Dell Copies iPhone 'Pro', 'Pro Max' Naming Strategy for New PC Lineup

[MacRumors]

Dell on Monday announced an overhaul of its PC branding strategy with a simplified naming scheme that bears a striking resemblance to Apple's iPhone nomenclature.

The computer manufacturer is retiring its long-standing product names like XPS and Inspiron in favor of three straightforward tiers: Dell, Dell Pro, and Dell Pro Max – a clear copy of Apple's iPhone naming convention, which has used "Pro" and "Pro Max" to distinguish its higher-end models since the iPhone 11 was introduced in 2019.

The announcement reportedly raised eyebrows at Dell's press briefing ahead of CES. "Your branding sounds a lot like Apple. Aren't you just following them?" one audience member asked Dell executives, according to Bloomberg.

"Customers really prefer names that are easy to remember and easy to pronounce," Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke responded to reporters. Buyers shouldn't have to spend time "figuring out our nomenclature, which at times has been a bit confusing," he said.

Clarke went on to claim that the new naming strategy was supported by research involving "tens of thousands of customers," and argued that no company owns common words like "pro" or "max." The new naming system will "make it easier for our customers to do business with us," added Dell founder and CEO, Michael Dell.

Kevin Terwilliger, a vice president of Dell's PC business, explained that the rebrand aims to simplify product recognition for customers, similar to Apple's approach of anchoring products to a single brand name. The gaming-focused Alienware brand, which Dell acquired in 2006, will retain its existing branding.

The Dell CEO framed the rebranding as part of a broader strategy to capitalize on the aging PC market, particularly as AI capabilities become more important in computing. Many of the new Dell-branded devices will include neural processing units optimized for AI tasks.

PC manufacturers are seeking to reinvigorate sales following a post-pandemic slump, with Dell, HP, and Lenovo all exploring various strategies to encourage upgrades. For what it's worth, Apple isn't the only consumer electronics company to use "pro" in its product names. Microsoft has its Surface Pro tablets, for example, but it's hard to imagine the latter attempting to justify the introduction of a "Surface Pro Max" while maintaining a straight face.

Article Link: Dell Copies iPhone 'Pro', 'Pro Max' Naming Strategy for New PC Lineup

 

[redbeard331]

This is all I have to say.

 

[ItsASpider]

In general I'm in favor of a proper systemic naming scheme like Dell is introducing here, the problem is the names they've settled on are just going to end up being confusing with names like "Dell Pro Max Premium" now being a thing, had they gone with something like "Workstation" instead of "Pro Max" it would have made a bit more sense.

 

[CalMin]

I’m sure this took hours of deliberation in the Dell marketing dept war room, but they look so freaking lazy with this.

 

[zombierunner]

Where's the Dell Ultra?

 

[TwoBytes]

I'm sure the next step is for Starbucks to introduce a 'tall caffè late Pro Max'.

 

[BigDO]

“Apes”? Really?

 

[sunapple]

Dell
Dell Kilo
Dell Mega
Dell Giga

There’s your sensible PC tiers.

 

[LukeHarrison]

So we’ve gone from ‘I’d wind it up and return the money to the shareholders…’ to Dell building Max. How the tables turn…

 

[sehns]

Makes total sense to me. They will sell more computers this way. It's a lot easier to send your boomer parent to BestBuy to "pick up a Dell Laptop" instead of a "Dell XPS 13". Are they raiding some of Apples marketing capital? Sure, but that's business

 

[SpotOnT]

Pro Max sounds dumb when Apple uses it. It sounds completely ridiculous when someone else copies it.

 

[haruhiko]

Uhhh there are a lot of things that Dell can copy from Apple. But they picked this one? 😂

 

[alchemistmuffin]

The announcement reportedly raised eyebrows at Dell's press briefing ahead of CES. "Your branding sounds a lot like Apple. Aren't you just following them?" one audience member asked Dell executives, according to Bloomberg.

"Customers really prefer names that are easy to remember and easy to pronounce," Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke responded to reporters. Buyers shouldn't have to spend time "figuring out our nomenclature, which at times has been a bit confusing," he said.

Apple: okay, so they think consumers like easy names huh……..

(Thinks for second)

Apple: APPLE LAWYER TEAMS ASSEMBLE!!!!!!!!! 🧑‍💼👩‍💼👨🏼‍💼

[seriously, Dell is getting sued by Apple for this. Apple trademarked the naming concept, this is not going to end well for Dell]

 

[dandyryan]

shameless LMAO

 

[3304614]

It does make it simpler. Now let’s get Intel, AMD and Nvidia simplify their naming schemes as well.

 

[Koni17]

I'm sure Dell finds a way to f*ck this up and make it even more confusing and complicated than before.

 

[Marty80]

I do believe it is time for another class action, and i bet Apple will sue Dell to the Max.

 

[Dr McKay]

Pro Max sounds dumb when Apple uses it. It sounds completely ridiculous when someone else copies it.

I hate how in the Apple silicon chips, “Max” isn’t the top tier.

 

[ThomasJL]

Just like Tim Cook, Michael Dell is not a visionary. In 1997, when Dell was asked what he would do with Apple if he were in Steve Jobs's shoes, Dell replied, "What would I do? I'd shut it down and give the money back to the shareholders."

As for Cook and product names, the name "iPhone Pro" shows how clueless he is. Jobs made a presentation on Apple product names, clearly saying that devices with "i" in the name are consumer devices, and devices with "Pro" in the name are professional devices. In other words, an Apple product should never have both "i" and "Pro" in the name because it would be a contradiction. Apparently, Clueless Cook doesn't understand.

 

[stocklen]

sigh.
of course its a blatant copy from Dell but they have a point in that those words are common enough.

If I were them, I would have tried at least to avoid the obvious criticism.

Whereas 'pro' is fine - lots of companies use pro - the step too far is using 'max' as Apple uses those combinations of words in their own products.

Why they couldn't have used 'pro plus' or 'pro elite' etc etc is confusing.

 

[ThailandToo]

“Apes”? Really?

We are more like sheep.

 

[gridlocked]

What would happen if Apple licensed its older designs to a manufacturer like Dell for resale?

 

[WarmWinterHat]

“Apes”? Really?

Agreed; I had no idea what it meant outside of the context of the headline. Never heard it used as a verb before.

 

[dumastudetto]

Dell Pro Max Premium recommends you choose Windows 11 Pro with Dell Premium support.

 

[jdclifford]

“Apes”? Really?

Look it up. It means to copy. Sounds funny but not referring to the animals. MacRumors should have chosen its words more wisely.