AI Summary:
Apple’s first-quarter earnings report revealed a mixed performance. While overall sales increased by 4%, iPhone sales showed weakness, particularly in China, where they declined by over 11%. CEO Tim Cook attributed this partly to the lack of Apple Intelligence in China and inventory changes. However, the Mac, iPad, and Services categories saw significant growth, with Services up 14% and both the Mac and iPad up 15%. The company reported $36.33 billion in net revenue, a 7.1% increase from the previous year.
I’d attribute this growth to the looming deprecation of Windows 10. With the decision to move to Windows 11, many orgs are replacing them with Macs. On the consumer side, the M4 is seen as worthy upgrade for those already on the earlier M chips.
I have not heard of any orgs replacing windows with Mac. This is for consulting and IT. To my knowledge, it is still something only available to execs and higher management. What sector was this for?
An IT supply chain management company and a northeastern medical society have been the latest of our clients to adopt more of them, mostly through attrition of Windows devices. In my prior role at a PE firm, I was responsible for kicking off the transition company-wide to Macs. They liked the lower cost of ownership, maintenance, and the “impression it gave to clients”. The CAD engineers absolutely rioted about it lol. Let me tell you, zip-tying a cheese grater Mac into a server rack is a surreal experience 😂.
To your point, it is still largely director level and above. They are still using MS products mind you, just on Macs.
Are costs of ownership and maintenance low enough to make the difference in initial purchase cost justified, with all the jokes about Apple’s pricing?
Maybe. The average Joe looks at the price tag and makes up their mind, but it’s a trap. You also have to factor in the support costs. IT staff, device insurance, breach costs, etc. A device costs much more (2x, 3x or even more) than what you pay the OEM on the PO. The biggest sink is the human costs of supporting the fleet. Macs have higher capex but lower opex. In the end I see savings between 20-40% for well fitted clients.
