Dell mocked for naming laptop after iPhone

However, the company has faced criticism for hinting at dismantling its laptop sub-brands. At its CES 2025 press event, Dell was mocked for its product naming scheme similar to Apple's iPhone line, with new models called Dell, Dell Pro and Dell Pro Max.

CEO Jeff Clarke said the goal of the naming change was to simplify for consumers. He stressed that 'customers really like names that are easy to remember and pronounce', and that they shouldn't have to spend time learning product nomenclature. However, many consumers felt that this approach was not really simple, but instead made it difficult to differentiate between models.

Specifically, Dell is abandoning sub-brands like XPS and Inspiron, and will split its new products into three main lines: Dell, Dell Pro, and Dell Pro Max. While the company claims the new naming scheme will help reduce confusion, it's still difficult for users to choose between the Base, Plus, and Premium versions of each product line.

Some viewers at the launch quipped that Dell was copying Apple's iPhone branding, with one person asking: 'I wonder why you guys didn't go with something original, since it's basically Apple's branding here?'. This showed skepticism about the originality of Dell's branding strategy.

It's unclear at this point whether Apple will respond to this change, but Dell's new naming scheme has clearly caused quite a stir among consumers. Going further, the 'Air' and 'mini' monikers could also be inspiration for Dell to use in the future.

Samuel Daniel

Update 10 February 2025