Stan Beer
Wednesday, 04 March 2009 06:31
Opinion and Analysis
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As
numerous analysts have pointed out, desktop computers are on the way
out, yet here we are in the middle of a - dare I say it - depression
and Apple has just released a new range of premium priced desktop Macs.
Some people might say Apple are mad to bring out new desktops at this
time, but they would be mad if they didn't.
It is true that in January, Mac sales were down by 6% compared to
the previous year's corresponding month. However, given that we're in
one of the worst economic horror stretches in living memory that's a
fantastic result.
What makes the January result even more
remarkable is that it was achieved with an aging line-up of Macs that
were badly in need of a refresh. Mac consumers still bought these Macs
while the market was buzzing with rumours of new products on the way!
Add
to all of that the fact that the world is moving away from desktops
toward notebooks and more recently netbooks and the result was, as an
Apple fanboi might say, simply awesome.
This is not to say Apple itself is recession-proof. iPod sales in January were down 14% year-on-year.
However, the desktop Mac is not a product that users will stop buying
in a hurry because in many cases it is not a discretionary purchase and
in others it is not a product of the money conscious consumer.
The Mac Pro, for example, is in the domain of the creative graphics
design market. The users of this product want the latest and greatest
hardware that will run the latest and greatest software that will
enable them to achieve the best possible end result more quickly.
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