Editorial

Posted on 5 Mar 2009 at 10:55

 

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A cheaper Mac mini would be a better deal in the tough financial climate.

Apple doesn't go for big launches these days. Its announcements take the form of a shut-down online store followed, a couple of hours later, by some press releases.

So it wasn't entirely surprising that the new iMac, Mac mini and Mac Pro lines slipped out quietly as we were putting this issue to bed. But why? There's plenty to shout about in these three new lines. The mini, which has long looked like a neglected pet, has been given a new lease of life and an update that should see it taken seriously as a headless iMac once more, and the ideal switcher's machine.

The Mac Pro is the only computer from any manufacturer to use Intel's latest Xeon processors - so far - and that, surely, is something worth shouting about. The MacBook Pro has had its price trimmed; Aperture, iLife and iWork have all had service updates. Perhaps only the iMac, whose update was more a required evolution than an innovation, deserves any kind of second billing.

But perhaps there's another reason why Apple chose not to trumpet these new releases: the price. It seems the company hasn't spotted Joe Consumer is feeling the squeeze right now, and made very few concessions on cost. The iMac was never going to be an impulse purchase, and neither should it be, but the mini is another thing altogether.

At a time when Mac OS X is winning untold praise, Apple should have re-engineered the mini to provide first time users with an inexpensive first rung on the road to Mac ownership. Imagine the tables were turned and you were looking to buy your first Windows machine (work with me on this one) and think about the kind of machine you'd want. Price would almost certainly be your primary consideration. Speed, size and look would all come second.

Ask any commentator what's missing from Apple's line-up right now and eight times out of 10 'netbook' will be the reply. That's right, but it's only half of the story. Apple may be developing a netbook - certainly there's plenty of gossip to that effect - but launching a new product in a field where it doesn't currently play is a risky proposition. It did it with the iPod and that resounding success is there for all to see. It did it with the iPhone and so far things are looking good. If it can pull it off a third time with the fabled netbook then it will have done very well indeed.

I have no doubt that Apple could make a very good netbook, and it probably has one up and running in its labs, but in these times of economic uncertainty an affordable Mac mini would have been a safer bet, and a whole lot easier to build and sell to consumers who are starting to feel the pinch as the credit crunch really starts to bite.

Author: Nik Rawlinson