Feuding analysts argue about whether the iPad is boosting Mac sales
Think it's only Apple faithful who are adding an iPad to their gadget cache? According to Chitika Research, that's not true. The online advertising firm keeps a close eye on which platforms are downloading its ads the most, and it says that Mac computers accounted for 10.3 percent of wasted bandwidth in April. That's up from 7.4 percent in the January - March timeframe (you know, the pre-iPad era), and Chitika Research Director Daniel Ruby says "90% of that increase was due to the iPad halo effect." Meanwhile, NPD analyst Stephen Baker believes that the boost is instead thanks to the new MacBook Pro models that were released at the same time, and Technology Business Research analyst Ezra Gottheil says "early data on the iPad indicated that most buyers were already in the Apple club." Who is right? Survey says... your guess is as good as ours, and any of theirs, apparently.























Who is right?
I am right:
Andrew "This article alone justifies me bookmarking the engadget exclude apple page"
Seriously...
@Punisher Plum
Yeah, that guy in there does kind of look like Steve Jobs in is early years. I bet he got kissed by the host!
@Punisher Plum Not really boosting mac in particular, but the iPad sales is obviously boosting the entire AAPL stocks on a dramatic shift. Now having the 2nd title, ousting MS for a while. http://j.mp/apple-vs-micrsoft-winner-review
Apple suck mehhhhh
Some people that have never used an apple device, then use an ipad really see how great of build quality and ease of use their devices can be then go buy an apple computer, hard to say that someone would buy 2 expensive devices within a short period of time just cause'. So probably the i7 introduction had some part in it too. Oh well, looks like Apple is really starting to be in the international big league.
@uck
Alienware M11x > iPad
@TPQ
I dont know one person who owns one of those
@TPQ That's an apples to aliens comparison - they're fairly close in size but target quite different markets.
@uck
I'm not sure if the typical Mac user really cares about the RAM or processors. Ask a typical home user or designer and most of them never heard of i7 or i5.
It's the OS.
@TPQ Alienware has Windows, I can't be dealing with this. Wonder how well it would run Linux?
@TPQ
Did your mom just buy you a new computer and this is your way of boasting? Kinda sad, really.
Most of us here have smartphones, laptops, netbooks, PC, tablets. It's really not a big deal that you have a computer for playing games on. Once you hit puberty you'll realise there's more to life than sitting in your mom's basement all day with a headset on calling people 'losers'
@mukatuna
yeah because the point of a gaming laptop is to run linux.
Anyway the comparison is pointless they are completely different devices.
If you want to compare apples *erm* to apples, look at the hp touchsmart tm2 or something
@TweakerB
I think that could be correct. But one thing that I think is a big misnomer is that all apple users are just a bunch of hippies that only buy a computer if it is shiny... I am an apple user and I care about my computer speed, (really want an i7 imac 27"). Just look at how many engadget readers own apple products, (computers, laptops, iphones, ipads, ipods...) and we are nerds whether we like it or not. I would argue that the same percentage of apple users are geeks as the same percentage of windows users.... (Linux users is a little higher lol)
@uck
i would say its more because of the cost factor of apple products,
the % of mac users who are geeks == the % of windows users who are geeks and bought computers that are similarly priced.
@Punisher Plum
edit: To add, the % of people who are reading this post who aren't geeks = 0, regardless of OS choice
@uck
I agree with everything you said except the part about Linux users. They aren't "a little higher"... they are INSANELY higher tier geeks!
@TweakerB
They might care what it can do or how fast it is. Apple quite often puts too little disk and RAM into their machines to the point where it impacts usability. At the moment they seem to be at a sweet spot where the hardware and the OS requirements match up. That could change at any time though.
The i945 minis spat out nice Quartz warnings when you ran iMovie. They also tended to be sluggish due to not having enough RAM. I can't see either of those going over well.
@TweakerB
Or the glowing Apple.
@uck
But if everyone is buying them for their awesome build, then how come I see them breaking all over school? Seriously, in 7 of my classes, I see 11 macs out fo the sea of Dells, and 1 just broke completely, 3 have screen issues, and one can't hold a charge. I'm not trying to start a war, or be a troll, I'm just surprised at how much they break.
@Archon
Im not sure your situation is typical.
@Archon go live under the bridge troll
@Archon They are made up of electronics that are design to fail in an expected time period. Just like every other single electronic assembled item. Welcome to reality.
Though your high rate of problems may well be associated to them being in a school...
