Apple made a lot of people happy with Jaguar - then disappointed
current OS X users by not offering a reduced cost upgrade
path.
Apple made a lot of people happy with iTools - then disappointed
current iTools users by renaming it .mac and turning it into a revenue
center.
I think Apple could do better. I have a suggestion that would turn
their disappointed customers into fans again.
The Olden Days
Once upon a time, Apple offered OS upgrades for free to every Mac
owner. Bring in a few floppies, and your dealer would copy System 5 or
6 or 7 for you.
Then came System 7.1, which ended the free ride. Every OS since then
has been a retail upgrade, although Apple has made System 7.5.3 and
7.5.5 freely available for download.
So Apple has a history of charging for upgrades, but also a prior
history of offering no cost upgrades.
My suggestion is that Apple offer a one year OS upgrade guarantee
with all new Macs and every copy of OS X sold. As long as you
register with Apple, you would be able to download any OS X
upgrade for one year from the date of purchase. You would also have the
option of ordering a CD upgrade for $20.
As for iTools
My next suggestion is that Apple offer one year of free iTools
service with every new Mac and every new copy of Mac OS X v10.2
(or later) sold. Not free email for life, but a free email address and
storage space and more for the first year you own your new Mac - or for
the first year since you've purchased a full copy of the Mac OS.
Subscriptions
After one year, Apple could offer a subscription service. You could
sign up for a year of .mac for $99, or you could pony up $149 for a
year of .mac, the right to download OS upgrades for a year, and free OS
updates on CD during that year.
This could get a lot of people who are incensed over the price of
Jaguar and the cost of .mac to rethink their position.
AppleCare Plus
Finally, Apple could boost the price of AppleCare by $200 and sell
it as AppleCare Plus, which would include three full years of .mac
service and three years of OS upgrades. This would make AppleCare,
which I already consider essential with laptops, a more enticing option
for new buyers.
Conclusion
I'd love to see Apple offer a $49 or $79 upgrade path for those
using Mac OS X, and I'd love to see them offer a low-cost (maybe
$10/year) way for current mac.com email users to keep just their email
address, but I'm not holding my breath.
Instead, I'm suggesting a way that Apple can better serve their
customers and make the cost of their services more attractive.
Apple, the ball is in your court.
Daniel Jansen is the
senior editor of
Apple
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