Dell for Wimmins

liah

Seifer wrote: »

Honestly, it's not.


Just going to ignore the fact I wrote "from Alienware's point of view" after it?
We're not talking about all of gaming i.e. handhelds and wiis, just about people that into are pc gaming enough they are willing to commit €1000+


All I'm saying is Dell are playing the numbers. They're not stupid and will have done research into whether there is a market for this kind of site.
Despite the fact that there are men who will buy a computer based on how it looks, most men still like to look at the numbers and buy the bigger ones, even if they have no idea what they refer to.

Um, honestly, it is-- I've been apart of the competitive gaming scene (FPS only) since the early 00's. There's a lot more girls out there than we let on, we just don't tend to make ourselves known because men are obsessed with treating us like dirt in the game, it gets very old very quick so we just stay quiet. There's a lot more of us out there than you'd imagine. I know hundreds.

I didn't ignore the fact that you said it was the alienware point of view, I'm saying they're outdated, it wasn't directed at you specifically, and to them, it's not an excuse.

Seifer

liah wrote: »

Um, honestly, it is-- I've been apart of the competitive gaming scene (FPS only) since the early 00's. There's a lot more girls out there than we let on, we just don't tend to make ourselves known because men are obsessed with treating us like dirt in the game, it gets very old very quick so we just stay quiet. There's a lot more of us out there than you'd imagine. I know hundreds.

30-35%?
So in a CS mix or CoD4 match there are 3 girls playing on average?

liah

Seifer wrote: »

30-35%?
So in a CS mix or CoD4 match there are 3 girls playing on average?

I'd say so, yes, if you average it out. Obviously there's going to be teams with no girls, teams with all girls, and teams with a fair balance. But if you take it down to averages, about 30-35% is fairly accurate, from what I've found playing as a female.

Note that I'm also including pubs and pcws in this.

Melange

JC 2K3 wrote: »

But fashion isn't gender neutral.... If there's not enough of a market for laptops as male fashion accessories, then Dell shouldn't be obligated to market laptops towards men like this.

Ok, what I'm ultimately trying to get across here is that instead of there being a women's section in which technical considerations are completely glossed over in favour of fashion and appearance, there ought to be a fashion section instead. The laptops in the fashion section may indeed be primarily marketed towards women, but at least this way there isn't the insult of the present arrangement, in which it is implied that aesthetics are the only concern of women when they're purchasing a laptop.

rainbow kirby

There's only one thing I can say to this: *facepalm*

I find it incredibly patronising and sexist, that's being honest. It's an incredibly unfair assumption to make that women are only interested in things that look pretty, and don't care about function.

jam_mac_jam

I honestly thought this was a very clever joke when I first saw, it how completely patronising, this would completly put me off buying a Dell, I am clearly not their target market, do i wish to buy a computer from somebody that likes customers who havent a clue, the tech tips is comical.

Gyalist

It's evident that Boards has a very tech-savvy female contingent. However, the vast majority of women are not and don't want to be. All they want is something that looks pretty and works straight out of the box.

jam_mac_jam

Gyalist wrote: »

It's evident that Boards has a very tech-savvy female contingent. However, the vast majority of women are not and don't want to be. All they want is something that looks pretty and works straight out of the box.

Jesus, are you from the 70's? There are plenty of men who are not very tech savvy either.

liah

Gyalist wrote: »

It's evident that Boards has a very tech-savvy female contingent. However, the vast majority of women are not and don't want to be. All they want is something that looks pretty and works straight out of the box.

And most men are the same way... They want something that looks cool and works straight out of the box. Which is why this is annoying.

iDontReallyCare

"Marketing department targets specific demographic...SHOCKER!!!!"

There is little going on in peoples heads if this is an issue.

Melange

iDontReallyCare wrote: »

"Marketing department targets specific demographic...SHOCKER!!!!"

There is little going on in peoples heads if this is an issue.

And there's little going on in yours if you can't recognise the significance of the content of "Della".

MadgeBadge

Yeah, it's patronising, and hugely sexist, but also very amusing. Kind of like when Granny says something politically incorrect, you've got to laugh it off.

