Is Windows 7 finally halting the Mac migration?

[JMH]

Earnings information released by Microsoft yesterday point to there being a huge resurgence of interest in Windows 7, outpacing consumer interesting in Apple’s Mac platform. Is this a temporary blip, or is Microsoft back in fighting form?

Todd Bishop of TechFlashcombs through the details:

In the financial data accompanying its earnings release, Microsoft said worldwide Windows consumer licenses grew by more than 35 percent in the recent quarter. By comparison, Apple this week reported an increase of 33 percent in Mac sales over roughly the same time period. That was impressive, too, of course, but Microsoft is growing from a significantly larger base of sales to begin with, making its higher growth rate considerably harder to achieve.

“Of course we’re going to outsell them on a unit basis, but on a rate basis, on a market share basis, we actually outgrew Apple Mac in the third quarter worldwide,” said Brad Brooks, a Microsoft Windows corporate vice president, referring to the quarter in the context of the Redmond company’s fiscal year, ending in June.
​

Saying that Windows 7 is the catalyst for this reversal of the flow doesn’t really tell us much about what’s really going on here, and whether Microsoft is merely enjoying a brief honeymoon, or whether something more long term is happening here.

More -
Is Windows 7 finally halting the Mac migration? | Hardware 2.0 | ZDNet.com

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there
I supect the current state of most economies might be driving this.

Nobody can deny that Apple Products often embody the sheer essence of "Coolness" but if you are wondering about whether it's "Roast Hind Leg of Dog" for your Sunday Dinner this weekend or something equally "appetising" then - a decent cheap PC or Laptop compared with an incredibly expensive (albeit really "cool looking" macbook pro) would probably end up in your shopping basket even if you wanted the Apple product.

A surprise however for confirmed Apple users and Mac fanboys is usually when they actually load up and run Windows 7 they quite enjoy it in spite of all those previous horror stories they've heard about Windows OS'es in the past.

Cheers
jimbo

 

[pparks1]

I honestly don't think there was really any mass migration of people from Windows to Apple products. For the people who were moving, they moved because of fundamental differences with the product...and the perhaps untrue assumption that they would no longer have problems with viruses, malware, spyware, etc. I don't think these people are really going to be swung back to the Windows camp with Windows 7. It doesn't solve any of these fundamental issues that they are concerned with.

 

[not so gray matter]

I honestly don't think there was really any mass migration of people from Windows to Apple products. For the people who were moving, they moved because of fundamental differences with the product...and the perhaps untrue assumption that they would no longer have problems with viruses, malware, spyware, etc. I don't think these people are really going to be swung back to the Windows camp with Windows 7. It doesn't solve any of these fundamental issues that they are concerned with.

Well, it's not as if you won't have issues with viruses and malware but if install AV and Anti-Malware on your mac just as you would your PC you'll end up having way less to worry about. This is simply because there are so many more viruses written for Windows due to the fact that the vast majority of people use Windows. I agree with the first assumption, that people aren't likely to buy Apple computers at the moment because they are just too expensive compared to a Windows platform with the same hardware.

 

[smarteyeball]

To echo sentiment /statements already mentioned:

Seven has done a lot to redress the image/usability 'issues' that truthful and/or sheer fallacy, went with the tired old virus ridden XP and that nasty Vista image most MAC users heard about.

To that end and with relatively few 'horror' stories and generally favourable perception and reception of Seven - has also done wonders for MS sales and re-adoption.

It will be interesting to see what happens when/if Apple do go with AMD chips in the future. The 'cost' argument may become close to a moot point with apple potentially reducing prices and bridging the gap to it's PC counterparts.

However, as it currently stands cost is undoubtedly a factor for a lot of people.

Apple seems to have given up on pushing the Mac like it used to. There hasn’t been a fresh ”I’m a Mac, and I’m a PC” ad since Windows 7 was launched. Maybe Apple needs to bring back Justin Long …

There hasn't been a fresh 'Mac vs PC' ad because it was a campaign that not only got old fast, but also backfired somewhat on Apple by people suddenly declaring themselves 'PC'. They inadvertently created a viable 'rival' image.

The lack of substance to those 'Mac vs PC' ads is also testament to the fact that the Apple marketing Machine were already grasping at straws.

 

[pparks1]

I agree with the first assumption, that people aren't likely to buy Apple computers at the moment because they are just too expensive compared to a Windows platform with the same hardware.

Have you walked past an Apple display at a store like Best Buy or the Apple store itself in the mall? These places are all packed out. Lots of people see the price premium and are convinced it costs more because it's better. The Apple marketing machine has worked wonderfully.

I honestly don't think the majority of the consumers see the hardware as being the same as a PC.

 

[pparks1]

I agree with the first assumption, that people aren't likely to buy Apple computers at the moment because they are just too expensive compared to a Windows platform with the same hardware.

Have you walked past an Apple display at a store like Best Buy or the Apple store itself in the mall? These places are all packed out. Lots of people see the price premium and are convinced it costs more because it's better. The Apple marketing machine has worked wonderfully. But I don't think of the people in these stores that many are saying, "Well, Windows 7 is much nicer than Vista...so maybe the MAC isn't for me".


I honestly don't think the majority of the consumers see the hardware as being the same as a PC.

 

[HJA]

Well, it's not as if you won't have issues with viruses and malware but if install AV and Anti-Malware on your mac just as you would your PC you'll end up having way less to worry about. This is simply because there are so many more viruses written for Windows due to the fact that the vast majority of people use Windows. I agree with the first assumption, that people aren't likely to buy Apple computers at the moment because they are just too expensive compared to a Windows platform with the same hardware.

