Did it ever cross your mind that Apple would leak a hack IF/when sales fall below expectations? . . . that Apple would lower prices IF/when sales fall below expectations?

I'm thinking Apple is desperate to get more marketshare.

. .. but maybe all those commercial spots are run because they can't keep up with demand.

You've got it all figured out, eh? :)

Remember that 1MM phones in 74 days . . . before the price drop and before the all the SIM unlocking?

I do think Apple is taking a stab at phone market share and as a 20+ year Mac guy I am glad to finally see Apple wise-up in this regard.

Best,

Kurt

Apple will close the quarter with about 1.3 million iPhones sold. I wouldn't shed too many tears for them. Landed COG has been estimated at $220 per phone, and market analysts suspect Apple has the first ever 'share of revenue' deal with a carrier. They're amortizing some of the development cost with the iPod Touch.

Desktop and laptop market shares are both rising from 'halo effect' and the disaster that is Vista. But feel free to short AAPL and share your results, if you're so sure they're in trouble.

Firsrt, Jobs announced the price drop and then his expectations to hit the 1mil mark.

Second; My point was/is Apple is doing a full-court press.

FWIW, There comes a point in the life of a once anticipated product where the market PULL (Apple zealot buyers) dies, and the market PUSH begins. Guess where the iPhone is right now. ;)

The 1MM announcement came literally three or four days after the price drop! Do you think the price drop pushed that date up??? Jobs knew they had the 1MM in the bag when the price was dropped . . .

Agreed.

This is arguable, of course. I think this holiday season you will even see some anti-zealot zealots buying Pods and Phones . . . maybe even one in your stocking if you're good. :D

Best,

Kurt

Here's a little something to chew on from tomorrow's WSJ. Stories like those told in the emails are mounting and Apple continues to rack up sales of those other things they offer - computers.

At some point the AAZZs (Anti-Apple Zealot Zealots) will get over their irrational dislike of Apple and realize Apple makes really good computers and software at reasonable prices.

FWIW.

Part 1

Readers Endorse Switch to Apple
Former Windows Users Offer Tales
Of Why They Switched to a Mac
September 17, 2007
Last week's column on pondering a new PC, and the possibility of throwing over Windows for Apple, brought in a tidal wave of forum posts and email -- and more evidence that the consumer-PC market is turning in Apple's favor.

Email after email came from people who had recently switched from Windows to Macs, or were planning to do so once OS X 10.5 -- alias Leopard -- comes out next month. (By the way, why not stick with the working names for operating systems? They're always cooler.) And many of those emails came from people who were longtime, dedicated Windows users, including engineering types who had resisted what they saw as Apple hype. (Another theme that emerged from my correspondence: Vista was the final straw for a number of Windows users. Microsoft has a problem on its hands there.)

I know looking through an inbox is anecdotal evidence -- but there was an enormous amount of it, of which the letters below are a small sample. Yes, there was a reverse wave of folks suggesting Linux, building my own PC, or staying the course and getting a game console. But it was a small ripple against the tide. Thanks to everybody who wrote in with their experiences.

By way of brief update, I've put off my PC decision for a bit. I've eliminated the Mac mini because it doesn't seem capable of running dual monitors, something I've come to rely on quite heavily. This is disappointing, because I'd liked the idea of simply plugging my existing gear into a new box -- and because the price of a mini is far below that of an iMac.

I'm definitely considering the iMac, but I'll wait for Leopard, and paying $1,200 for a new PC (at least -- because you know I'll want the 24-inch iMac and the fastest processor and the most RAM) makes this a decision to be mulled over a while longer. But like so many correspondents, I sense an Apple takeover of my computing world. I haven't tried Vista, and I've always been fairly happy with my Dell machines, but in last few years the world has changed, and I can't think of a compelling reason to stay on the Windows-only side of it.

