Quietly, and without much commotion, Apple got out of the
server business a while back, and it’s started to reduce the scope of the Mac
product line. Yet it’s still developing OS X, and it’s been launching some new
systems with the very latest Intel Ivy Bridge technology and its new
Thunderbolt port.
So is the world of the Mac safe from major tinkering? I
think not. A large number of Mac fans have noticed a design creep where
features and design models from the iPhone/iPad and iOS have been making their
way to the Mac, first in OS X Lion and more recently in the Mountain Lion
refresh.
Yet it’s still
developing OS X, and it’s been launching some new systems with the very latest
Intel Ivy Bridge technology and its new Thunderbolt port.
Oddly, Apple has also dropped the term ‘Mac’ from the name
of the operating system, which is just referred to as OS X, and no longer Mac
OS X. the suspicion is that Apple would like to end the Mac, even if this might
seem like a culture shock for its fans that would make its transition to Intel
seem like a minor inconvenience. Others think that Apple will stop making
desktop systems next and just have portable Mac computers, which will
eventually merge into the iPad and disappear altogether.
The computer
division doesn’t generate much and it sucks a huge amount of resources from the
company, so from a purely fiscal perspective, these rumours have some credence.
From a profitability viewpoint, compared with the iPhone and
iPad, the computer division doesn’t generate much and it sucks a huge amount of
resources from the company, so from a purely fiscal perspective, these rumours
have some credence.
That said, there is a hardcore of US Apple supporters who
started with the Mac and have stayed with the company through the various ups
and downs, and they’d feel rather betrayed if Apple stopped making computers
completely.
No announcement seems imminent and, whatever happens, Apple
is unlikely to take advertisement space to promote its intentions. What’s more
likely is a controlled withdrawal, where Apple offers less computers and more
sophisticated alternatives in an attempt to move the company away from these
legacy devices and into a new era where it gets a share of all software sales
for its devices.
Of all the hardware that Apple makes, it seems ironic that
it’s the Mac that now seems to be the runt of the litter, given its iconic
status in the history of computing.
