The way I look at it, the problem with Devialet is not their communications as such, it is the problems they are having with software and basic planning. Don't get me wrong, the nature of their communications, which is basically "Devialet are perfect, are engineers are working very hard on your issue to achieve even higher levels of perfection", annoys the hell out of me sometimes, but this is not the main issue.
It has been said many times before that Devialet are geniuses at hardware, but somehow utterly underestimate the software side of things. This factor needs to be combined was what appears from the outside as a complete inability to plan their projects correctly. Diaglog compatibility with Expert in January 15? No, delayed to March. Actually, make that summer 2015 , well maybe Christmas 2015. No, actually we meant some time in 2016, possibly, assuming this project remains live. (add issues with AIR, SPARK, etc. as you wish)
So lets look at the comparison with Apple. I have owned a number of Apple products over the years, and they have all pretty much worked flawlessly. So there is no comparison with the issues with AIR or similar. I think if Devialet got the same amount mainstream of press attention as Apple they would be utterly torn to shreds. Think about it, you get a 20 stone IT bod who sticks his 5mm thick iPhone 6 plus in his back pocket, sits down and his 'phone bends, he posts a bog, and then this becomes national news. Literally national news, I can recall seeing stuff about this on the BBC and in the UK national press. Imagine this level of scrutiny on Devialet!
Devialet, much like Apple, appear to have a "speak no evil" communication policy, they know they have problems but will not allow this to be communicated outside of their operations. As far as I am concerned, if you are going to do this you need to make sure your products are as near as possible to being faultless. With Devialet's current level of performance, many customers are beta testers. Quite literally beta testers, the latest version of AIR which has been on their website since April 2015, is designated "beta4". Devialet ask for feedback from users, and offer absolutely zero communication back in return, and this is over an eight months period. At one time, Devialet were sending me beta versions of AIR, they requested very specific feedback, which I gladly provided. In return, utter silence. They would not even advise how useful my feedback was, all I ever got was "thank you, we will provide your feedback to our engineers".
If we accept Devialet are somehow on the cutting edge, and hence will be in this semi beta testing environment, then it is essential that they engage with their customers, I believe this will be of massive mutual benefit. If they want to continue in Apple "We are perfect, speak no evil" mode, then they need to get their act together and start performing to Apples standards. This is not likely to happen any time soon I think, therefore I believe some carefully managed engagement and communication with customers is necessary, and if they could do this correctly, I think this would be good for the brand.
It has been said many times before that Devialet are geniuses at hardware, but somehow utterly underestimate the software side of things. This factor needs to be combined was what appears from the outside as a complete inability to plan their projects correctly. Diaglog compatibility with Expert in January 15? No, delayed to March. Actually, make that summer 2015 , well maybe Christmas 2015. No, actually we meant some time in 2016, possibly, assuming this project remains live. (add issues with AIR, SPARK, etc. as you wish)
So lets look at the comparison with Apple. I have owned a number of Apple products over the years, and they have all pretty much worked flawlessly. So there is no comparison with the issues with AIR or similar. I think if Devialet got the same amount mainstream of press attention as Apple they would be utterly torn to shreds. Think about it, you get a 20 stone IT bod who sticks his 5mm thick iPhone 6 plus in his back pocket, sits down and his 'phone bends, he posts a bog, and then this becomes national news. Literally national news, I can recall seeing stuff about this on the BBC and in the UK national press. Imagine this level of scrutiny on Devialet!
Devialet, much like Apple, appear to have a "speak no evil" communication policy, they know they have problems but will not allow this to be communicated outside of their operations. As far as I am concerned, if you are going to do this you need to make sure your products are as near as possible to being faultless. With Devialet's current level of performance, many customers are beta testers. Quite literally beta testers, the latest version of AIR which has been on their website since April 2015, is designated "beta4". Devialet ask for feedback from users, and offer absolutely zero communication back in return, and this is over an eight months period. At one time, Devialet were sending me beta versions of AIR, they requested very specific feedback, which I gladly provided. In return, utter silence. They would not even advise how useful my feedback was, all I ever got was "thank you, we will provide your feedback to our engineers".
If we accept Devialet are somehow on the cutting edge, and hence will be in this semi beta testing environment, then it is essential that they engage with their customers, I believe this will be of massive mutual benefit. If they want to continue in Apple "We are perfect, speak no evil" mode, then they need to get their act together and start performing to Apples standards. This is not likely to happen any time soon I think, therefore I believe some carefully managed engagement and communication with customers is necessary, and if they could do this correctly, I think this would be good for the brand.