On to the letters -- as always, they've been edited. We'll start with the switchers:

David MacCallum writes: I found myself in your exact same predicament about four months ago. Ever an early adopter, I found that Windows Vista left a bitter taste in my mouth. I thought, "Is this is the best Microsoft could do in five years?" It was slower and more unreliable on my P4 3 GHz PC with 2 GB of RAM. I started down the path towards a new Dell with Vista when I came across some articles about Macs and their ability to run Windows and seamlessly switch back and forth nearly instantly.

REAL TIME FORUM


Further thoughts on a new PC and the choice between Windows and Apple? Join the ongoing discussion in the Real Time forum.
I took the plunge in April, bought a Mac Pro desktop and have been extremely happy. Some things work much, much better than on a PC while some things are not as good (but very close). It does take a couple of weeks, but once you get the hang of it there is no looking back. Oh, and in those four months with the Mac, I have not had a single application or operating-system crash.

Jeremy Ferguson writes: With iPods doing so well, I figured I would look into Apple computers. After jumping on one in the Apple store I became hooked. Everything just worked. It has been about nine months now and I absolutely love this machine. There is nothing like it. I don't regret ever using Windows -- I am just upset about how long it took me to realize this.

Andrew Farro writes: As a former Windows user, I can tell you wholeheartedly that you must switch to Mac if you want to experience the joy of being "wowed" by a computer again. I took the plunge about 10 months ago (with a 20-inch iMac) after many years of thinking about a switch, and how refreshing this plunge was! If you can survive the first two weeks of having a Mac, you are set for life. After seeing my Mac, five friends (and counting) have now converted as well.

Bob Pollack writes: I had been a loyal PC user for almost 30 years. Most recently two events occurred. The first was my 21-year-old daughter purchased a Mac laptop. The second was the appearance of Vista. My daughter had a 15-minute learning curve and was off and running -- not one minute of difficulty. I brought Vista home to what I thought would be a happy home but found myself on the verge of placing my new laptop on the target range and using any and all ammunition I could acquire to put it, and me, out of our collective misery.

My new Mac Laptop and I are having quite a romance. With the addition of Parallels, using Windows XP I can run any Microsoft products I still need. My learning curve was a bit longer than my daughter's, but I feel that the 30 minutes I needed was not too bad. I strongly urge you to make the switch. You will live happily ever after with your Mac and your PC-less world.

Zen Chu writes: Eighteen months ago my XP system experienced a OS corruption from which it never recovered. Thankfully I had backed up regularly, but still it was an incredible pain. Instead of rebuilding, I took the opportunity to buy one of the first MacBook Pros from Apple. It has turned out to the best tech decision I've made in a long time.

Total cost of ownership, including software, has been much lower and time spent scanning for viruses has been replaced with more time with my kids. I did rebuild my Windows laptop just in case, but very rarely need to boot it up. I'm amazed when I occasionally look at my uptime stats -- often I have not rebooted the laptop for over a month.

I recommend Macs now for power users and my mom alike.

Demetrios Tsipras writes: My wife and I were "fortunate" enough to have a backpack stolen on our last vacation. (Who knew Vancouver was so sketch?) Among other things, it contained a spankin' new Dell laptop. To be honest, we were a bit relieved. Neither of us cared for that thing.

Vista is a mess. The laptop crashed within five minutes of turning it on the first time. There was a conflict with pre-installed software. Vista is a resource and battery drain. It accesses the hard drive for every task. And you know that Mac ad with the secret-service looking fellow ("allow or deny?") Let's just say it's distressingly accurate.

We replaced that laptop with a new PowerBook. We love it. It's so intuitive, simple and pleasing to the eye that you'll wonder why you've ever bothered with Windows. I'm ashamed to admit that I've been following the herd all these years.

We have two Dell desktops, both about five years old. They both run XP and have been acting up recently. We're going to replace them with a top-of-the-line iMac. And if you're worried about playing video games, get a Wii. That's what I did.

