Here is your PIII answer.
Will Pentium III ease the low-cost PC war?
By Michael Kanellos
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
April 13, 1999, 5:30 a.m. PT
Despite the surge in demand for sub-$600 computers, high-end Pentium III-based PCs have managed to rack up "respectable" sales among consumers, according to one market research firm, providing some hope to PC makers who have been pummeling each other in the low-cost PC arena.
Systems based on the Pentium III processor, which debuted in February, accounted for approximately 9 percent of U.S. retail computer sales in March and have helped raise average selling prices for consumer boxes, said Stephen Baker, computer analyst with PC Data.
Among Windows-based PCs, Pentium IIIs captured 9.7 percent of the retail market, he added. As a result, average consumer PC prices edged up toward $1,000 in March. For the previous two months, prices averaged around $950.
"It's not doing badly. It has been respectable," he said, adding that the rise in average selling prices in retail systems can be traced to the Pentium III.
"Corporations are buying them in general. They are making it easier to pick up the PIII and they are pricing it right above the PII," said Roger Kay, computing analyst with International Data Corporation. So far, the biggest difficulty manufacturers have had in selling Pentium III systems has been the existence of Pentium II computers. Buyers looking for bargains have been waiting for inventory-clearing prices for these machines.
Although Pentium III computers have only been available for a few weeks, the sales figures could provide a speck of optimism for manufacturers, which have been beating each other up with low cost machines..... |
