|
Think Corporate? (10/26/99)
|
 
|
| | |
Nobody's going to argue with us if we say the iBook looks "different." But we know there are a few naysayers who might take issue with us saying the iBook looks "cool." And if we were to call the iBook's design "manly," fights would start breaking out, and if we were to go completely over the line and call the iBook's distinctive look "professional," well, all hell would break loose. But that's okay, because all the iBook needs to be is "different" with a dash of "cool." Since it's a consumer-targeted device, "professional" doesn't even enter the picture (and as for "manly," well, there are PowerBooks for those of you who need your notebooks to be sleek and black).
But the fact of the matter is this: Apple's four-corner product strategy doesn't fit everyone's needs perfectly. For example, many professionals who need a portable Mac for business don't need the PowerBook's fourteen-inch screen, video-out, mondo hard disk, super-fast processor, or hefty price tag. Maybe all they need is a rugged laptop that can withstand life on the road, connect them to the office network for the retrieval of email, and let them do basic word processing and spreadsheet tasks on the plane; not every pro laptop user needs a graphics workstation in a bag. For pros who just need a basic portable Mac, the iBook's feature set (and price) may be perfect. Unfortunately, those pros also may not need a Blueberry or Tangerine "Look at me, I'm different!" fashion statement-- and we wouldn't be surprised if more than one business user passed on the iBook on the basis of looks alone.
Now, if you think Apple doesn't know this, you're not giving them enough credit. They know. Whether or not they're actually going to do anything about it is another matter entirely; there have been rumors of a more "business-styled" iBook, but we're not holding our breath in the short term. Why? Because Mac Observer notes that Apple's PR firm, Edleman Worldwide, is looking for a "non-typical" iBook user for a Business Week article. The goal is to find a real, honest-to-goodness iBook user who may be a "finance man"-- "someone who wears a conservative suit to work, but carries a colorful iBook." It sounds like Apple is trying to push the existing iBook as an acceptable accessory in a conservative business setting, rather than changing the iBook's style to better suit the business world. So if you know a conservative businessman who totes around an iBook and wouldn't mind being seen with it by million of readers, send 'em to Edleman. And we're still holding out hope for an iBook Special Edition in Graphite next year...
| |
| |
 |
SceneLink (1870)
|  |
 |
|
And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
| | | |
|
| |
|
 | | The above scene was taken from the 10/26/99 episode: October 26, 1999: Apple's mostly back on its feet-- and now Pixar's bouncing back, too; is it the Magical Force of Steve at work? Meanwhile, Apple's PR agency is seeking a "conservative businessman" type to show off his iBook in the pages of Business Week magazine, and Motorola isn't the only chipmaker with "errata" in its processors...
Other scenes from that episode: 1869: Joy Story 2 (10/26/99) There's no question that Steve Jobs has worked some real magic with Apple. Only about two years ago the company's stock price was in the gutter (assuming you can find twelve dollars in the gutter), Apple's idea of a home computer was the (shudder) Performa series, and following the loss of a billion dollars in a year, many people thought the term "beleaguered" was a compliment... 1871: Latin Sounds Cooler (10/26/99) Great artists steal, and so do computer makers. The whole high-tech industry is basically one huge copy-fest, when you get right down to it. Sure, Microsoft stole the whole GUI/folders/trash can thing from Apple, but you can't say you haven't noticed Windowsisms in the more recent versions of the Mac OS...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
|
|
