Apple Rises to Become World's Fourth-Largest PC Maker With Around 20M Macs Sold Last Year

[abazigal]

Could be due to pent up demand. Apple did pretty much refresh a ton of their products in 2017 (new iMacs, new macbook pros), so for a lot of people who were holding off on updating before, this would be a reasonable time to do so. I myself replaced my 2011 iMac with a 5k iMac in July. 

 

Together with the iPhone X, updated apple watches, iPads and apple tvs, plus AirPods finally catching up to demand, I won't be surprised if Apple reports stellar hardware device sales for 2017. 

[mr moose]

Just now, Sauron said:

But that doesn't explain the increase in demand for ludicrously expensive fashion statements.

If the top end of the market is the growth area (because what can you do on a $400 acer that you can't do on last years $400 acer?), then that would explain HP and appl e gaining market while the lenovo, asus and acer drop.

 

3 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

I assumed people were deciding to not buy a Windows Laptop, that doesn’t mean people had them already and are switching. In fact all it means is that some people just don’t want to deal with Windows anymore, and that’s true. 

 

Yeah I saw an increase of Mac sales and assumed they took a peice of the market from someone else, but even if they didn’t they still grew their market for some series of reasons. One of which is probably the reason I gave about people not wanting Windows anymore. 

 

 

 

It must be the night for confusing posts that don't actually mean anything. You are literally saying in that post that you think mac is taking sales from windows, but not from people who use windows but from people who no longer use windows.   IS there a difference?  what does that bit in bold even mean?

 

Either you think mac is taking market share from windows or you don't.  Even though you have already admitted that market share does not indicate reasoning. 

 

 

 

[Sauron]

18 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

Then why do people buy Macs? Is it because they cost more? Or is it because macOS offers something Windows doesn’t. 

 

I’d bet money it’s the ladder.

For a variety of reasons, but I can tell you for a fact that many, if not most, mac users don't know the difference and only base themselves on hearsay that "macs are just better", then perpetuate that urban legend to justify their purchase. Or maybe they compared a 1500$ to a 400$ windows machine and concluded that macs are better...

 

Sure, there are some who really, really like macOS for valid reasons and are willing to overspend to get it, but they would be in the minority. Of course, by the same metric, there are plenty of people who buy windows machines without the palest idea of what they're actually buying or what else is available.

11 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

Yeah I saw an increase of Mac sales and assumed they took a peice of the market from someone else, but even if they didn’t they still grew their market for some series of reasons. One of which is probably the reason I gave about people not wanting Windows anymore.

Not necessarily, it could just be a bunch of people who own a windows desktop buying a mac laptop. It could be college students, getting a macbook for their birthday or something, who have never owned a laptop before. Besides, the average joe really, really, really doesn't care about the "stuff that's going on with windows"... they'll only notice if the computer is slow or something doesn't work. And last year has been one of the worst in the last decade when it comes to macOS being buggy and broken, so I wouldn't consider it such a "safe haven" from windows' problems.

[DrMacintosh]

1 minute ago, Sauron said:

For a variety of reasons, but I can tell you for a fact that many, if not most, mac users don't know the difference and only base themselves on hearsay that "macs are just better", then perpetuate that urban legend to justify their purchase. Or maybe they compared a 1500$ to a 400$ windows machine and concluded that macs are better...

 

Sure, there are some who really, really like macOS for valid reasons and are willing to overspend to get it, but they would be in the minority. Of course, by the same metric, there are plenty of people who buy windows machines without the palest idea of what they're actually buying or what else is available.

Not necessarily, it could just be a bunch of people who own a windows desktop buying a mac laptop. It could be college students, getting a macbook for their birthday or something, who have never owned a laptop before. Besides, the average joe really, really, really doesn't care about the "stuff that's going on with windows"... they'll only notice if the computer is slow or something doesn't work. And last year has been one of the worst in the last decade when it comes to macOS being buggy and broken, so I wouldn't consider it such a "safe haven" from windows' problems.

Quality post. Good job. 

 

Some really good points in their but I’m too tired to keep replying in the thread  

[xtroria]

46 minutes ago, Brooksie359 said:

They make good latops but to say they are the best would be an opinion and one that many would disagree on. Honestly their newer laptops really suck for the price and that compared to previous apple pricing which has always been kinda overpriced. I mean the build quality is there but the hardware inside is mediocre for how much you have to spend on it.

In what sense does their laptop suck for the price? I'll agree with the part where you don't get as much RAM as the competition, but then again apple software are really good with RAM management compared to their counter parts.

 

Apple actually put a better intel GPU compared to the competition (iris pro vs HD graphics). The screen that they put is high resolution, really bright and extremely color accurate which is why art and video professionals like to use macbook. The storage that they put is also insanely fast. I believe they use NVME based SSD instead of SATA based which a lot of high end windows laptops still use. The keyboard is really good and I'd use it over XPS' keyboard. The last part, don't even get me starting on trackpad.

