(9 votes, average: 3.56 out of 5)
Loading ...For the last 15 years, I have routinely browsed the aisles of electronics stores and their circulars looking for cool technology, and to see how devices are marketed and merchandised. I was away from the office the last few weeks and got a chance to dig deep into North American back-to-school “Sunday Circulars,” where each retailer lists deals and special offers of the week. I took a close look how notebook battery life was explained in the circulars. What I found was interesting……
Week of 7-27-2009
|
Retailer |
Notebook Battery Life Listed? |
# Models (SKUs) with Battery Life Listed and Verbiage |
Battery Life Disclaimer |
|
A |
Yes |
7 SKUs- “up to X hours, mins” | “Battery life tested using MobileMark 2007. Battery life will vary depending on the product configuration, product model, applications loaded on the product; power management setting of the product, and the product features used by the customer. As with all batteries, the maximum capacity of this battery will decrease with time and usage.” |
|
B |
No |
None | None |
|
C |
No |
None | None |
|
D |
No |
None | None |
|
E |
Yes |
5 SKUs- “up to X hours, mins” | None |
|
F |
Inferred |
1 SKU- “X cell battery for longer performance” | None |
|
G |
Inferred |
1 SKU-“X cell lithium ion battery” | None |
Week of 8-3-2009
|
Retailer |
Notebook Battery Life Listed? |
# Models (SKUs)with Battery Life Listed and Verbiage |
Battery Life Disclaimer |
|
A |
Yes |
8 SKUs-” up to X hours, mins” | “Battery life tested using MobileMark 2007. Battery life will vary depending on the product configuration, product model, applications loaded on the product; power management setting of the product, and the product features used by the customer. As with all batteries, the maximum capacity of this battery will decrease with time and usage.” |
|
B |
No |
None | None |
|
C |
Yes |
1 SKU-”X+ hours battery life” | None |
|
D |
Yes |
5 SKU-“up to X hours, mins” | “Battery life will vary depending on the product configuration, product model, applications loaded on the product; power management setting of the product, and the product features used by the customer. As with all batteries, the maximum capacity of this battery will decrease with time and usage.” |
|
E |
Yes |
1 SKU-”up to X hours” | None |
|
F |
No |
None | None |
|
G |
Yes |
4 SKUs-“up to X hours” | None |
|
H |
Yes |
1 SKU-”X+ hours on one battery charge” | None |
Observations
- 14 notebook SKUs I observed advertised battery life during the week of 7/27/09, and 20 SKUs I observed advertised battery life during the week of 8/3/09.
- In these advertisements there is still only one battery life measurement being advertised. This is like buying a car and only seeing the “up to 52 MPG,” even though you would never realize that gas mileage in city driving. Also, it’s like advertising battery life for a mobile phone and only listing “up to 300 hours battery life”.
- Battery life as I observed it is being advertised four different ways:
- “up to X hours, Y minutes”
- “up to X hours” (no minutes)
- “X+ hours” (no “up to”)
- “X cell battery life for longer performance”
- Only two retailers out of eight I observed provided disclaimers for the advertised battery life information.
During the holiday time frame, we hope and expect this situation to change. A few retailers have unofficially indicated that they are planning to adopt a “Min and Max” (aka guardrail approach) to notebook battery life communications. Based on the lack of consistency I observed in the circulars, I expect this will be a very welcome change for consumers.
Above is a sample graphic that AMD has proposed for this guardrail approach.
If you would like to read more about the battery life discussion, please find the links below:
Nigel Dessau’s blogs on battery life
Pat Moorhead’s (me) blogs on battery life
FriendFeed page with select press articles
Improving Understanding of Notebook PC Battery Life Measurements
Let me know what you think!
Pat Moorhead is Vice President of Advanced Marketing at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.
#1 by audiguyy - August 6th, 2009 at 11:34
Hi Pat,
Keep up the good work! We need AMD to be the voice of the consumer, demand fairness and openness from other vendors and partners.
We, the consumer, are behind you guys!
#2 by Cliff Forster - August 6th, 2009 at 16:07
Mobile industry / retailers: You want answers?
Consumer: I think I’m entitled.
Mobile industry / retailers: You want answers?*
Consumer: I want the truth!!
Mobile industry / retailers: You can’t handle the truth!!!
Mobile industry / retailers: Son, we live in a world that has batteries, and those batteries have to be marketed by men who lie. Whose gonna do it? You? You, Mr. Consumer? I have a greater responsibility than you could possibly fathom. You weep for your dead battery, and you curse Best Buy. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know. That the battery death, while tragic, probably saved profit margin. And my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves profit margin. You don’t want the truth because deep down in places you don’t talk about at parties, you want me guarding that profit, you need me guarding that profit. We use words like mobile mark, up to, aproximately. We use these words as the backbone of a marketing strategy designed in half truths. You use them as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a consumer who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very statistics that I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather you just said thank you, and went on your way, Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a laptop, and benchmark it yourself. Either way, I don’t give a damn what you think you are entitled to!
#3 by Surya - August 7th, 2009 at 05:54
What, I think you competitor have better answer for your battery campaign. I think this is useless to encourages people to trust the battery life. Intel have their own methods, because everything your company products throw to the market will have less battery life as expected. Your competitor have more money in research and development that their new mobile products will have longer battery life as expected.
#4 by Cliff Forster - August 7th, 2009 at 09:33
@Surya,
Surya,
I think in a way, this is part of whats exciting about what Patrick and AMD are doing. They know they are not going to win every benchmark, they just want something that is fair to consumers. When you take a load benchmark across two competing products, those outlandish 10-12 hour claims Intel is making on certain products will go away, but they still may win a side by side comparison with AMD. I just think AMD is looking to level the playing field with a benchmark that is fair for the whole industry, and sometimes they will win, and sometimes they will loose on the box, and they are okay with that as long as consumers are being properly informed, and they can say they had some influence in that.
#5 by Michael J Evans - August 15th, 2009 at 01:22
@Cliff Forster,
A side by side comparison rapid-motion (with some slower parts where specified) pre-recorded run of tests would be nice. Ideally each major vendor would have settings and tests, such as game demos or word-processing or Internet usage (same websites, clicks, etc, all cached content on the same local server to ensure the same ads/etc) tested and displayed on their laptop in the order they like.
In that way everyone would be free to pick the tests they believe best appeal to their customers, and show off all the other products in that store in the same comparison. The other vendors should have access to the same video sets to use if they happen to like the tests, and the exact conditions of the test should be reproducible, just as scientific proofs are.
#6 by Surya - August 7th, 2009 at 19:59
Yeah, I think Intel is waiting for the day AMD is doomed. They surpised that after straight eleven quarterly looses they still alive,. Intel expects them they will faces bankruptcy when Intel Larrabee comes to market.
#7 by Cliff Forster - August 7th, 2009 at 22:15
Surya,
Off topic, but…..
After years of selling integrated graphics solutions that are of the most pitiful quality imaginable, what makes you think Intel is going to get Larrabee right?
Hype?
#8 by asH - August 10th, 2009 at 14:19
until AMD designs a complete packaged product from conception to consumer all of this battery flag waving is moot. Dell and HP, yeah, uses AMD’s products but never to AMD’s strengths, always a mix of Intel or Nvidia, as if AMD is subpar. Separate yourselves from Intel, Nvidia, Dell, HP; after all AMD can do it all and more; then package designs that consumers can see the distinctions, between AMD’s products and others. It’s only then, AMD can stand on its soapbox and sway consumers to truth. And realize AMD is in a league of its own.