Brian - Wasn't HP supposed to use the AMD K5 or K6 in their new <$1000 consumer line of PCs?
Sounds like they had a change of plans.
Paul
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news.com
HP debuts $999
small-business PC
By Jim Davis
September 26, 1997, 3:15 p.m. PT
On Monday, Hewlett-Packard (HWP) will
unveil a new line of PCs starting at $999 and
targeted at the needs of small businesses.
Small companies of less than 100
employees have more limited budgets for
purchasing equipment and usually lack
information systems personnel who deal with
technology service issues, making their
needs quite different from those of the
Fortune 1000 companies big vendors like
HP are used to serving.
In response, HP says it will start selling the
"Brio" line of PCs, which comes with
software bundles and hardware
configurations different from their Vectra line
of corporate PCs.
For example, the PCs come with diagnostic
software for helping computer novices fix
problems. When the program can't solve a
problem, an HP technician can dial in to the
computer and install software, according to
HP. The computers also come with a
program which guides users through the
setup of PC networking functions, such as
allowing other users on a network to gain
access to shared peripherals like CD-ROM
drives, modems, and backup storage
devices.
The Brio computers will be offered in 11
models in the Business, Advanced Business,
and Advanced Business Communication
configurations. A Brio 8012 Business Model
with 166-MHz MMX Pentium processor,
16MB of memory, and a 2.1GB hard disk
drive will have an estimated street price of
$999.
A Brio Advanced Business Communication
model with 233-MHz MMX Pentium, a 6GB
hard disc drive, 32MB of memory, a backup
storage drive, a 24X CD-ROM, and a
graphics accelerator card will have an
estimated street price of $2,087. These
models come with a modem and software
which allows the modem to be shared on a
local area network (LAN) by up to three
users, saving companies the cost of extra
modems and phone lines.
PC vendors are interested in this market
because the small business segment is
growing at twice the rate of the overall PC
industry, according to International Data
Corporation (IDC). IDC estimates that there
were between 7 and 8 million small
businesses with fewer than 100 employees in
the U.S. in 1996. |