Forrest MacGregor writes: I have been building computers since they were made from individual ICs, and many/most of my engineering tools are still PC-based. However, when I am frequently asked to recommend someone's next PC, I unhesitatingly blurt out "Apple. Without a doubt." Anything you can possibly think you are giving up by choosing an Apple is vanquished by what you are getting by switching to Mac.

"Switch. Enjoy. Gloat. Exalt. Recommend." That is evolution under a Mac banner. Compare it with "Settle. Puzzle. Tweak. Complain. *****. Upgrade. Patch. Replace." That seems to better describe the Windows universe.

W. Brennan Carley writes: I recently found myself in a similar situation, with an aging Dell running Windows XP. With two kids and a wife who all make heavy use of computers for school and volunteer work, I had to buy another computer.

I have been using PCs since DOS 1.0, started my career writing PC operating systems for IBM, and some of my code wound up in OS/2 and (allegedly) in Windows. So while I haven't written a line of code in about 20 years, I know more about PCs than the average consumer. But I found myself wasting too much of my time being a systems administrator for my home computer. The whole family has iPods, and the kids are comfortable with Macs from school, so I decided to consider Mac.

I wound up buying a MacBook Pro for my wife and an iMac for the kids. Six months earlier I had bought a new Dell for my mother-in-law and spent a full day setting it up: installing patches to Windows and rebooting, uninstalling craplets and rebooting, installing antivirus and rebooting, installing patches to the antivirus and rebooting, etc. Setting up the Macs took 15 minutes each. Done.

My wife and kids shifted to the Macs without a hitch; after that experience, and with the Dell behaving increasingly flaky, I decided to cut the cord. There are some little things that still frustrate me, like the way the keyboard shortcuts work, etc., but I am now 100% Mac (at home). It works, I spend much less time having to fiddle with computers, everything integrates nicely, and I would never contemplate buying a Windows PC again.

End Part 1 - Continued Below

Start Part 2

A few readers had alternate ideas, and some reported happy experiences with Vista:

Mike Clark writes: Last December, I too sat with my Dell 8200 pondering the digital "fun time" passing me by because my machine couldn't cut it. I splurged a little and ended up with a Dell Dimension 9200, 2 GB RAM, 512 MB graphics card, 250 GB RAID 1 hard drive, dual TV tuner, 20-inch flat panel monitor, and I installed Vista Ultimate. It was surprisingly affordable. And for me, it's an incredible upgrade.

For the first time ever, I can play MMORPGs at high resolutions with sound, keep up with the crowd and enjoy the immersive effects. And that's only the beginning. With Vista Ultimate (which I like a lot), I get Media Center. My computer is now my DVR, and I can burn a program to CD to enjoy on other TVs in the house or at the cottage. I've got Vista's speech recognition, which I'm learning to use to relieve some of the stress on my hands, and I'm learning a foreign language. I haven't tackled movie editing yet, but it's only time before I do. I'm also learning how to stream my Media Center content to other computers in the house and to wherever I may be.

Don Frankenfeld writes: I have used mostly Apples since 1984, and have watched as Apple's once-huge advantage has nearly disappeared, mostly because Bill Gates has incorporated Steve Jobs's innovations. The Apple and PC platforms have converged to the point that there is not much practical difference. (Even pre-loaded PC craplets are also pre-loaded on Apples; including an annoying road test of Microsoft Office.) Apple still leads in terms of design, but their product quality is good but not great, and their support is downright awful. (I am on my fourth round of AppleCare phone calls which have not cured my new iMac's propensity to crash about half an hour after it has been booted.)

A weak point for Apple is the lack of specialized software. A strong point is that an Apple can run both platforms. For me, having invested thousands of dollars over the years in Apple software, the Intel Apple's dual nature provides an avenue for a gradual switch in usage – ironically, from Apple to PC. Since you are already on the PC platform, my advice is to stick with it.

