Simple, Out-of-Box Experiences

I had an interesting interchange with a reviewer of Bexy's iMirror Wireless Remote Control Docking Station that enables users to remotely play, view and control their iPod music and video connected to a TV or a home entertainment system. I sent him a unit for review but he chose not to include it in his guide because he felt it was too similar to the AppleTV and Airtunes Express. While I think both of these products are terrific, I respectfully disagreed with his point of view based on the elegant simplicity of our product. Setup and operation should be fast and easy so you can enjoy the experience. Below is an abridged transcript of our exchange.

Hi Keith, A while back we sent you the Bexy iMirror Wireless Remote Docking Station for iPod for you to review. Is this in the queue for review?

Hi John -- We did try the Bexy iMirror product, but we decided not to include it in the gift guide roundup. The tester couldn't find a compelling reason to recommend the product as it compares to the AirTunes Express or AppleTV products. The $149.99 price tag was also felt to be a bit pricey for what the product does.

If you think we missed something in terms of the product's appeal or usage, let me know and I can try to take another look at it for the Cool Tools column, but I can't promise anything...

Hi Keith, I’m kind of impressed that you considered our iMirror in the same sentence with the AppleTV and AirTunes Express. I’m not sure I can convince you that you should include our product or if I even want to try and convince you. Usability is entirely up to your own tastes and I completely respect your opinion.

I do know that our product has a HUGE advantage over AirTunes Express – no PC is involved. We believe strongly that an entertainment experience has to be free of a PC. We also believe that control of your content needs to be where you are, not in another room on a PC Screen.

Here are the benefits that I have personally experienced with the iMirror.

1. Complete control of your iPod in with an intuitive interface that is as easy and quick to use as the iPod

2. Complete control of virtually all iPod Functions in the palm of your hands anywhere in your home while your iPod is charging. You don’t have to look at a TV screen or go to your computer in another room to see what is playing.

3. Always know what you are playing wherever you are. My iPod has over 6000 songs on it. I usually play my iPod in shuffle mode and am constantly hearing songs that I can’t remember what they are. So I look at the remote and it tells what I am listening including Artist, Album and track title.

4. Immediate feedback and real time system status

5. And the biggest reason this product is great is it is simple. I love having the ability to bring the iPod into my bedroom, pop it in the dock and play videos on my TV. And my wife and son love it, too. It was a mind changing experience for us. And we didn’t have to run cable wires, we didn’t have to lease an expensive cable box with a complicated menu, and we didn’t have to figure out how to network Airport Express with our PC. True story: I spent an entire weekend trying to get Airport Express to work with my Windows based PC. I NEVER GOT IT TO WORK (and I am no dummy.) I spent hours (and I mean hours) on the phone with Apple tech support and they could not get it to work. I eventually gave it to the babysitter who has a Mac. In the end, anything that has to interface with the PC for listening or watching is doomed.

Now explain to me why I need to spend $299 or $399 for AppleTV with another hard drive when I already have my music and video on a hard drive in my PC and iPod? Just another way for my content to get out of sync and screwed up. No thanks!

And what if I want to play music away from my TV or PC? Why do I have to turn a TV on to see the user interface menu for Apple TV? Frankly my TV uses a boatload of power and if I am not watching video, I’d prefer not to be drawing that kind of watts. And what if I am not sitting in front of my TV and I want to pick a song, album or playlist? I would have to go into the room and stand in front of the TV. With the iMirror you can carry the wireless remote anywhere in your house.

So for $149.95, your iPod becomes pretty useful around the house and it does not require a PC.

I have no illusions that our product is the end all, be all. But it is a relatively inexpensive and operation is simple. And that’s what consumer want – simple out of the box operation. Plug it in and play in five minutes or less.

Thanks for hearing me out.

Hi John -- thanks for the note. I'll give it another shot and see if we can fit it into an upcoming Cool Tools column...

Hi Keith, I have an interesting follow up to our discussion.

