PC Prices Reach $300 Milestone

Carl Bialik from the WSJ writes "Prices for fully loaded, name-brand PCs have slipped below $300 in the last few weeks, a major milestone. 'Ten or so years ago, when PCs cost five or even 10 times what they do now, it was common for analysts to say that they would never become a staple in homes until they were priced the way consumer electronics were, usually defined as costing less than $300,' Lee Gomes writes in the Wall Street Journal. 'In the days when PCs were $2,000 and even more, that target seemed to be something of a fantasy. Now, PCs cost less than some telephones--and less than a lot of TV sets--and can be found in roughly three-quarters of U.S. homes. But while they are priced like consumer electronics, the machines still aren't even remotely as easy to use, and the trend lines there aren't particularly encouraging.'"

Comments

One problem...

[TripMaster Monkey]

Interesting article...but it seemed to fail to mention one important dynamic.

As time passes, operating systems and applications become progressively larger and more complex, requiring correspondingly more robust hardware to run on. I doubt that the 'entry level PC' (whatever that means) of a year ago is equal to the 'entry level PC' of today.

Where do you get your prices???

[dbleoslow]

'Ten or so years ago, when PCs cost five or even 10 times what they do now,

I got a fully loaded (ie Windows and such) for ~$300 about eight years ago. It was (and still is..runs like a champ) an Emachines which I would call a major brand. These prices have been around for a while.

Re:Put Linux On It

[crawling_chaos]

It appears that you've never done this sort of thing under any OS and are pretty much full of sh*t.

No, you pretty much missed his point, which is actually typical. 90% of the home media devices out there are a pain in the ass to use (if it is even possible) if you use anything other than Windows. Of the ten percent that remain, you are better off getting a Mac than a using a Linux box, because at the very least you can haul the rig into an Apple Store and the folks at the Genius Bar will help you get it up and running.

If I were to set my parents up with Linux, I would end up being their sole source for tech support. I spend enough of my life supporting computers as it stands now. At least if my friends or family choose either Windows or OS X, I can point them to affordable alternative sources of support. Neither Red Hat or Novell handles home user support very well (although I have been pleased with their corporate offerings), much less the groups of holier than though geeks who make up the online Linux community, particularly when the response of said geeks is to call someone full of shit and then present no solution to the problem other than to spout some buzzwords. Incidentally, I know plenty of people burning DVDs and capturing VCR home movie quality video over USB2 just fine using Windows XP -- perhaps the poster wasn't as clueless as you assume?