Windows 8 tablet PCs with Intel chips will be expensive, report claims
Posted on 16. Jan, 2012 by Albert Madison in Tablets
According to Asian news source DigiTimes the launch of Intel based Windows 8 tablet PCs won’t yield any models that are priced lower than $599 because both Intel and Microsoft aren’t interested in offering any special price cuts on their hardware/software to potential tablet OEMs. The $599 models would be powered by Intel’s new low power Clover Trail processing chips. This report hasn’t been confirmed by either Microsoft or Intel at this time.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this is true
Ever since Microsoft unveiled their Windows 8 operating system for the first time at BUILD 2011 I’ve been stopping myself from getting too excited about the future of Windows tablet PCs due to the high prices I know well equipped Intel based models will cost. I’ve seen zero evidence from previous Windows tablet PC launches to show that well equipped Intel based models would be anywhere near affordable for me.
The most recent example for me has been the sleek 11.6″ Samsung Series 7 tablet PC which starts at $1,099, but features a powerful Intel Core i5 dual-core processor and Windows for a full computing experienced in a relatively portable package. I don’t think I’m alone in saying that $1,099 is a lot of money for a tablet PC, even if it replaces almost any need for a laptop.
Pricing will be the final hurdle for Windows 8 tablet PCs
In general though the Windows 8 tablet PC could kill itself off before Apple or Android tablets do anything if the pricing isn’t affordable. ARM should help Microsoft in getting some affordable tablets out there but if developers for Windows don’t make their applications ARM compatible and Metro UI compatible as well those ARM based Windows 8 tablets won’t have many attractive qualities over Apple or Android tablets.
I the lower that Microsoft can help OEMs go below the $500 mark the better for the Windows 8. The market for tablets at or under $500 is huge and Microsoft should be able to convince more consumers than Google (creators of Android) to purchase their sub-$500 tablets.
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