Apple Posts Strong Quarterly Results

Paul, To come up with under 4% market share for Apple you have to lob all those commodity Enterprise computers into the mix. The situation with consumers in North America, Western Europe and Oceania is rather different. Apple is very strong in these areas.

Ohh and BTW Paul, Apple doesn't give a damn s**t about these commodities PC boxes sold worldwide to business and that bring 0 revenue (Cf Dell). Hence they will continue to loath at Dell's market share and revenue... while cashing in big in the most profitable computer segment... It's a matter of corporate choice !

"To come up with under 4% market share for Apple you have to lob all those commodity Enterprise computers into the mix." Of course we are talking Paul here. To bad you cant pull out consumer purchases only. Better yet to bad you could not just poll a user base with a simple question like... "If you could have, free of charge, a PC or a Mac what would you choose?" I would bet that 3.82% would be representing the PC and not the Mac. Especially in light of all of the recent malware problems. By rolling out that market share information once again, in a micro focus content and putting the text in bold, Paul shows he is a just jealous of Apple's success, yet again. He does this every quarter, because for the last 3 years Apple's quarters continue to be great. BTW Paul how many computers did Microsoft sell last quarter? What is its market share in the US or world wide for computer sales? Lets talk some numbers you wont here at the Winsupersite. Market Cap for Apple now at 184 Billion. Compared to...(info from cnbc.com) HP 118 Billion. Dell 27 Billion. Acer 8.2 Billion. You see when you back away from that micro content focus and look at things , from a much wider perspective you realize what Paul is TRYING (but failing) to do. Apple should just buy those other 3 and get all of the market share it wants.

Anyone catch the last "Windows weekly" pod cast? It was all about Apple???? I have removed it from my iTunes podcast list because I get enough Apple info from Macbreak weekly. I could replace it with......."Road Repair Weekly" and it would be just as exciting.

Guess who? "Apple has another inconvenient truth to deal with: It actually lost market share. The reason for Apple's stagnation in the PC market is simple. Though the company's Mac sales in the fourth quarter were strong, growth couldn't keep up with the wider industry, where PC sales jumped 25 percent. The Mac deficit shows up both worldwide and in the United States. And while the Mac may have plateaued ...... "

"if it is, I would bet that it may be at the expense of iPhone sales." Why? Why cant it just eat the lunch of netbooks and readers like the kindle? I think that Apple will show us a new media device. One that is better in some ways than a small form factor like a smartphone and better in some ways than a bigger keyboard laden netbook/notebook/laptop. If you spend some time and look at stuff like this... https://mail.dierbergs.com/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.popsci.c... There is room for something like that. I buy a lot of books, fiction and non-fiction. I have been wanting a E-reader, but wanting more than just a E-ink reader for the price.

You could be right rr0de, but a netbook cost very little and does very little. But it does what it's owners need. They may not wish to spend more than $300-$400 for a tool that they have limited use/needs.

"Curiously, this figure disappointed analysts and could be a cause for concern for the coming iPhone-based tablet." The only concern is to lame Microsoft who will copy Apple when their tablet is announced this week. Microsoft, innovation through copying.

If this wasn't so sad and pathetic, it would be funny. Just a week ago, we got this on the "WinPropaganda" site: "Mac Falters As PC Growth Surges, IDC and Gartner Say" WIth cherry-picked quotes like ""The US [PC] market exploded in the fourth quarter" and "But the economic downturn has finally hit home for Apple. Though the company's Mac sales in the fourth quarter were strong, growth couldn't keep up with the wider industry, where PC sales jumped 25 percent in the fourth quarter." Yah. Really "hit home", Mac sales are up 33%, again outpacing the PC market as a whole. And those are not sales of no-profit netbooks; Apple actually makes money on these machines because---and I know this is difficult to grasp---people buy them because they see the value and want to own them! Any tech company on the planet, including the "software giant" would KILL for numbers that Apple gets while "faltering". Would you like salt with your crow, Paul?

"They may not wish to spend more than $300-$400 for a tool that they have limited use/needs." I do think the tablet will be more than $400. However I dont think it will top $700, but who knows. I do know when I fly, and its a lot for work. I bring with me for the flight/hours in the airport, iPod, Macbook, books and magazines to pass the time. I imagine this new device could replace all of that for my travel entertainment.

And McDonald's has very large market share. Still doesn't make them fine dining. Microsoft is the crappy rip-off fast food outlet of IT.

@ DRWAM said: So did my %1300 MBP. And I sold it after two years for $950 with OSX Leopard and OSX Snow Leopard (the latter costing me $29 dollars). Wondering how much your $400 Vista Acer thing will be worth after two years. I reckon a peanut and a cup of coffee.

With the kind of profits these tech companies are making, a higher windfall tax on these companies might benefit the economy more than a bank tax at this point. Socialism, yes, but when the rest of the economy is in doldrums, I don't think it's wrong to expect these companies to do their bit in helping it recover.

Congratulations to Apple on a fine quarter! Happy shareholders and happy customers is what every company is shooting for (minus the few that need professional help, Jobs is likely quite embarrassed by those ones). --tayme

@daveinla : Apple extremely good quarter is absolutely not due to sales of Mac!! It is only due to sales of IPhone an IPod, exclusively!! Don't dream guys... Mac OS has nothing to do with that... Apple continue to sell 3% of the PC world wide, not more... And we will see in the next quarter the hit of Win7 on the market in the Microsoft results... Congrats to Apple!! It is great to see companies that continue to grow even in the recession!! You know, even if I don't think Apple and Steve Jobs are gods... I still consider it do great product that influence market and competitors toward the right direction... Congrats to Apple... I am eager to see their new iTablet even if I think that Microsoft will leave an also interesting.

