Apple paving the way for a netbook launch?


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Now that they renamed the 13-inch Macbook to Macbook Pro, maybe this is in preparation to phase out the white Macbook in the near future and replace it with a Macbook Netbook?

I don't know, the white Macbooks look so out of place right now, I really really have a feeling Apple is going to replace it and it's not going to take very long. Add to that the rumors about a tablet they're working on and it makes complete sense.

As we all know, Apple likes to make it simple and adding yet another model to the Macbook line would be against their way of "doing things"?

So then, it would be:

Macbook (10") -> Macbook Air (13") -> Macbook Pro (13", 15" and 17")

Although if they do that, I doubt they will call it a netbook. And they will probably price it the same as the white Macbook ($999).

What do you guys think?

Edited by Pharos
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I think they should drop the MacBook Air entirely. It's a very niche product and all it has going for it is its slim form factor. Everything else is done better by the MacBook and MacBook Pro.

Really, I like everything else about your concept. I think "MacBook" would work perfectly as an entry-level netbook or "budget Mac notebook," and the Pro lines fills out everything else. Frankly, just the MacBook and MacBook Pro would work perfectly.

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The White MacBook is here to stay.

I don't expect a Netbook, I do expect a Tablet tough.

It's possible that they bring a 10-11-12" Macbook, but it won't be using an Atom like current Netbook but a CULV Core 2.

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Steve Jobs was asked at the All Things Digital Conference in 2003 whether or not iPods would ever play video's. His response is nothing short of staggering considering just how much video content is on the iTunes store now, and not to mention iPods have been designed specifically for video content.

M [Walt Mossberg]: A lot of people think given the success youive had with portable devices,
you should be making a tablet or a PDA
.

J [steve Jobs]:
There are no plans to make a tablet.
It turns out people want keyboards. When Apple first started out, "People couldnit type. We realized: Death would eventually take care of this." "
We look at the tablet and we think itis going to fail.
" Tablets appeal to rich guys with plenty of other PCs and devices already. "And people accuse us of niche markets."
I get a lot of pressure to do a PDA
. What people really seem to want to do with these is get the data out . We believe cell phones are going to carry this information. We didnit think weid do well in the cell phone business. What weive done instead is weive written what we think is some of the best software in the world to start syncing information between devices. We believe that mode is what cell phones need to get to. We chose to do the iPod instead of a PDA.

M: Do you have plans for movies on the iPod?

J:
Iim not convinced people want to watch movies on a tiny little screen. To paraphrase Bill Clinton, "Itis the music, stupid, itis the music!" Musicis been around for a long time, will continue to be, itis huge. Not speculative, a real tangible market.

Ignore the spelling mistakes, not of my doing, copied the quote from a blog that covered the All Things D event in 2003. I've bolded the parts of text that are interesting.

Theres also an interesting video of the first conversations regarding the iPhone.

The fact that Jobs was so very wrong regarding video content on an iPod, proves he may have changed his mind with regards to a Tablet to compete against the Netbook market. Apple have developed the technology, they have a mature platform for developers, 50,000 applications for iPhones and iPods. Do i see them releasing a netbook? Absolutely not. Do i see them releasing a tablet? (Honestly) No i dont. It would confuse the market between the iPhone and the lower end MacBook arena, you would then have two devices with you at all times an iPhone and an iTablet and i just couldn't seem them together.

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Steve Jobs was asked at the All Things Digital Conference in 2003 whether or not iPods would ever play video's. His response is nothing short of staggering considering just how much video content is on the iTunes store now, and not to mention iPods have been designed specifically for video content.

M [Walt Mossberg]: A lot of people think given the success youive had with portable devices,
you should be making a tablet or a PDA
.

J [steve Jobs]:
There are no plans to make a tablet.
It turns out people want keyboards. When Apple first started out, "People couldnit type. We realized: Death would eventually take care of this." "
We look at the tablet and we think itis going to fail.
" Tablets appeal to rich guys with plenty of other PCs and devices already. "And people accuse us of niche markets."
I get a lot of pressure to do a PDA
. What people really seem to want to do with these is get the data out . We believe cell phones are going to carry this information. We didnit think weid do well in the cell phone business. What weive done instead is weive written what we think is some of the best software in the world to start syncing information between devices. We believe that mode is what cell phones need to get to. We chose to do the iPod instead of a PDA.

M: Do you have plans for movies on the iPod?

J:
Iim not convinced people want to watch movies on a tiny little screen. To paraphrase Bill Clinton, "Itis the music, stupid, itis the music!" Musicis been around for a long time, will continue to be, itis huge. Not speculative, a real tangible market.

Ignore the spelling mistakes, not of my doing, copied the quote from a blog that covered the All Things D event in 2003. I've bolded the parts of text that are interesting.

