Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!ucsd!ucrmath!alchemy!hzink
From: hzink@alchemy.UUCP (Harry K. Zink)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc
Subject: Re: Mac owners guilt at Mac high prices (Why, Apple? Why?)
Message-ID: <75@alchemy.UUCP>
Date: 15 Jul 90 00:21:32 GMT
Reply-To: hzink@alchemy.UUCP (Harry K. Zink)
Organization: Alchemy Software Designs
Lines: 35

Here are my two cents concerning apple's so called 'overpriced' machines.  It 
appears that a discussion on that issue is imminent, so here goes.

The CPU prices themselves are really not overpriced compared to IBM or Compaq 
machines.  If you compare these prices you will notice that in many instances 
the Mac even beats the PC price/performance ratio (remember, a PC is just a 
CPU with some memory, hard drives and drives are usually extra, so is the 
display).  

Their laserprinters and normal printers are up there and with the proliferation
of competing printers are starting to look REALLY overpriced, and apple could 
stand some price cuts on that domain.  It appears that the new Lasers will 
bring some new pricing with them.

Their peripherals, memory and such are hopelessly overpriced and simply should 
not be purchased by any smart buyer.  Just because they have an apple model 
number does not make them any better than third party products.  Case in point 
hard drives, which are just Quantum drives and can be bought cheaper and with a
better warranty from almost any vendor.  CD-ROM drives are another example, 
since I just bought a Hitachi that is faster, works just the same and is about 
twice as fast.  Apple SIMM memory prices are really a joke - that, I believe is
a fact of life.

The obvious question is : Why?  In my opinion these prices are merely that way 
precisely to drive people to buy from third parties.  Much of apple's support 
for their machines has always stemmed from third parties who pick up apple's 
lead and perfect it better and cheaper than apple.  This was proven by the 
FAXmodem market, the CD-ROM market and so forth.  Apple's introduces new 
technology (for peripherals) and than leaves the market to third parti4s, 
making sure their product is so overpriced that smart buyers will not buy it, 
and that it still makes a huge profit off those who do.

To me, their pricing strategies are sound for the existing machines, except I 
do believe that they need a low-cost, mass-market mac that can gain tremendous 
inroads on the personal field and the academic domain.