[mrchow19910319]

Macs are only gonna get more and more popular. 

[Drak3]

3 hours ago, xtroria said:

In what sense does their laptop suck for the price? I'll agree with the part where you don't get as much RAM as the competition, but then again apple software are really good with RAM management compared to their counter parts.

 

Apple actually put a better intel GPU compared to the competition (iris pro vs HD graphics). The screen that they put is high resolution, really bright and extremely color accurate which is why art and video professionals like to use macbook. The storage that they put is also insanely fast. I believe they use NVME based SSD instead of SATA based which a lot of high end windows laptops still use. The keyboard is really good and I'd use it over XPS' keyboard. The last part, don't even get me starting on trackpad.

Current MBPs are using Intel HD, Sky+, Apple has gotten access to the same chips as every other OEM.

Thermals on Macbooms, every one they sell today, is also an issue.

The keyboard is sybjective, but IMO, Apple's have been the worst laptop keyboards I've used.

Current XPS and Surface Pro/Book trackpads are on par with Apple's. The only difference at this point is that OSX supports more gestures out of the box.

Most high end Windows machines that use the M.2 form factor are using NVMe. Those that don't, the OEM understands that there is little gain from NVMe over SATA for most consumer workloads. Low queue depth, Apple's NVMe SSD won't outpace an 850 Evo.

[dalekphalm]

I was actually surprised that both HP and Lenovo beat out Dell... Then I remembered I just bought a high end expensive HP laptop, sooo, I'm part of the reason, I guess

[dalekphalm]

2 minutes ago, anthonyjc2010 said:

Probably HP or Dell

If you follow the link in the OP:

1. HP

2. Lenovo

3. Dell

4. Apple

 

Surprisingly, Dell gets beat out by Lenovo.

[Ryujin2003]

I didn't think Apple sold PCs....

[dalekphalm]

6 minutes ago, Ryujin2003 said:

I didn't think Apple sold PCs....

... I assume you're being sarcastic or intentionally ironic?

[Drak3]

29 minutes ago, Ryujin2003 said:

I didn't think Apple sold PCs....

They do, just some additional purchase and/or assembly required.

It's kind of like buying a RAM 5500, you need to buy more than the base to get something actually useful (bed in case of the 5500).

[mynameisjuan]

6 hours ago, DrMacintosh said:

You are damn right people are buying Macs because of Microsoft, they always have been. 

Most people I know that have macs have them because they're macs, doesnt have shit to do with microsoft. 

 

Apple for the longest time has been marketing to show status and wealth, thats why a majority of people still buy them, because ignorance. 

[Ryujin2003]

1 hour ago, dalekphalm said:

... I assume you're being sarcastic or intentionally ironic?

Both? But i was definitely going more towards the latter. Remember "Hi, I'm a Mac." "And I'm a PC". Apple made it very clear since what, the late 90s, that they are not PCs. They are Mac. Your not buying a personal computer, you're buying into a brand.

 

16 minutes ago, mynameisjuan said:

Most people I know that have macs have them because they're macs, doesnt have shit to do with microsoft. 

 

Apple for the longest time has been marketing to show status and wealth, thats why a majority of people still buy them, because ignorance. 

Remember Justin Believer talking about how he wears Beats? Not because of the sound quality, but because of the personal image it presents.

 

Got it, Macs can be good at certain work loads.. but the average Mac sale at Best Buy isn't for that. It's teenagers wanting to be seen at school with that stupid light up Apple logo in front of their friends. Because it makes them feel good. Plus, as we've seen in many of these forum post, there seems to be a belief that if it is expensive, it must be better.

[mynameisjuan]

5 minutes ago, Ryujin2003 said:

Remember Justin Believer talking about how he wears Beats? Not because of the sound quality, but because of the personal image it presents.

 

Got it, Macs can be good at certain work loads.. but the average Mac sale at Best Buy isn't for that. It's teenagers wanting to be seen at school with that stupid light up Apple logo in front of their friends. Because it makes them feel good. Plus, as we've seen in many of these forum post, there seems to be a belief that if it is expensive, it must be better.

Exactly. And until I see a proven fact on why OSX is better than windows that will always be the main reason why people buy them. 

 

Like even just say OSX to the average person who bought a mac and they would be like WTF is that? Then ask about windows and they say it sucks, then ask why and they will spew bullshit like macs dont get viruses and are just better. Then watch them use their $2000 machine to open facebook with not a single non-stock program on their machine. But hey, they at least look pretty amiright? 

[dalekphalm]

14 minutes ago, Ryujin2003 said:

Both? But i was definitely going more towards the latter. Remember "Hi, I'm a Mac." "And I'm a PC". Apple made it very clear since what, the late 90s, that they are not PCs. They are Mac. Your not buying a personal computer, you're buying into a brand.

 

Remember Justin Believer talking about how he wears Beats? Not because of the sound quality, but because of the personal image it presents.