Theres also an interesting video of the first conversations regarding the iPhone.

The fact that Jobs was so very wrong regarding video content on an iPod, proves he may have changed his mind with regards to a Tablet to compete against the Netbook market. Apple have developed the technology, they have a mature platform for developers, 50,000 applications for iPhones and iPods. Do i see them releasing a netbook? Absolutely not. Do i see them releasing a tablet? (Honestly) No i dont. It would confuse the market between the iPhone and the lower end MacBook arena, you would then have two devices with you at all times an iPhone and an iTablet and i just couldn't seem them together.

Well they can make the tablet essentially a bigger iphone or ipod touch . I dont think it would require that much money for r&d.

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Steve Jobs was asked at the All Things Digital Conference in 2003 whether or not iPods would ever play video's. His response is nothing short of staggering considering just how much video content is on the iTunes store now, and not to mention iPods have been designed specifically for video content.

M [Walt Mossberg]: A lot of people think given the success youive had with portable devices,
you should be making a tablet or a PDA
.

J [steve Jobs]:
There are no plans to make a tablet.
It turns out people want keyboards. When Apple first started out, "People couldnit type. We realized: Death would eventually take care of this." "
We look at the tablet and we think itis going to fail.
" Tablets appeal to rich guys with plenty of other PCs and devices already. "And people accuse us of niche markets."
I get a lot of pressure to do a PDA
. What people really seem to want to do with these is get the data out . We believe cell phones are going to carry this information. We didnit think weid do well in the cell phone business. What weive done instead is weive written what we think is some of the best software in the world to start syncing information between devices. We believe that mode is what cell phones need to get to. We chose to do the iPod instead of a PDA.

M: Do you have plans for movies on the iPod?

J:
Iim not convinced people want to watch movies on a tiny little screen. To paraphrase Bill Clinton, "Itis the music, stupid, itis the music!" Musicis been around for a long time, will continue to be, itis huge. Not speculative, a real tangible market.

Ignore the spelling mistakes, not of my doing, copied the quote from a blog that covered the All Things D event in 2003. I've bolded the parts of text that are interesting.

Theres also an interesting video of the first conversations regarding the iPhone.

The fact that Jobs was so very wrong regarding video content on an iPod, proves he may have changed his mind with regards to a Tablet to compete against the Netbook market. Apple have developed the technology, they have a mature platform for developers, 50,000 applications for iPhones and iPods. Do i see them releasing a netbook? Absolutely not. Do i see them releasing a tablet? (Honestly) No i dont. It would confuse the market between the iPhone and the lower end MacBook arena, you would then have two devices with you at all times an iPhone and an iTablet and i just couldn't seem them together.

Steve Jobs also decided that MacBook customers didn't need FireWire anymore, but now it's miraculously back as of today.

He also decided that Safari 4 users would prefer their tabs where the title bar used to be. But then he changed his mind.

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Well they can make the tablet essentially a bigger iphone or ipod touch . I dont think it would require that much money for r&d.
Steve Jobs also decided that MacBook customers didn't need FireWire anymore, but now it's miraculously back as of today.

He also decided that Safari 4 users would prefer their tabs where the title bar used to be. But then he changed his mind.

You missed my point. I was stating that all we have officially from Apple or Steve Jobs for that matter is that they aren't going to do a tablet, they look[ed] at that market and think "its going to fail".

I just dont get what Apple gain from releasing a tablet. They've done the R&D as they've got touch capability in the iPhone so its technologically feasible.

Where does a Tablet take Apple? The NetBook market is where it is at for portability, its physical design, actual physical keyboards and the laptop form being shrunk to make it even more mobile, people would just buy a MacBook Air if they wanted portability, so it cant be that, a Tablet would actually be quite large.

We already have the iPhone and iTouch for small, portable and data rich devices.

The product line has the iPhone, iPod Touch, MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air. That covers all of the bases for me and I dont see the market for a tablet.

Lets not forget Microsoft have had one for years and it hasn't done so good.

I dont think Apple wont ever do a tablet, just not yet thats all.

/Quillz your right Jobs might change his mind, obviously should a tablet materialise, he would have had too.

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Steve Jobs also decided that MacBook customers didn't need FireWire anymore, but now it's miraculously back as of today.
The Unibody MacBook is now a MacBook Pro... hence the FW...

Steve Jobs never come back on his words, he changes products names instead :p

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I think they made a smart decision. The unibody Macbook 13" was not much different then a Macbook Pro, and alot of MBP users were angry with the fact their was no difference between them (well a minor one). With this they have a significant border between a Macbook and a Macbook Pro.

I definitely see a netbook coming into play soon, but don't expect them to phase out the plastic Macbook just yet.

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