The iPod Factor

Computerworld ^ | 3/2/2005 | by Mark Hall

[Swordmaker]

Sidebar: The iPod Factor

FEBRUARY 28, 2005 (COMPUTERWORLD) - Apple's recent emphasis on consumer gadgets and services such as the iPod and iTunes are boosting its position in the home computing market. According to research by Minneapolis-based financial services firm Piper Jaffray & Co., 6% of Windows users who bought iPods have switched to Macs, and 7% more plan to make the jump.

Kim Vichitrananda, a desktop support engineer at The Dallas Morning News, says the iPod helps Apple not only in the market, but with its bottom line, as it did in the most recent quarter, when Apple reported record profits. "It does tremendous things for name recognition [among] users of both platforms," she says.

And, says Stuart Wilkes, technical director of Iscentia Ltd., a Fortune 500 consultancy in Worcestershire, England, Apple's sound finances mean that "the Mac is not a risky investment anymore."

[Swordmaker]

. . 6% of Windows users who bought iPods have switched to Macs, and 7% more plan to make the jump.

THEY'RE SWITCHING PING!

If you want on or off the Mac Ping list, Freepmail me...

[Ticonderoga34]

I may be one of those switchers in a few months. Not because of iPod but because of M$'s rotten security.

[Unknown Freeper]

Get the 17" PowerBook. You will fall in love.

[dinodino]

We just got a Mac Mini at the office and it is awesome. I've ordered one to replace my home PC. I've had it with junky Windows XP and its constant problems.

[Rubber_Duckie_27]

So true! I had an iPod for nearly a year before I bought my iBook. The style, intuitive interface, everything just made me want to look closer at a Mac when I needed a new computer. Now I will never go back to PCs as long as Macs are still on the market.

We were in the Apple store last night and probably 75% of the folks in there were looking at or purchasing various iPods. We went in to check out the Shuffle...for my money I'd rather spend a bit more and get the iPod Mini. My 10 GB iPod is only about 1/3 full, so the 6 GB would be better than the 20 GB "big" iPod. But lots of teenagers were in there buying the Shuffle...512 MB is enough for them to hold maybe 100-120 songs and even a teen can afford it at that price point.

[tubebender]

I see Apple stock split and closed around $41 yesterday...

[mrs tiggywinkle]

We have an iMac, ibook, and Sony Vaio. We'll take the Macs anyday.

[jeffsg4mac]

We are an all mac family and we are not liberals. Quite the contrary, I am a gun owning mac user. Now how many of them do you run across?

[Tribune7]

ping

[mrs tiggywinkle]

**We are an all mac family and we are not liberals. Quite the contrary, I am a gun owning mac user. Now how many of them do you run across?**

We're right there with you, jeff.

I'm ready to get rid of the Vaio. My husband's idea is to take it out in the desert and shoot it. ;o)

[jeffsg4mac]

" I'm ready to get rid of the Vaio. My husband's idea is to take it out in the desert and shoot it. ;o) "

That reminds me, I actually have a short video somewhere of a VCR being blown to bits by a 12ga and a rifle. I will have to see if I dig it up and post the link. I made it when I got my first DVD player and never looked back LOL :)

[zeugma]

You might try loading Linux on the VAIO. To check it out, goto LinuxISO and download Knoppix. Cut the ISO to a CD, and boot off of it. This will not install anything on your computer, but will boot to a Linux desktop which you can play around with for a while and see if you like it. Knoppix (click on the US/UK flag when you get there unless you grok German) is also one of the best emergency rescue disks out there. I used it a couple of months ago to get data off a windows laptop that was totally hosed from hardware disk errors. Nothing Windows based could deal with the disk at all, but Knoppix allowed me to save the person's data in minutes.

[general_re]

That survey is 100% worthless. Just FYI.

[af_vet_rr]

We are an all mac family and we are not liberals. Quite the contrary, I am a gun owning mac user. Now how many of them do you run across?
,br>We are another all Mac family (I do have a few PCs in a closet), and we own guns as well. I'm thinking there are a lot more of us out there than the anti-Mac club wants to admit.

The things just work the way they are supposed to. There is nothing else to say about using Macs.

This is the same thing as the Ford/Chevy debate though, it's been going on for generations ;-)

[mastercylinder]

[Richard Kimball]

I think most of the guys who bash Mac have been given a time out.

I still find it humorous that the guys who support this product claim we're sexually ambiguous.

[mastercylinder]

once you mac you never come back

[mastercylinder]

We are an all mac family and we are not liberals. Quite the contrary, I am a gun owning mac user. Now how many of them do you run across?

my uncle he has a 12 gage pump sp10 silencer and a powerful 12'' powerbook and cube to go with it

[Constantine XIII]

When I can play Half-Life 2 on a mac, then I'll think about it. :D