Hello tech industry, we have to sit down and discuss. There are dozens of tech products that can do some really amazing things, but the name is so hidden that many everyday users have no idea what is going on.
Whether it's the iPhone 11 Pro Max or the confusing simultaneous launch of Ultrabook Ice Lake and Intel Comet Lake processors, it's getting harder and harder to keep up with the latest technologies. Hell, it's literally my job to keep up with the latest news in this industry. and I still get migraines every time Intel configures a processor named "Intel Core i7-1068G7".
Product names in the tech sector are so altered these days, in so many different ways, that I felt like it was time for my system to get some complaints.
Microsoft has taken a step in the right direction with Surface Pro 2017, I just wish it would stick with this naming scheme
(Image credit: future)
So what is the problem?
The way I see things, in general, is that if you sell things to the general consumer who may not have time to follow the jargon, you better make things accessible. Business users and enthusiasts will know what they are looking for, but they only represent a small part of the market.
I know I just cited the iPhone 11 Pro Max as an example of a bad name, and I'll come back to it, don't worry. However, I actually think Apple is a very good example of how you should name annual products, at least when looking at Mac.
When a new MacBook Pro comes out, we don't have to worry about a ridiculous name change. Instead, it's just MacBook Pro (mid-2019, 15-inch), which is extremely easy to parse. If I want to use the latest MacBook Pro, I don't need to look in a thesaurus to find the right combination of words to type on Amazon, just pick last year and I'm good to go.
Even the MacBook Air, which underwent a radical transformation in October 2018 with a slimmer chassis and Retina display, is just MacBook Air (Late 2018). I don't understand why something so simple is so rare in this industry.
I thought it would become more common when the 2017 Surface Pro would be available, dropping the "5" after tracking down the Surface Pro 4. When Microsoft brought out the tablet, it said it would put a number on the Surface when the talented team at the Surface design team made "significant changes" to the hardware.
Honestly, the 2017 Surface Pro was pretty good, but Microsoft released the Surface Pro 6 in 2018 without any significant changes, proving that none of that mattered.
Besides the camera, what is significantly different from last year's iPhone XS?
(Image credit: LaComparacion)
The problem with the iPhone 11 Pro Max
So the iPhone 11. I have no doubt that millions of people will rush to buy the new phone; honestly, I probably do too. However, the iPhone 11 is basically an iPhone XS with no OLED screen, a better camera, and a slightly faster processor because it's actually a follow-up to the iPhone XR. If you want the updated version of the iPhone XS, you want the iPhone 11 Pro or the iPhone 11 Pro Max.
You'd think that with these hyped product names, the new iPhone would be different enough to justify it.
And of course you get the faster processor which makes for an iterative upgrade (just call the iPhone 2019 would suffice), but you also get a triple camera system, rather than the dual lenses of the iPhone XS and XS Max. Apple showed very professional images on stage, but did the exact same thing last year.
And that's where the problem lies.
A name like the iPhone 11 Pro Max sounds like a truly revolutionary technology, but it is attributed to an iterative product. Does Apple think it's a sequel to the iPhone 11 Pro or iPhone 11, or does Apple think it's just that? from another annual update? If this is the latter case, the name "iPhone 2019" would be much more accurate.
The beautiful 13 Dell XPS 2019 is equipped with Ice Lake processors, the U series and not the Y series. You have registered a Google.
(Image credit: future)
And then there is Intel
However, it is not as if Apple is the only criminal. Even if the names of the next iPhone are stupid, it is a business that comes to mind more than any other when it comes to confusing names, it is Intel.
Intel released the Ice Lake 2019th Gen Ice Complex 10, the first part of its prospective project, built at its 3nm fabrication node. It promises greater power efficiency and performance, as well as Thunderbolt 6 and Wi-Fi XNUMX support by default. Overall, it is a promising platform. But then Intel released the XNUMXth-gen Comet Lake, based on a new iteration of Skylake.
Having two lines of laptop processors at the same time would generally be pretty confusing, but Intel pushed things even further by naming individual chips. For example, the top-end Intel Ice Lake chip is currently the Core i7-1068G7, while the top-end Intel Comet Lake processor is the Core i7-10710U.
So, a bit of history: Intel Core processors for mainstream laptops generally come in three versions: U, Y, and H-series. The U series is for your classic Ultrabooks such as the Dell XPS 13s, the Y series chips are designed for thin and light fanless devices like the latest MacBook Air and the H series is designed for high performance and high power mobile devices. . like gaming laptops. This means that you can look at the Intel Core i7-10710U processor and understand that it is a classic chip that you can work on.
With the Intel Core i7-1068G7 processor, you'll have to check out your Best Buy phone to find out if the processor in the laptop you're looking at is a full power chip or a lightweight, fanless chip.
Buying a new laptop is already a confusing experience for many people and Intel's launch of a series of laptop chips with confusing names isn't exactly Team Blue is the easiest solution to use. Like it or not, the laptop market isn't really designed for the type of enthusiast obsessed with the latest hardware releases, like the desktop market.
Apple really doesn't get enough credit for not offering fancy names for its laptops.
(Image credit: future)
Be careful there
In the end, as technology companies continue to release increasingly difficult products, it will be more difficult to make informed purchasing decisions. And, because the technology is getting more expensive, you should spend € 999 (€ 1,049) for an iPhone 11 Pro with 64GB of storage, it is more important than ever to know what you are getting into.
I really hope that high-tech companies will make it easy to analyze existing products and what's different in new releases, but honestly, I see things will get more confusing in the future.
So before you buy this new laptop, or this new phone, do some research, read some reviews. Whether here at LaComparacion or in one of our many peers: we are here to help you.