Random Ideas

Many of you may have read the recent remarks by Apple representatives about netbooks… They generally denegrated the platform and called them “cheap and flimsy” if memory serves. They claimed that low quality was the only way the price could be so low.

I am going to have to call BS on all counts. I happen to own an ASUS  1000HA. I have it dual booted with Windows XP and Ubuntu 9.4. I also have done various levels of support and repair on Apple computers and laptops for the last 12 years. What Apple fails to admit is that every time they tried to make a small machine similar to netbooks, they ended up with junk. Case in point the Macbook Air… No physical network port? Are they NUTS? (Yes, they are.) Larger machines, they make very nicely (although they are still over priced in the extreme). Ever since they failed at the Newton and the Powerbook Duo, Apple has had a chip on their shoulder for the subnotebook/netbook category. Add to the issue that a refurbished, off brand netbook can easily be made to run the latest Mac OSX and you have a very sore spot for a proprietary company that is used to charging two thousand dollars for a small form factor laptop.

Apple is going to have to grow up and deal with the fact that zealots are not the end all, be all of marketing. At some point, you have to actually give the market what they want to stay in business. They learned that with the iPod and the iPhone. The iPhone is merely a better version of the touch screen phones that Palm, Audiovox, HP, and many others have been selling for years with great success and considerable proffit. The iPod is just an improved MP3 player. MP3 players were popular in the market before the iPod and will always be.

I think they need to stick to actual advantages in their product line rather than propaganda that insults other manufacturers to sell their product. Either that, or admit that they lack to intellect and skill to compete in the netbook category.