Tom Ferrell writes: Before getting that new PC I would do the following:

Back up all of your documents, videos, digital photos and everything you want to keep. Put them on DVDs -- or better yet, buy a cheap small external hard drive or a network drive and copy them to it. The little external hard drive will be useful in the future for backups.

Optional: Max out the RAM on the old PC. RAM is very cheap now compared to how much it cost in 2002. The hard drive and the memory will cost you a hundred bucks or so, if you are diligent.

Reformat your old hard drive. Reload Windows. Do all of the Windows updates. Reload all of your essential programs except for virus protection. Run MSCONFIG and minimize what you are loading on startup. Move your documents back in a more organized fashion.

Now see how that old machine runs. My guess is it will seem like a new, fast machine to you.

I was happy to see that some folks shared my fond memories of IBM's ancient Portable PC, and its apparently indestructible blue bag. I took my IBM bag to the beach two weeks ago, about the 10,000th time it's been overstuffed with books and clothes and miscellaneous gear. Of course it came through without a complaint. Forget outliving the machine it once contained – I have no doubt this bag will outlive me.

Marj Remland writes: I was in charge of budget consolidation at a major division of AT&T and we had two of those portable IBM PCs in the mid-1980s. It did allow us to do some work at home, and I used to consolidate huge financials in Lotus on that machine. The calculation was so slow and the spreadsheet so big it took 25 minutes to run the consolidation. (It took about 20 minutes on the desktops we had in the office. Definitely not the good old days.) Wonder what happened to the two that my division had, along with the 5-1/2 inch floppies.

Tom Glaab writes: Gotta love that blue IBM bag. I still have mine in a closet (and the PC Luggable is down in the garage, even though it hasn't worked for a decade). The computer was mandatory at the Virginia Tech College of Engineering in 1986, and after the novelty of dragging the beast home over break wore off, the blue bag continued to make the trip -- filled with laundry.

Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118953892743724082.html?mod=yahoo_hs&ru=yahoo

Best,

Kurt

I though Island and some of the other AAZZs would appreciate this! :D

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Best,

Kurt

That's hilarious! My g/f has been calling me an AAZZ (usually followed by hole :)) for years...what does that stand for again?

If only Apple made cars.

AAZZ = Anti Apple Zealot Zealot.

And, for Mule I present the iCar! :D

Associated Press
Volkswagen, Apple Consider "ICar"
Associated Press 08.29.07, 8:12 PM ET

BERLIN -
U.S. computer company Apple Inc. and German automaker Volkswagen AG are discussing the possibility of building an "iCar" that would feature products by the producer of the ubiquitous iPod personal music player.

Apple (nasdaq: AAPL - news - people ) Chief Executive Steve Jobs and Volkswagen (other-otc: VLKAF.PK - news - people )'s chief Martin Winterkorn met several days ago in California and plan to meet for further discussions, said Hans-Gerd Bode, a spokesman for VW.

There are "scores of ideas," but few concrete plans at this point, Bode said.

Market experts estimate that a compact car upgraded with Apple products would be of substantial interest to young target groups, according to German financial magazine Capital.

Apple already works with VW and other automakers to offer an integrated in-car hookup for iPods. A representative of Apple did not immediately return a phone call for comment on the potential "iCar."

Electronics, ranging from satellite navigation machines to cup warmers, are increasingly a selling point for automakers. Ford Motor Co. (nyse: F - news - people ), for instance, will debut this fall an in-car communication and entertainment system developed with Microsoft Corp. (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people ) that will cost $395 as an option.

The system, called Sync, allows drivers, using either voice recognition or steering wheel controls, to listen to their digital music players and have text messages on their cell phones read aloud.

Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

source: http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/08/29/ap4066656.html

Best,

Kurt

It would be candy apple colored, only operate on certain roads, be slow, politically correct & you would sit facing backwards.

Thanks Kurt. :D

but really, I'm more of a strict AZZ = Anti-Zealot Zealot.

...and yes, the internal conflict is immense. ;)