TDL Live This week: (9/1-9/8)

No, we weren't going to let a holiday stop us from bringing you the latest Apple news and rumors. If you missed the live show last night, here's your chance to get caught up:

Psystar could change Macs forever, or get consumed by the lawyers

The very curious case of Psystar... Several months ago they announced the availability of their "Open" and "Open Pro" computers, shipping with Mac OS X installed. At first, the Mac community scoffed, and many found reason to believe the whole thing a hoax. But Psystar still exists, and they've upped the ante with the availability of their new xServe "clones."

The world wonders though, why hasn't Apple done anything? Could it be, that maybe, just maybe Psystar has found a legitimate loop hole in Apple's licensing agreement? Is Apple concerned that if they try to sue and lose, and the floodgates will open to other unauthorized clones?

Or, let's pretend for just a minute, that Apple may at some point bring OS X to PCs themselves. Yes, this rumor has been floated out there for years, and now of all times, it seems LEAST likely to happen. But what better way to gauge interest than tacitly allow a small manufacturer to dip their toe in the market, and presumably they will talk about sales numbers at some point, and Apple will be able to gauge the interest in OS X for PC. Given the success of the Intel Macs, it would seem silly for Apple to license the OS to others now. But the question remains, why hasn't Apple brought any kind of legal action against Psystar? We know when product shots leak, the attorneys respond within days...

Dear Apple: Make the computer people want

There's been a bit of a stir in the Apple world this week, after Psystar announced they would be selling PCs capable of running Mac operating system, and would even have an option to buy the machine with the Leopard license pre-installed.

The computer, originally named OpenMac is now called Open Computer. Whether it ever ships is doubtful. Shipping the machine with Leopard pre-installed would seem to be a violation of Apple's licensing agreements. They could possibly pull off shipping machines that end users would install the OS on. Priced at $400, the base model offers a far better bargain, at least in terms of performance, compared to the mac mini that's $200 more.

There are three ways apple can deal with the controversy surrounding this machine: 1. Let it proceed un-abated (not going to happen). 2. Throw the lawyers at them, and sue the company into submission (most likely).3. Or, wait for it... Apple could make the computer people want. Looking at the product lineup, the only glaring empty spot (and it's probably been more or less empty since the Performa days) is an affordable, low-end tower.

If Apple has any interest in getting big business to switch, which is a whole other discussion, they need to offer such a box. Fortune 500 companies have tons of installed IT infrastructure, including computer monitors. Now that executives are toting iPhones, there's a stronger potential than any recent time for companies to consider switching. However, an iMac is far too expensive when a $400 PC box can be plugged into the existing monitor. Even the most devout Apple-loving CEO would have a tough time justifying three times that much to replace PCs with Macs. The Mac Mini was a good start, but until it is outfitted with the same RAM and hard drive as a comparable PC, the cost can be nearly double that of the competing computers.

Remember there was a time when the eMac was only for education? Demand, or at least Apple's experiment within that channel led to the model being available to all. Why not do the same with a no frills Apple box for business. We'll call it the bMac, and hope that Apple's marketing folks can come up with something better. Make a limited run of bMacs, and sell them, to businesses that simply couldn't consider other Apple alternatives. Next thing you know, new markets open up, higher margin xServes are going to those same companies, and another few percentage points of marketshare is gained.

UPDATE: Since this was posted, it appears Psystar has been outed as a fake. We have requested an interview, but have received no response. Engadget and Gizmodo have also had little luck verifying the company's existence. Regardless, the interest the story generated shows the interest in having a product fill this gap.