Dell XPS14z
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- mydo
I've always been a fan of Dell. I've also always been surprised that PC designers never took any hints from apples success - less is more, metal is nice, etc. However this new Dell is so similar to a MBP i find it hard to believe this isn't a joke. Apart from moving the power button, there wasn't any other design decisions made.
http://www.dell.com/html/global/…
Thoughts?
- Peter0
Thoughts:
Apart from the black frame around the display,
hasn't (pc) laptops always looked more or less like that?Asus version, "HP envy" and the rest sure have been "inspired". Inspired by something that was equally "inspired" by something else to begin with.
- << yeh the color scheme is similar, but otherwise its looks like any laptopHombre_Lobo
- detritus0
You're surprised?
Dell make generic, heartless crap because it's a generic, heartless brand that hawks bland builds for bland purposes.
I'm slightly mind-boggled that anyone would consider themselves a fan of such a boring, boring brand.
- I'm not mind-boggled, but still dumbstruck, as to why people become fans of computer brands in the first place ;)Peter
- Then again I've just grown numb by pushing products and brands for soon decades.Peter
- brands are not football teamsPixter
- Pixter, I assume you've missed a...ANY... pc vs. mac threadPeter
- True, Pixter.
Brands have the potential to actually accomplish something.detritus - Like employment at ad agencies.Peter
- detritus0
That site is fucking dire as well.
One instance where I'll genuinely ask 'why didn't they just do it in HTML?'. It doesn't even run smoothly.
- mydo0
it's got over 1000 likes on facebook.
I think i might get one.
- GeorgesII0
it's a fuckn macbook pro from 2003!
- mydo0
1000 likes
- mydo0
actually i didn't realise at first the whole area around the keyboard is just plastic. I thought they'd made it a unibody like the mac.
I've also noticed they've designed it so the lid doesn't really close properly. that's nice.I really don't understand, are these things designed by focus groups, or do these huge companies just not employ a designer.
How hard can it be?
- GeorgesII0
^
"are these things designed by focus groups, "You got that right, probably the designers can't get anything out, because the focus group wants something that looks liek a mac,
I still can't get over, how much the hp touchpad looks like a bigass iphone 3g
- Peter0
I can see how 1000 likes, or say 10.000, is offensive.
Now this product, similar to yours (and mine), becomes cheap and available to the masses - the masses who aren't mb PRO's like ourselves. Damn them. They should stick to uglier things.
- pressplay0
font on keyboard looks like from some 80s science fiction movie... and why the fuck do they need to have some cheap-o shiny metalplastic parts on those things...
- 3030
- formed0
I, too, can't fathom why they have never, ever just copied a Mac. Not just looks, but build quality. That design looks about as generic as they can come, imho.
I do have a Precision Laptop that is easily as well built as a Mac, but their regular line is built like crap.
Dell has been really good to me over the years. Their onsite, next day (same day sometimes) tech support/part replacement is a God send and the only reason I won't buy a Mac.
(I believe their XPS line is built much better, though, than the Inspirons).
- lol @ precision being well built, let alone NEAR that of a MacBook. C'mon, dude.monospaced
- vaxorcist0
my thought is that somebody in Taiwan/China who's a designer at one of the invisible subcontracting shops designed a MacBook Clone, then pitched it to Dell, who consulted their lawyers about lawsuits, and since Steve's no longer with us, they figured they might just try and see if they can sell it?
that said, the nice thing about Dell is the parts availability, you can keep it going and fix it pretty easily and cheaply compared to some other brands.... I like my old Dell laptop.....
- animatedgif0
"That design looks about as generic as they can come"
I always find it amusing that for YEARS AND YEARS people design tonnes of ugly shit, then suddenly Apple comes along and spends time designing something actually decent and suddenly everyone claims it's a generic and obvious solution to the problem and the competition can't be blamed for copying it almost exactly.
It's only "generic" and "obvious" because it's such a fucking good design that it appears effortless. In reality it was hard work to come to that solution.
- Phone diagram would be better if it included Nokia communicator + the N9animatedgif