Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) and the all-new and about-to-be-released Adamo slim laptop PC is just the latest in the computer maker's attempt to slam the PC industry with as much laptop PC variety as possible to help it gain consumer market share.After years of not recognizing the shift towards the retail consumer space and the huge movement from desktop PCs to laptop PCs, Dell's efforts in the last year have been admirable. The competition has continued to outsmart it and grow more, but Dell's efforts to catch up to Hewlett-Packard Corp. (NYSE: HPQ) and Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) have borne some decent fruit. Is it enough?
Dell's Q3 period in 2008 saw the company generate 32% of its revenue from mobility products, which means laptop PCs for both the business and consumer markets it serves globally. Dell's Jeremy Bolen indicated that the consumer movement towards laptop PCs helped Dell realize that it needed to be a bigger, faster player in the space.
That's pretty obvious, and the competitors that truly win are the ones that spot trends before they happen and get ahead of the curve in the direct or retail markets -- or both. Dell can't solve tomorrow's problems by the same level of thinking that created them (credit: Albert Einstein). It better roll out the innovation blanket across its company -- not just in products, but in strategy.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-20-2009 @ 6:32PM
ROB said...
UNLESS AND UNTIL DELL GET IT'S COLLECTIVE HEADOUT OF IT'S A$$ THEY WILL HAVE A HARD TIME GIVING THERE JUNK AWAY. TIME TECHNOLOGY AND ESPECIALLY QUAILITY TECH SUPPORT/CUSTOMER SERVICE HAVE LEFT THEM IN A CLOUD OF DUST. I CAN BUY A 50% BETTER COMPUTER CONTAINING EXACTLY WHAT "I" NEED AND WANT, HAVE A CUSTOM COMPUTER WITH A HUGE WARRANTY AND CUSTOMER SUPPORT FOR LESS THAN $50 MORE THAN ANYTHING DELL, HP, GATEWAY OR WHO EVER CURRENTLY HAS ON THE MARKET. THESE COMPANY HAVE LOST SITE OF THE ENOROMUS BENEIFT OF BEING CUSTOMER FRIENDLY. LAST YEAR I REPLACED 43 OF 135 COMPUTERS IN MY BUSINESS FROM THE NAME BRANDS TO A NO-NAME BRAND WITH GREAT TECH SUPPORT AND CUSTOMER SERVICE. CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATES FROM MY CFO SUGGEST THE SAVING AMOUNT TO ONLY BE ABOUT $5700.00 IN RAW COST BUT MORE THAN 3000 HOURS ($470,000.00) OF PRODUCTIVE TIME PEOPLE SPENT BEING PRODUCTIVE RATHER THAN FIGHT OR ON HOLD FOR NON-EXISTANT TECH SUPPORT FROM THESE NAME BRANDS.
EVERY YEAR i GIVE EVERY EMPLOYEE THE TRADITIONAL TURKEY. THIS YEAR THEY ALSO GOT A $300 GIFT CERTIFICATE TOWARD THE PURCHASE A HOME COMPUTER FROM OUR NO-NAME COMPANY. WHEN THESE CERTIFICATED ARE PRESENTED THEY WILL THROUGH THE GENEROUSITY OF THIS COMPANY MATCH THE $300 WITH A CORPORATE DISCOUNT. AVERAGE PRICE FOR THEIR UPGRADED COMPUTER 625.00. 3 YEAR WARRANTY AND 24/7 TECH SUPPORT
1-21-2009 @ 2:05AM
c said...
I agree with most of what you said Rob. Dell used to be so much more quality and customer focused. In the last 5 years or so it has become "try and get the quick buck". This, I think is the base of the downfall. I worked at Dell for 15 years. I was laid off 1 year ago and was happy to go because it was not the same company I started with... They sold crappy TV's, PDA's, Etc.. Customer service has been a joke.