--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The whole hardware industry has…" description: "\"The whole hardware industry has experienced the phenomenon in which every time computers get cheaper, they appeal to a new set of users; every time the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ba/nathan-myhrvold-3298_appeals_the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experien_2502503.png" --- # The whole hardware industry has experienced the phenomenon… ![“The whole hardware industry has experienced the phenomenon in which every time computers get cheaper, they appeal to a new set of users; every time they get more powerful, old customers upgrade.” quote by Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ba/nathan-myhrvold-3298_appeals_the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experien_2502503.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ba/nathan-myhrvold-3298_appeals_the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experien_2502503.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ba/nathan-myhrvold-3298_appeals_the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experien_2502503.png) > “The whole hardware industry has experienced the phenomenon in which every time computers get cheaper, they appeal to a new set of users; every time they get more powerful, old customers upgrade.” [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When computers become cheaper, new users adopt them; when they become more powerful, existing users upgrade, driving continuous market expansion. **In simple terms:** Cheaper computers attract new users; more powerful ones push upgrades. Key Takeaway Leverage price and performance shifts to target emerging user groups. Themes technology adoption market dynamics consumer behavior Mood optimistic analytical Type observational strategic When to use this quote - product launches - pricing strategy - customer segmentation - technology upgrades Key Concepts economics network effects innovation diffusion Questions to Reflect On - How can firms anticipate the next user segment? - What risks arise from rapid upgrade cycles? A Different Perspective Assumes all users have purchasing power; may overlook barriers in developing regions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Computer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industry/) [Phenomenon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phenomenon/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) ## Related quotes > [The most amazing achievement of the computer software industry is its continuing cancellation of the steady and staggering gains made by the computer hardware…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-petroski/the-most-amazing-achievement-of-the-computer-software-industry-is-its/) [Henry Petroski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-petroski/) > [“Scaring away new customers is worse than losing old customers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried/scaring-away-new-customers-is-worse-than-losing-old-customers/) [Jason Fried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fried/) > [The NeXT purchase is too little too late. The Apple of the past was an innovative company that used software and hardware technology together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/the-next-purchase-is-too-little-too-late-the-apple-of-the-past-was-an/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [Regardless of how it's done, transaction costs will continue to plummet as computers get more powerful. Low transaction costs are a wonderful thing if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/regardless-of-how-it-s-done-transaction-costs-will-continue-to/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [I see the world as a knowledge hardware story, and every day I'm just walking through the aisles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-st-pierre/i-see-the-world-as-a-knowledge-hardware-story-and-every-day-i-m-just/) [Georges St-Pierre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-st-pierre/) > [I use a laptop more as a tool, as sort of the central artery. Everything goes through the digital audio card of my computer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-fullerton-whitman/i-use-a-laptop-more-as-a-tool-as-sort-of-the-central-artery/) [Keith Fullerton Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-fullerton-whitman/) > [We are not intimidated by the size of the armies, or the type of hardware the US has brought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saddam-hussein/we-are-not-intimidated-by-the-size-of-the-armies-or-the-type-of/) [Saddam Hussein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saddam-hussein/) > [BottleRock has these incredible VIP cabins where a chef is preparing sushi for you in your cabin or lounge decorated by Restoration Hardware.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rapino/bottlerock-has-these-incredible-vip-cabins-where-a-chef-is-preparing/) [Michael Rapino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-rapino/) > [Software is more important than hardware.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/software-is-more-important-than-hardware/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [By being able to write a genome and plug it into an organism, the software, if you will, changes the hardware.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-schuler/by-being-able-to-write-a-genome-and-plug-it-into-an-organism-the/) [Barry Schuler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-schuler/) > [The hardware and the software used in the Breakthrough project will be compatible with other telescopes around the world, so they too can search…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuri-milner/the-hardware-and-the-software-used-in-the-breakthrough-project-will/) [Yuri Milner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuri-milner/) > [In software speed to market, speed to learning is really key. In hardware if you screw it up you are dead. So accuracy really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reid-hoffman/in-software-speed-to-market-speed-to-learning-is-really-key-in/) [Reid Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reid-hoffman/) > [While it is becoming increasingly obvious that the fundamental architecture of a system has a profound Influence on the quality of its human factors,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-m-branscomb/while-it-is-becoming-increasingly-obvious-that-the-fundamental/) [Lewis M. Branscomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-m-branscomb/) > [Everything for us is a system. We don't think about it discretely as just as a piece of hardware, or discretely as an application...