Acer expected to beat Asus Eee pricing
- March 24th, 2008
- 3 Comments
Let’s all think back to our Econ classes to the section on economies of scale, especially as the theory pertains to purchasing production materials in bulk. That’s what Acer’s able to do thanks to its sheer size and that’s the reason that its FOB price (free on board — total cost it takes to get one unit loaded onto a boat somewhere) for its Eee competitor will fall between $250 and $300 versus Asus’ $300 to $350.
Asus has said that it won’t try to battle Acer on price. It’ll have its 8.9-inch Eee ready to go almost a month before Acer, though, so it should give it an okay head start. The average selling price for the Asus is expected to come in at around $400 to $500 (probably closer to $500), while the Acer is expected to be around $350 to $400.
Early reports have indicated that the 8.9-inch Eee will go for $500 here in the US, so if Acer were to somehow put out a comparable machine at $350, it’d really give Asus something to think about. Even $400 could cause problems — problems in a good way.
Acer low-cost PC expected to be cheaper than second-generation Eee PC [DigiTimes]
Nate (Who am I?)
5 months ago
This space is getting very interesting.
The eee is a great machine. Asus needs some competition that isn’t complete junk, though. Hopefully the Acer machine will fit that bill, but I think most of us are pinning our hopes on HP’s offering.
Mike Cane (Who am I?)
5 months ago
Oh stop.
You know that many things besides sheer price come into play (hey, give Steve Jobs a call if you don’t believe me!).
The Acer machine could look like a frikkin dog. The software could be as bad as that natively loaded on the Everex CloudBook.
Even *identical specs* can give very different user experiences, based on what’s been done with *software*.
The keyboard could be crap. The screen could be crap. The feel of the plastic could be crap.
Etc, etc.
And here’s something interesting: of the four demo units of EeePC at J&R in NYC, *every single one* has a collapsed and broken power button. 3 of the 4 are missing the trackpad button (on the 4th, it popped off while I was trying it, yesterday; it’s probably gone by now, so up it 4 of 4!).
Now, having said all that, where the hell is that hp 2133 I’ve been lusting after?
NYC Resident
5 months ago
Should probably note that I also live in NYC and have seen the same demo units in J&R. They’ve been fixed (or replaced) now, but I have been annoyed by how long the damaged units have been out in public.
I’m assuming that the employees get paid by commission, so the more expensive [Vista] laptop units they sell, the more money they make. Hence, the EeePC’s — at their ridiculously-low price point compared to the neighboring units — are a threat to their livelihood, and hence there’s no incentive at all to make them look halfway marketable. To say nothing of their sales expertise — I’ve probably answered more EeePC questions for would-be customers than the actual sales reps themselves!
Hopefully I’m wrong, but let’s be realistic. Not everyone is going to be a winner in the coming UMPC revolution, and this I’m sure will affect uptake considerably (at least at first).
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