I was trying to figure out if Apple is abandoning its pro users. Here's a dark scenario. Pro users give Apple two things: credibility and sales. As far as sales, it's not only the software itself, but the hardware - they are getting many people who would never go Apple, were it not for the pro apps. Well, I'm sad to say, I think that part is dead or dying for the simple reason that it's possible Apple no longer cares about high-end computer hardware. First they stop calling themselves Apple Computer. Then the money they get from computers becomes less and less compared to everything else. And even within the computer segment, they are making less and less from desktops. And even amongst desktops, the Mac Pro is a tiny portion. So it's entirely possible they'll give up on that part - already the Mac Pro seems somewhat overpriced and behind the times. I would not be shocked to hear - no more Mac Pro at some point. Steve Jobs already thinks the PC era is over - we're onto tablets and mobile. So why should he care about the pros - a tiny market - who are buying hardware he's deprecating and may very well eol? Looks to me like the R&D and support for the pro market is no longer justified from their point of view. That's why they are shifting to the prosumer market, and downstream, like editing on tablets and even iPhones, which is never going to be the high end pro. That leaves credibility - and what do they care for that, since they are abandoning the whole pro market - they don't need the public to hear "a movie was edited on Final Cut!" or whatever - that's not what their target audience cares about.
Anyhow, that's the dark scenario. Look, for anything that Apple has done in pro apps there are high-end competitors who blow the socks off of them (maybe except Logic): Avid, Resolve, Photoshop, AE and so on - again, I'm talking high-end. Apple was never at the very high end anyway. Now they are simply moving downstream even more. No more pro, period. Pro-sumer, at best - that's Apple.
That's the dark scenario. Don't know how accurate
im of the thought that apple "is" clearly pulling away from the pro market. they now have the mass general consumer market and i think thats were they are happy. iPad, iPhone is the future of apple IMO. Lion is going to be sooooo much like IOS that i expect to see the future of fully functional desktop operating system to be on the downside soon as well.
i think when apple was a small company, it helped to have some heavy weight aspects of your company to give power and crediblity to your image.
macs years ago were always synomous with the best machine for photoshop. when apple came out with FCP they undercut Avid as a viable and cheap option to still do an effective job with editing video. now they have the middle/mass consumer market and i dont think they feel the need to have the flashy claims that they used to have that made the choice of many pros using some of the top programs.
for me an apple user since my first computer and now currently an owner of 2-8cores, 2-27" iMacs, 1 intel laptop & an old G5 i am cringing that if apple does with their upcoming OS's what they have down with their pro app FCP the future is looking very shaky right now. Lion might be still passable but ill bet that the OS after that will be questionable and lacking features to even run other apps like Premiere or Avid.
if apple wants to go their mobile style of products then...ok. i wont like it but i can accept that its their choice and need to do what serves their vision and more importantly their stockholders. what really erks me though is them pawning this very NON pro FCP X off as a very PRO APP. do they think we are stupid? i think no but its more that...they just dont really give a sh$t. having been a very happy apple user since the mid 90's id have to say that this is a dark day. oh well. accept and move on.
david
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