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hosain-rahman/everything-for-us-is-a-system-we-don-t-think-about-it-discretely-as/) [Hosain Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hosain-rahman/) > [ Software gets slower faster than hardware gets faster. (Or, sometimes known by\] Grove \[the head of Intel\] giveth and Gates \[the head of Microsoft\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niklaus-wirth/software-gets-slower-faster-than-hardware-gets-faster-or-sometimes/) [Niklaus Wirth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niklaus-wirth/) ## More by Nathan Myhrvold > [Some article called me the most feared man in Silicon Valley. Good Lord! Why? My teenage boys got a kick out of it: 'Dad,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/some-article-called-me-the-most-feared-man-in-silicon-valley-good/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [In market research I did at Microsoft Corp. in the early 1990s, I estimated that the 'Wall Street Journal' took in about 75 cents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/in-market-research-i-did-at-microsoft-corp-in-the-early-1990s-i/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [Our reactor actually burns nuclear waste as fuel. So not only is it safe and powerful, it solves an important issue: It actually reduces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/our-reactor-actually-burns-nuclear-waste-as-fuel-so-not-only-is-it/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [Food, like anything else, lives in the physical world and obeys the laws of physics. When you whisk together some oil and a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/food-like-anything-else-lives-in-the-physical-world-and-obeys-the/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [If people don't find what you are doing threatening, then it is probably not very important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/if-people-don-t-find-what-you-are-doing-threatening-then-it-is/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [Among modern occupations, only cult leaders and TV weathermen rival the technological visionary's ability to retain credibility despite all evidence to the contrary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/among-modern-occupations-only-cult-leaders-and-tv-weathermen-rival/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [Crazy ideas sometimes work, and the technological society that we have is built on a foundation of those crazy ideas that work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/crazy-ideas-sometimes-work-and-the-technological-society-that-we-have/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [An efficient government is dangerous in the hands of the wrong man. Sadly, the right sort of man never seems interested in the job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/an-efficient-government-is-dangerous-in-the-hands-of-the-wrong-man/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [When we first did 'Modernist Cuisine,' I think most people in cookbook publishing would have said, 'This is insane.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/when-we-first-did-modernist-cuisine-i-think-most-people-in-cookbook/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [One of the greatest things that Apple and Jobs were very good at doing was daring to do the very different thing. It's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/one-of-the-greatest-things-that-apple-and-jobs-were-very-good-at/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [The first thing that is not obvious to people is global warming is a less-than-1% effect. It's like being shortchanged at the bank by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/the-first-thing-that-is-not-obvious-to-people-is-global-warming-is-a/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [Ultimately, my Ph.D. is in mathematical physics, focusing on quantum field theory and curved space-time, and I worked with Stephen Hawking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/ultimately-my-ph-d-is-in-mathematical-physics-focusing-on-quantum/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [The way Moore's Law occurs in computing is really unprecedented in other walks of life. If the Boeing 747 obeyed Moore's Law, it would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/the-way-moore-s-law-occurs-in-computing-is-really-unprecedented-in/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [If you talk about sous-vide, then you have to talk about food safety, and microbiology, and heat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/if-you-talk-about-sous-vide-then-you-have-to-talk-about-food-safety/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [A person's basic humanity is not governed by how he or she came into this world, or whether somebody else happens to have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/a-person-s-basic-humanity-is-not-governed-by-how-he-or-she-came-into/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) [Explore all 134 Nathan Myhrvold quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) ## More Appeals quotes > [Quotations can be valuable, like raisins in the rice pudding, for adding iron as well as eye appeal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peg-bracken/quotations-can-be-valuable-like-raisins-in-the-rice-pudding-for/) [Peg Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peg-bracken/) > [If Robert Heinlein is more to your taste than George Lucas: “If you are part of a society that votes, then do so. