New software lets Macs do Windows
SAN JOSE, Calif. – Though Macintosh computers have long been praised for their elegant design and high quality, countless potential buyers turned to other systems because Macs couldn’t easily use the programs built for PCs based on Microsoft Corp.’s ubiquitous operating system.
On Wednesday, Apple Computer Inc. changed the ground rules and announced its Macs – the latest models with Intel Corp. chips – can indeed do Windows.
Its new “Boot Camp” software, a “beta” test version available as a free download, lets computer users with a Windows XP installation disk load it on the Mac. Users could then switch between the two operating systems – using only one at a time – by rebooting.
“It makes the Mac the most versatile computer on the market,” said Tim Bajarin, a tech industry consultant at Creative Strategies.
Apple’s shares surged 10 percent on the news as Wall Street bet it would help Apple grow its share of the PC market beyond its current 3 percent to 4 percent by attracting more business and home users.
Apple’s market capitalization grew to $51.9 billion – an increase of more than $5 billion – after Wednesday’s announcement.
Van Baker, analyst at research firm Gartner Inc., said Apple is removing one of the hurdles it faced in winning over converts from Windows-based machines, which makes up more than 90 percent of the worldwide PC market.
“Consumers who were thinking about Macs but hesitated don’t have to worry anymore about not being able to run PC software that didn’t run on a Mac,” Baker said.
In essence, analysts say, Apple is giving longtime Windows users a way to run its hardware and software without having to sacrifice their Windows-based programs.
When Apple introduced its first computer based on Intel Corp. chips in January, the company said it had no intention of selling or supporting Windows on its machines, though it has not done anything to preclude people from doing it themselves.
Apple said Wednesday that stance remains true, yet the new software will ease Windows installation on Macs. The test software will expire and become unusable after September 2007 but Apple said it will feature Boot Camp in the upcoming Mac OS X version 10.5, code-named “Leopard.” Apple said it will preview Leopard in August, but it hasn’t yet disclosed a release date or price for the upgrade.
“Apple has no desire or plan to sell or support Windows, but many customers have expressed their interest to run Windows on Apple’s superior hardware now that we use Intel processors,” Philip Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, said in a statement.
Users still will have to buy their own copy of Windows XP – the home edition retails for $199.