Analysts are sillyHere's the skinny: Analyst firm Needham & Co. estimate that the Apple's iPod may have attracted up to four hundred thousand Windows users to the Mac -- in this year alone. The article talks about these numbers in terms of a "switch". I disagree. Here's what I would say: Apple's iPod may have lured up to four hundred thousand current Windows users into adding a Mac to their stable.
I'd say this is a more plausible explanation. I just recently bought a Mac Mini (having been lured in through my iPod), and I'm loving every moment of it -- but there's no chance at all that I'm going to be dumping my PC any time soon. The PC is still the best when it comes to pure number crunching, gaming, and multimedia. While I use my Mac for everything else, the PC is here to stay. I simply don't have any virus/spyware/adware problems, because I'm not a clickety-click-happy-clicker that installs every toolbar and "desktop enhancement" under the sun. Sensationalism at its best:
In November, Wolf estimated that "about 500,000 Windows using iPod owners would buy a Mac in 2005. With estimates showing the switch levels to be exceeding that estimate, he surmises Windows users are driven by additional factors, not just their positive relationship with their iPods.
"The most obvious reason is the virus epidemic that has invaded Windows PCs. Clearly, some Windows users bought Macs to escape it," he says.
Attracting so many Windows converts itself sets a pattern for future increases in Mac sales. As the "installed base" of iPod-owning Windows users grows, the number who switch to Mac should also rise, he believes.
He knows this how? Wait, he doesn't. My friends will all agree with me that these so-called "Windows" problems are really "user" problems. Given the opportunity, Mac users are just as likely to screw up their machines. But hey, at least I don't have to worry about connecting my Mac to an open and unfirewalled network anymore.
Article Link: 400,000 Windows users switch to Mac - analyst
