Comments on: Microsoft's marketing follows Apple's playbook

Microsoft should charge Apple for its campaign geared around PC prices: it is cementing the idea that Macs are an aspirational product.

[ModelA1181]

Partially true, the fault is with Nividia for their bad driver. The fault is with the PC maker for using a card with a bad driver and the fault is with Microsoft for licensing their operating system to PC makers who install such cards. Of course, they all point fingers at each other. Lesson: If you want to upgrade your Microsoft operating system be prepared to deal with bad drivers. Alternative: Buy a Mac or blame Apple's higher prices for your sufferings.

[seven7dust]

@monkeyfun14
thats exactly the problem !
who cares who made the part ! it's the user who has to face the problem !
which is why Apple's Vertical model leads to better quality stuff
I'll be the first to admit that Macs have problems too
but they are so few that even a minor problems like cracks of the casing
become news , and even the few problems are solved quickly and efficiently thx to this model !

compare that to sure no. of problems with Dells , HPs and Windows !
most of which are difficult to Solve in the first place and
they vary so much for different models etc.
and add in the the ever going blame game between Microsft Dell HP and all other hardware vendors and you have one Fed up Customer !

also look at Apple's product Line-up and compare it to Dell HP or lennovo
which do you think will lead to better quality ?

which is why Apple aims for profit not marketshare
cause in the long run it's a far better strategy !

[monkeyfun14]

A Lenovo's build quality is going to be better then a Mac's sorry to burst your bubble. You can run those things over with a car and they will still work.

[pithenumber]

Thinkpads are more reliable than MacBooks
what about ASUS? an ASUS laptop, believe it or not, has been shown to be more reliable than a MacBook, look at all the models that ASUS has(the eee line alone has a new product like every other week), and they make laptops for other companies, which makes their product line grow even more
your argument failed

[Vintage72]

I hate the car analogy.

My Father-in-law is a die hard Windows user and hates everything Apple. I tried to convince my Mother-in-law to get a Mac. I was of course over ruled by the Father-in-law. She bought a Vista running Dell. After $1,500 spent and 6 months of light use, she now has a $1,500 paper weight. As this computer was struck dead by a virus... won't even turn on at this point. And my Father-in-law is a computer programmer; he knows a thing or to about computers and Windows and he is stumped.

Now she is in the position of having to buy a new computer. She could buy another Dell For $1,500 or buy an iMac for $1,300. For those wondering if a "Microsoft Tax" exists, just do the math. Dell = $3,000 Apple = $1,300 And who is to say the next computer won't also get fried. And my Mother-in-law is not a power user, doesn't install downloaded software from the net or tinker with the OS. She is very much a turn it on and check her E-mail and run her business type of person; the type of person featured in these ads.

I also get a kick out of the fact that to tide her over until her next purchase she is using my wife's 6 year old Apple PowerBook Pro.

[pithenumber]

your mother in law did not have antivirus or turned on auto updates prolly
she ignored the numerous speech bubble pop ups that told her to do so

and following the instructions would've taken less than 5 minutes and was completely free unless you decided to buy AV software(why do that is beyond me)

if your mother in law isn't a power user, but a netbook! Hackintosh OS X onto it if you like, or even better, install a form of Linux design for netbooks like eeebuntu

[yazo--2008]

People arguing over the interweb trying to convince other people that their computer brand is better... hahaha... good one. Wait.. it's true!

[cryanryan]

What I would love to see is a side by side comparison of the total experience. I have used PCs for the past 5 years, with paid support for the first 4. I had to learn how to download and install programs, then update the C++, and Framework.net, or undo and reinstall so that everything worked properly. Then I had to learn how to go in and change registry items, so all of my apps would work together and play nice.

I still remember upgrading to IE7, and all of the havoc that created. I remember being on the phone for hours to establish and internet connection. The hours to get a document to print, after installing the driver from a CD. Going and purchasing the XP Pro Operating System, and installing it.

Then I bought a MacBook Pro just over a year ago. After an hour of setup, I could print all of my documents, surf the internet, retrieve all of my email and send new ones, open all of the documents from my XP. I could also open PDFs, and I could also save items, or documents as PDFs, without having to pay extra.

The day I bought my Mac, I ordered a new Dell desktop, because I had to have one program, that would not be supported on the Mac. It would work, but not supported. After a month of the Dell being backorderd, the store cancelled the order. I then ordered the Dell again through another source. My plan was to have 2 machines, keeping the PC and Mac software on the two.

What I found in the month and a half, waiting on my Dell, was that the programs that did not work on my Mac, would run great on a Virtual Machine, via VMWare Fusion, which were only 3 applications. When my Dell came in, after reformatting it, and reinstalling the XP Pro OS, I loaded that one program.

It took over a week to get it running correctly. Now it is one of only 3 programs on the Dell that are used. I use Auto CAD, Cabinet Vision, and the Calculator, and only these 3, when I have the Dell going. Okay 4 if you count IE7 for software update.

