof that Apple targets Windows releases for their biggest releases to launch within the same quarter or just before. The dip after Windows releases is just normal sell through after the big rush from a new product released in the same quarter.
Reply
ErnieP said 5:10PM on 10-13-2009
Sorry, but you fanboys are dreaming. Windows 7 is going to put so much pressure on Apple over the short term. With nearly 10% unemployment in this country, people just have the money for luxury computers. And, who wants an operating system that deletes all of your data. It just works, right...
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Jordan said 5:15PM on 10-13-2009
"With nearly 10% unemployment in this country, people just have the money for luxury computers"
This right there, combined with the massively good reviews and strong love for Windows 7 already, is why Windows 7 will be explosive.
Remember, most people who hated Vista have already tried 7 and like it
Andre said 5:20PM on 10-13-2009
Well, I already have the computer. Apple sold me their update for $30. They didn't try to confuse me with 4 different versions. They didn't try to try to convince me it was something it was not.
I also run XP on a virtual machine with Fusion. I won't be updating it to Windows 7 because Microsoft wants so much money for something that doesn't give me anything new.
Besides a feeble attempt to copy some of the functionality of Apple's Dock, what is Win7 actually offering me over XP? The security patches that XP should have had? Certainly nothing really new over Vista, which was such a disappointment that I switched to Mac.
Jordan said 5:28PM on 10-13-2009
"They didn't try to try to convince me it was something it was not."
Are you sure about that? Does your kernel default to 64-bit? Wasn't 64-bit their main selling point?
You can obtain Windows 7 for real cheap, and yeah there may be 4 versions, but there's 4 versions for a reason. And actually, you can only buy 2 of them in a store, Home and Pro, it's not hard to figure out which version you want.
The new taskbar is actually more functional than Apple's dock. If you want to talk about feeble attempt, how about Apple's attempt to copy the taskbar in Snow Leopard? Have they yet figured out a way to quickly and easily switch between open windows of the same program? Because I can't seem to figure it out in my Snow Leopard installation. Not easy if you ask me.
Over XP, Windows 7 is offering you a redesigned taskbar, all the functionality of aero (including peak, snap, and shake), a whole lot more secure, and faster, not to mention the ease of networking and HomeGroup. Backup software is also included (as it was in Vista).
I don't want to sound like the complete fanboy, but I have Snow Leopard and Windows 7. One of them is a lot faster than the other, one of them is more intuitive than the other, and one of them is easier than the other. Here's a hint, it's not Snow Leopard.
Andre said 5:41PM on 10-13-2009
My kernel doesn't need to default to 64 bit. It runs all the 64 bit software flawlessly. If I buy a new machine that can support more RAM, then I can turn on the 64 bit kernel for free.
So even with 2 versions of Win7 - why not one? And cheap? The cheapest upgrade I can see (BestBuy) is $129CAD, or $120 on Amazon.com. That's not cheap.
I hope you're right about the performance - I'm assuming you got an early copy. The "release candidate" that I tried was very slow compared to XP. I gave up on it and went back to XP. My Snow Leopard is much faster.
BTW try Command ` to switch between windows in an app. Or click and hold on the dock icon.
Jordan said 5:47PM on 10-13-2009
I guess time will tell, you could have obtained 7 for 50 bucks when Microsoft did its upgrade promotion.
If you're a student you can get it for 30 bucks. Or if you know a student they could get it for you.
Remember, before Snow Leopard every version of OSX (and that was typically on a one year release schedule) was $129. I haven't done the math, but in my head that sounds like OSX has cost more over the years then 3 releases of Windows.
I do know of click and hold on the icon...but why should it take so long? In every version of Windows since 95 I've been able to VERY quickly be able to differentiate and switch between windows and programs.
Why 2 versions of Windows? My best response would be why include features people aren't going to use? Why charge them for something they don't want? The underlying main OS is the same in all versions, it's more features that are different. I will agree one version would be nice, but I can definitely live with having to make a choice ONE time of which version I would like to buy. It's not like it haunts me through the years of using it.
puhsitch said 7:20PM on 10-13-2009
If you're a student, you can also download Windows Server 2008 R2 for free through Microsoft's Dreamspark program. It's essentially the server version of Windows 7 and there are only a few tweaks that you need to do to make it look pretty and turn it into a solid workstation.
Tim Rosencrans said 5:46PM on 10-13-2009
1. New OS makes windows users think about upgrading there PC's.
2. A percentage of those decide to upgrade to a Mac instead.
3. Apple's market share PROFITS!!!
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Jordan said 5:48PM on 10-13-2009
1. Snow Leopard eats users data for lunch
2. Potential customer hears this, decide to try Windows 7
3. They end up purchasing a PC for much less than a Mac because they decided they liked it