Actually although most of the article is about the iPod the FUNNIEST thing is his commet on the Sony Walkman. Anyone remember the Sony Walkman? Anyone here ever NOT have one?
Quote:
Dell has questioned Apple's long-term business strategy, dismissing the iPod as a "fad" and a "one-product wonder" and claiming the new Mac mini won't dent the PC market.
In an interview with silicon.com at Dell's Round Rock headquarters in Texas last week, CEO Kevin Rollins said the number of headlines Apple grabs does not worry him and that the company isn't "in the same league" as Dell.
"It's interesting the iPod has been out for three years and it's only this past year it's become a raging success. Well those things that become fads rage and then they drop off. When I was growing up there was a product made by Sony called the Sony Walkman – a rage, everyone had to have one," he said. "Well you don't hear about the Walkman anymore. I believe that one product wonders come and go. You have to have sustainable business models, sustainable strategy......."
The Sony Walkman dominated the portable music market from its inception in the late 70s to probably the early 90s. And you can STILL buy one today.
By 1995 Sony had sold over 150 million Walkmans.
Not 150. Not 150,000. 150 million.
That is quite a "fad" and something that I would be very proud of.
This is a product that completely revolutionized the portable audio market. And he just brushes it off? I'm staggered.
__________________
Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
Actually although most of the article is about the iPod the FUNNIEST thing is his commet on the Sony Walkman. Anyone remember the Sony Walkman? Anyone here ever NOT have one?
The Sony Walkman dominated the portable music market from its inception in the late 70s to probably the early 90s. And you can STILL buy one today.
By 1995 Sony had sold over 150 million Walkmans.
Not 150. Not 150,000. 150 million.
That is quite a "fad" and something that I would be very proud of.
This is a product that completely revolutionized the portable audio market. And he just brushes it off? I'm staggered.
I dont think he was brushing it off...and he isnt saying that mp3 players in general wont last. He was saying that the Ipod has become a fashion as much as a device. It cool to have one...that equals fad. 7 million Pet Rocks sold in the 70's but there isnt much demand for them today, and as soon as the next "cool" audio device hits (I predict an affordable version of an XM MyFi or Sirius reciever with a decent harddrive. In that regard the ipod is a fad. On the other hand though it has achieved enough fame now that though apple may not own the market forever, I would bet that just about every mp3 player made from here on out will be commonly called and "ipod" just as most people call a portable cd player a walkman or a tissue a Kleenex.
Dell operates way down the 'food chain' compared to Sony.
What technological innovations has Dell ever come up with?
I don't think you can compare these 2 organisations - in terms of their research, development, manufacturing, breadth of business's and pedigree.
Cheers
HardOnReset :approve:
They are different types of companies though, HP and Dell are electronic commodity distributors not engineers and designers. IMHO there isnt anything wrong with letting other innovate than figuring out a way to do it better and cheaper. Dell is quite successful at what it does but is a small company compared to Sony. Dell couldnt afford a "betamax" for instance, while sony has enough in the coffers to write it off and go create something else.
BUT....while were at it...and back to the orignal subject...Apple didnt invent the mp3 player they just created a better way to do it.
I don't like the ipod... just don't like the wheel, not very ergonamic IMO. Maybe it's because of my shaky hands but i like the Dell DJ better than the ipod in terms of ease of manuvering.
They are different types of companies though, HP and Dell are electronic commodity distributors not engineers and designers. IMHO there isnt anything wrong with letting other innovate than figuring out a way to do it better and cheaper. Dell is quite successful at what it does but is a small company compared to Sony. Dell couldnt afford a "betamax" for instance, while sony has enough in the coffers to write it off and go create something else.
BUT....while were at it...and back to the orignal subject...Apple didnt invent the mp3 player they just created a better way to do it.
Absolutely agree :)
But. let's not have Dell having pretences about what it is!
By the way Philip's 2000 format was the best - just lousy marketeers :)
Cheers
HardOnReset :approve:
Edit: I'll modify that view - Betamax was technically the best, P2000 should have been and VHS won!
LOL!!! I find IT hardware *very* sexy. I like it so much that I have a Cisco Ethernet switch in my home network.
Oh, and I know some people who pronounce SCSI "sexy".
__________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
TCPA would take your freedom! Say NO! To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
HDTV the way it should be: To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Originally Posted by A friend of mine who has a Linux kernel named after his girlfriend.
If I was VirtualBox, I could load my virtualization module into Hannah and boot up another kernel in the same address space.
Though I would not critisize Dell for not being original with their products. Their R&D budget is almost nonexistant as they push those requirements onto the component companies. This keeps their costs down, and their profits up.
I think it says a lot for Dell that they can get someone else to front ths cost of coming up with a product, and then they turn around make millions off of it.
....One Microsoft employee told Kahney that about 80-percent of all company employees who have a portable music player, have an Apple iPod....
Quote:
....By fall, we started to get management memos that said use of competing products could not be tolerated and might be cause for termination, unless the research was authorized.
So, we got the Mac Business Unit to drum up some memo requests to authorize use of the iPod for, uh, you know, “research.”
That worked OK until just recently.....
Quote:
...“Fingertips”: Well, Gates and Ballmer did a tour of our campus and found dozens of iPods, some just sitting on desktops in their docks. Other iPod users were identified by the white ear buds, so we all started wearing a pair of Sony ear buds. You know, black with little silver stripes near the bud.
That way we could still tell the iPod folks from others at Microsoft. Some employees really liked the earbuds and started carrying around one of those cheap Dell DJs as a decoy.
Bambi: A decoy? You mean in place of the iPod?
“Fingertips”: No, no. They’d still have the iPod in their pocket. The other pocket would have the Dell DJ. We got ‘em cheap on the employee purchase plan. I guess they weren’t selling well, or something.
Anyway, when a Microsoft manager would ask the employee what he was listening to, he’d pull out the Dell DJ, hold it up, and you know, just smile. Then, thumbs up?
“Thumbs up” was kinda our way of saying, like, xxxK You! It was a hoot. ....
I don't know just how much of that is true - but the article is a funny read either way.
I don't like the ipod... just don't like the wheel, not very ergonamic IMO. Maybe it's because of my shaky hands but i like the Dell DJ better than the ipod in terms of ease of manuvering.
me too... i got the 5GB Dell DJ and i love it!
but i agree with the above statement about iPOD becoming the generic term for mp3 players. look at BandAid, Jello, etc.
i heard someone the other day say that they were listening to their Dell iPOD
The difference between the walkman and the iPod is that Walkman actually allows you play your tapes in other cassette players. The iPod and other variants of this type (i.e. online music that restricts play to a proprietary device) is by far the most rediculous thing to ever hit the market. I can't believe people are duped into purchasing this piece of crap. Don't show them that you ACCEPT DRM. If you go to the store to buy a single.. do you not have the ability to play the CD on any CD player? yes? Then why would you deny yourself the same freedom buy purchasing an iPod and using the iTunes service that only allows you to play the music you downloaded on their device? I just don't get it.
Follow Us
RSS Feed
Follow on Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
Addicted Member
Addicted Member
