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Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by acrooks on Monday June 22, 2020 @06:39PM (#23607770)
I'm actually not so sure about this. Apple's gross margin target is in the ballpark of 38-40% and a savings of $200-800 per MBP would have a substantial upwards impact on that gross margin number. Apple carefully sets pricing to achieve a target gross margin without impacting sales too much (higher price = higher gross margin but likely lower net revenue because they're priced out of the market).

One of the two scenarios (or perhaps a mixture of both) are more likely, and I lean towards #1:

1. Apple decreases the price of the Mac to stay aligned with gross margin targets. This likely has a significant upwards impact on revenue, because a drop in price like this opens new markets who can now afford a Mac, increasing market share, driving new customers to their services, and adding a layer of lock-in for iPhone-but-not-Mac customers.

2. Apple uses the additional budget per device for more expensive parts/technology. They are struggling to incorporate technologies like OLED/mini-LED because of the significant cost of these displays and this would help open up those opportunities.

Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by mattigames on Monday June 22, 2020 @11:47PM (#23609715)
The high price of MacBooks is treated as a status symbol and the marketing department clearly knows as much, so I don't think they will be willing to give that up, so I lean towards your second option.
Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by Twisell on Tuesday June 23, 2020 @01:04AM (#23610093)
How do you explain the iPhone SE then?

Why not got the same road with an MacBook SE? I even think this will be the first product out the pipeline.

MacPro buyers usually don't want to be beta testers and will probably be the last to transition out once horsepower is clearly there with mesurable gains.

Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by onion2k on Tuesday June 23, 2020 @01:47AM (#23610311)
The iPhone SE is less a "cheap iPhone" and more "an expensive basic smartphone". Far more people upgrade to it from a low cost Android device then downgrade from a different iPhone.
Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by Twisell on Tuesday June 23, 2020 @03:02AM (#23610693)
And that is exactly why they can expect marketshare growth. Who is gonna buy a 600$ range plastic laptop PC if Apple ship a 700$ range MacBook SE?

Of course you'd still get 350$ range crappy product, Apple can't and don't want to compete a those levels.

Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by gowld on Tuesday June 23, 2020 @11:35PM (#23623749)
Plastic PC laptops cost $300 now, not $600.
Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by Twisell on Wednesday June 24, 2020 @01:20AM (#23624379)
Please do read my second sentence before reacting to the first one...
Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by DrewRWx on Tuesday June 23, 2020 @03:17AM (#23610792)
The iPhone SE also picks-up the market segment that prefers smaller phones.
Re:Apple announces it will switch to its own processors for ... by ehutch79 on Tuesday June 23, 2020 @03:29PM (#23619033)
the SE is a parts bin phone, not an entirely new design.