Scoble Scoffs at Apple’s New MacBook Pro Price Tag
Robert Scoble is a very well known Tech Blogger and someone, in short, that has a lot of people’s ears. He posted something yesterday that we here behind the scenes at Mobility Digest were talking about directly after the WWDC yesterday: Apple’s high price for their latest MacBook Pro and how moving to the next and greatest tech gadget may not be in everyone’s budget or best interest. The second part of his article that I found interesting was his lack of need for a laptop or pc because of his productivity with an iPad. Something I can relate to. I no longer take my 17 inch warhorse laptop home anymore and can be perfectly productive with my iPad using a variety of apps and, when the need arises, GoToMyPc for the rare occasions I need an old archived document or whatever. I realize before I get comments the plethora of cloud options available to negate my need for GoToMyPc and I use SkyDrive, iCloud and Google for the majority of those needs.
So Scoble makes fun of MG Siegler in the same scary way that I made fun of Mobility Digest contributor and iEverything guru Chris Leiter. He has a much higher budget for gadgets than I do (which I thought was high) and apparently a very VERY forgiving wife! But like Scoble, there is tremendous opportunity to make smaller scale devices more functional in our everyday lives to avoid a 2K plus purchase of a new MacBook Pro. Scoble goes on to say how he is perfectly productive typing on his iPad and how he typed over a thousand words at WWDC yesterday. I myself have typed many business reports from my iPad without issue and enjoyed the small footprint my tablet takes up in my briefcase!
This article wasn’t necessarily a plug for Apple’s iPad either. We are closing in on Windows 8 and all the phone and tablet goodness that will spawn forth from it. The point was that even though Tech Manufacturers will be releasing high end gadgets and technology, we can look to their smaller counterparts for almost as much productivity at a fraction of the cost.
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As far as gadget budgets go, I don’t feel that I spend ‘too much’ on them. I buy what I like, and what I want. If I have to compromise quality or my personal preference because of cost or availability, I’d rather go without than to have a lesser product than what I WANT.
I’ve been schooled in the virtues of needs vs. wants many times in the past by my parents and other people who seem to think that the way I buy things is excessive, but at the same time, they’re not me and I can’t be them. I think differently than they do, and I like different things than they do.
The same can be said in terms of computers, phones and tablets. I like Apple computers more than any other manufacturer. Always have liked their hardware actually – I’ve only recently been able to afford it though. As for phones and tablets.. I still haven’t seen a single compelling reason for me drop iOS and give android another try or windows phone my first. So i stick with Apple stuff, which is arguably more expensive than most of the competition. But my personal preference and expected satisfaction wouldn’t allow me to spend less on a competing device in the first place. I tried that once with the TouchPad… and that’s something I don’t plan on repeating any time soon.
As for my wife. Yeah, she’s awesome. I just need to find a new home for an HP Envy 17 and a Sony Vaio now…
The new MacBook Pro w/retina screen. Let’s look at this. New. Expensive and ground breaking technologies in this thing. 2880×1800 resolution 15.4″ screen. It’s a fraction of an inch thicker than the macbook air. It has an awesome processor, SSD, RAM, GPU and more. It’s probably the single coolest laptop I’ve ever seen. With all that comes price. Yep, it’s priced to start at the same point as the higher level 15″ MBP w/the 1440×900 screen and regular platter HDD. So what? if you want the latest and greatest car, you don’t expect the company to price it inline with their cookie-cutter gas sipping sedan. it’s gonna be more expensive.
If you can’t afford it, but want it, save. If you can’t afford it, and weren’t gonna buy it in the first place, screw off. If you can afford it and want it, and have purchased one, welcome to the club. If you can afford it, and don’t want it, and feel the urge to tell everyone that you can and won’t buy it.. I don’t get it. That’s like me saying that I can go and buy a drink called water for $x less than a drink called coke, and since I don’t like coke, I’ll just get the water and be happy.. Coke drinkers (macbook pro customers) will buy the coke if they want it.
Anyway..
I’m looking forward to my new MBP 🙂
That last paragraph made me feel like I was watching the Aflac Commercial with Yogi Berra. “They pay you in cash which is just as good as money.”
The world of technology is a funny thing. A single year ago before Apple released FCP X people were “ALL IN” on Apple. Now i’m enduring daily sessions of hundreds of video editors looking and hoping for Apple to throw them a bone. Chris you’re right that Apple hardware users will buy the new MBP if they want to. All of the new MBP configurations are done with two goals in mind. (1) Deliver excellent and stable machines at a premium price and (2) Get customers prepped to downgrade to the MacBook Air for their next laptop purchase.
Both motives make sense considering Apple’s bread is buttered on the strength of consumer products. The Mac Pro desktop and the bigger MBP laptops were favorites of professionals who now acccount for a very small percentage of their profit. Apple’s way is to focus on the few devices that are producing the most results.
As of today the MBPs are shipping but in the fall there will be comparable and even better spec’d laptops who offer unique value in the market. Apple can and will make sizable profits from their loyal customers and other PC vendors will do the same albeit alot less profits. The market will actually expand this year as older laptops will drop significantly in price to make room for the new wave.
I got a couple calls the past two weeks from friends asking me whats the best laptop they can buy for under $500. There is a market for what Apple is selling and a market for less pricey alternatives.
Absolutely! We’re just green with envy, that’s all. 🙂
OMG I love that commercial hahaha Yogi Berra is awesome.
The irony of Rush Limbaugh loving Apple products is just hilarious to me. Easily the most hated man in any Democrat circle, he was complaining about not having Thunderbolt on the new high end MacBook Pro. Wanting to buy two of them, it was a sort of appeal to get Apple to perhaps confide in him the inside information on the next MBP. He complained that Apple has no competition in this market so why not disclose their upcoming product information. One word, investors. I still believe Apple leaks information strategically but would never fully disclose anything about their products. Personally, I think the MBP is a fine product, but it’s intended use is far outside my capabilities and hence, unjustifiable for that kind of money. I still disagree with my friend and colleague Mr. Leiter that a Ford Mustang Shelby GT-500 is worth every penny however!
lol @ RL… I hate that guy!!
As for the 2013 GT500, we never disagreed!! I love that car – I even said it was on my short list of must have cars if my income were to suddenly double. Just as it sits now, I can’t justify a $55k car when I can have fun in a $30k or less one. That’s a considerable chunk of my gadget budget buddy!!