What Is Vaporware?
Vaporware is a term used to describe software or hardware products that are announced but never released. It can also refer to products that have been promised for release, but remain in development limbo with no definite timeline for completion. Vaporware often occurs when companies make ambitious promises about their product and then fail to deliver on them due to lack of resources, technical difficulties, or other issues.
The term vaporware was first coined by journalist Jean-Louis Gassee in 1983 as a way of describing the Apple Lisa computer which had been heavily promoted prior to its launch but ultimately failed commercially due to its high cost and limited features. Since then, it has become an increasingly common phenomenon in the tech industry where companies overpromise and underdeliver on their products. This can lead to customer disappointment and frustration as well as financial losses for the company involved if they cannot complete their project within reasonable timeframes.
How to Identify Vaporware?
Vaporware is a term used to describe software or hardware products that are announced but never released. It can be difficult to identify vaporware, as companies often make announcements about upcoming products without any intention of actually releasing them. However, there are some signs that may indicate whether a product is likely to be vaporware:
First, if the company has made multiple announcements about the same product over an extended period of time with no tangible progress being made towards its release, it could be considered vaporware. Additionally, if the company does not provide concrete details such as pricing and availability dates for their product when they announce it, this could also suggest that it will never come out. Finally, if other similar products have been released by competitors in the meantime while the original announcement remains unfulfilled then this could also point towards vaporware status.