I am very glad that they make PCs so cheap. I think a great Mac marketing campaign would be to show how advantageous it is to go out and buy a cheap PC to run those 2 or 3 applications that will not run on anything but a PC. Then with the money saved on the cheap PC, you can get a Mac for everything else. PCs are great for filling the void. That is until the Mac runs everything. Unless of course you can run the PC programs VMWare, Parallels, or Boot Camp, then you can skip the trouble of buying a PC, and just buy a Mac.

[pithenumber]

update C++?
huh?
explain

[rplat]

And a Ferrari costs more than a Chevrolet . . . so what's Microsoft's point?

[FuturamaFan]

@ seven7dust

You know after I bought my fiance her first Mac a couple of months ago she freaked out at the slot loading disk drive because she thought it was destroying her CD. I love my Macs but the slot loading disk drive sound like you've put a glass in a garbage disposal.

Over all though, after switching to an iMac a little over a years ago I'll never go back to Windows. Even if I do have to pay extra. I don't' have to buy a new computer every three years, I'll just wait three more. That's something you can do with a Mac but are hard pressed to do with a Windows machine without frequent, painful, time consuming reformats.

[seven7dust]

hey everyone's taste differs !
I prefer slot load drives and ports on one side !
but thats just me !

[The_happy_switcher]

Microsoft has never been clever--just tasteless.

[benjamin_bajarin]

Thanks Tom for the great post. As an Industry / Technology analyst myself who does analysis on both companies this tactic from Microsoft is a bit concerning. Mainly because it demonstrates to me that Microsoft does not understand why Apple is not only doing well but why Apple is such a threat. If Microsoft did understand why Apple is gaining ground like they are they wouldn't run an add like this.

What else concerns me is what you pointed out around Windows 7. It is very bad for the industry for Microsoft to try and play the price card when all the PC OEM's are looking for differentiation strategies so they don't have to play the race to the bottom of the price game. Microsoft with this campaign is making life more difficult both now and in the future for their customers.

I try to constantly remind folks in the industry that people don't always want cheap, often times they want value or what is most valuable to them. Sometimes this is a Mac sometimes this is a PC but the bottom line is people have a choice to fit the computer that fits them. I argue this is not a decision made lightly. People are choosing PC's for a reason and they are choosing Mac's for a reason. Mac's aren't for everyone but neither are PC's. It would behoove Microsoft to understand that and focus on delivering the best software experience for the people who choose their platform. That is Apple's strategy and it seems to be working.

[Kniget]

Benjamin,

I agree wholeheartedly with your assessment that Microsoft's ad strategy focusing on low price isn't helping their box makers. This is a problem because Microsoft needs them to be in the desktop space. This is what some people who think Microsoft doesn't care if people buy a Mac and put a Windows license on there. Microsoft can't afford to run off the box makers. And in a way, isn't that what's happening? Aren't we down to only two major PC box makers in the US, Dell and HP? Gateway got sold to Acer and IBM's PC business to Lenovo. I'm not sure this is a good thing for the PC market overall and therefore, Microsoft.

And then back to Dell. They're scrambling to shore up their business model. Once their advantage in efficiency dried up, what were they left with? I believe HP's PC business is a money loser, but they can subsidize it with printers, servers, enterprise software and services.

[Chanmh]

people find themselves in the PC or Mac camp for a variety of reasons. one is you are given a Windows client at work and are trained to use it and learning something different at home for your non-work computing is not something you chose to spend your time one. two, your parents are described above and you are forced into their choice. these first two examples can explain a lot of the 80% marketshare for windows. your computing requirements are satisfied by windows and that's fine.

you may chose to not be a "geek squad" weenie and need a computer to do your paying job. the example i like here is musicians (a derivative of the artsy-fartsy use mode). i collect concert dvd's and noticed in the most recent one (jeff beck-live @ ronnie scott) that the synthesizer host was a macbook pro. not scientific by any means, but in the 50 or so setups visible in my collection every one is a mac. so either the pc's are always hidden, or there are none in the wild on stage. those who choose their computer, or take the time to discriminate in their choice, let function drive the decision more than specs. one the reason MS appears to be swatting at the bearer of 10% marketshare is the discrimination activity seems to be increasing.

back on topic: so far in these ads, MS has paid someone to by a PC. they are paid not to discriminate. very much like when your employer decides what computer you are going to use. don't like it , find a new job. don't like the choices of PC's MS will pay you to buy, move on, they are sure they can find someone else to take their money.

[info809]

I squeezed abit more money from my pocket for a mac for the following reasons:

- the operating system is superior than a problematic-memory-hogging vista.
- the build quality of the product.
- the solid integration between their hardware and software, hence the system reliability
- the little things apple has thought through to make my experience using the product pleasant. (i dont need to mention them one by one do i?)