My 13 year old nephew Adam drove in from New Hampshire with his family yesterday with his brand new iPod Classic. He was so proud to show it to me and to tell me that he had a lot of really cool music and videos on it. He handed it to me and I popped into the iMirror connected to my TV and multimedia speakers. I promptly turned on the iMirror with the wireless remote control as we all sat down on the couch. Suddenly we were listening to some Beatles music. Then we listened to some Miles Davis followed by the Doors LA Woman (that surprised me.) Finally we watched a couple of his music videos. It could not have been a simpler or a better experience. We were dancing around the living room screaming “L-A, L-A, L-A, your my Woman!” The way life should be – simple.

Myth of Switch to Analog TV

I find it interesting that the media keeps minimizing the point that the mandatory switch to digital is only for broadcast over the airwaves. The cable companies can still provide analog channels and they surely will, enabling the vast majority of Americans to keep their Analog TV sets.

There is a business opportunity here somewhere, I am sure. I've met with several TV manufacturers around the world many of who still plan to make analog TVs into the future as cash cows.

Towards Better Out of Box Experiences

My friend Eddie is thinking about investing in my company, Bexy. He was challenging me, as part of his due diligence process, on why we would be successful.

We got slightly off track after a few minutes when he made a connection in his head that I am in the consumer electronics industry and presumably knowledgeable about all things CE. It turns out that he bought a high-end Denon AV Receiver with "8 channels" he thinks. He's had the darn thing for three weeks and he has been unable to get a single sound to output from it and his floorstanding speakers. He wondered if I could help him figure out how to get it to work. He thought I might know how to "program it." He also bought $100 worth of Monster speaker wire and some expensive banana plugs.

I, of course, laughed, "How much did you pay for all this equipment and why?" He responded, "I bought the receiver for $450 because I have good speakers and I wanted to get high quality sound." I asked him sarcastically, "how's that working out for you? How does it sound?"

I then laid the heavy sales pitch on him for investing in Bexy. I told him that I, too, am incapable of getting a high-end AV receiver to work. To me they are just too complicated. I just want to hear the music and watch the video. This is why Bexy will be successful. Our products are focused on making the out-of-box experience as simple, elegant and pleasing as possible. A good experience should allow you to purchase everything you need in one box, bring it home, plug it in, set it up and get it to work in five minutes or less. That is our mantra at Bexy: our products will put a smile on your face within five minutes or less, out-of-the-box.

Eddie said, "put me down for $50k in Bexy."

Apple Shows the Way, Again

In spite of Apple's recent hiccup on iPhone pricing, they continue to show the world what it takes to be a successful consumer technology marketer. Some say its all marketing but I think there is much more to it than that. Its a cultural vision and commitment to innovation and differentiation from top to bottom.

When was the last time Apple did anything the way others do it. They launch their products differently. They price and sell their products differently. They make their products look different. Their products function differently (many would say simpler and better.) They advertise differently. They have the one thing that typical companies sorely seem to lack - the intestinal fortitude to do things not because everyone else does it that way but because its a better way of doing things.

My definition of Intestinal Fortitude is "an extended and ongoing effort in which you stand up for your principles and do what's best for your customers and your company in spite of the threats or seduction of choices you are faced with."

The beauty of intestinal fortitude (if you can endure) is that it eventually defines you and becomes a real part of your company's code.

One example that I can think of related to Apple is the often repeated notion that Macs are simpler and more reliable to use than Windows-based PCs. Several years ago this might have been propaganda. I recall that my Mac ProBook from around 2000 with OS 9.x was the buggiest machine I have ever owned and my program applications operated horribly. Well, we all know, now, that Macs truly are simpler and more robust than Windows-based PC's. That's because by saying that simpler and better matters it becomes part and parcel of everything the company does. OS X is very stable. The assortment of Apple applications are all designed by a team of software engineers to work seamlessly together. Culturally the company adopted this design and integration philosophy and makes it work. They extended this philosophy to the iPod successfully and now they are extending it once again to the cellphone market. Heaven help the competition if Apple gets a hold of the soon to be auctioned wireless frequency spectrum.

There are signs that other companies are catching on. Witness Dell's redirection. There is only so long that you can cost reduce products and squeeze out operational efficiencies. In the end consumers want great products. Michael Dell surely gets that no business model can go on forever.

In the end, consumers are well-served by Apple's intestinal fortitude. They may charge more money for their products and make greater margins than others but it all comes out in the wash.