I looked at Mac's before I built my current system. For the price of a Mac I have something with much better specs and has been pretty smooth. Few problems, nothing major. The speed is amazing and I feel it is more suited to my needs than a Mac would be.

 

[wee]

I have never used Apple products, but a operating system that is set up from the beginning to not be in root is inherently safer then one that isn't. As another post suggests the amount of MS used makes it a target, but it also defaults to a root admin account basically. So if MS really cared they would educate the users on limited accounts, but I suspect this would not fit in their bottom line of making a profit. I do like W7 as far as being able to most root activities from the limited account with the password, I know this can be done in XP, but is a little more limited, never used vista.

 

[Catbodi]

I do not use Apple products I find there computers extremely overpriced for what you actually get. Although I do have an iPod Touch for my Entertainment.

 

[wee]

Funny thing about apple is that they take proprietary even farther then MS. If Mr Jobs, didn't have such a inflated ego, and had made their operating systems, affordable, down-loadable and installed on a standard PC they would probably have a much bigger market share. Because of it's basic design, apple products are out of the box plug and play much more robust and safer. Any OS can be be made safe to use though, it really is the social engineering that people fall for, that is most of where the nasty-ware get picked up from.

 

[whs]

I think it is good that we have choices. Even a hard core Windows fan like me would try out one of those fancy Apple products if they were more reasonably priced. But paying double just for the name is not in the cards.

 

[Max Peck]

I do not use Apple products I find there computers extremely overpriced for what you actually get. Although I do have an iPod Touch for my Entertainment.

I would not migrate away from the PC platform to a Mac. However, like you, I've got an iPod Touch. Best pocket device I've ever used. I have had a lot of Windows Mobile devices over the years. Enjoyed them all. However, I have to call a spade what it is. The iPod is a better pocket device. It just plain works. Apple may not be able to take down the PC market (nor should they - Windows 7 is excellent) - but in pocket devices they are giving out pink slips.

-Max

 

[geeve420]

I think it is good that we have choices. Even a hard core Windows fan like me would try out one of those fancy Apple products if they were more reasonably priced. But paying double just for the name is not in the cards.

I agree with this! I have felt like that for a while now. If I could install OSX on my PC, I would try it in a heart beat. I will not however pay twice as much for a Mac, just because it is a Mac.

 

[pparks1]

Perhaps those who are migrating are trying to get a 2 for 1 deal with their Mac Book and a heater. 100 degrees Celcius with an i7 in the aluminum Macbook Pro is a bit warm.

Macbook Pro helps Core i7 hit 100 Degrees - News - PC Authority

 

[smarteyeball]

Perhaps those who are migrating are trying to get a 2 for 1 deal with their Mac Book and a heater. 100 degrees Celcius with an i7 in the aluminum Macbook Pro is a bit warm.

Macbook Pro helps Core i7 hit 100 Degrees - News - PC Authority

Ahh, but they are 'Apple Mac hardware i7's' - not the same inferior i7's found in the PC counterparts, so you know it's okay

 

[Lee]

I think one of the things overlooked in the latest stats is that Apple when putting out Snow Leopard did not give it backward compatibility. Because of this a large number of Apples iMac and Power Mac (G5) community had to either stay on the older versions of OS X or make the jump to a new system.

For some reason this stat has been overlooked. If I were to guess at a number I would say that at least 30 to 40 percent of the Mac base would have upgraded. Also with the new iMac 27" and 21.5" edition with either the i5 and i7 processors Mac users made the jump to the newer systems. Again, a guess of about 25% could have made this jump.

As a user of the Mac computer system for 23 years now I made the jump to the iMac 27" because my seven year old Power Mac G5 did not support Snow Leopard, hence, the jump. Besides the seven year old system was just that; getting old.

 

[patrickt]

Why would Microsoft care which machine? They sell an operating system and other software. So, I can see absolutely no reason for them to care.

Apple displays in stores are packed? I don't live in the U.S. now but when I've visited that certainly wasn't the case.

 

[zenbutcher]

A surprise however for confirmed Apple users and Mac fanboys is usually when they actually load up and run Windows 7 they quite enjoy it in spite of all those previous horror stories they've heard about Windows OS'es in the past.

(raises hand) That's totally me. My old Powerbook G4 died, and I needed a home computer. I bought a netbook because that's what finances allowed for the time being. I had planned to load OS X (Hackintosh), but then a funny thing happened: after using it for only a short while, I actually liked Windows 7 [Starter, stop snickering ]. In fact, I liked it a lot. So it's staying on the machine.

 

[Adamd]

I agree with the first assumption, that people aren't likely to buy Apple computers at the moment because they are just too expensive compared to a Windows platform with the same hardware.

Have you walked past an Apple display at a store like Best Buy or the Apple store itself in the mall? These places are all packed out. Lots of people see the price premium and are convinced it costs more because it's better. The Apple marketing machine has worked wonderfully. But I don't think of the people in these stores that many are saying, "Well, Windows 7 is much nicer than Vista...so maybe the MAC isn't for me".


I honestly don't think the majority of the consumers see the hardware as being the same as a PC.

This is the funny part. My friend who loves Apple knows nothing more then what Apple marketing has told him.

He says that Apple's quality is sooooooo much better then any other company's laptop and that alone makes it worth the price. I just do an LOL and say yeah.... Funny how can the same Nvidia video cards, same Intel CPU's, same brand of Harddrive you can find on many other laptops "higher quality"? Only real difference between a Windows laptop and an Apple laptop is the look of the shell and the OS.

But leave it up to Apple's marketing to change the way the average customer thinks and making it sound way better then it really is. Bose does the same thing.