As Windows PC prices quietly rise, Apple plans a low-cost Mac notebook

It really is time to bury the assumption that Macs are more expensive than Windows PCs. That’s because for every low-spec, barely functional Windows computer you can pick up for less than the cost of a Mac, there will be a dozen that cost much more.

IT purchasers already know this as they wade through the marketing materials around the forced Windows 11 upgrade; unless you pay Microsoft loads more to extend Windows 10 support, you will be forced to 11, adding a multitude of necessary costs, including:

Windows licenses.

Additional fees for AI features. 

Software that often requires more than basic PC specs.

Service costs, with per-device preparation costs on the rise.

Many of these expenses involve recurring subscriptions that will eat away at precious IT budgets across the usable life of a PC. Together, they mean that while the initial price of a PC might seem lower than the price of a Mac, those additional costs add up. Then there’s the price of storage, memory, and processor upgrades, and security — all of which must be weighed against the potential advantages that could be unlocked by a move to Mac.

Nickels and dimes

Apple has always offered its systems in standard, better, and best configurations. It has always also shocked most industry watchers with its high prices on memory, or additional storage, which always seem much higher than those PC purchasers pay.

That was then, this is now, with a recent NPI report noting, “PC vendors are leveraging component upgrades and market recovery to inflate pricing.” 

These price increases are extreme, with the analysis finding that in many cases, price jumps “are 30% to 50% representing a significant cost increase for enterprise customers.” It’s hard not to imagine that PC makers have figured out how to increase profitability the old-fashioned way with higher hidden fees.

 Windows fans shouldn’t shoot the messenger on this; the news comes direct from NPI and is based on industry data. What it means to enterprise purchasers is that even while Microsoft forces a move to Windows 11, vendors are raising the cost of the new PCs on which the OS runs. That many of these are subscription-based adds to the horror as buyers battle to balance their books.

Life in the Apple lane

Apple isn’t doing that. It doesn’t have to. Not only is it selling a unique platform (the Mac), but the processors its systems run on are also designed by Apple, which means it doesn’t pay the same royalty on each chip and each PC that Wintel vendors must handle. 

What makes this even better for Apple is that even entry-level Apple Silicon chips now offer power and performance Windows can’t match at the same price — even as Apple’s OS and security upgrades remain free. And the cost of added device management services remains relatively predictable, in part because of the lack of OS fragmentation across the Apple ecosystem. That makes MDM pricing predictable and resilient to change.

Sure, when you get a Mac, you’ll still pay more for extra storage and memory. But the NPI report suggests you’ll be paying similarly for Windows hardware, too. Beyond that, Apple has another trick up its sleeve, one which might yet give even relatively committed Windows users pondering a Windows 11 upgrade food for thought.

A Mac for all seasons

Cheaper Macs may be on the way. That’s right. Apple is now hotly tipped to introduce a new MacBook model equipped with A-series mobile processors to challenge the low end of the PC market. Current speculation claims the company plans to introduce these systems later this year at just $599. 

To help meet the low price target, these 12.9-in notebooks will use a lower-cost iPhone processor, making these machines perfectly capable at all the entry-level tasks you might need. (If you want something more powerful, you can’t have missed the emergence of online offers that might allow you to pick up a MacBook Air for around $799.)

For the millions who want to migrate to a Mac, it means you’ll be able to do so for about the same price as a very basic (and life-limited) Windows 10 PC. And for those hoping to argue you should stick with Windows, well, the evidence shows that price has ceased to be realistic rationale.

Up next, we’ll find out what happens when a platform once seen as too expensive becomes highly competitive — particularly while security on the fragile Windows platform is becoming an ever more expensive consideration. 

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