This week in Macworld news

Apple devotees descended on San Francisco this week for the latest crop at the Macworld Expo, but there was one thing missing: the surprise.

Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs introduced a new budget PC dubbed the Mac Mini during his keynote address at the expo, promising that the machine will expand Apple's audience beyond the Mac faithful. The Mac Mini, which will retail for $499, is a tiny machine with a processor, a hard drive and an optical drive--you supply the monitor, mouse and keyboard.

However, as low as the starting price is, it still costs about $100 more than similarly configured PCs from Gateway, Hewlett-Packard and others, according to analysts and price checks. The price delta increases as the typical equipment on PCs is factored in.

When market researcher IDC added in "the stuff you'd want," the final price came to $1,300, said IDC analyst Roger Kay, who nonetheless applauded Apple for putting out something that lets the company play in the bargain market.

Jobs also confirmed several other high-profile debuts that have been grinding through the Mac rumor mills, prompting the secretive company to sue the alleged source of several information leaks. Many of the reports turned out to be true, thus leaving the expo without a big shocker.

One of those products was a new version of its popular music player--the iPod Shuffle, priced as low as $99. Based on flash memory, rather than the more expensive computer-like hard drives that have been the centerpiece of all other iPods, the new player is aimed at the low end of the market, relatively untraveled territory for Apple.

The Shuffle comes in two sizes. The $99 version has 512MB of storage and holds about 120 songs; the $149 version has 1GB of storage and holds about 240 songs. Unlike most similar devices, the Shuffle has no display screen to show songs or playlists; it consists only of a slender white rectangle with the trademark iPod navigation wheel on one side.

While Jobs was the star attraction at the conference, many Mac fans were just as interested in hearing from one of the original Mac creators. Andy Hertzfeld signed copies of his book, "Revolution in the Valley: The Insanely Great Story of How the Mac was Made" on the conference floor. He sat down with CNET News.com to discuss his collection of dozens of short stories that provide a unique, behind-the-scenes look at the birth of the Mac.

iPod Shuffle

One application not yet mentioned that would seem to be quite
delicious, would be the use of the iPod Shuffle as an audiobook
player. iTunes' ability to 'remember' your place, even between
Mac and Pod playback devices, means thatthe Shuffle could
easily prolong the listening experience while walking the dog,
commuting, the gym, or even taking a short trip somewhere.
iPods already offer this convenience, but the Shuffle is so tiny
and simple that an avid audiobook junkie would be tempted to
dedicate it just to this purpose -- as a sort of "digital
bookmark."

Related ideas: online training, education and public affairs via
PodCasting, etc.

IDC Analyst Doesn't "Get it" - Fire him ASAP!!

The point of the Mac Mini isn't to go buy the unit for $499 then add a flat panel, a keyboard, a mouse, etc. that gets the price up to $1300.

THe point of the Mac Mini is not for the mac-faithful or anyone that really wants to buy a Mac at all. The market rationale for this product is that Windows-based iPod users must, by default of how the iPod and iTunes works, ALREADY OWN the keyboards/mice and monitors hooked up to a Wintel unit. The $499 Mac Mini is for them to have a "low cost" way to switch - "you spent $400 on the iPod and accessories, now spend another $499 to realize the true potential of iTunes, iPod, and, well, iLife!" etc.

The ultimate in plug-n-play. The majority of Windows iTunes users, I am sure Apple's market research confirmed this, have USB I/O devices and so this, as Steve said, removes the last possible reason for them to refuse to switch over. Once Apple starts its "trade in a PC box and get an iPod/Mac Mini combo deal for $699" - why wouldn't you?

The one thing Apple screwed up on was the wireless aspect - having to add a Wi-Fi card is not cool, but...

In conclusion, the guy from IDC is a bonehead analyst - don't follow his stock analysis, follow Apple's marketing campaign for the Mac Mini. You will see, it will be direct mailed and emailed to Windows iTunes subscribers like CRAZY and sales should skyrocket, especially next summer in the run-up to school.

I agree.....

The other thing everyone seems to be pointing out is that
the mini is still $100 more than comparable wintel PCs
from Gateway and others. What most people fail to mention
after a statement like this is that the Mac comes with more
software and has more capabilities at that price than the
windows machines. I've "converted" two friends at work to
the world of Macs, and several others are now excited
about the Mini.

JQ