Apple�s Christmas Lineup
Apple�s holiday product line is as healthy as ever and rest assured, millions will hand over their credit cards for an iPod (or two), a Mac and a few iTunes gift cards as well. Many of you already know Apple�s product offerings going into this year�s holiday shopping season but I feel obliged to break it down because even I lose track of every product. We have iPod and it comes in 3 families with 2 products per family. Starting at 99 dollars through 399, each of these will fit in a stocking since all boxes are almost the same size now. The shuffle is great for kids and active individuals, the nano for the teen or part time music listener and the big daddy iPod for those with more than 5000 songs, or a craving for video.
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Then there�s the iTunes Music Store with over 2 million videos and 2,000 music videos to keep you satisfied and you can purchase iTunes prepaid cards starting at 15 dollars up to 50 dollars a piece and personalized gift certificates sent via US Mail or Email run up to 200 dollars. Of course, the Macintosh is another great gift for a parent, child or spouse and this time last year the Mac mini was not an option but now you can have a Mac for as low as $499 which is great for those that already run a Dell and they just swap out the big box for this little box using their same keyboard and mouse. If you use a Mac and want to introduce your parents to video conferencing, get them the new iMac starting at $1299 with a built in iSight. There�s no need to configure the iSight they just boot up the Mac and iChat will walk them through getting an AIM account. After they get bored with iChat, iLife will give them the opportunity to explore digital music, photos and movies. If you already have a Mac user in your house, getting them a copy of Mac OS X Tiger, Final Cut Express, an iSight or a Mighty Mouse is another option.
As long as I can remember, Apple�s was not the website you explored to find the perfect gift for your son unless he was going off to college or leaving home but now with a few dozen Apple products and dozens more accessories, Apple is now a leader on the Christmas shopping list. The past two years, iPod has been in the top five must-have gifts and the trend continues this year but what�s missing from the lineup? You have the digital hub covered with iLife, iTunes and iPod but since Apple is making inroads to becoming the next Sony, the one product they need is a true dedicated media center. We won�t see it this Christmas but rest assured when Steve takes the stage this January in San Francisco or in July at WWDC, we will see a media center from Jobs. iMac w/ Front Row is a test to see how consumers use the product and Apple is tracking its uses and how it is used. iMac and Mac mini will be the first machine to gain Intel chips next year and they will be carrying Apple�s Front Row software (hopefully a much improved version) and many more features to make these computers more media centric.
When Steve returned in the late nineties and restructured Apple�s product line first with the iMac, Christmas became a huge moneymaker for the company. This year Apple may have the best product line ever but that�s what we said last year and we only had the overpriced color screened iPod, five-colored mini (ugh gold!) and the newly introduced iMac running Mac OS X Panther (yuck!) and imagine next year when we have video capabilities across the iPod line, Intel powered Macs and a dedicated Macintosh powered media center. I can�t wait! Until then, I hope to find an iPod w/ video in my stocking.
