Hype can be a very powerful thing when it comes to sales, and it's the equivalent of 'word of mouth', where somebody buys a product, and then goes about telling his/her friend about the great purchase, and about how he/she made a great decision, touting it's greatness and features and superiority, but not realizing that, perhaps it's not that great and it's probably the equivalent or not much better than the other competition. I see that kind of hype everyday, and it happens in forums such as this one, and in everyday life. Marketing can drive a lot of success, but they hype that comes into a product or into a company in general, can be quite as effective. Some hype is deserved, but a lot of it is just people justifying their decisions and bragging about how smart they were in their choice(s).