Apple to Drop Prices of Notebooks?

Investment bank Piper Jaffray issued a note today based on Apple's future outlook in 2008 and 2009. During their financial conference call, Apple told investors that they expect the company's gross margins will by down to 31.5% (from 34.8%) in Q4 2008 with expectations of further declines down to 30% for fiscal 2009.

The investment bank believes that while Apple tends to be conservative in their predictions, they also expect that Apple may be preparing to cut prices of existing prices to maintain sales momentum. They believe there's an "80% chance" that Apple will introduce redesigned MacBooks and possibly MacBook Pros at lower price points. Specifically, the quote prices starting at $999 (down from $1099) for the MacBook and $1,799 (down from $1999) for the MacBook Pro. They also expect "slightly redesigned" iPods and "lower-cost" iPod Touches in time for the holiday buying season.

Apple's financial conference call has sparked off a flurry of speculation about their future "mystery" product. A Page 2 rumor even reintroduces an unconfirmed possibility of a MacBook Touch.