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Dell's not serious about Vista either

Dell's not serious about Vista either

Summary: When you consider that Microsoft has poured half a billion dollars into the marketing of Windows Vista, you'd expect that the OEMs would be able to put together a credible campaign for the new OS.


When you consider that Microsoft has poured half a billion dollars into the marketing of Windows Vista, you'd expect that the OEMs would be able to put together a credible campaign for the new OS.  Long Zheng discovers a link to a video on the Dell website which could hardly be called professional (YouTube link here).  I have to warn you though, it's pretty grim.

dell - Can you see it?I was actually looking around for the new Ubuntu offerings when I stumbled across this promotional video titled “Vista vs. XP“. I was expecting to see flying-buzzwords and all sorts of hype-generating effects that would have wow-ed the customer into getting Vista as soon as possible, but it turns out to be a piss-poor attempt at explaining what an operating system is with a corny script and unspectacular demos. Have a look at the video to see what I mean.

Here is a list of things that bugged Zheng:

  • “Can you see it?” - Who at Dell came up with this crap? Microsoft obviously didn’t. And what’s with the face expression that looks like he wants to murder someone when he says it?
  • “Many of you won’t be able to run Vista on your current system specs” - What a great way to get people excited by telling them how incompetent their computer systems are.
  • Tina Riquelmy, the “Vista Expert” - You would assume a “Vista Expert” might be someone from Microsoft or an Microsoft evangelist who really knows the guts of Vista, but it turns out Tina is actually a Senior Product Manager at Dell. What’s with her voice? It gets quieter and quieter. At least find someone who’s a little more energetic.
  • “Phenomenally different than any operating system you’ve ever used”. So let’s rename an album in real-time. (1:30) - Dell decided to showcase the phenomenally different digital music experience that is in Vista by showing a 15-second clip of “how-to” rename your music albums.
  • A security scan that freezes on the first file (2:35) - A bit of a trivial thing, but at least record a demo when software works as it should. Windows Defender stuck at scanning the first file for is not a good demo.

I have to agree with all the points raised.  The video is boring and uninspiring.  Not only does it leave me not wanting Vista, I wouldn't want a Dell either.  In fact, forget the whole PC, I'm off to stick my head in a gas oven.

I'd like to add a few of my own criticisms:

  • Shots over the shoulders of a notebook user doesn't work
  • The translucent windows example just doesn't get the point across
  • Too many random media center shots that just don't make sense

I also agree with Zheng that these campaigns that the major OEMs have come up with (we're concentrating on Dell here but the campaigns that some of the other OEMs have come up are pretty lackluster) aren't a patch on the Get a Mac ads.

Topics: Microsoft, Dell, Hardware, Windows



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  • Was this the big WOW factor that Mike Cox was speaking about ?

    What I have seen from the video is nothing but a big DUD factor . Zune anyone ?
  • The Answer is Simple

    Buy a MAC, all your music and video needs are there built in, works great, and NO viruses ever.

    Sounds like an easy solution.
    • Do some research

      Macs have exploits. The code has flaws.

      The first Virii were on Apples.

      99% of all security problems begin with the stupidty of the user. Note I mentioned
      stupidity and not ignorance because most users actually know better, but refuse to
      change their ways.
    • Not so simple

      Mac this Windows this. Personally I have used both operating systems but feel more comfortable with Windows. The fact is Mac?s are not perfect. Sure there was a time early on when a Mac was better than a PC but those days are over. Any person can put together a PC using quality parts and the key here is quality, not the cheapest board or components you can get your hands on. True MS has had its share of problems but usually gets the blame when Johnny?s cheap ass computer breaks down because of inferior hardware. Apple maintains a hands-on approach with its hardware, which is good and saves them a lot of headaches. Something MS should consider doing. Instead they trust the manufacture to test the hardware. Some do a good job but others do not and flood the market with inferior components and cheap prices that get bought up, assembled with other cheap stuff then loaded with Windows and you know the rest of the story. So please give me a break with this ?my Mac is perfect? routine
  • Why should Dell be serious about Vista?

    Is Dell a Microsoft cheerleader or a computer company? Dell should be excited about
    selling Dell computers. It's up to Microsoft to sell Microsoft operating systems. If XP
    sells Dell computers better than Vista, then Dell should hype the fact their machines
    ship with XP, not try to convince people they want to buy Vista.
  • Go XP, Linux or Mac

    To say Vista is a disappointment is putting it lightly. MS has made a monumental error in not only the design of the OS, but also in terms of making it appeal to XP users. Let's face it, as long as you have all of the service packs installed, your XP system 'good enough.' Yeah, of course, there are some who want to be on the 'bleeding edge', but would anyone seriously consider Vista bleeding edge? Not me. Not any IT person I know. Basically, between the horrific (and stupid) DRM built-in to Vista, the lack of real 'differencing making features' and huge system resources needed to run it, Vista is a disaster. Oh, and don't forget about printers and other ancillary hardware items that may or may not work with Vista.

    Stick with XP, use Linux or buy a Mac.
    • Microsoft Just Doesn't Get It

      I do agree with much of what you said, but let me point out a few non-technical but very important details about Vista. Microsoft has built a very beautiful OS with Vista, with a lot of similar features to that of OS X. The problem is that Microsoft just doesn't get it. The cool looking features such as Expose and Dashboard on OS X are not just for looks, they're functional.

      You press F11 to zip all your windows off to the side for instant access to your desktop, F10 to select a window in the current active application, and F9 to select a window in all current applications. All of the windows are shrunken down into high-res miniaturizations, clear of each other, and enable a user to quickly identify which window they want.

      With Vista's Flip 3D, you get a stack of overlapping windows at an odd angle. This in no way helps you locate a specific window conveniently and quickly. But it looks cool.

      Another example feature that Vista has emulated from OS X is the transparent windowing and menu items. Under OS X, the menu and/or windows turn transparent so you can actually identify what's behind it. Under Vista, they use a frosted glass effect, which again looks very neat, but defeats the entire purpose of it being transparent. You can't see what's behind it.

      One more quick example is Vista's Gadgets. Under OS X, you press the F12 key to have them fly in and out of view. Alternatively, you can place them permanently into view on your desktop. Under Vista, you always have them on your desktop, taking up valuable desktop space. Additionally, you don't have any real room in that little side bar for a widget/gadget of any real use.

      You get the idea. Microsoft doesn't.
  • Dell's ad for Vista

    The person writing the article is out of touch with reality. There are MANY people who own computers that do not know what they are doing. MANY. So, Dell has to dumb down any commercial about tech products. I use Vista Ultimate, I am a power user and Vista is outstanding. My 32 bit software runs fast, my 64 bit software runs super fast. You should concentrate on those software makers that haven't revamped their code to run on Vista. You should chide them for pretending to be cutting edge software producers. Only consumers are being hurt by those who have missed the opening party! Evidently, the author of the above article is still using Windows 95 and a word processor that is old also!