According to a recent article in The Wall Street Journal, PCs are valuing style more than they used to. During the 30 year history of the PC industry, only recently has style become an issue of concern. The substance of stronger and faster took precedence, but with market shares slipping to companies with fashion sense such as Apple, the industry is getting a make over. The evidence:
At the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show, during a keynote speech by Chairman Bill Gates, Microsoft will hold a PC "fashion show" with judges -- including Nigel Barker of "America's Next Top Model" -- to size up various machines and pick three winning designs.
From watching Dell's latest ad campaign, style is becoming more of a focus.
Will Dell be pretty? Probably, but I really do not care all that much about appearances. I care about dependability and being able to do the things I need to on my PC. To me, a PC is like a car. As long as it gets you from point A to point B, everything is well and good in the world. Although, this section of the article did tingle my fashion sense:
Lenovo's Mr. Hill says this fall he spent a day poring over designs at North Carolina car dealerships with a photo-snapping designer from Japan. They checked out new Corvettes and classic muscle cars like the 1965 Pontiac GTO. Mr. Hill has also taken the head of Lenovo's Beijing design group to inspect a version of the Batmobile, he says.
Now that is hot!
This article also reminded me of an Onion Radio News bulletin.