AI: Apple ordering 65 million iPad screens for 2011

[Elessar78]

You don't need equivalent specs.

2 years after owning your Mac, it will run like day 1. Your PC will need to be reloaded, registry all junked up, spyware, adware, malware. Meanwhile the Mac just works.

This is even how Macs are advertised: emotional appeal. I don't really recall any specs thrown around during a Mac ad. It's all upbeat music, nice graphics, Mac vs PC outlining the frustration people can have with PCs. It's stuff moving around on a screen effortlessly.

[chipwhich]

This is even how Macs are advertised: emotional appeal. I don't really recall any specs thrown around during a Mac ad. It's all upbeat music, nice graphics, Mac vs PC outlining the frustration people can have with PCs. It's stuff moving around on a screen effortlessly.

Yeah but it's not emotional appeal.

You need a machine that works and runs flawlessly. PC's need to worry about that.

Windows is a resource hog. Unix isn't.

The more advanced our Windows OS gets, the more horses you need to throw at it. And it still runs poorly after a year of service

[mardi gras skin]

You need a machine that works and runs flawlessly.

I've owned 6 mac desktops and laptops over the past 10 years and they're great machines. I'd never go back to a pc. But this whole "runs flawlessly" stuff isn't helpful. Of course they have flaws from time to time. I've had both hardware and software problems. The machine I own now had a bad hard drive. Sometimes, it gets hung up while I'm asking it to do 3 or 4 things at a time and one or more programs will freeze.

Stuff happens. Apple users don't need to pretend our machines are magic. They're solid machines well worth the extra cost. If other people don't want to buy them, that's great.

[MattFancy]

You don't need equivalent specs.

2 years after owning your Mac, it will run like day 1. Your PC will need to be reloaded, registry all junked up, spyware, adware, malware. Meanwhile the Mac just works.

But mine does work and run flawlessly. Maybe I have to run virus scans, registry scans, adware scans, etc. but I'm saving lots of money and getting a faster computer with more memory than a Mac. Why should I settle for lesser specs that cost more money?

[SnyderShrugged]

OK Ipad users, I'm almost sold on one as an option for me. I have a company laptop and a home desktop (my home laptop is dead)

I've used my brother in-laws ipad for most basic, home use functions. The ebooks are the most attractive thing to me personally. (I figure I can save money by getting an ipad rather than a netbook and an ebook reader like kindle)

I've seen that you can interface with microsoft office and open office via apps so I can do office work on it when I need to. I also learned that the presentation app is a really nice one and blows away powerpoint.

Lastly, rumor in the office is saying that in the next two years my company is considering going all ipad and ditching their Dell contract

I am involved with quite a bit of statistical analysis work and often rely on Minitab softwarfe to help with the heavy lifting. Can I use Minitab on the ipad? I googled it but didnt see anything right off.

bumping myself, apologies.

Anyone know if Minitab is available on the ipad, and if not, what statistical analysis options are present? I dont mind relearning new ones, just most comfortable with minitab.

Also, my wife thinks she may want one too (because I woul;d take mine to work and travel with me) is there a didscount for more than one?

[redskins59]

Apple products are just too damn overrated. There is a reason iphones will be overtaken by android phones in the very near future. Iphone is just one product, and they all look the same, whereas android phones come in many different varieties. Why would I buy an iphone if android does the same thing and you can choose from many different types?

The same thing is about to happen to tablets as well. Motorola is launching an android tablet called Motorola Xoom running on google's new version of android. Oh, and it will have the capability to run verizon's new 4G system if you want a faster connection. It's call the honeycomb, which is specifically designed for tablets. Samsung, HTC, etc are all making android tablets in 2011. Apple's iphone/ipad will become niche products.

