Will there be Macs in the year 2010?

By Jan Kabili

Will Apple still be making computers in the year 2010? Chris Seibold at Apple Matters doesn't think so. He lists five (tongue in cheek?) reasons
for this provocative conclusion. My favorite is that the supply of cat names is getting low. His other four arguments are:

  • Microsoft Vista – Vista aims to enhance its look and its security, the two most frequent complaints about Windows XP. Vista's Mac-like niceties plus beefed-up security will wipe out a lot of the interest in OS X.
  • Apple's switch to Intel – Now that Intel is inside both Macs and PCs, consumers won't buy the line that Macs are technically superior. They'll just go for the cheaper machine.
  • The iPod – The iPod's revenue-producing powers will entice Apple into concentrating its efforts on the iPod and allocating less manpower to designing computers.
  • Dollars and Cents – Apple's profit margins on Macs could be replaced by sales of OS
    X, iLife, Final Cut Pro and the company's other software if it makes OS X available to run on any capable machine rather than tying the operating system to Macintosh boxes. This move could increase software sales enough to offset lack of revenue from hardware.

Apple Matters predicts that when all this comes about Mac fans will
"howl and moan," but in the end it will be a good thing for us. Yeah, and so is cod liver oil, but that doesn't mean we have to take it.

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