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How is this even newsworthy? Chromebooks on average sell for 1/5 the price of a Macbook, why are the two products even being compared? One could equally argue,

How is this even newsworthy? Chromebooks on average sell for 1/5 the price of a Macbook, why are the two products even being compared? One could equally argue, "More Honda civics were sold this quarter. Bad news for Lamborghini?"

mtgx 10y ago
It's newsworthy in the "Google is taking the education market away from Apple" sense. You can't really say "it's obvious that would've happened, because Chromebooks are so much cheaper!" Chromebooks also have a ton of weaknesses compared to a "real computer," so I don't think this progression was obvious to most. It could've very well been Microsoft the one to take the market from Apple.
wtbob 10y ago
It's newsworthy because Apple have owned the education market for so long, since the days of the Apple II. Also, I don't think Apple are the Lamborghini of computers — more like the Cadillac: overpriced; ugly but no-one is willing to say it; favoured by the sort of people who think 'the Cadillac of X' still means anything.
- detaro 10y ago
  Did they have any meaningful education market share after the Apple II, but before the iPad? Before various "iPad in schools" projects I've never seen or heard about Apple in education...
  - ghaff 10y ago
    Apple had a big push with Macs early on. At least at the university level in the US.
  - joezydeco 10y ago
    Apple has had a long history of being involved in education, with actual support at the district level as well as hefty discounts for schools and college students as well. My university had an Apple section in the bookstore with an attractive pricing list (well, as attractive as a $2,400 Mac could be in the 1980s) The long-term view was that Apple equipment in schools translated to well trained customers when they hit the real world.
Spooky23 10y ago
It's newsworthy because Apple's downmarket strategy for schools was to buy an iPad, and a cheap Chromebook is 1/3 the price of that. The chromebook is so cheap that people are abandoning functionality to buy them. Kids are coming home with them and parents are using them like bigger smartphones. It's an inferior device that's good enough for many use cases. In car terms, it's not a Civic vs. Lamborghini. It's more like a 2-door loaded Accord vs. a BMW 300 series. The Honda costs 30-40% less and gets the job done. The BMW is a similar, arguably higher performance car, but the value is really derived from cachet/vanity.
Oletros 10y ago
Honda Civic and Lamborghini comparisons when talking about Chromebooks and Macbooks? Really?
- jhoechtl 10y ago
  Yes for good. It's the insight that still the content matters and not so much if it was created on a pricy MB/iPad or a ChromeBook
- hellofunk 10y ago
  Sure, why not? They both get you where you need to go, but one is more expensive and has a lot more style.

mtgx 10y ago

It's newsworthy in the "Google is taking the education market away from Apple" sense. You can't really say "it's obvious that would've happened, because Chromebooks are so much cheaper!" Chromebooks also have a ton of weaknesses compared to a "real computer," so I don't think this progression was obvious to most. It could've very well been Microsoft the one to take the market from Apple.

wtbob 10y ago

It's newsworthy because Apple have owned the education market for so long, since the days of the Apple II. Also, I don't think Apple are the Lamborghini of computers — more like the Cadillac: overpriced; ugly but no-one is willing to say it; favoured by the sort of people who think 'the Cadillac of X' still means anything.

detaro 10y ago
Did they have any meaningful education market share after the Apple II, but before the iPad? Before various "iPad in schools" projects I've never seen or heard about Apple in education...
- ghaff 10y ago
  Apple had a big push with Macs early on. At least at the university level in the US.
- joezydeco 10y ago
  Apple has had a long history of being involved in education, with actual support at the district level as well as hefty discounts for schools and college students as well. My university had an Apple section in the bookstore with an attractive pricing list (well, as attractive as a $2,400 Mac could be in the 1980s) The long-term view was that Apple equipment in schools translated to well trained customers when they hit the real world.

Spooky23 10y ago

It's newsworthy because Apple's downmarket strategy for schools was to buy an iPad, and a cheap Chromebook is 1/3 the price of that. The chromebook is so cheap that people are abandoning functionality to buy them. Kids are coming home with them and parents are using them like bigger smartphones. It's an inferior device that's good enough for many use cases. In car terms, it's not a Civic vs. Lamborghini. It's more like a 2-door loaded Accord vs. a BMW 300 series. The Honda costs 30-40% less and gets the job done. The BMW is a similar, arguably higher performance car, but the value is really derived from cachet/vanity.

Oletros 10y ago

Honda Civic and Lamborghini comparisons when talking about Chromebooks and Macbooks? Really?

jhoechtl 10y ago
Yes for good. It's the insight that still the content matters and not so much if it was created on a pricy MB/iPad or a ChromeBook
hellofunk 10y ago
Sure, why not? They both get you where you need to go, but one is more expensive and has a lot more style.