On the occasion of CES 2025, Dell is making a major change in its marketing strategy by abandoning its historic brands in favor of a nomenclature directly inspired by Apple. A shift that is sure to provoke a reaction from the tech industry, as the manufacturer seeks to revitalize its PC sales.
A simplification that is debated
Dell says goodbye to its iconic ranges like XPS, Inspiron and Latitude to adopt a new classification into three categories: Dell, Dell Pro and Dell Pro Max. A nomenclature which is strangely reminiscent of that used by Apple for its iPhones since 2019. During the press presentation ahead of CES 2025, the journalists did not fail to note this similarity, putting Dell managers in the spotlight. ’embarrassment.
Jeff Clarke, Dell’s COO, defends this choice by explaining that “customers prefer names that are easy to remember and pronounce” and that they should not have to “decipher our sometimes confusing nomenclature”. Michael Dell himself claims that this decision is based on studies carried out with “tens of thousands of customers”.
A paradoxical complexity
Ironically, while Dell advocates simplification, the new system turns out to be particularly complex. Each of the three main ranges (Dell, Dell Pro and Dell Pro Max) is divided into three subcategories: Base, Plus and Premium. The situation becomes almost absurd with names like “Dell Pro Max Micro Plus” for some desktop PCs.
The specialized media Engadget is mocking regarding this new nomenclature:
“Dell Pro Max” seems clear enough, but when trying to compare the “Pro Max Plus” and “Pro Max Premium” devices, all logic is lost. We have moved out of the orbit of normal consumers and into that of the overpaid consultants who probably suggested this name change. Doesn’t “Max” already mean “the best”?
The situation gets even more hilarious when we look at the company’s desktops: later this year, we can expect to see the “Dell Pro Max Slim” and the “Dell Pro Max Micro.” Max Micro! What are we doing here?! (And yes, you can expect these machines to have their own “plus” and “premium” sub-brands.)
The disappearance of the XPS brand, Dell’s premium reference for more than a decade, is particularly worrying. As Engadget’s Sam Rutherford points out: “XPS was already Dell’s way of signaling that a device was premium, so replacing it with a generic word seems like a step in the wrong direction.” There is no “Plus”, “mini” or Studio range yet but who knows, it could happen. In any case, we know where Dell draws its inspiration.
This overhaul is part of a broader strategy aimed at relaunching the PC market, in particular by focusing on artificial intelligence. The new Dell devices will integrate neural processors optimized for AI tasks, a feature already found on the latest Macs equipped with Apple Silicon chips.
