Apple's Next Generation Challenge

I'm a new mom, but my new frustration with Apple Computer has nothing to do with that. I love the company, the products, and the people - in fact, I'm a stockholder - but Apple is making a big mistake (other than the recent blogging lawsuit). And if they continue to make this mistake over the next few years, it could affect my choices for my daughter.

My nephew is starting high school soon and he needs a new computer - read - new market opportunity! His mom, my husband's sister, has been shopping for laptops. Because we're an all-Apple household and our extended family is rapidly expanding to being all-Apple, our obvious recommendation was the MacBook.

I won't go into the whole debate here about why to choose a Mac over a Windows-based PC because I could write a novel on that one, but the requirements were simple: inexpensive laptop that will last through high school. Obviously this is somewhat an oxymoron because we pay more for space and speed that will last longer, but there are ways to achieve this goal. One is to make the hardware cheaper and the other is to employ educational discounts, which Apple does - for college students.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't college a little too late to get kids (who are almost all officially adults by then) attached to an OS platform? I got my first Apple computer, an Apple II+, in third grade if I remember correctly. That was a great time to hook a kid. I loved my first computer. I still have it and it still works. I have many fond memories of that computer. Yeah, I'm a geek but this is part of why.

Unfortunately, because Apple's educational discount doesn't apply to high school kids, my sister-in-law eventually chose a Dell, my husband's backup recommendation (and his prior loyalty, before I swayed him). It turns out my sister's husband, a high school teacher, could have gotten the discount for us, but why make it so difficult?

Apple does some great things, but they need to take it one step farther if they want to gain more market share and create brand loyalty at a younger age. The next generation is waiting, and they want more than just iPods.