FC NOW: The Fast Company Weblog
June 26, 2007
Dell Does Its Little Turn on the Catwalk
Dell welcomed journalists to Macy's Herald Square today for the unveiling of a super-neat new mystery product. Seated next to a makeshift runway in the juniors department, we writers/bloggers/etc. chattily speculated about what the next big thing was going to be. Was Dell going to unveil an iPhone competitor? Or maybe some other kind of spanking-new gadget?
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What we got was eight models clad in all-white coats, bodysuits and thigh-high boots strutting down the catwalk as a projector flooded the area with various hues of the rainbow.
So what the heck was that all about? Dell's new Inspiron notebooks, obviously.
"What you're seeing is Dell in transformation – a different Dell," said Alex Gruzen, senior VP of consumer products, before defining each of the words in the line's new pitch: "Yours Is Here".
Why make the next design innovation color? (Because I know when I was watching the Dell guy replace my motherboard for the second time, all I could think was, 'gosh, I wonder why they don't make this in sunshine yellow.')
"Choice of colors is the beginning of taking personalization to the next level," says consumer marketing VP Zita Cassizzi.
The eight cover colors include a shiny, Mac-ish "Alpine White" and seven "micro satin" soft finishes in Jet Black, Espresso Brown, Flamingo Pink, Midnight Blue, Ruby Red, Spring Green and Sunshine Yellow. (If you're into the plain-old Dell gray, sorry, you're out of luck.)
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Besides the new shells – which you're pretty much stuck with once you buy, so choose wisely – there isn't too much different going on with the basic notebooks, which start at $769 for the 15.4" model. The overall design is similar, but a little sleeker; one neat new feature is free online back-up of 3 gigs for your first year. Other upgrades will cost you, but with the new notebooks you can add spruced-up perks like an integrated webcam, hi-def displays and integrated mobile broadband with service from Sprint, Verizon or AT&T.
If you want to upgrade to a sleeker box, you can pony up $1299 for the ultra-thin Inspiron notebook, the XPS M1330 "world's thinnest 13-inch notebook" at 0.9 inches thick, weighing just under 4 pounds with the battery in.
Right now the new Inspirons are only on sale online and at Dell kiosks, but if you want to play with them, they'll be on display at Macy's for the next two weeks, wedged between ladies' swimwear and Au Bon Pain.
UPDATE: Consumerist artfully captures the Dell "fashion show" on video here.
Posted by Elise Waxenberg at June 26, 2007 2:37 PM | Category: product review |
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Some people innovate, some people imitate, what's new?
Why is this important? Because technology manufactures are just catching on to the idea that the experience of technology is just as important as the technology itself. Function is crucial, don't get me wrong. But experience is what separates one similar technology from another.
Corey Julihn