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-drum/if-robert-heinlein-is-more-to-your-taste-than-george-lucas-if-you-are/) [Kevin Drum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-drum/) > [All the cliches of glamorous sophistication have little appeal to me. Do I want to live the British version of 'Dynasty?' No thanks!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/all-the-cliches-of-glamorous-sophistication-have-little-appeal-to-me/) [Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/) > [It's an appeal as old as America and its presidency: This is an extraordinary country populated by hard-working, big-dreaming, freedom-loving people graced by God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-fournier/it-s-an-appeal-as-old-as-america-and-its-presidency-this-is-an/) [Ron Fournier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-fournier/) > [I liked wrestling a lot better than boxing. I remember thinking at that time that wrestling was a pure demonstration of strength, which I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-carpenter/i-liked-wrestling-a-lot-better-than-boxing-i-remember-thinking-at/) [Scott Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-carpenter/) > [As a social and as a personal force, religion has become a dependent variable. It does not originate; it reacts. It does not denounce;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-wright-mills/as-a-social-and-as-a-personal-force-religion-has-become-a-dependent/) [C. Wright Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-wright-mills/) > [The ascent of any route begins, in dreams at least, the autumn before. Our minds ring, involuntarily, with the alluring names of mountains, aiguilles,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-rebuffat/the-ascent-of-any-route-begins-in-dreams-at-least-the-autumn-before/) [Gaston Rebuffat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-rebuffat/) > [I sometimes find that my family's emphasis on stories, characters, and art that appeals directly to children rather than over their heads to adults…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-berenstain/i-sometimes-find-that-my-family-s-emphasis-on-stories-characters-and/) [Mike Berenstain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-berenstain/) > [Vice is its own reward. It is virtue which, if it is to be marketed with consumer appeal, must carry Green Shield stamps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/vice-is-its-own-reward-it-is-virtue-which-if-it-is-to-be-marketed/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [In my early teens, science fiction and fantasy had an almost-total hold over my imagination. Their outcast status was part of their appeal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hari-kunzru/in-my-early-teens-science-fiction-and-fantasy-had-an-almost-total/) [Hari Kunzru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hari-kunzru/) > [The fact is that there is a profound spiritual hunger in the western world which, for a variety of reasons, its church is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-phillips/the-fact-is-that-there-is-a-profound-spiritual-hunger-in-the-western/) [Melanie Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-phillips/) > [People can talk about punk all they want, but after new wave put that down, metal is the voice of the disenfranchised and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-taylor/people-can-talk-about-punk-all-they-want-but-after-new-wave-put-that/) [Corey Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-taylor/) > [Appeal to all scholars of stupidity in the world. Come to Italy, this country has the highest rate of morons of the universe, especially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-brown/appeal-to-all-scholars-of-stupidity-in-the-world-come-to-italy-this/) [William C. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-brown/) > [Popular thought appeals to crowds, gatherings and tribes, who use it as a way to guide the herd. It is very evident in protests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-taylor/popular-thought-appeals-to-crowds-gatherings-and-tribes-who-use-it-as/) [Corey Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-taylor/) > [It is a law of nature we overlook, that intellectual versatility is the compensation for change, danger, and trouble. An animal perfectly in harmony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-law-of-nature-we-overlook-that-intellectual-versatility-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) Browse all 1,420 Appeals quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The whole hardware industry has experienced the phenomenon in which every time computers get cheaper, they appeal to a new set of users; every time they get more powerful, old customers upgrade.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nathan Myhrvold" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experienced-the-phenomenon-in-which/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Appeals" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experienced-the-phenomenon-in-which/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ba/nathan-myhrvold-3298_appeals_the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experien_2502503.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ba/nathan-myhrvold-3298_appeals_the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experien_2502503.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ba/nathan-myhrvold-3298_appeals_the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experien_2502503.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The whole hardware industry has experienced the phenomenon in which every time computers get cheaper, they…” — Nathan Myhrvold", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Nathan Myhrvold", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The whole hardware industry has experienced...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experienced-the-phenomenon-in-which/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/the-whole-hardware-industry-has-experienced-the-phenomenon-in-which/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```