@uck Good, that will clean the comment section up, Please, please, get the hell out of the Apple articles!
"early data on the iPad indicated that most buyers were already in the Apple club."
2 million Apple club members then. I think the analysts couldn't analyze Apple under any circumstances. Better off with a dart board than this sort of analysis. TBR are probably telling their customers (ie not Apple) what they want to hear.
I don't see the relation from the article to the headline here. I read nothing about iPads having any effect on Mac sales.
@SeeKo
...Except that's exactly what the article was about. There was an increase in the number of people using Macs. One analyst said "People bought those Macs because of the iPad," one said, "People bought Macs because the new Macbook Pro models came out," and one said, "Most iPad buyers already owned Macs, so whatever did it, it wasn't the iPad."
@JagerNinja
You are right. I miss the edit button. I was mistaken the platform percentage points for a combination of OS X and iPhone OS. But they only measured the first.
@Wesscoast
Your comment makes even less sense than my first one. The iPad is not running OS X!
@SeeKo
Yes it is. iPhone OS is a mobile variant of OS X, built upon the same code as it's big brother.
Well those that buy in Ipad is those which are caught by the Ipad hype, Apple fanboys are in general allways in the midle of the hype, thus they buy the Ipad, but sane people also buy it, but not so often ;)
Well they did sell two million of the damn things...
@Maybach There were also a TON of iPad giveaways. I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if 100,000 of those sales were for giveaways.
@aubreyq
Anything to back that up? Or did you just pull out out your ass like most 'analysts' do?
@aubreyq
A ton of iPad giveaways? If you mean like a radio-station give away, then yes, there were a few. But those radio stations paid full price for those iPads so it still counts a sale. When it comes to Apple, they didn't do any big giveaways (with one exception, http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/20/apple-now-accepting-cash-for-its-cold-hard-ipads-video/ ) They've never bought into the "buy one - get one" policy that other hardware makers use to boost numbers.
Just wait until the Microsoft Courier jumps into the scene!
Apple will be history!!!
Tweaker_B
Sent from my iPad
@TweakerB Are you being sarcastic, or do you just have your head in the sand ...
@TweakerB
I call this "metatrolling"
@fingers You lose Internet points for having to question the obvious sarcasm. With the new law, three strikes and your ISP will disconnect you.
I laugh at people that buying the iPad
iPad = Garbage
Alienware M11x > iPad
@TPQ
M11x... Catchy name there. I'm sure they'll sell hundreds.
@TweakerB
why post that twice,
the m11x is a completely different product!?
@TPQ
ipad isn't garbage
but your face might be
iPad, as Steve put it, was aimed to be a consumer's 2nd or even 3rd device to compliment their existing desktop / notebook computer (and/or mobile smartphone). I think it's possible but we need more data before such unfounded allegations can be made.
@buoy
"And for only $500 more you get an iPad for free" must have been a real catchphrase in the Apple stores the past weeks. That's how you sell Macs! ;-)
That's pretty quick for a halo effect to kick in. It seems unlikely a whole bunch of Americans whipped back into the local Apple store and plonked down an extra grand within a month.
Dubious at best
@Cy Starkman
It seems unlikely? Is that cos he findings don't suit you? Got anything to back up your opinion? Or is it just something you thought up so you had something to post?
@suicidebob
Actually, the initial claim of the iPad affecting Mac sales wasn't backed on anything either, so yeah, he is making stuff up, that's what this whole piece of news is about.
@suicidebob
Sure I made it up but I said -seems- as opposed to -I know-
then again, I ask you. If you had just spent $500 minimum plus accessories on top. $600 shall we frugally say (base model). Would you whip back in within 3 weeks and hand over another $1000 plus accessories, plus software (since you are apparently in the article a new mac user).
This is in the USA where you just got financially crunched
I say, that -seems- rather unlikely.
Also, The user would still be adapting to the iPad, let alone now suddenly cruising the web on two new devices. On top of which if you read threads and reports the iPad if nothing else is replacing desk/laptop for email/web.
There is nothing in the article that makes it seem likely. Mind you from reading lots of articles and threads and doing basic maths I'd say my -seems- is a rather more real world bullshit analysis than these clowns.
I've at least got a GFC and an interweb full of user experiences I'm drawing on
Loving my iPad! It is a great lounging device, so much nicer than my netbook. Still waiting on a nice Android tablet though. It wouldn't surprise me if people went and bought other Apple products after using an iPad...it just works so well, even though there are limitations, *cough* flash.
Name one thing that iPad can do that iPhone can't
iPad mehhhhhh