Hewlett-Packard Co, the world's top PC vendor, plans to launch its first lower-priced laptop computers in April, a company executive said in Taipei yesterday.
HP's announcement follows world No. 3 Acer Inc's announcement last week that it would unveil low-cost notebook computers this summer.
Both PC heavyweights were conservative about notebooks last year until Asustek Computer Inc's (
"HP plans to sell small-screen notebook computers in the second quarter, making its product portfolio more complete in terms of retail price," said Dennis Chen (
HP's new "mininote" serie, outfitted with a small-than-9-inch LCD screen, would include entry-level, middle-range and high-end models, Chen said.
The series is part of HP's new products for emerging markets, which are aimed at expanding its growth outside of standard PC market, HP said.
The "mininote" laptops will be outfitted with an small-screen liquid-crystal-display (LCD) screen, bigger than Eee PC's 7-inch screen, and will be also equipped with mainstream specifications such as Microsoft Corp's operating system and Intel Inc's processors.
HP declined to identify its target users or price range for the "mininote" series.
But Acer, which plans to debut its first lower-priced notebook with a Microsoft system and 8.9-inch screen by June, said its price would be much lower than NT$20,000 per unit.
Quanta Computer (廣達電腦), Compal Electronics (仁寶), Wistron Corp (緯創) and Inventec Corp (英業達) are major suppliers to HP.
Shipments of low-cost laptops are expected to reach 15 million units from Taiwanese notebook computer makers this year, making up around 13 percent of total laptop shipments, Taipei-based researcher Topology Research Institute (
"Low-cost PCs are likely to become the product most PC vendors have to sell this year," Topology PC industry analyst Jane Tseng (曾筱軫) said.
Since Eee PC's October launch, Asustek has sold 380,000 units at a minimum price of less than US$200 per unit. Asustek aims to sell 3.5 million to 5 million units this year, largely to children, young women and the elderly.
Tseng said corporate users such as logistics and insurance companies would be potential buyers of HP's new lower-priced notebooks.
As a whole, Topology said it is positive about the notebook computer industry this year as it expects the sub-prime credit crisis in the US will only have a minor impact on the sector.
Notebook computer shipments from local manufacturers are expected to grow by 18 percent to 23 percent at annual rate to between 110 million and 120 million units, compared to last year's 93 million, Topology said.
AI REVOLUTION: The event is to take place from Wednesday to Friday at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center’s halls 1 and 2 and would feature more than 1,100 exhibitors Semicon Taiwan, an annual international semiconductor exhibition, would bring leaders from the world’s top technology firms to Taipei this year, the event organizer said. The CEO Summit is to feature nine global leaders from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), ASE Technology Holding Co (ASE, 日月光投控), Applied Materials Inc, Google, Samsung Electronics Co, SK Hynix Inc, Microsoft Corp, Interuniversity Microelectronic Centre and Marvell Technology Group Ltd, SEMI said in a news release last week. The top executives would delve into how semiconductors are positioned as the driving force behind global technological innovation amid the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution, the organizer said. Among them,
When she was in fifth grade, Scarlett Goddard Strahan started to worry about getting wrinkles. By the time she turned 10, she and her friends were spending hours on ByteDance Ltd’s TikTok and Google’s YouTube watching influencers tout products for achieving today’s beauty aesthetic: a dewy, “glowy,” flawless complexion. Goddard Strahan developed an elaborate skin care routine with facial cleansers, mists, hydrating masks and moisturizers. One night, her skin began to burn intensely and erupted in blisters. Heavy use of adult-strength products had wreaked havoc on her skin. Months later, patches of tiny bumps remain on her face, and her cheeks turn
Intel Corp is working with investment bankers to help navigate the most difficult period in its 56-year history, people familiar with the matter said. The company is discussing various scenarios, including a split of its product design and manufacturing businesses, and which factory projects might potentially be scrapped, the people said, who asked not to be identified. Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Intel’s longtime bankers, have been providing advice on the possibilities, which could also include potential mergers and acquisitions, the people said. The discussions have only grown more urgent since Intel delivered a grim earnings report, which sent the
Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) yesterday said Taiwan’s government plans to set up a business service company in Kyushu, Japan, to help Taiwanese companies operating there. “The company will follow the one-stop service model similar to the science parks we have in Taiwan,” Kuo said. “As each prefecture is providing different conditions, we will establish a new company providing services and helping Taiwanese companies swiftly settle in Japan.” Kuo did not specify the exact location of the planned company but said it would not be in Kumamoto, the Kyushu prefecture in which Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC, 台積電) has a