> no one wants a Blackberry even if the newer versions have ...
I agree that there is a hype aspect to this, but I don't think it's the whole story. You rightly point out that it's hard to shake off widespread public perception short of reinventing yourself. I think that in many cases the perception is earned.
As is often pointed out, there are many aspects of the iPhone that are not original to Apple. Tesla isn't the first company to come out with an electric car. I don't think hype alone is going to have people shelling out tens of thousands of dollars for a new car.
What prevented the established companies from putting out compelling products themselves? After all, they already have experience in the industry. Clayton M. Christensen's "The Innovator's Dilemma" discusses this in part. And once you've lost the perception of being competitive, you're playing catch up on both marketing and product. Ouch.