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Mac Musings
Sour Grapes
Dan Knight - 2002.08.09
They're back!
Who? The pundits who believe that Apple needs to create "Intel inside" computers to survive.
And although it would be easier for Apple to make the switch to a different hardware platform than it has ever been before, Apple doesn't need to go x86.
Yes, It's Possible
There is no technical reason Apple can't switch. Mac OS X is rooted in BSD Unix, the Darwin project is open source, and the whole OS could be recompiled for the Pentium 4, AMD Athlon, Intel's awful Itanium, Compaq's beleaguered Alpha, the Transmeta processor, an ARM chip, or IBM's Power4.
It wouldn't be an inexpensive undertaking, but Apple has cash in the bank, is growing market share, and, unlike most PC vendors, turns a profit even in these times of economic uncertainty. If Apple wanted to switch, they would.
Once upon a time Apple had a project code named Star Trek, which ported the Mac OS to whatever Intel processor was current back then. But instead of going Intel, Apple teamed up with Motorola and IBM to create the PowerPC, a more efficient kind of processor. And today's Macs are not only faster than ever, but they hold their own despite a gap in clock speed. Efficiency is good.
Think Different
The latest to jump on the Apple-should-go-Intel bandwagon is Korey Miller. In Apple: Time for a Switch, Miller shares his thoughts on the "MacIntel" rumors and concludes that Apple should get out of the hardware business.
Heresy. Even if Apple did decide to switch from the PowerPC to another processor, they remain the only fully integrated company in the personal computer market, the only one to make both the hardware and the operating system.
Why should Apple give up control over the most reliable hardware on the market and compete with Microsoft by only offering an alternative OS for PC boxes? Why should Apple give up the profits generated from hardware sales?
From Miller's perspective, it's mostly because he can't afford a Mac. He'd like to own one, but believes they cost too much. But then he's on a tight budget and likes to build his own PCs. I wonder if he's considered the value of used Macs....
Anyhow, Miller claims that Apple is "getting clobbered by the cheaper x86 market," which is like saying that BMW is getting clobbered by all the cheap Korean cars on the US market. It's nonsense; Apple doesn't compete in the "cheap x86 market."
Why does Apple make its own hardware? Because they want to ensure a better user experience - which is exactly why Apple had to approve the motherboard designs in the Maclones back in the clone era. Too many compromises would ruin the Macintosh experience, and some of the cloners really did make too many compromises to keep costs down to retain brand value as worthy alternatives to Apple's own hardware. I know. I've used them.
It Won't Work
What Miller wants isn't for Apple to simply design new computers around a different CPU; he wants Apple to abandon their profitable hardware business and port OS X to today's Windows boxes. And nothing would kill Apple faster than that.
I'm not saying that Apple couldn't double their market share by selling OS X for Intel. I am saying that much of what makes a Mac a Mac would disappear in the process. Sure, the OS would look and work just like it does today, but the integration of hardware and software that Mac users expect would disappear.
And Apple would probably go broke trying to support all the different CPUs, motherboards, network cards, video standards, and other hardware that PC users take for granted. They'd also have to greatly increase staffing to support users trying to make OS X for Intel work on the motherboard of the day or with the latest video card.
No, if Apple does decide to put Intel inside at some point, it will be in Apple designed hardware that retains the hardware/software integration that has so spoiled Mac users for nearly 20 years now.
And that, Mr. Miller, is the reason that Apple survives today when Commodore, Atari, Amiga, and so many others are faint memories for most of us - not to mention Packard Bell, Zeos, Tandy, PC Brand, CP-M/86, GEOS, and a host of other hardware and OS vendors that have failed in the PC market.
Instead of cobbling together your own econobox next time you want an upgrade, why not look at the used and refurbished market for the real thing: a nice G3 or G4 Macintosh. Get the kind of hardware you'll never find in a cheap PC and the kind of OS that has inspired Microsoft copying for two decades.
Then tell us whether Apple's quality computers are overpriced - and if you still think they should abandon the hardware market.
Dan Knight has been using Macs since 1986, sold Macs for several years, supported them for many more years, and has been publishing Low End Mac since April 1997. If you find Dan's articles helpful, please consider making a donation to his tip jar.
Recent Mac Musings
- Our Debt to the IBM PC, 01.09. A Mac user looks at the legacy of the IBM PC.
- Surprise, Average Broadband Throughput Is Lower than Maximum Throughput, 01.08. If a service is advertised as 8 Mbps maximum, it shouldn't surprise anyone that the average speed is below that number.
- The Lisa Legacy, 01.08. We should always remember how Apple's innovation paved the way for all future computers.
- The 17" Unibody MacBook Pro Value Equation, 01.07. The new model is a bit faster, a bit smaller, a bit lighter, and has an incredible 8-hour battery life.
- More in the Mac Musings index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: 15" 'TiBook' PowerBook G4, Jan. 2001 - A new 1" thin PowerBook design with a titanium case, 15" widescreen display.
- Group of the Day: PowerList for those using Power Computing Mac clones.
- January 9 in LEM history: 01: Macworld keynote - 02: The new iMac - Redefining Apple's market - 03: Safari shows off the Apple difference - Impressions of Safari beta - 04: The colored iPod mini - 06: Installing 'Tiger' on unsupported Macs - Time to replace 5-year-old PowerBook - 07: iPhone and Apple TV - Axiotron Modbook - Mac vs. PC price comparisons are never fair - Backup to the rescue - 08: 2008 Mac Pro value equation
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- MacBook Keyboard Among Best Ever, Glass Trackpad Less than Intuitive, TiBook Desktop Mod, and More, The 'Book Review, 01.09. Also $179 to change battery in 17" MacBook Pro, argument for an Apple netbook, MacBook Air SuperDrive hacked for any Mac, bargain 'Books from $170 to $2,299, and more.
