Obligatory Comment On Leopard Delay

Suprised? Not really.

Concerned? Nah!

Merlin Mann was on the button when he mentioned this on MacBreak Weekly before the announcement. Kudos Merlin!

So what does it all mean?

Well, it looks like it's going to take longer than anticipated that's obvious, but I really don't buy the "diversion of programming resources" as the real reason for the delay.

My gut feeling is that it probably wouldn't take as long as October to knock Leopard into a releasable state but probably just a month or two extra. But that brings it right up to the iPhone launch. In the same way that the Mac was not mentioned at MacWorld to ensure that the iPhone took center stage, it seems reasonable that Leopard needs to take a backseat whilst the iPhone is rolled out.

The iPhone is a landmark product and needs to be done right. Apple can now focus on the iPhone launch without distraction and without dilution. If they get it right, the cash generated by the iPhone will be significantly more than Leopard.

But don't worry, once the iPhone is out the door and is flying off the shelves, the Apple machine will turn and bear down on Leopard for the October launch.

And they'll meet it!

And it will be a polished and stable OS once it's available.

But I don't think they'll suffer in the meantime - sure they'll miss some revenue from iWork and iLife not being available but just think of all those people holding out from buying a new Mac before Leopard is available. Had Apple had delayed Leopard til July, then they probably would have waited a bit longer.

But wait until October?

I would imagine the bulk of those waiting would give in and buy their upgrade or replacement machine now. Plus not forgetting the availability of CS3 which should stimulate a boost in hardware sales from all the Pros who were holding out going to the Intel based platform.

Plus the quiet introduction of the Octo Macs for the Pro community.

And what on earth are they going to introduce at NAB in a few short days - more stuff for the video pros to buy more software and upgraded Macs!

Delay Leopard until October.... a no brainer!

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