(
Fortune magazine)
-Man, I got a VPR matrix!
Like Dell, the possibility of this popular phrase sweeping across the country is almost zero.
But in my case, this is true: I bought a small-
A well-known personal computer produced by a subsidiary of Electronic retailer Best Buy.
The information I received may have a significant impact on Dell.
It turns out that Austin Stonehenge does have a strong competitor;
They are just not the ones who have been fighting for the past decade.
In the past few years, every computer I bought for my home was a Dell computer.
I am not getting better service because I am a big customer;
I bought three computers from Dell in 30 months.
But like millions of other computer users, I'm used to trying out Dell first.
However, I broke out at Christmas shopping this year.
I bought a computer from Dell. -
A gift for my sister. in-law's family--
Went out twice again.
The most interesting thing is how these experiences are different: they made me wonder for the first time if Dell actually met an opponent.
Let's start with the worst experience: buy from Dell's longtime competitor Compaq, who is certainly part of HP.
Dear reader, I am planning to buy a tablet so that I can find out for you whether this Microsoft creation is really a harbinger of computing the future or just another pig in one poke. (
By the way, one of my portfolio companies is a software partner in the tablet field. )
Instead, I find HP is better at marketing these machines than delivering them.
I can write a whole list of articles about HP, a gang that can't shoot directly.
It can be said that although HP bought a lot of ads to promote tablets, it could not even accurately predict the delivery of tablets.
Christmas is coming and going again, then New Year, my machine is not yet available.
So HP is still behind Dell;
This is not a big surprise.
What really makes me think is my next two purchases.
Dell PC is exactly what you expect: very reasonable price, custom
With fast processors, gigabytes of disk space and memory, beautiful videos and like the entire Wi-
All Fi networks are installed.
Total cost: $2,200. (My big, now-
30 months ago, the old home computer sold for more than $4,000. )
Dell shipped within a few days of receiving my order.
Everything is direct. up.
One of my friends told me about the VPR matrix, which Best Buy started in 2001.
Retailers have long tried to sell generic computers without brands, but have not succeeded.
Brands are important even for goods.
Best Buy is trying to build its own brand through features, services and prices and use more than 500 of its stores as a service and repair center.
Despite my skepticism, I decided to give it a try because I had a bad experience shopping for computers and other products at Best Buy.
But VPR matrix personnel must be trained from different manuals.
The machine is easy to order--
The only difficulty in buying my FT9100-
PE is remembering this clumsy name.
The computer itself is better and better than my sister. in-law's new Dell.
This is a driving force--
I paid $1,900 for one of the fastest Intel processors and two 100-
Although there is no display, gigabit hard disk (
I already have one).
Very few computers with such prices even have a drive close to the drive in the VPR matrix.
The best thing to say is that it should take more than two years for this computer to start feeling old and slow!
Design is also innovative.
Personal computers are personal computers, right?
Because consumers have little personalized expectations of their machines, Dell is no longer focused on the purchase process, but on the distinction between products.
But the VPR matrix draws on Apple and Dell strategically.
There's a black corner outside the machine. and-
Silver box produced by Austrian Porsche design company. (F. A.
Porsche, the founder of the design company, is also the 911--
Sold separately. )
Even better inside.
These two huge disk drives are configured in so-called RAID, which is the acronym for the "independent disk redundant array.
"Raid manages multiple hard drives as if they were a very large disk and companies use them to squeeze higher performance out of the server.
What VPR does is to redesign enterprise technology for the benefit of consumers;
Multiple disks in RAID perform much faster than a single larger disk provided by Dell.
The most important thing is that the VPR machine is getting better service.
Considering my painful experience trying to get what I want from underage, sick people, this is a very amazing part
The shop assistant of Best Buy is well-informed and not very pleasant.
When I order a VPR matrix computer from Best Buy.
Com, a very pleasant woman called in an hour to confirm the details and provide shipping information.
She gave me full confidence that Best Buy would deliver the right system to the right place as promised ---and it did.
Two weeks before Christmas.
I will be the first to say that you need to be careful to draw a comprehensive conclusion from an experience.
Best Buy is the same retailer for the past 30 yearsplus years.
Shopping in the store is still a frustrating experience.
However, the company has shown that it can build and ship computers directly to its customers.
It has figured out how to outsource design and manufacturing without having to share the profit with the brand manufacturer.
Most importantly, it managed to do it without creating a harsh catch phrase.
Stewart Alsop is a partner at New Enterprise Associates, a venture capital firm.
Apart from the above, neither he nor his partnership has a financial interest in the said company.
E-can contact him.
Mail at alsp _ infotech @ fortunemail. com.
His column can be bookmarked online on www. fortune.
Com/technology/alsop.