Roger Fingas
Licensing of Windows to PC makers was up 5 percent in the December quarter, according to Microsoft CFO Amy Hood, driven in part by sales of "premium" devices over $900 — a category Apple's Macs have traditionally enjoyed a comfortable position in.
"Non-pro" licensing was up 5 percent in its own right during the quarter, outdoing the general shrinkage of the PC industry, Hood said during a results call on Thursday evening, overheard by Business Insider. Microsoft's partners "continued to see growth and share gains in the Windows premium device category," she noted.
Apple has increasingly focused its Mac lineup on wealthier shoppers, letting the Mac mini and MacBook Air fall by the wayside in favor of more expensive models. The cheapest Mac with modern specifications is now either the 12-inch MacBook or the 13-inch MacBook Pro, both of which cost at least $1,299 before any upgrades.
In recent years PC makers have typically aimed at low- to mid-range systems to compete on cost, with some exceptions, but Microsoft itself has been aiming to lead the market back into premium devices with the likes of the Surface Book and the Surface Studio, as well as more expensive versions of the Surface Pro 4.
The market for similar hybrid tablets is growing, Business Insider observed, and PC makers are increasingly releasing VR-ready computers, which demand more performance. No Mac is powerful enough to support either of the two leading VR headsets, the HTC Vive and the Oculus Rift.
In December Microsoft claimed that more people were switching from MacBooks to Surface devices than ever, driven partly by "the disappointment of the new MacBook Pro," particularly among professionals.
Apple though has so far been upbeat about Pro sales, in November saying that "our online store has had more orders for the new MacBook Pro than any other pro notebook before." Hard numbers should appear in Apple's December-quarter financial results, due to be announced on Tuesday.
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42 Comments
IMO, devices over $900 are not considered "premium". Microsoft can adjust these numbers anyway they want to make it look good for them and not so good for Apple. What's next, $800 and above devices are now considered premium so they can say the same thing down the road?
I'd rather wait and see Apple's numbers before saying customers are switching from MacBooks to Surface devices because of the disappointment of the MacBook Pro. I'd like to know the actual numbers for Microsoft's hardware lineup instead of just spewing out numbers with no facts to back it up.
If I were Microsoft, I wouldn't be getting overzealous here. One good quarter doesn't particularly mean anything, nor does one bad quarter for Apple.
Sales of Surface tablets and computers increased 11 percent to $223 million in the fiscal second quarter, Microsoft reported on Thursday. Meanwhile, phone sales plunged 76 percent, and devices as a whole dropped 35 percent to $1.4 billion in revenue.
$223 Million ...lol
Apple makes premium products and damn good ones. Everyone knows well. But, there is important aspect to product is, you want to increase the bottom base so when their need increases, they upgrade to higher expensive versions. Highschool, college students and casual users are most important and large category that Apple needs to focus on.with decent performance and reasonable price Macbook Pros. Apple don't let Windows evil take over world.
Gotta try to be relevant again.
With no meaningful upgrade to the desktop or workstation Mac lineup, this news is hardly a surprise. As a Motion Graphic company looking to reinvest in new kit that traditionally would've been Macs without even thinking about it, we're now looking at Windows. Apple clearly are targeting the consumer market now, not the professional. I really can't run my high-end applications from a laptop, I need good workstations with a guarantee of future commitment from Apple.