Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

FAHMI BASSEM

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Twitter if filled with apple stuff before during and after its events, apple related hashtags are at the most popular on twitter (more than 5 #)!!!
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fatclue_98

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Cool isn't necessary. The Toyota Camry is as antiseptic as cars get, yet they're consistently in the top 5 in sales. Year after year. Number 1 since the mid 70s is America's toolbox, the Ford F-series.
 

anon(50597)

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Re: Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

Cool isn't necessary. The Toyota Camry is as antiseptic as cars get, yet they're consistently in the top 5 in sales. Year after year. Number 1 since the mid 70s is America's toolbox, the Ford F-series.

Camry's are pretty cool. What makes them cool is they're reliable. 5/5 from U.S. news. People keep buying them.

Sent from mTalk on my SP4
 

dgrn23

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It IS possible, but not likely the way MS Markets their stuff. And Apple stuff is only cool for the folks who insist on Apple only...IMHO

I agree. MS needs a marketing maverick to expand their presence in the consumer space. They have a wonderful family of products with the Surface line - it competes in price (in comparison to Apple and not to mention the extremely price competitive devices manufacturers are creating) and in style/design.

MS is trying to master one OS for all, and it will be an arduous road to master marketing to enterprise and consumer buyers. They're such PC (of old) when it comes to consumer marketing. They definitely need that Apple flair in that regard.

Idk why, but I'm optimistic that they can do it.
 

fatclue_98

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Re: Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

Camry's are pretty cool. What makes them cool is they're reliable. 5/5 from U.S. news. People keep buying them.

Sent from mTalk on my SP4
We're older, reliable appeals to us. How many hipsters read U.S. News?
 

anon(1762522)

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Re: Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

What I like: Windows 10 and Surface hardware. What I don't like: Win10 apps (super-ugly, slow). I use an Android phone and Chrome browser, so it would be hard to pull me into the Office ecosystem, which I otherwise like. To me, Apple is only barely winning now on hardware, which is a big win for Microsoft. But Apple is still winning a bit on software. Mac OS and apps are prettier and often more functional for specialized uses. Microsoft phones seem to be pretty good, but I use a Pixel because I'm on Google apps. Apple iOS has some great apps, but Android is better for me. So Microsoft is definitely getting cooler and nipping at Apple's heels with its hardware and Windows 10.
 

Biff Henderson

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Re: Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

Its all about marketing. Marketing determines how the public perceives. Microsoft is absolutely terrible at marketing. It is the root cause of most of their problems.
Is Microsoft cool when compared to IBM? Although they are going strong and doing fine, do we even hear of IBM anymore? Certainly not at the consumer level.
Microsoft has to do something revolutionary to change the perception. Or, create 100% new branding through new companies that do not have the Microsoft name.
 

Ben Wolgus

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Re: Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

Apple is cool because it's business is focused on the consumer. Microsoft is not going to get the same sort of Twitter action when it's business isn't as focused on the consumer as Apple. Microsoft is all about business for the most part with consumers coming in second. Microsoft has made strides to really please the consumer. I wouldn't exchange my SP4, or my Surface Studio for any product made be Apple.
 

uburz

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Re: Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

Very unlikely, but not impossible. For a simple reason: its name (brand). "Microsoft" is almost unpronounceable in certain languages, and even when it is, it's up to 5 or 6 syllables, and lacks appeal. But who knows, things may change...
 

Kieran Jeffery

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Not all the time it's called "Microsoft". Like Apple ditched "Macintosh", Ms needs a cool name. They need a name that sounds more natural with softer constants. Just from a psychological point of view. Microsoft feels synonymous with offices and people with suits on labouring through the day, whereas Apple has more of a feeling of the outdoors, coffee shops and cafés, wine bars, people in jeans and a sweatshirt. Apple just has that personal, family and friends vibe, rather than the colleagues and co-worker vibe of MS. MS is the labouring employee, Apple is the upper management having meetings on the golf course. Microsoft is bringing your work home, where Apple is working the way you want, when you want. Plus you say Microsoft to someone like my grandparents, it immediately sounds like whatever it is will be complicated and you need a degree to operate it, whereas Google or Apple just ooze simplicity and ease of use.

I believe it's the biggest thing holding MS back. The need to rebrand, or spilt off with a consumer division. Separate Windows for the home with Windows for the work place. The only things cool about MS are the things where Microsoft isn't really there in the name, like Xbox and Groove. It's like if theres a guy down the road with the name Hitler or Ghengis, could be the nicest guy in the world, but if you find out his name before you meet him, you're going to be hard pressed to not have a slight presumption that they are a little evil.