- BYO $240 Hackintosh, HyperCard Resurrection, USB 3.0 10x as Fast, SlimBlade Trackball, and More, Mac News Review, 01.09. Also the brilliance of the Macworld keynote, businesses embracing Macs, Picasa for Mac available, Toast Titanium 10 ships, and more.
- iPhone Reaches Vermont, 15 iPhone Tips, Apple's iGlove, First Editable Office App for iPhone, and More, iNews Review, 01.09. Also WebEx collaboration on the iPhone 3G, hands-free visor kit from Kensington, portable iPod and iPhone power, new cases from Speck, and more.
- Hooked on Classic Macs, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 01.09. Tommy Thomas is back with a renewed focus on Macs that can run the 'classic' Mac OS.
- Software Should Come with a Fresh Date, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz, 01.09. Sooner or later, some hardware or OS update will probably break a program you own. Software vendors should be up front about how long they'll support it.
- Thanks for the IBM PC, Dad, L. Victor Marks, My First Mac, 01.09. Dad, thanks for bringing home that first IBM PC way back in 1981.
- What a Legacy: The Origin of the IBM PC, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.09. IBM introduced its PC on August 12, 1981, shaking up the entire personal computer industry. Today even Apple makes its computers IBM compatible.
- Heat Management for 'Books and the Last Mac to Run OS 9.1, Phil Herlihy, The Usefulness Equation, 01.08. Tips on keeping a first-gen MacBook Air from throttling back with CoolBook, using G4FanControl with a G4 PowerBook, and the fastest Mac that can boot Mac OS 9.1.
- A History of Apple's Lisa, 1979-1986, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.08. Originally envisioned as a business computer to replace the Apple II, the Lisa brought the mouse and GUI to the computer market - only to be felled by the less costly Macintosh.
- Lisa's DNA Is All Over Modern Computing, Ray Arachelian, Apple Seeds, 01.08. Those who label Apple's Lisa a failure are ignoring the computer's legacy that shows up in every personal computer sold today.
- The Innovative Lisa, Dan Knight, Online Tech Journal, 01.08. Apple's Lisa and how it paved the way for the Macintosh.
- Waterfield First with SleeveCase for New 17" Unibody MacBook Pro, Charles W. Moore, 'Book Value, 01.08. Waterfield has a reputation for top quality bags at appropriate prices, and it's already designed a sleeve for the new 17" Unibody MacBook Pro.
- Blackouts and Web Access, Death of a Kanga, the Future of PowerPC Macs, and More, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 01.07. Also another email client suggestion and whether a G3 iMac can handle a 7200 rpm hard drive without overheating.
- How Netbooks Impact Microsoft and Apple, Tim Nash, Taking Back the Market, 01.07. Netbooks are keeping Windows XP alive, which may slow adoption of Windows 7, and perceived value keeps the Mac market share growing at the expense of Windows.
- The Ill-Fated Apple III, Jason Walsh, Apple Before the Mac, 01.07. "...not only was the Apple III mind crunchingly expensive, it was made with none of the passion of the Apple II or Macintosh."
- 2 Apple Failures: Apple III and Lisa, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.07. Apple's two not-so-great product lines between the Apple II line and the Macintosh.
- Apple III Chaos: Apple's First Failure, Joshua Coventry, Cortland, 01.07. Apple had known nothing but success with its Apple II product line, but when it tried to enter the business world with the Apple III, the learned the cost of failure.
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best MacBook Deals, 01.09. Used 1.83 GHz, $595; 2.0 SD, $650; refurb 2.1 GHz, $849; 2.2, $899; 2.4, $949; new 2.1 SD, $945 after rebate; 2.4, $900 a/r; 2.0 Unibody, $1,199 a/r; more.
- Best G5 iMac Deals, 01.09. Used 17" 1.6 GHz Combo, $400; 1.8 SuperDrive, $450; 1.9 iSight, $575; 20" 1.8 GHz, $500; 2.0, $625; 2.1 iSight, $699.
- Best iPod nano deals, 01.09. New 3G/8 GB, $125 shipped; 4G/8 GB, $134 shipped; 16 GB, $175 shipped (most colors).
- Best Apple TV Deals, 01.08. Refurb 40 GB Apple TV, $199; new, $220; refurb 160 GB, $279; new, $320. Prices include ground shipping.
- Best Mac Pro Deals, 01.08. New 2.8 GHz 4-core, $2,099 after rebate; refurb 8-core, $2,399; new, $2,589 a/r; 3.0 $3,398 a/r; refurb 3.2, $4,099; new, $4,099 a/r.
- Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 01.08. Used 867 MHz Combo, $490; 1.33 GHz, $548; 1.5 GHz SuperDrive, $595.
- Best 17" MacBook Pro Deals, 01.07. Used 2.16 GHz Core Duo, $1,190; 2.33 Core 2, $1,400; 2.4, $1,799; refurb 2.33, $1,799; 2.5, $1,899; new, $1,900; refurb 2.6, $2,299.
- Best Power Mac G5 Deals, 01.07. Used 1.8 GHz single, $500; dual, $629, 2.0, $700; dual-core, $929; 2.3, $999; 2.5 dual, $900; 2.7, $1,089; 2.5 Quad, $1,399.
- Best iPod shuffle Deals, 01.07. Refurb 1 GB '07, $39 shipped; new, $43; '08, $45; refurb 2 GB '07, $59 shipped; new, $58; '08, $63.
- More deals in our archive.
