50% of new Mac users are coming from a PC. That's corroborated by Tim Cook himself with Apple data.
I would REALLY hope so, seeing as the only other large operating system is Windows ( most consumers aren't coming from a Linux environment. )
All Things Digital article showing Apple dominance in computers over $1000 isn't a hoax either.
No, it's not. That is due to a lot of graphic design departments and editors buying them, up.
When it comes to things like high end work stations, Apple doesn't have anything to go with that market ( The Mac Pro is a Joke ). Different Categories, the workstation market is pretty huge, and as far as I can tell, I don't think Apple has tried to compete.
Most home buyer's don't spend more than 1000 to start with, at least for a desktop. I wouldn't mind a MacBook Air, it would look nice next to my iMac.
Apple is a good solution for those that have more money to spend on a computer and the Mac mini isn't a bad solution for people that don't have much money.
That is not a blanket statement. It depends on what you need. Apple might be a good solution for some people who want to spend over 1000, and for some people Windows is the better way to go, its not a black and white " Apple is better than anything for over 1000 ". Or " Windows is better for over 1000 "
I'll use myself as an example.
Work: Most of the programs I use aren't even made for OSX, and even if I bootcamped an high end iMac or a Mid End Mac Pro, it wouldn't have enough power to do what I want it to quickly enough. ( no hot swappable hard drives, single GPU only, thats a no no for me ) So at work, Mac won't work for me. On the flip side. They can work for other people, just not me.
Home:
For me, my iMac is an awesome daily driving machine. Its an OK media machine, it looks good sitting in my living room ,its super quiet , its decently quick, and for basic stuff, it works great for me. And I think it could work great for a lot of people ( but most people just do super basic stuff, a 500 dollar PC will do that just fine, hence why they buy the PC ). Nice Computer.
However: I am a huge Gamer, Apple doesn't make anything with enough power to do what I do with that. Sure a Decked out Mac Pro could do OK, but I'm limited to a single GPU, and limited to what Apple says I can buy. The iMac chokes World Of Warcraft for petes sake ( ATI 5000 series Fail ) lol. I'm sure a decked out Mac Pro wouldn't tho.
I like running my games at a huge screen sized, at a high FPS, with everything cranked to the Max, most Macs can't do that ( I don't know what the best GPU you can get on a Mac Pro is, but I'm sure its pretty bad ).
So for Me, other than basic stuff, a Mac won't work at home for me. For alot of people it does, just not me.
This isn't black and white, its all about the users needs.
And a Mac Mini? How the hell is that a good deal? Its under powered, non expandable, loud as hell ( we have a newer one and two older ones in the department Im in ), if your going to buy an New Mac Mini, work harder and buy an iMac, or a gently used iMac. And the older one in the department was pretty hilarious in that it would get so hot, the audio jack deformed slightly, so the audio wouldn't work, quality
( it wasns't that hard of a fix, but Ive never had anything else do that lol )
When PC fans prattle on about 85% marketshare they seemingly grow amnesia when it comes to divulging that roughly around 40% of this market is based on machines 8 years old!!
There is another reason for this: User Need
I won't get into it to much, but I've worked for some big companies. Do you know what most of them do? They use systems, workstations, desktops and laptops until they're basically turning into dust. Where I work now, it wasn't uncommon to see Pentium 4 Desktops still chugging away in a decent amount of cubes. They won't upgrade until they NEED to. That's why you see a lot of older machines still chugging away. We are just starting to see an influx of 7 machines, because the old XP machine's are no longer productive, companies keep things until they aren't productive anymore.
It was't uncommon to see a 8 year old machine still running in an area that just did simple stuff, now tho we are really starting to upgrade everything.
At home, I see tons of people who still run generic P4 and Athlon XP towers just because all they do is go on youtube, do email, do word processing, and browse. So they have no need to buy a new machine. Why the hell would you go blow 500-800 dollars on a brand new PC, or 1000+ for a Mac when the machine you already have does all of that? Most of them keep those machines until a major piece of hardware fails, most, but not all will go back to a Windows Machine again, because its what they are used to. Some will give Apple a shot, but I think most of them will stick with Windows. Because they can buy a decently powerful machine with a good operating system that will last a long time on the cheap.
The Apple Market has grown, but I really don't see it being a threat to Microsoft. It has grown slowly, Microsoft is the king of the corperate and enterprise market, and I think they'll stay that way.
I think Apple will grow, but I don't ever think we'll see Apple dominate the home/corporate/enterprise world.
And it wont because:
1: Enterprise/corporate setups do not like systems that are locked down like Apples, they don't like being limited in what they can do, Apple limits the hell out of everything, even the hardware you can buy and run, and stops supporting OS's SUPER fast. And randomly won't support new standards. Large business's don't like that. Apple also refuses to release road maps. Large business's again. Do not like that, they want to know where all this equipment they bought will stand in 5 years time. Apple is far to unpredictable.
2: A basic Home user who does the basic's is FAR more likely to go buy a Dell or HP or something along those lines for 500-700 dollars rather than an iMac at 1000+
3: A lot of people, like gamers for example, demand the latest and greatest hardware, Apple doesn't offer that. They offer good stuff, but they refuse to make something expandable besides the Mac Pro, which as it stands is a joke.
4: Its just to locked down for a lot of peoples comfort.
The way I see it, Apple's home computer market share will grow, but I don't think we'll ever see 50%, they just don't appeal to enough people I think. Still good computers.
Apple needs to target basic users, gamers, and the enterprise market and produce a product that those people want to buy if it ever wants to see 50%
