Charlie Wolf, Senior Analyst, Needham & Co
While I have no doubt that mac unit numbers are down compared to previous years and quarters, I also think that relative to Windows PC sales, Macs are up significantly. This has been shown in many studies, that the number of Windows PCs shipped are declining at an alarming rate, making the Mac sales look like a boom in comparison.
So is the Mac loosing it’s luster? On the contrary, it leads head to head with virtually every PC manufacturer, and still leads the way with innovation. I can’t wait to get my Mac Pro.
“According to IDC data, worldwide PC shipments declined 11.4 percent in the second quarter of this year from the same quarter last year. Sales of the Mac now account for only 20 percent of Apple’s total PC shipments notes Needham & Co. analyst Charlie Wolf in a new report via Apple Insider.
However, Wolf points out that this decline could also be attributed to Apple’s early success in getting Windows users to switch to the Mac. The analyst notes that Apple’s Mac sales accelerated around 2005 as consumer interest in the iPod had a beneficial spillover effect on Apple’s other products. Wolf observes that this effect likely contributed to the estimated 40 million Windows users that have switched to the Mac since 2005.
For many years, the vastly superior user experience found on Apple’s Macs drew many Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows users to switch operating systems. However, “incremental improvements in competitors’ PCs over the past several years have apparently diminished users’ motivation to switch,” writes Wolf.”
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