Dave147

liah wrote: »

I'd say so, yes, if you average it out. Obviously there's going to be teams with no girls, teams with all girls, and teams with a fair balance. But if you take it down to averages, about 30-35% is fairly accurate, from what I've found playing as a female.

Note that I'm also including pubs and pcws in this.

I don't like telling people they're wrong, and I mean no offence, but... you're wrong :P

I've been playing counterstrike since about 1999. Started in Internet Cafe LAN's with beta 7 or something, and have played every version since up to source. I would often interact with other gamers, and if I met 10 female players in all those years it would be alot. Men far outnumber females in competitive gaming, fair play to the girls that are involved I think it's great but there's only ever going to be a small percentage.

Disclaimer: I'm referring to PC Multiplayer gaming, I don't consider Wii, Nintendo DS, The Sims or any of the like 'Gaming'.

jam_mac_jam

iDontReallyCare wrote: »

"Marketing department targets specific demographic...SHOCKER!!!!"

Fairly shockingly bad marketing department if they think a whole gender buys alike.

liah

Dave147 wrote: »

I don't like telling people they're wrong, and I mean no offence, but... you're wrong :P

I've been playing counterstrike since about 1999. Started in Internet Cafe LAN's with beta 7 or something, and have played every version since up to source. I would often interact with other gamers, and if I met 10 female players in all those years it would be alot. Men far outnumber females in competitive gaming, fair play to the girls that are involved I think it's great but there's only ever going to be a small percentage.

Disclaimer: I'm referring to PC Multiplayer gaming, I don't consider Wii, Nintendo DS, The Sims or any of the like 'Gaming'.

I only play PC multiplayer, so I'm coming from the same ballgame. I played CS, DoD, CoD, etc. There's a lot more girls than let on. I'm not wrong, you're just evidently blind. That or it's a whole lot different in North America, because that's where I played up until the last year or so.

iDontReallyCare

Melange wrote: »

And there's little going on in yours if you can't recognise the significance of the content of "Della".

I do see what they are doing.

That's why I posted what I posted.

jam_mac_jam wrote: »

Fairly shockingly bad marketing department if they think a whole gender buys alike.

Ok So you think they think a whole gender buys like that? Go you.

I'd imagine they realise the whole gender does not buy like that but there is a revenue to be had from the campaign. Like you know, some do?

Dave147

liah wrote: »

I only play PC multiplayer, so I'm coming from the same ballgame. I played CS, DoD, CoD, etc. There's a lot more girls than let on. I'm not wrong, you're just evidently blind. That or it's a whole lot different in North America, because that's where I played up until the last year or so.

Maybe there's more than let on, I think it's great that girls would be competing with the more dominant males in the likes of Online gaming, especially FPS' because that's where it's at. But your percentages are way off the mark, if 10% of players were female that's alot of female gamers. 10% would be a substantial number of people, but 30-35% is grossly overstated - even in America.

Liah, I challenge you to 1v1 on aim_map CS 1.6 or earlier. I bet I'd pwn you! :P

liah

Dave147 wrote: »

Maybe there's more than let on, I think it's great that girls would be competing with the more dominant males in the likes of Online gaming, especially FPS' because that's where it's at. But your percentages are way off the mark, if 10% of players were female that's alot of female gamers. 10% would be a substantial number of people, but 30-35% is grossly overstated - even in America.

Liah, I challenge you to 1v1 on aim_map CS 1.6 or earlier. I bet I'd pwn you! :P

Still think you'd be greatly surprised, and my number isn't far off the mark.

Anyway, I prefer DoD 1.3 personally. But you probably would pwn me, I haven't touched any videogames in about seven or eight months, and even then I haven't played competitively in awhile other than to ring in scrims. Computer, while more than capable, is having an overheating issue due to lack of compound so until I can be bothered to get that fixed, gaming is out of the question for me.

Dave147

liah wrote: »

Still think you'd be greatly surprised, and my number isn't far off the mark.