[matty dread]

funny how there's always supposed to be an Apple killer right around the corner, yet it never seems to happen

[chipwhich]

I've owned 6 mac desktops and laptops over the past 10 years and they're great machines. I'd never go back to a pc. But this whole "runs flawlessly" stuff isn't helpful. Of course they have flaws from time to time. I've had both hardware and software problems. The machine I own now had a bad hard drive. Sometimes, it gets hung up while I'm asking it to do 3 or 4 things at a time and one or more programs will freeze.

Oh I am not implying you can't have hardware failures. That's true on anything you buy in life.

And sure you can over task it when doing multiple things. When I run Windows 7 in a VM on my Mac desktop it tends to get sluggish. Also the pinwheel comes up occasionally when running Microsoft Office products. Still no where near the inconvenience of constant popups telling me WIndows upgrades are available, security updates, virus scan updates, etc, etc, etc.

[redskins59]

Nobody's saying that there will be an apple killer in the future. Just like PC vs Mac, apple's iphone/ipad will be niche products in the future. That's all I'm saying. Apple will always have its place. The reason, like I said, is variety. Android WILL overtake apple in the near future. This is a guarantee. It could happen in 2011. Apple needs to compete with hundreds of android products. The thing with android is they can target all kinds of people: people with money, people who don't have much cash, etc. Iphone is, well, just one product. There is no variety. Android market has hundreds of thousands of applications and they're growing. Not as much as apple, but they're catching up.

[chipwhich]

But mine does work and run flawlessly. Maybe I have to run virus scans, registry scans, adware scans, etc. but I'm saving lots of money and getting a faster computer with more memory than a Mac. Why should I settle for lesser specs that cost more money?

Whether your machine "runs faster" is something that is measurable, but you don't know that because you haven't done anything to prove that. There are plenty of people who have run measurable studies of Mac OS/X performance -vs- Windows. Windows is a resource hog. So while you are getting better specs, they are being eaten up by the OS.

No doubt Apple machines are more expensive. But you get what you pay for. While you can go to the local Best Buy and get a PC for next to nothing, it is crappy hardware and a machine that wont stand the test of time. Sure you can build a machine yourself...meh no thanks.

[MattFancy]

Whether your machine "runs faster" is something that is measurable, but you don't know that because you haven't done anything to prove that. There are plenty of people who have run measurable studies of Mac OS/X performance -vs- Windows. Windows is a resource hog. So while you are getting better specs, they are being eaten up by the OS.

No doubt Apple machines are more expensive. But you get what you pay for. While you can go to the local Best Buy and get a PC for next to nothing, it is crappy hardware and a machine that wont stand the test of time. Sure you can build a machine yourself...meh no thanks.

We'll just have to agree to disagree. Macs are nice computers, but I just can't see paying double what I paid for a PC for a Mac that doesn't do anything drastically different than what I can do on my PC. I thought long and hard about getting a Mac, but the price is what pushed me away. My Sony Vaio can do everything my fiance's Macbook can do and mine was alot cheaper.

[Tastes Like Chicken]

iPad is worth every penny. At home, on the road (I travel a lot for work), or on vacation it's great. Bang out some emails, catch a movie or tv show on netflix, watch streaming NFL games via directv while at the tailgate, play games, post on ES or FB, give presentations to customers, listen to music, use the map to navigate my way around an unfamiliar area, kindle app for ebooks (my kids love that and the educational games), and just discovered an app/browser that enables me to watch flash video (thanks Chewie). When ipad2 comes out, I'll pass this one to the family. The screen is gorgeous, and the battery life is outstanding. I bought the Bluetooth keyboard, but honestly don't use it all that often. There's a rumor that our company will be giving them to all our sales reps and service engineers in the next couple months.

[redskins59]

The new google maps coming out for motorola xoom looks so sweet.

[chipwhich]

Nobody's saying that there will be an apple killer in the future. Just like PC vs Mac, apple's iphone/ipad will be niche products in the future. That's all I'm saying. Apple will always have its place. The reason, like I said, is variety. Android WILL overtake apple in the near future. This is a guarantee. It could happen in 2011. Apple needs to compete with hundreds of android products. The thing with android is they can target all kinds of people: people with money, people who don't have much cash, etc. Iphone is, well, just one product. There is no variety. Android market has hundreds of thousands of applications and they're growing. Not as much as apple, but they're catching up.

