I’ve been asked in interviews about the qualifications of a “niche device” and that term has also been mentioned and debated here several times like the iPad, Viliv, the MacBook Air. But what’s all the debate about niche products anyway?
There are so many ways to define a niche device but generally we look at it from the perspective that a niche device it is primarily for a specific target market or having a distinct appeal to a small fraction of a market.
Normally, tt’s easy to identify niche products as they exhibit rare characteristics and usually comes with superlatives — super expensive, super fast, extra large, super-powerful. Take for example that diamond encrusted iPhone 3GS or the Intel Core i7 980X Extreme Edition.
But some times, the lines are blurred. I think, devices like the Modu phone, the Viliv X70, the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and the Apple iPad falls under that category. These niche products are often too close to the borderline that a lot of people forget it’s not for everyone.
So, how do we determine if a certain niche product is targeted to you? I think 99% of the time, it’s all about the economics — if you can’t afford it, then most probably it’s not for you. That’s why there are first class seats and there’s economy.
Take for example the Viliv X70 or the Apple iPad. We’ll use the 6-way test:
- Do you own a desktop?
- Do you own a laptop?
- Do you own a netbook?
- Do you own a smartphone?
- Do you own an iPod Touch?
- Do you want something else?
If you said yes to all 6 of these questions, then it’s highly likely that you’re the target market of this niche products.
The last question is critical because of two important words/phrases — “something else” and “want”. The “something else” refers to the item that you do not have on top of the half a dozen you already own. The “want” refers to a specific appeal of a product, not a “need”.
I have a friend who does travel and culinary tours and charges 3 times more expensive than the regular tours being offered by most other travel agencies. Yet, his tours are always fully booked. He say’s it is all about the niche market — some people are willing to pay extra for the experience, not because they need to but because they want to. I agree.
you can always buy sports apparels online, you just need to choose your supplier carefully :,~
Got 5/6 yes. Dont have a smartphone yet.
-Sent via YugaTech Mobile App
will the iPad blends? it sure did hehe, this is for the haters out there :)
http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/05/will-it-blend-ipad-edition/
this whole niche devices have filled almost but not all the comments with Apple iPad’s haters and lover’s sentiments…
why the hell do people despise something like that?
Apple will answer it for you – here is what they have to say:
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“As for everything else, it’s not about the features — it’s about the experience. You just have to try it to see what i mean.”
-Phil Schiller (iPad)
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“In many ways, it’s the things that are not there that we are most proud of.”
-Jon Ive (iPad)
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>> what do you think Jon Ive means by this..didnt understand? hehe :)
..respect to Apple if they can sell a product that no one has ever managed to sell well before, and respect to them if they can make it work well…said by some apple fanboy haha
i look at the other side and i see joojoo tablet (currently the iPad competitor that already out in the Market) being reviewed by the tech guy from Engadget and their verdicts says this:
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Wrap-up
There are just so many things we wish Fusion Garage did differently with the JooJoo. Even putting aside the fact that Apple’s $499 iPad brings more to the table than just web browsing, the JooJoo is less portable, has a worse (if larger) screen, is unintuitive to use, and ships with half-baked software. We commend the start-up on its nice piece of hardware design, but until the software is given some much-needed love and the price is seriously reevaluated we simply cannot recommend this tablet. To add insult to injury, Apple’s entry level iPad provides a much more seamless and feature-packed experience, and there are plenty of $199-ish ARM-based tablets just around the corner. We told you it was terrible timing. The one shining light we can see is that Fusion Garage has actually managed to finish and build this thing, which is a lot more than can be said for the dozens of ARM / Tegra / Fairy dust-powered, Android / Linux / CE-based tablet prototypes we’ve seen in the wild.
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1-0 in favor of Apple iPad
next competitors please… :)
damn test
@zaxx it is just my opinion. that’s why sir abe titled it with a ? mark.
obviously sir abe would review that iPad as soon as he received it. i know that people needs an iPad to supply their necessities, but we should look at the other side.let’s be efficient during these days and that’s what steve jobs is not doing and teaching to americans.it is like “hey Apple fans here I am again but this super cool steve jobs gadget, and forget ur macbooks, ipod touch, iphones, netbooks or desktops”.
@Bogcess: hehehe oo nga.