It is not fair to compare two computers chip-by-chip...and price by price... because at the end, it is not only about the chip inside the computer but how well and smooth the computer can perform its duties. And from my experience, windows Vista doesn't do its job smooth enough to attract me. That is one hell of a problematic Operating System.

mike

[pithenumber]

OS X is superior to Vista in most ways(some people who need stuff that Vista has and OS X doesn't can argue otherwise), but Ubuntu and Win7/XP are superior to OS X and the former is free

Thinkpads and ASUS notebooks are more reliable than MacBooks

[nixermac]

I agree with Tom. Absolutely. There is no doubt that I bought a car that would fit my budget but there one thing that I wanted - style and comfort. Now my Honda Accord is not a cheap car either. Black and has power. I could have got a Kia or a Toyota Corolla and saved some $$$. But that was not the idea. I wanted safety, quality build, comfort and power. I paid the price. The market is down today but my car is going to stay longer than the down market conditions. Do I have to suffer now when I can afford not to?

I have always purchased a Mac because of the same reasons. I have a MacBook from 2006. It just rocks. It came with iLife and really nothing compares to it. It has comfort and power and it has been zooming along for the last three years. As far as my experience with the Genius Bar. It is awesome. I traveled to India once and needed a battery replacement as Apple had advertised about MacBook batter replacement. I just dropped in at a local Mac Support and in 30 minutes I walked out with a new Battery. A friend had bought a Vaio and was traveling with me. He Vaio died and he went to the Sony dealers who said that they could not help as he had purchased his laptop in the USA. Well he was out of luck. He came back to US only to know that the support cost did not include change in parts. He coughed up real good. The Vaio died soon again and he did not bother about it. Just heard my advice and got a Mac.

I would like to ask what does it cost to get a great development tool like XCode. On the Mac - free. I develop software and we do cross-platform development. Our annual subscription for MS Visual Studio is beyond comprehension. What does it cost for the Mac. Nothing. It is there.

I have deployed a Mac OS X Server as a primary domain controller for one my clients. Any number of Win, Mac and Linux machines authenticate from there. The mail is through the same box. And yes, it runs ichat server so that all can have secure IM - cross-paltform. iChat server runs on Jabber. Can MS be cheaper than that?

Mac are cheaper if you really look at it relatively. It is like owing a good pair of Jeans that not only makes you look good but it is comfortable and lasts long.


-------------------------------------------------------
E=MC(squared)
Error=Microsoft Corporation(squared)

[pithenumber]

Apple uses Solaris to run their India servers last time I checked
many of the "local" sites use Linux or Solaris, simply because they are better, if Apple used them on their main site, it would be a big embarrassment

I saved money with a Corolla, after 16 years and more than a million miles, it still runs like new

[bbaird_dotmac]

The last thing I buy Macs for is status.

I like a computer that is as reliable as my TV or toaster. Macs are, PCs aren't. I like a computer that has a viability of 5 to 10 years. Macs do, PCs don't- I can run the latest Apple software on a 10 year old G4 and it runs well. I cannot run Vista in any sense on a 10 year old PC.

I like the fact that our desktop has been plugged into the 'net 24/7 for 8 years now and isn't riddled with viruses, and has no cpu robbing anti-virus softwares. That is worth the few hundred more I paid for the Mac right there.

It's a bonus that our computer just happens to look like a piece of art sitting on our furniture rather than a crappy plastic cheapy looking shell. Although, I would admit that if I'm willing to pay a few hundred more for a quality desk, it's certainly worth it to pay a few bucks more for nice looking hardware.

I am particularly annoyed by those who suggest macs are underpowered and 'cutesy.' These are obviously folks that have not compared their 'bargain' PC specs to a full-featured mac in terms of memory speed, cpu speed, monitor resolution, battery life etc. People who bellyache that they can't get a 17" Macbook with fast processors, light weight and an 8 hour (yes EIGHT) battery life for $1200-.

[pithenumber]

I've compared a $600 homebuilt PC with a Mac Pro, the Mac Pro is faster
but the $600 home built PC stands up remarkably well, and it pwns the Mac Pro in gaming(expected though)

[Angmarr]

just take and weep apple!

Do you feel the BURRRRN

[Seaspray0]

Superb story, Tom Krazit! You have been amazing recently.

[lsd1960]

How many people here have owned both a PC (IBM, HP, Compaq, and Sony to name a few) and a Mac? I think to comment on either OS when you have not owned both is not fair or even an educated comment. I am currently using both OS's (having bought my first iMac just 8 months ago) but I will NEVER buy another Windows based PC again. I have not had a single problem with my Mac, I wish I could say the same thing about all of the prior PC's I have owned as well as the current one.

[pithenumber]

I have a home built computer with Windows/Linux dual boot, ASUS, Lenovo and MSI laptops, a Mac G4 and a couple Hackintoshes

I prefer Ubuntu over OS X and Windows 7 over that

[blafouille]

Computer outdated really fast that why the price is an issue.A fancy Mac why not but I can run 2 to 3 Pc 's connected to a hub on a Lan-network for the same price.But you can drink Champagne,eat caviar,and run a Mac if you can afford to be snob...