Article:		Dot Mac Reloaded
Subject:		I will DEFINITELY renew
Date:		2003-07-09 15:51:08
From:		anonymous2
Response to: I will DEFINITELY renew
That's all fine and dandy for people who actually use all that stuff. The problem is that the service isn't compelling enough for people with either simple or advanced needs. For those people who just want an email account, have no need to sync to other computers/cell phones/PDAs/Internet/Space Station/Pets/etc, and have no interest in making their own website, the $99 service is complete overkill. On the other hand, people who need to build their own sites with their own domain name will find that the .Mac offering a quant little subset of the tools and resources they are already using. Why spend another $99 on top of what you're already spending for what you already have? I'm not saying .Mac isn't a great service with some fabulous features. My problem is that it's trying to be a one-size-fits-all solution to a problem that many people either don't have, or have more than overcome.

Showing messages 1 through 2 of 2.

• I will DEFINITELY renew
  2003-09-16 19:06:42  anonymous2 [Reply | View]
  
  
  I think they (Apple) would get more customers to try .mac if they offered just email for a nominal fee, then, if you want to upgrade to each of the other features, you could pick the ones you want to use and purchase just those.
  
  So if someone just wanted Backup and email, they could get those without Homepage, Virus, etc.

• I will DEFINITELY renew
  2003-07-09 16:06:02  gforce [Reply | View]
  
  
  I absolutely agree. If you have the expertise to build and maintain your own site and you have the time to do so, then by all means that's the way to go. Especially if you already pay for your own domain name. But I think the target is for people that are going to opt for convenience over customization/functionality.
  
  I think it's important for people to weigh their options. And decide if any of the features I've listed above are of any value to them. And don't forget that there is almost no setup for these features. You don't have to build anything and configuration is a matter of a few simple steps.
  
  Again, as you stated above, if all you need is an email account then there's no reason to spend $99 bucks for a bunch of features that you won't use.
  
  Personally, I'm surprised at how many of these features I've actually ended up using.