Should Dell make Apple hardware?
A new report/rumor is gaining ground on the speculation Dell and Apple may broker a historic agreement for both companies.

I dont know how to feel about this. Part of me is horrified and another part is pretty curious to see if it can be pulled off. The key to this will be quality control. If Dell slacks off in this department it could spell disaster for both companies. I do know life in the PC industry and related buisness sector are about to get a whole lot more interesting in the forthcoming year.

Increasing component costs and pressure to cut its prices mean Apple's best bet for long-term success is to quit the hardware business and license the Mac to Dell, analyst firm Gartner claimed on Tuesday.

In a surprisingly ambitious report, called Apple Should License the Mac to Dell, Gartner says Apple should concentrate on what it does best -- create software -- and make use of Dell's production and distribution infrastructure.

"Apple should leverage its close relationship with Intel and team up with Intel's closest ally, Dell," the report states. "We recognise that this move would surprise and even shock many. We are aware that Steve Jobs cancelled previous Mac licenses when he took over at Apple and that he guards the Apple brand zealously."

Up to around 1997, companies including Power Computing were given the rights to license Mac technology from Apple. However, when Jobs returned to the company, he attempted at first to renegotiate the licenses but eventually opted to cancel them.

Apple increased its share of the PC market to around 4.6 percent in July this year, according to analyst figures.

Gartner claims that with the right partners, distribution channels and a more affordable price, computers running the Mac OS could eventually account for 20 percent of the total PC market.

Read all about it here, courtesy of zdnet.com:

-Eric