Anyway, I prefer DoD 1.3 personally. But you probably would pwn me, I haven't touched any videogames in about seven or eight months, and even then I haven't played competitively in awhile other than to ring in scrims. Computer, while more than capable, is having an overheating issue due to lack of compound so until I can be bothered to get that fixed, gaming is out of the question for me.

Touche, my gaming machine is well outdated and I can't afford to buy something new. I'm not 16 anymore, and working 60+ hours a week doesn't afford me much time for gaming, however much I'd kill for a 5v5 gather on dust2! I have some absolutely fantastic memories of CS, never strayed to another game (except after Source came out).

Being an adult with responsibilities sucks!!!!

liah

Dave147 wrote: »

Being an adult with responsibilities sucks!!!!

You're preaching to the choir

Capt'n Midnight

At least they aren't offering Hello Kitty laptops, yet.

And Aldi managed to shift all their schwartsy crystal laptops so there must be a market

Gauge

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

At least they aren't offering Hello Kitty laptops, yet.

That's because epson got there first.

The_Conductor

Gauge wrote: »

That's because epson got there first.

Beat me to it

Morgase

I must say I'm surprised at the people who don't see anything wrong with what Dell have done here.

Can you not see how women can quite rightly feel insulted at their gender being portrayed as silly creatures only interested in having a computer that will fit in a handbag and match their clothes?

It only reinforces the stereotypes and makes it all the more difficult for women who are tech-savvy, or learning to be tech-savvy, to be taken seriously and seen as a fellow gamer / nerd first, and as a woman second.

On the gaming thing - I play WoW and in my raid group there are 2 women and 8 men. (Please no slaggings for not being able to get a 25man raid together!) 20% isn't a bad show I reckon.

JC 2K3

Morgase wrote: »

Can you not see how women can quite rightly feel insulted at their gender being portrayed as silly creatures only interested in having a computer that will fit in a handbag and match their clothes?

That's not what their doing.

You have to not look at it as an advertisement towards all women. It's an advertisement towards a certain demographic which includes young women with an interest in fashion and a few minor needs for a computer.

The way I see it, Dell markets its laptops towards tech savvy people and women with little interest in tech specs and are more interested in what it looks like.

If there's any discrimination by Dell, it's towards men who have no clue about the workings of computers and care more about what it looks like.

Except that there's no discrimination in marketing. Companies are free to aim their products towards whatever demographic they like.

Also, I'm sure that if laptops-as-fashion-accessories takes off with females, that Dell will expand and start to market them like this towards males also.

rainbow kirby

Morgase wrote: »

On the gaming thing - I play WoW and in my raid group there are 2 women and 8 men. (Please no slaggings for not being able to get a 25man raid together!) 20% isn't a bad show I reckon.

When I played WoW, my raiding guild had a similar breakdown gender-wise. I think there are more women who play MMOs than FPS games.

coffee_cake

Morgase wrote: »

On the gaming thing - I play WoW and in my raid group there are 2 women and 8 men. (Please no slaggings for not being able to get a 25man raid together!) 20% isn't a bad show I reckon.

I'd guess the server I was on was nearly half women. In my guild yeah there were a lot of lads, but I think all the healers were women including myself xD

Morgase

rainbow kirby wrote: »

I think there are more women who play MMOs than FPS games.

I'd say MMOs are more accessible than shooters for women who haven't played games before, might have something to do with it.

bluewolf wrote: »

I'd guess the server I was on was nearly half women. In my guild yeah there were a lot of lads, but I think all the healers were women including myself xD

Have to say I hate healing; tried it momentarily on my druid but went back to feral dps which I enjoy far more!

midlandsmissus

I looked at it and Ive no problem with it. Women want different things out of computers than men.

Its not like its saying 'Women! Even you stupid technophobes can now search for your favourite lipstick on your very own pink laptop!'

It looks fairly inoffensive to me.

Alot of things are targetted differently to men and women: chocolate for example.

JC 2K3

It's not even that women want different things out of computers to men, but rather that there's a market out there for fashionable laptops aimed at a certain type of woman.

The rest of the Dell website is aimed at people, not just men.