Apple to flush '£37bn' down the bog if it doesn't flog cheapo slabtops

"Equity research analyst Rod Hall said the fruity firm was missing out on a huge market by failing to produce a cheap-ish mongrel laptop priced between $500 and $1,000 (£300 and £600)."

they already had the ipad at 6-700$ and laptop at 1000ish$. On top of that Apple don't know how to make a cheapish, they believe they can crap in a box and it will sell for 100$

$63bn Profit!

Or $63bn revenue that might cost more than $63bn to make?

Sadly...

There will a load of his golfing/country club buddies on Wall St who will accept this BS without question.

Then when Apple don't follow is advice they will mark the stock down.

As has been said, those who don't have a clue become Wall St Crystal Ball gazers.

before any fandroid down votes this post just think for a second that his next pronouncement may be directed towards Google or Samsung. These Jerks don't care who they shaft as long as their name in in print.

I'm sure the correct spelling is 'analist'.

Something to do with attention to detail and personality. I may have misunderstood.

ARM vs x86?

"In 2014, we believe that the next A-series chip (probably named the A8) is likely to surpass the computing power of current i5 based MacBook Airs," he continued. "If our calculations are roughly correct, we would see no reason for Apple not to begin using the A8 in its laptops or... just make its tablet behave as a laptop."

Wouldn't this necessitate a re-write of OS X, considering the A series are ARM processors and Intel are x86?

Huh?

So Apple can make more money by convincing users to buy one cheap product instead of two expensive products. That's too subtle for me, I'm afraid.

apple .... cheap

don't fit in the same sentence shirley?

Er...

"While some iPad owners are replacing laptops with the device, we believe that most use the iPad as a supplemental device to either a laptop or desktop PC. If iAnywhere allowed these users to flexibly use an iPad as both a PC and a tablet, we believe that many would elect to own simply one device."

But Apple don't want their customers to buy one device. Selling them both an iPad and a MacBook is better for their bottom line. It's always been about the halo effect and ecosystem lock-in.

* beaten to the punch by poopypants :( *

Is this a joke, of course they will do it.

Bizarre headline grabber.

They ain't even brought out their phablet yet, there simply ain;t any rush if they are grabbing the billions selling the wrong product!

Of course sales of tablets will die next year but giving consumers options is not the way to long term fortune.

They might just opt out.

BTW 'supplemental' = crap

Obvious really. It is a word for selling something useless or hardly needed.

You can get seriously rich from J P Morgan advice

Especially if you work for J P Morgan

Coined the term iAnywhere?

I think we'll hold off on saying whether or not he successfully coined a term until we see it in common use, and not by analysts.

Sounds like an eMate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMate_300

Yeah, that was a great opportunity

I said it ages ago

When they killed the OS X servers I said that eventually the OSX laptops would be killed and replaced with more locked down iOS versions.

They are just not ready yet. Perhaps they will wait till the XPocalyspe Hype dies down to get maximum OSX sales from that. So no earlier than next year.

The CPU performance and compatibility is not that important to Apple. They don't have "loyalty" to the niche customers that actually need CPU performance. Likely they will keep a high end OSX machine for a while longer than that.

Why would they do this?

Why would Apple do this? Their entire business model is to get you to buy into the Apple ecosystem. Having a device that behaves as a tablet and a laptop would mean they lose sales in both their tablet and laptop divisions. Why sell a single $1000 device, when they can sell 2 devices for $1600?

Not to mention, I simply can't see a 'pretty' way to produce such a hybrid device. Sure the Surface looks good, in an industrial kinda way, but Apple devices are a head and shoulders ahead in terms of looks. Apple won't go producing some ugly mongrel.

Not sure about the CPU talk though. It really depends if they want to upset their developers again.

What insight!

As someone who has already got a Logitech Ultrathin Bluetooth Keyboard I have to say its a great idea in principle - however I wouldn't buy one as, er, I've already got a Logitech Ultrathin Bluetooth Keyboard.

More innovation

Idiot analyst invents the netbook.

Gosh - no-one thought of that before

Apple can't sell cheap because if they do it will ruin the "upmarket" image that the masses have of them (despite the fact that Apple is truly mid tier unless you randomly decide to have a gold, diamond encrusted one special requisitioned because you're the prince of a wealth oil nation)

Same old same old

Every so often over the years an 'analyst' has come along and said "Apple needs to produce a cheap computer/laptop/whatever to dominate the lower end of the market". Apple have always said (to my knowledge) that they're not interested in knocking out cheap products.

I think a look at Apple's product line and bottom line over the years tells the whole story really.

The 'analyst' is obviously a twunt.

"The analyst also had a bad prediction for Intel, and warned that Apple's own in-house-designed, A-series chip would probably be used in its next generation of laptop machines."

I've heard this a few times, and I'm thinking the same I have every time I've heard it before.

No chance. Yet.

Why do I say bull? OSX. while (IMO) an amazing OS was very much a niche player on the OS market. It still is, but sales have improved massively. Regardless of the abilities of the Mac, it was not compatible with Windows. As such, any customer would have to buy new versions of any software they use (assuming a Mac version was available). This has previously (combined with the high price anyway) has been a major obstacle to selling Macs.

Apple got a *huge* boost in sales when they switched to Intel. While Windows is still a viable OS, they aren't going to risk the Mac sales going back to the level they were.

I'd also like to point out that while in Mountain Lion (and some extent Lion), they appear to have been aggressively moving toward a more iOS style interface, with Mavericks, they appear to have stopped.

wow

it's as if the entire aftermarket of covers with bluetooth keyboards and wireless mice that's sprouted up around all the iPad models didn't exist...

Anyone who wants an iPad laptop can make one with an order to Logitech or a hundred chinese accessory companies.

Not nimble enough...

Apple is now up (or down) there with the megacorps who would rather wait for new ideas to be adopted by competitors who then eat Apple's lunch. This, rather than embrace the fear of 'competing with itself'.

This is somewhat analogous to telling Nokia in 2007 to abandon Symbian and adopt Android. Would they listen?

Think Different

What is that people (this analyst and many others) don't get, Apple should continue to focus on the innovation and create new markets, not trying to saturate existing ones. Thats where the dollars (profit) lie!

If the "anal-yst" knew anything about Apple they'd know this is something Apple will simply not do. They said as much in interviews recently.

That is REMARKABLY dumb.

An apple user with a slab and a desktop/portable, is an Apple user Apple has sold two devices to -- because Apple users are fanatics and will try their utmost to not use any other brand. This analyst suggests Apple should strive to only sell one device to them.

Also, Apple is a prestige brand. Apple gear are status symbols, they sell BECAUSE the products are more expensive than equally-specced products from other vendors. Asking Apple to sell cheapo stuff is like saying that Ferrari is missing out on a lot of action by not selling Nissan clones.

Dumb. The analyst does not understand Apple or the Apple customers at all.

Should've stuck to operating a gropey bird puppet on kids' TV rather than switching career to a market analyst.

Another analyst. Another incredibly stupid statement

Quote: "we believe that most use the iPad as a supplemental device to either a laptop or desktop PC. If iAnywhere allowed these users to flexibly use an iPad as both a PC and a tablet, we believe that many would elect to own simply one device"

So, Apple, you must change your strategy so that people buy only ONE of your products and not TWO as they do at present.

These analysts do make me laugh. What would we do without them?

Computer says no

Rod Hall - technology analyst - right. Financial Analyst and proponent of the ultra-commodity. If it rained soup, he'd be out with a fork. Apple is a market maker. Rod is a follower. Good luck in the new job, Rod. Oh, good luck with the future too.