I recently read an article about Lenovo and their recent addition of the C200 laptop and the J110 desktop computer to their product line. At first glance, it sounds like a normal product line extension, but it’s really not. You see Lenovo refers to these products as being new and innovative, when in reality it was based off a previous model.
This holds true for almost all electronic companies, but especially in the computer world. Manufacturers of computer technology are constantly increasing memory, power, and speed. A computer manufacturer is constantly replacing hard drives with more capable ones, old video cards with new enhanced graphics cards, even adding accessories like more USB ports. These are all examples of product modification. In the computer world, the consumer very rarely finds a new product that is actually useful to the vast majority. Generally, what we see are functional modifications; enhancements to products that are already on the shelf. Once the new and improved product arrives, within a couple months, its predecessor becomes obsolete; planned obsolescence.
Computer companies worry about two things: getting the enhanced versions on the shelf as soon as possible and making it look pretty. The style modification is what makes the new models appear so different and appeal more to the first time buyer. Computers used to be off-white or black, now they come in a variety of colors, even clear. An actual product line extension in the computer world is hard to find.
Comments