Apple is BMW
I have finally figured out who apple is. They are BMW. That is everybody either wants a BMW or has a BMW or is in denial that they want a BMW. By BMW generically mean the higher end Germanic cars such as Audi, Porsche. Basically Apple’s cost more are considered cool and tend to have extra features and be of a generally higher quality. Whereas Dell and HP are like GM and Ford with the sony Vaio series perfectly matching the Japanese car manufactures. Using this interpretation it allows me to predict the future of Apple. Like BMW apple will never take over a majority of the car market but they will hold on to the high end high profit margin of the business. The HPs and Dells will continue to grab the bulk of the market with their basic econ boxes with the occasional profit grab using premium brands like alienware in the same way that American car manufactures use cars like their Corvettes and Vipers to grab a little extra profit from the fools who buy them.
So just like cars people will look at how much they can afford and otherwise justify spending on a computer and most will end up buying a PC for their surfing and emailing. But a few who’s time is worth too much for the hassles of Vista or just have the money to buy a better machine or just want to look cool will buy an Apple.
So sooner than later Apple will have all these consumers and their growth will stop. Apple’s present growth is due to their machines being more useful and Vista dropping the ball for the PC market. The only way for this to not play out in this fashion would be if Apple were to try and enter the lower end market. This would not work as they would damage the prestige of their brand and probably lose as many customers as they would gain. As how many doctors would buy BMWs if a nearly identical looking BMW model was available at say $15,000?
So in summary the present growth of Apple will continue for a little while but not for much longer. Microsoft will eliminate the worst of Vista and machines will continue to increase in power and compensate for Vista’s sluggishness. I will predict that Apple will make one last thrust into the high end corporate market in the same way that the bosses drive BMWs while the worker trolls drive fords then the growth will end. If I were researching this I would count the number of Apples in the executive boarding gates and when it levels out then sell of any Apple(AAPL) shares as they will be then overpriced based on the incorrect assumption of continued market share growth.
May 28th, 2008 at 9:03 pm
Yeah, but what if you could buy a BMW for a thousand dollars more than a Ford? Wouldn’t everyone be buying the BMW?
May 29th, 2008 at 3:54 am
But the MacBook Air is clearly a Austin Martin Vantage Roadster: http://www.astonmartin.com/thecars/v8vantageroadster
May 30th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Don’t misunderstand me. I love my Macs.
I understand the point that the author is trying to make, but I have a problem with his analogy.
BMWs are HIGH MAINTENANCE.
Macs are not.
If you ask me, my macs are more similar to Acura or Lexus than BMW.
May 30th, 2008 at 8:11 pm
some people will buy macs not because of the coolness factor, but because the included software such as iMovie, simply do not have a good Windows counterpart.
May 31st, 2008 at 1:43 am
I see where you are going, but Macs are industry machines (graphics and audio namely)… Artists till the end of time will be scraping up spare change for Macs. We definitely aren’t making doctors wages, but the ROI is the best for those of us who need a stable machine to handle our need to push something just that little bit extra. I heard a carpenter say once that you can’t put a price on a tool if it gets the job done and saves you time. PCs ARE consumer machines. They need to be (and generally are) priced as such.
That said, I don’t think I would own a Mac if PCs had proven themselves as stable for my hobbies and profession. I also feel that some people are buying Macs for the wrong reasons these days. They are really just wasting a lot of really well-thought technology if they only use it for the ole ebay/gmail combo. For that, I would maybe spend $500 on the “rollback” at W-Mart.
To each their own I suppose.
June 2nd, 2008 at 1:36 pm
I could not agree more with this article.
BMW’s suffer, JUST like Macintosh, from the biased rumor that they are “overly-expensive high-maintenance machines for pretentious rich people”.
My 2000 BMW 3-Series has recently passed the 150,000 mile mark, having seen 3 countries and both oceans bordering America, with the worst failures being a broken headlight switch and a heat sync in the A/C unit. I pay $59 for 7 quarts of 5w30 synthetic, $20 for spark plugs, and $100 for brake pads, just like Ford and Chevy owners.
I bought my BMW used for $9000, and it has cost me only as much as a Toyota Camry to maintain, and MUCH less in gas and service than my last vehicle, a 2000 Toyota 4runner. Sure, both BMW’s and Macs are best serviced by a brand-specific shop, but both companies are so unique in their engineering, it certianly makes sense. I’m poor and can’t afford new transmissions or blown headgaskets. My Bimmer has never let me down, and I’ve put some miles on it.
My favorite Powerbook, a Lombard 333, has traveled across 10 countries on 3 continents, survived drops out of moving vehicles, and has suffered only a dead battery and some cosmetic blemishes for the trouble. I bought my Powerbook used for $400 and only recently upgraded to a Macbook. My Macs always end up costing more than a similarly-equipt PC, and there is always a moment of consideration when I take a look at both side-by-side. If you have any doubts on the value of a Mac (or a BMW for that matter), take a spin around eBay and compare the Powerbook G4 400’s and 500’s to a smiliar Dell Latitude CPx. The Powerbook is still worth hundreds more and would fit in amongst a lineup of the newest and most stylish laptops.
Macintosh and BMW both remain technologically and stylistically relevant for much loger thanr their respective competitors. The smooth lines of even a 15 year old Powerbook (like the 540c) and the clean, angular interior of a similarly old BMW e34 5-series both remain relevant years after they were eclipsed by more advanced models.
In my opinion, the value of a product is determined not at its inception, but years later when you come across it on a Thrift Store shelf and still feel a desire to own it. Do you still feel that flame of desire when you see a Dell 486? A 1990 Ford Tempo?
June 7th, 2008 at 3:14 am
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