Re: [NTLK] Warning: Dipwad ZDNet Columnist Ahead

From: James Elliott (rootbeeraddict_at_yahoo.com)
Date: Sat Nov 24 2001 - 18:15:03 EST


I agree that Apple screwed itself, but the Newt does not fit the definition
that he gave for a turkey. He said that a turkey was something that
involved lame thinking or was a laughable loser. The Newt was neither.
It just couldn't find the right market and couldn't shake the bad
reputation that it gained early on.

-James

>The Newton is an amazing piece of technology- but yup, it's a turkey, the
>same way NeXTStep was, and Lisa, and Betamax- a well-engineered product
>concept, the execution of was totally bungled by a corporation thanks to
>marketing hype that was never lived up to. So I don't see much of a need to
>flame Coursey. Or does anyone seriously think Apple didn't botch the
>potential of Newton repeatedly?
>
>Just one observation-
>
>Mock the Palm as you will- but Newtons NEVER hit a price point "sweet spot"
>for the mass market while they were in production (the cheapest I ever saw
>them were the 130's at $550 or so when the 2x000's were out). People will
>drop $200 or $300, maybe $400 on a gadget. It's a lot harder to get them to
>drop $600 or $1000- especially when the price starts rivaling that of an
>actual computer. Palm's success is definitely based on the 80/20 rule (80%
>of the functionality for 20% of the price)- they aren't trying to REPLACE a
>computer with a PDA like the Newton (and to some extent WinCE) is, they are
>providing a less expensive complement. Once the Palm/cell phone combos come
>down in price soon, they'll be doing even better, since two gadgets will be
>turned into one. And if something like Rosetta shows up once Palm goes to
>ARM chips...
>
>Rob Taylor
>robtay_at_mac.com

The James Elliott Newton Site
http://www.geocities.com/rootbeeraddict/newton.html
Is that a Newton in your pocket, or are you happy to see me?

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