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To: Buckwheat who wrote (4871)	3/11/1998 12:05:00 AM
From: Mike C	Respond to of 6843

Amen Buckwheat- If desktop's get much cheaper and laptops more expensive people are going to start hauling their desktops - I'm sure for the $3000 price differential you could hire someone to carry your computer for the few times one really needs portability. In truth the laptop is primarily a status symbol. It's interesting seeing a guy playing DOOM on a $4500 laptop on the airplane until his battery runs out. Now he needs yet a faster CPU? Many unit upgrades were justified by sales forces needing multimedia for customer presentations but this may have peaked and any more "power" isn't justified aside from the status symbol. What is happening in desktops- shift to reasonable cost effectiveness for the mass market will soon happen to laptops. Mike C

To: Buckwheat who wrote (4871)	3/11/1998 12:24:00 PM
From: Bill Jackson	Respond to of 6843

Buckwheat, You are right. The laptops are expensive as they have held to disparate hardware standards. Each one has different cases, batteries, displays etc. In essence the display screen makers have made this market as they wanted outlets for displays. If a standard laptop came along, like the standard case, keyboard etc that the desk top makers use in the screwdriver shops, we then would get dramatice price reductions. Until then it is a cash cow for the laptop makers. It must wait until good flat screen are available from Taiwan cheaply. The flat screen can cost $2000 in the latest laptops(who know their internal cost) The circuit board can be made for the cost of a standard motherboard, plus a small amount for the funny shape, same with the Battery, case, keyboard, mouse, hard, floppy, CD etc. The display is the key. Get a good color flat screen at 14" for $250 and you would see capable laptops for $1000-1500 right quick, as they would be like desk tops in cost factors. Bill