Niche product? The iPhone and the Droid do the same thing. Just iPhone does it better.

The iPhone is coming to Verizon in January or February. Verizon execs say this is the only way they will see increased revenuer growth over the next few years.

Who will need variety. They are all flat screen mobile rectangular computers. People aren't looking for raging pink, or multiple flips. They want phones that work, are reliable, and do everything they want.

[TheDoyler23]

For me, in the photography side of my work, it's very useful. We replaced lugging around a $2,000 laptop we used to view photos on at location shoots to a $300 iPad. It's lightweight, the interface is quick.

You got a deal somewhere? Because they're 500 bucks for the bottom of the line one at Bestbuy.

[Hubbs]

Niche product? The iPhone and the Droid do the same thing. Just iPhone does it better.

The iPhone is coming to Verizon in January or February. Verizon execs say this is the only way they will see increased revenuer growth over the next few years.

Who will need variety. They are all flat screen mobile rectangular computers. People aren't looking for raging pink, or multiple flips. They want phones that work, are reliable, and do everything they want.

What exactly does the iPhone do better?

[chipwhich]

What exactly does the iPhone do better?

More apps.

More importantly for me, complete integration with my corporate exchange server. My 2 business partners, iphone, droid, and me a blackberry, only the droid cannot completely integrate mail, calendering, contacts, etc with a corporate exchange server. My sister in law got a droid for Christmas, her company, Avaya, had her return the phone and exchange it for a blackberry/iphone because of lack of integration as well.

That's just one thing.

My corporate storage, jungledisk from Amazon.com, has an iphone/ipad app, no droid app. These are just some of the problems getting on board with the little brother in the phone business. He is always trying to keep up.

[Blackest Eyes]

We'll just have to agree to disagree. Macs are nice computers, but I just can't see paying double what I paid for a PC for a Mac that doesn't do anything drastically different than what I can do on my PC. I thought long and hard about getting a Mac, but the price is what pushed me away. My Sony Vaio can do everything my fiance's Macbook can do and mine was alot cheaper.

As someone who works for Apple, I may be a little biased, but I feel that the level of support that comes with an Apple product is far above and beyond what comes with a PC whether it is a Dell, HP, Sony, etc. I help so many people per day solve issues they are having wether it is their email not being set up correctly, their phones not syncing to their computers not turning on. You may pay a premium price for a Mac but it is worth every single penny and then some.

[Elessar78]

We'll just have to agree to disagree. Macs are nice computers, but I just can't see paying double what I paid for a PC for a Mac that doesn't do anything drastically different than what I can do on my PC. I thought long and hard about getting a Mac, but the price is what pushed me away. My Sony Vaio can do everything my fiance's Macbook can do and mine was alot cheaper.

Why do people pay to drive a Benz over a Hyundai?

---------- Post added January-1st-2011 at 02:08 PM ----------

As someone who works for Apple, I may be a little biased, but I feel that the level of support that comes with an Apple product is far above and beyond what comes with a PC whether it is a Dell, HP, Sony, etc. I help so many people per day solve issues they are having wether it is their email not being set up correctly, their phones not syncing to their computers not turning on. You may pay a premium price for a Mac but it is worth every single penny and then some.

I'm a Mac guy myself, so don't take this the wrong way, but the typical response to that is something along the lines of "Why would anyone need technical support? Fixing computer issues is sooo easy." It's the typical response of computer saavy people that don't understand that they are the exception and not the rule.

[Blackest Eyes]

I'm a Mac guy myself, so don't take this the wrong way, but the typical response to that is something along the lines of "Why would anyone need technical support? Fixing computer issues is sooo easy." It's the typical response of computer saavy people that don't understand that they are the exception and not the rule.

