Rumor: $999 iBook, PowerBook Roll-Out Postponed to November 6


ThinkSecret is reporting this morning that Apple has pushed the mooted PowerBook and iBook revisions back to Wednesday November 6. November 5 was widely reported as the release date for the upgraded portables.

Another ThinkSecret article reports that Apple is planning on cutting iBook prices deeply to keep them competitive in a crucial market for the company. Apple will apparently slash the base iBook 700's price to a mere $999. The 700MHz G3 will be the new intro-model. The intermediate 800MHz model will be priced at $1,299 (was $1,499) and the high-end 14.1" iBook will be priced at $1,599 ($1,799).

From various reports, it does not appear that Apple will incorporate a 13" display in the current form facto at this time. Optical drive specifications are also uncertain; while the 'better' and 'best' models will have Combo drives, there is a possibility the base iBook 700 will ship with a DVD-ROM drive as standard (currently a BTO option).

The iBook has been a consistent cash cow since its May 2001 release, and its PC competitors from Dell and HP have continued to cut prices of their consumer portables in an effort to retain or increase market share.

On the PowerBook front, ThinkSecret speculates that November 6 is now the more likely date for the revision roll-out, given the congressional elections on November 5. There is no press event planned.

Analysis: It's true that Apple may well be winding us all up by leaking information on the release dates. It could well be Monday, if they want to surprise us. Either way, old inventory is clearly drying up and the new models are due any day now.

A $999 iBook would be a killer product, particularly as HP has also managed to release a $999 portable recently. Aside from a CDRW (easily added cheaply via FireWire), this would a Mac of Classic/Quadra 605 proportions: a powerful G3 notebook with everything its faster siblings have. With discounting and free promo bundles (RAM, printers) thrown in by retailers over Xmas, a sub-$1,000 iBook deserves to disappear off the shelves like hotcakes. Better sell your Wallstreet before Wednesday before it depreciates any further [please ignore that last bit if you're seriously attached to your Wallstreet].