 

Got it, Macs can be good at certain work loads.. but the average Mac sale at Best Buy isn't for that. It's teenagers wanting to be seen at school with that stupid light up Apple logo in front of their friends. Because it makes them feel good. Plus, as we've seen in many of these forum post, there seems to be a belief that if it is expensive, it must be better.

Well you have to look at what PC actually means, vs how some companies use the term.

PC means Personal Computer. So on a general sense, any computing device for personal use is a PC. That includes Macs, Raspberry Pi's, Windows computers, hell even smartphones.

 

However, the term later went on to refer in a more loose sense to "Windows" computers - or rather, more specifically, computers running x86 (because that's how Windows generally ran).

 

So back in the 90's, when Apple were making those commercials, Apple computers ran PowerPC processors, which were not x86 compatible. So "technically", you could let Apple get away with that.

 

Now a-days, Apple computers run standard Intel x86 chips.

 

So current Apple Computers ARE PC's. They can even natively run Windows. On a hardware level, there's really not much different between a Mac, and a comparable Windows computer.

[mynameisjuan]

5 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

So current Apple Computers ARE PC's.

Not the point he was trying to make. We all know they are PCs. Its the idiots who flip shit when you call a mac a PC because a PC is a cheap piece of crap in their eyes. You forget the crowd you are talking to.

 

I get cursed at frequently at work when troubleshooting a problem and I say PC..."excuse me, I have an apple"...."cool story bro, no on your PC"... 

[dalekphalm]

2 minutes ago, mynameisjuan said:

Not the point he was trying to make. We all know they are PCs. Its the idiots who flip shit when you call a mac a PC because a PC is a cheap piece of crap in their eyes. You forget the crowd you are talking to.

 

I get cursed at frequently at work when troubleshooting a problem and I say PC..."excuse me, I have an apple"...."cool story bro, no on your PC"... 

Okay, well, let's just nip that in the bud right now.

 

Fanboys exist on every platform. They flip out and get angry over stupid things. So, because they're fanboys, and are irrational, we can dismiss their concerns since they are without merit.

[Ryujin2003]

1 hour ago, dalekphalm said:

 

snip

Socurrent Apple Computers ARE PC's. They can even natively run Windows. On a hardware level, there's really not much different between a Mac, and a comparable Windows computer.

Well, if you ask the Genius Bar, there is a huge hardware difference... Only PCs have motherboard. Macs don't. They have logic boards..... Insert painful sarcastic sigh here...

 

 

But, I do see your point.

[dalekphalm]

8 minutes ago, Ryujin2003 said:

Well, if you ask the Genius Bar, there is a huge hardware difference... Only PCs have motherboard. Macs don't. They have logic boards..... Insert painful sarcastic sigh here...

 

 

But, I do see your point.

Well let's be honest, Apple Genius's are paid to be fanboys

[Marinatall_Ironside]

On 1/13/2018 at 10:40 AM, Ryujin2003 said:

Well, if you ask the Genius Bar, there is a huge hardware difference... Only PCs have motherboard. Macs don't. They have logic boards..... Insert painful sarcastic sigh here...

 

Logic board, motherboard, mainboard... they're the same thing because they do the same task. ???

Edited January 14, 2018 by JurunceNK

[DoctorWho1975]

crApple fan bois along with significantly higher cost are why i avoid all their devices.

[Jito463]

12 hours ago, xtroria said:

Say whatever you want about apple, but the company produce straight out the best hardware design and build out of the competition especially the new macbook pro.

Having worked on several of them, I have to disagree.  They are a pain to disassemble for repair.  Also, that aluminum body for the frame may look nice, but it means that any dent is almost impossible to repair without replacing the entire shell.

[dalekphalm]

5 minutes ago, Jito463 said:

Having worked on several of them, I have to disagree.  They are a pain to disassemble for repair.  Also, that aluminum body for the frame may look nice, but it means that any dent is almost impossible to repair without replacing the entire shell.

Repairability - while a definite factor to consider - is unimportant to many people.

 

Though agreed about Aluminum. Because of how soft it is, dents can be pretty severe. My fiancee dropped her Macbook Pro, and the corner it fell on has been pretty much flattened. Fortunately the computer still works, but a heavier metal like steel or magnesium likely would have survived the fall.

 

On the other hand, plastic would have been destroyed. On the other other hand, most plastic designs aren't unibody, and therefore would have required only one replacement part.

[Ryujin2003]

11 minutes ago, Jito463 said:

Having worked on several of them, I have to disagree.  They are a pain to disassemble for repair.  Also, that aluminum body for the frame may look nice, but it means that any dent is almost impossible to repair without replacing the entire shell.

That body is HORRIBLE for the components. You get a dent, it will likely push on an international part. Plus it's practically suffocating the device. The MacBook Pros with that touch bar, those run +40°C on idle! You couldn't put one of those on your lap. And then everything internal is a proprietary interface, and things that aren't are soldiered to the board. Very much opposite of repairable and modular. Definitely not consumer friendly.