@BladRnr: it is exactly what I told... 33% of 3% is near 1% of growth so This is not sales of Mac that do the difference... And you are right, Win7 have a lot of effect on Apple!!

"@daveinla : Apple extremely good quarter is absolutely not due to sales of Mac!! It is only due to sales of IPhone an IPod, exclusively!!" What are you smoking, dude? a 33% increase in sales is huge for any company. "33% of 3% is near 1% of growth so This is not sales of Mac that do the difference" I shudder to think of how inadequate your grasp of mathematics is. Or, like I said earlier, maybe you're just 12 years old and can't possibly comprehend what a ridiculously stupid statement that is. Either way, your math skills are as horrid as your English.

@lotsamystuff ; What are you talking about??? What is the problem with my maths here?? 33% of 3% is exactly 0.99% what is the problem with that? If you insinuate that the Apple had growth their sales of 33% of the market it would mean that Apple 3% of the PC Market growth to 36% ... Thie is wronnng... In your dream ... This is not true that Microsoft which owned 95% of the PC market drop at 60% ... So what in my Math you don't like???

@lotsamystuff : I never told that 33% is not huge I just told that it represent only 0.99% of the PC market which is not a lot compared with that 95% owned by Microsoft... You stupidity is as great as the quality of your English lotsa... Tête de gland...

"Mac Falters As PC Growth Surges" Remember that wonderful headline of Paul's from two weeks ago? Where he spent the whole article talking about how the Mac was losing market share because they could not keep up with all the cheap netbooks and the like.

@Dude1313 : You should not be so sure of what you told because we could read in news paper, last week or so, that Win7 sales actually exceed all the sales of OSX since the first version in 2000. So, if we conciser that Win7 has been release 22 October 2009, it's mean a quarter actually, it is not so bad, for a supposedly dying mammoth...

@chuckb84 "And EricoF3, your statement "Apple extremely good quarter is absolutely not due to sales of Mac!!" is flat wrong. That's even acknowledged by Paul, over on the WinAmateurs site" Excuse me but here in Canada, all the specialists, tells on the Radios and TV at economics news that Apple have a huge Quarter particularly due to their sales of IPhone... So... Apple own 3 to 4% of the PC Computer Market on the planet actually, it is great but, this is a little little little part of the market... They grow their PC part by 33% which is 0.99% growth... Its good but this is again a little little little part of the market... Not to mention that 33 % was probably stolen has much Linux rather than Windows...

EricoF3 Let's try to make this easy. A few years ago, when Paul hilariously stated "The Mac market is ending", Apple made about $1.6B a quarter on Macs. This quarter they made over $5B with twice the marketshare. There's no opinion in this; it's just numbers. The context is this: Today Apple makes as much from Macs in ONE QUARTER as they used to make in an ENTIRE YEAR. That's growth, very spectacular growth, which has sustainably outpaced the industry almost continuously for 5 years. As for this, "Excuse me but here in Canada, all the specialists, tells on the Radios and TV at economics news that Apple have a huge Quarter particularly due to their sales of IPhone... So..." It doesn't matter who (or how many) spout nonsense, it's still nonsense.

@chuckb84: OK I understand that, but in the same time Apple do a supposedly HUGE Macs sales quarter, Microsoft sell more Windows 7, in the same quarter, that Apple sold OSX in the past 10 years... I know this is not an argument but... The only thing I try to demonstrate is that it is not true that only Apple that do good!! Apple doing great products and they have a really impressive quarter, even in the major recession... That is great, but in the same time Microsoft don't lose sales, Dell lost a little market probably due to competition between the different PC maker I mean HP, Acer, etc... Probably not because of Apple ...

EricoF3 said: @Dude1313 : You should not be so sure of what you told because we could read in news paper, last week or so, that Win7 sales actually exceed all the sales of OSX since the first version in 2000. *************** No because I'm not talking about OS, I'm talking about the actual computers themselves. As PC apologists are wont to do, they will try to frame it as Windows installs vs Macs sold. To which I could What Windows PC, there is no Windows PCs. There are however various PC manufacturers that happen to run Windows by default. This is two very different things. And on top of that go ask Dell or HP if they are MS' biggest fans right now. If they wanted to Apple could by Dell if they wanted to which is ironic given Michael Dell's comments of 1997. Dell would kill to have OS X on their PCs to differentiate them from the sea of PCs. Spin it any way you want but a resurgent Apple and an on the attack Google is the best thing to ever happen in the computer industry. Why? Because it forced MS to start competing on their own merits and exposed them for what they are. MS makes its money of of Exchange, Office and Server. I'd say OEM Windows install to but that is because the OEMs themselves rode the wave in the 90's as to the one true way of revenue generation (TM). Now as PC prices plummet, net books are de-jour they are left with ever diminishing returns. When they have to compete without their monopolies they fail. In fact the "best" thing they can claim is the X-Box which despite what fan boy denial would otherwise suggest is one of the biggest money pits ever. Apple on the other hand is their own captain and is charting their own course. HP and Dell cannot say the same... to their peril. Apple on the other hand continues to make cool products that people want to use and no amount of weasel words on your part will change that. Get over it,Paul was wrong, all of the "pundits" were wrong. Apple smashed its way through the quarter. And lastly "dying mammoth?" No but whether they realize or not, MS is already on the decline, in fact they are becoming IBM the 90's more so all the time.