Although things are slowly turning around for MS, there's still the preconception from hearing the name. They could reinvent themselves and remove all of that instantly with a simple name change or seemingly separate new consumer division.
 

Rhody#WP

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I'm assuming "cool" is being used as a synonym for "popular." A person who is truly cool doesn't care what smart phone he or she uses. In fact, I bet the most interesting man in the world doesn't even have a smart phone.

Apple products may be considered cool because they are popular, and they are popular because they give people just what they want and nothing more. Being at the forefront does not lead to coolness. Hanging back and waiting to see what flops and what might last is what makes Apple products "cool."

It's all about marketing, not the most up-to-date tech.
"I had wireless charging on my Palm Pre back in 2009."
"Whatever, nerd!"

I think Microsoft must find a way to become ubiquitous. Maybe it's a way to blow apart the walled-garden app stores. Maybe it's AI and cognitive systems. Maybe it's a cool new ad campaign.

What Microsoft is probably doing is moving away from mobile altogether and concentrating on services. Someone mentioned IBM as not being cool. Well, they have been out of the consumer market for a long time, never were really in it anyway. They are getting out of hardware altogether and focusing on cloud and cognitive systems. IBM is almost an entirely cloud software company now. Smart companies see the writing on the wall and evolve. Microsoft is letting you down easy while they slip out the back door of the mobile phone market.
 

dov1978

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I'm assuming "cool" is being used as a synonym for "popular." A person who is truly cool doesn't care what smart phone he or she uses. In fact, I bet the most interesting man in the world doesn't even have a smart phone.

Apple products may be considered cool because they are popular, and they are popular because they give people just what they want and nothing more. Being at the forefront does not lead to coolness. Hanging back and waiting to see what flops and what might last is what makes Apple products "cool."

It's all about marketing, not the most up-to-date tech.
"I had wireless charging on my Palm Pre back in 2009."
"Whatever, nerd!"

I think Microsoft must find a way to become ubiquitous. Maybe it's a way to blow apart the walled-garden app stores. Maybe it's AI and cognitive systems. Maybe it's a cool new ad campaign.

What Microsoft is probably doing is moving away from mobile altogether and concentrating on services. Someone mentioned IBM as not being cool. Well, they have been out of the consumer market for a long time, never were really in it anyway. They are getting out of hardware altogether and focusing on cloud and cognitive systems. IBM is almost an entirely cloud software company now. Smart companies see the writing on the wall and evolve. Microsoft is letting you down easy while they slip out the back door of the mobile phone market.


Nope, I think it's quite clear from the past weeks news that Microsoft most definitely aren't moving away from mobile altogether...at least not yet anyway
 

Sean Russell1

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Microsoft focuses too much on style. All of the functionality everyone has been asking for on Windows 10 Apple seems to have up and running in a smaller amount of time. The clipboard functionality being the first thing to come to mind. "Drag And Drop" is another. The Start Screen is a disaster. There still isn't much consistency on the platform. Even if there is consistency, there are apps with a unmanageable layout.
 

kevinmccarthy

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I hate to say this but I've felt for a long time that the single biggest problem is the name.

Microsoft should seriously consider pulling a Google/Alphabet (in their own way): Microsoft Inc becomes an umbrella corporation; create Windows Inc for the OS developments; create Surface Inc for hardware development; Xbox Inc for gaming; Office Inc for enterprise software; and so on.

I believe restructuring in that way, while costly and cumbersome, would go a long way for the company in shifting it's perception. Making smaller, more agile companies under the Microsoft umbrella could possibly accelerate the trajectory they're currently on.
 

Chintan Gohel

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I hate to say this but I've felt for a long time that the single biggest problem is the name.

Microsoft should seriously consider pulling a Google/Alphabet (in their own way): Microsoft Inc becomes an umbrella corporation; create Windows Inc for the OS developments; create Surface Inc for hardware development; Xbox Inc for gaming; Office Inc for enterprise software; and so on.

I believe restructuring in that way, while costly and cumbersome, would go a long way for the company in shifting it's perception. Making smaller, more agile companies under the Microsoft umbrella could possibly accelerate the trajectory they're currently on.

That actually would be counter to theior current direction where they have been trying to get the different departments working with each other in a more cohesive manner - there have been several reports of where the different departments work better and with a greater understanding of the end goals - splitting them up would take away all that cohesiveness
 

nufailshabandri

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Re: Do you think MS will ever have the same "Cool Factor" as apple has today?

I think MS have already reached or overtaken in PC level with the likes of Surface Studio, Surface Pro etc. But in order to dominate the market they should also give more importance to mobile platform so that consumers can adapt similar Operating System environment. I think a Surface Phone or Surface Mobile adhering to the tag "For Creators" will be cool.
 

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