Not taken the wrong way at all. There is never anything wrong with having technical support. I think it is good to know that a company has a product that it can work on and help someone troubleshoot or fix. When most companies have tech support that is overseas, it kind of ruins the whole tech support thing.

[skinfan2k]

the genius bar at their stores is what separates mac from other companies

[JMS]

Considering I put myself in the place of Dell, etc. I am even more friendly than Apple (when it comes to manufacturers). As for components, not very many of them are custom made for an Apple box. They use previous generation for most parts and proprietary Motherboards but they do use the same parts for everything else and they are high quality no questions. But so do I. I'd put my machine up against any Mac for just about any purpose. Plus I got to build in this neat box that fits under my tv without drawing attention*.

I guess my point originally was that if you build your own you can beat Apple hands down but most people don't do that.

Why would I want to run Windows on a Mac when I can run it on a PC that's equally well built, cheaper, initially more customizable and and upgradable?

*on the right exactly the same size as my Pioneer AVR.

Let me try again. Building your own pc isn't all that challenging a task. Takes between 20 minutes and an hour. Therie is a litle trivia to know, like what kind of busses your mother board has, power supply, bay's for hard drives and rails. maybe type of memory ( sim, dim) and available slots. It's definitely a managable task even a rewarding task if your components work. Done it for decades.

Now having said that, building your own machine, unless you value a few hundred dollars above your days and weeks of your time is a far infferior endevor than buying a MAC. Especially if you want a top end bleeding edge machine.... (1) You are going to pay a premium for bleeding edge components even if you don't go with the mac. (2) buying componnets from no name distributers is cheaper, but I have consistantly expereiencecd quality control issues for in my decade of building custom machines. Sometimes these require me to send back a drive or a compoent to get it replaced. But even more distressing is the phantom core dump, or irroneous blue screen of death. In such situation you are left just swapping out components trying to diagnose the problem child. Inevitable you get the venders pointing at each other. It's a monster hassle.

Macs are so nice. You buy it, and it just works. It is the most pleasurable computer purchasing experience I've had in decades...

Now If you don't need top of the line PC maybe you can get away with a clone. Lots of folks own them and they must be doing something right. Last time I needed to by a machine, a few years ago however; the PC clone usual suspects were all a generation or more behind the MACs. Slower CPU's fewer cores, slower memory, and smaller memory compacity.

That's why I went mac. Still use it mostly to run microsofts OS's though.

---------- Post added January-3rd-2011 at 01:30 PM ----------

I'm a Mac guy myself, so don't take this the wrong way, but the typical response to that is something along the lines of "Why would anyone need technical support? Fixing computer issues is sooo easy." It's the typical response of computer saavy people that don't understand that they are the exception and not the rule.

Technical Savy people definitely apreciate technical support. Reminds me of when I worked in saudi recently. In Saudi, there are never any small problems. Nothing is a problem, until it's a big problem. Tech support is invaluable for folks who would rather deal with small problems.

In truth though, the real value in buying a Mac for me isn't the genuis bar; which is more of a comfort. I've never needed to visit it for my Mac. The real value is in the PC itself. It's just a quality built system. It's like a Mercedes or a Cadilac and everybody else is selling yugo's. It has been a joy to own, and in almost two decades of being a computer owner, I haven't been able to say that very often.

The only problem is they Mac is expensive. you do pay for the quality. But It's a price I'm willing to pay so my expensive computer doesn't turn into an expensive paper weight.

[The 12th Commandment]

Thanks for the reply JMS, I get what you're saying and you guys are starting to make me think. While building PC's is hobby for me that I really enjoy, and thus actually adds value to my time, there are some aspects/components of an Apple you can't buy - like their kick ass cases. I may have to try one. My netbook is getting irritatingly slow and maybe an iPad2 will be in my future. I'm certainly not one of those Apple hater pc fanboys.