I see. So that's why I keep my passwords stored in my head. No virus that can live in my head can read my passwords out of there, AFAIK.
No, dude! That's what they want you to think!!! Quick, forget all your passwords and go stand next to somebody that's thinking about windows xp...
#1 Sell ten times more than the $1000 tablet with a $300 profit margin. Thus earning $500 in profits for every ten Netbooks sold at $300 for every one $1000 Tablet sold with a $300 margin. Net sum of $200 more in profits.
maybe, maybe not. you also pulled those number out of the air and only apple know if the real-world figures would yield them more profit
#2 Raise the Apple marketshare of Mac OSX based devices.
is that really a goal? i'm not so sure. higher market share means less exclusivity and therefore lower profit margins. also the platform becomes more tempting for hackers to target
#3 Put a lid on the Hackintosh market as a $300 Mac based Netbook is cheap enough to buy that even the stingiest of Hackintosh users can't pass up the $300 Mac OSX Netbook.
let's wait and see how their current strategy of largely ignoring the hackingtosh market plays out. i have a feeling there aren't that many people building hackingtoshes - the people that do are (i think) a disproportionately vocal minority of computer geeks. and that's not even a bad thing - when geeks go out of their way to install apples OS on their own hardware, it sends out a subtle message to the market that 'the people in the know' choose osx because 'it's better'. sure it's all very unoffical, but it's marketing nontheless
#4 Apple really needs a Netbook to compete with the PC companies who have their own Netbook.
i really don't get this point. why? netbooks are barely profitable for most netbook manufacturers. why should any company rush to compete in a profitless market with lots of risk and huge potential for brand damage (by way of selling an inferior product)?
#5 It means more iTunes sales, as well as more iPhone and iPod sales to sync up with the Mac Netbook.
possibly, but apple doesn't really profit from itunes sales, and iphone/ipod sales are already so high that any netbook->iPod/iPhone halo effect would be almost negligible. instead, the iphone/ipod->macbook halo effect is much more profitable for apple and i think that's what they're focusing on.
having said all that, there is clearly plenty of space in apples product line for cheaper hardware, as long as they can deliver a good end user experience. perhaps a relatively cheap tablet will fill this gap nicely. perhaps not. time will tell. or not
"Aww, if you make me cry anymore, you'll fog up my helmet." -- "Visionaries" cartoon