@illusionado: I dunno if that video is fake. I do want to comment about how they swing the bat. They swing like girls! Parang nanghihinayang silang wasakin yung iPad. LMAO!
illusionado, masyado ka nmang bitter, nuh ba ginawa sau ni steve jobs? ginulpi ka ba? and pls dont judge people who own niche devices or products..hindi nman sila puro yabang lang, malay mu naman swak talaga sa pangangailangan nila ung device na yun..even sir abe himself owns some niche devices..kaya nga niche eh..not for everyone..target nito ung mga taong may pangangailangan sa special or distinct features ng isang produkto na ino-offer. pero hindi nman kailangang maging expensive, but ofcourse, mas madalas expensive ito.
It has something to do with personal taste more than economic facts. Some people just get to “like” a certain product and decided he/she should have one. If it happened to be expensive, well we can always save for it. But it should not be an obsession, either.
A line has to be drawn somewhere especially on “nice to haves but not really a must have product”. That’s a good one, @superdan.
hmmm.. that’a a tough one sir abe. but i think what defines a niche product is the capabilities of the said product. i think the 6 way question is a great way to look at it. i think a product can be considered niche if you can already find the functionalities in other products and that usually the product in question has a ridiculous high price. take for example the ipad. it’s not something new, and cheaper alternatives can be found elsewhere and its price is really incomparable to what it does. also, niche products can be considered nice to haves but not really a must have product. :)
Niche products/services are for smart entrepreneurs to take advantage of.
niching is just to get a certain maket because you can’t compete with others or with everybody, or just like the teknisyan said to capture a new market. just like what vans did, they can’t compete with nike or adidas when it comes to shoes or sports apparel so they concentrated on the skateboarders making them number one on that market.it doesnt need to have a rare characteristic or a superlative, just something that will suit a certain markets need. being uber expensive for a device is just another characteristic that will suit the needs of a certain market like the rich and famous.its all about marketing
One distinct thing I found on iPad.
Watch this vid http://bit.ly/b9PDw2
Smashed by the homeless guy who can buy pairs of iPads for their girls and for their hobbies.
For me iPad sucks and it’s not niche product. It is just a lame product from Steve Jobs when-I-say-jump-you!-jump. iPad is not distinct on USA as people want some xtra large iPod touch so they buy it.
And price is not a recipe on being a niche product. We also have a N900 that can control a helicopter, an iPhone that can control a car. I mean is both devices are not just popular, they have both some distinct features.
I can’t see any disctinct features on the iPad even its price is just normal and equal to FOUR iPod touch. Even your rich enough it is better to spend your money learning what is flash, silverlight, camera, windows office, or in total be efficient and productive.
People are cool when they have iPad and sorry for those who can’t have.
For me, a niche device is more like a novelty item. I do agree with Paula that it does not have to be expensive or cutting edge.
By “novelty” I mean it is still functional, but there are other devices that may do the same thing (even better).
However, there is nothing wrong with these niche devices. It is all about having the resources (money). If I had the money to spend, and a certain niche gadget suits my fancy, I would buy it, maybe even if I won’t use it much.
Of course the iPad is a good example. There has been a lot of buzz lately. It does a lot of things you could normally do with your smartphone, desktop PC, or your laptop/netbook. Some people may need it, some people won’t. But I bet even critics would be glad if they were given one anyway. I personally don’t like the iPad for many reasons, but I admit, it does open a new market in mobile computing and media/content creation and consumption.
it doesn’t need to be expensive to be classified as a Niche device, Anything on the market have its own demographic and target market thus basically that’s niche, A certain market for a product.
I personally don’t agree with how some people label devices “niche”.
hey..first one here!! :)
Anyhow… about your question… niche product for me.. is all about going and capturing certain market where no one else dare to go. A very good example of this is your blog. Yes, people commenting on your blog have their own tech blog, I myself have my own, so does a dozen of people reading your blog. But the Yugatech is a niche because it focus mainly on the tech news, gadgets and “whatever” IT in the Philippines. Other have niche for cellphones or mobile gadgets only.
Another good example is the apple ipad, they are creating a niche that is not there yet. For now we may not know that that niche is but once they let the monkey out of the cage, we’ll know what it is. Be it for gaming, a new way to read newspapers or magazine, watch videos or even communicate, just imagine a 2nd or 3rd gen of ipad with camera, good speaker and a mic.
So we can say that a niche device is a device that was created to capture certain market or create a martket like no other device can.
Salesforce and linux is. These are niche products, they’re not for everyone but its for you. You will know how important it is.
I do hope I made mysel clear… that’s what you get when blogging without sleep!