Capitalizing on fashion

Apple is capitalizing on the past commoditization to value style and special features, despite the recent verbal attack by Dell's CEO against the iPod and Mac mini. BusinessWeek says that "Rollins' comments are more than uncharacteristic. They're troubling -- and not just for their snippiness. They raise real questions about how well Dell understands the home market.... Popular consumer products [...] tend to evolve through three phases. They start out as luxury goods, expensive to produce and pitched to a small, elite market. Then, as maturing technologies and economies of scale drive down manufacturing costs, they become mass-market commodities. Finally, once they're established as affordable necessities, consumers start looking beyond the price tag for distinctive designs and features. Form begins to trump function."

by MacNN Staff