Digital - New PC offerings make it a contender in market
Jim -- MLO3-6/B9 -- DTN 223-5747
Digital Equipment Corp. wants to be a contender.
With today's introduction of its most powerful personal computers yet, the
Maynard company is making a serious bid to gain respect in the PC market.
"They have been dabbling in the PC business, but now they are proving they
are in it," said Andy Seybold, editor in chief of "The Outlook on Personal
Computing," an industry newsletter. "This puts them squarely in the corporate
market."
The three new models, which each offer different processors and processing
speeds, are aimed at corporate buyers who want highly adaptable servers. A
server acts as the brains of a network, connecting desktop units and storing
commonly used applications and files.
According to Digital, its new DECpc 400ST line is the first to offer snap-in
adaptability to the next generation of Intel microprocessors. The P5 chip, as
it is called, will not be available until later this year. But, "we want to
show we have leadership of technology in the PC market," said George A.
Wright, Digital's acting group product manager for PCs.
The machines, each of which can accommodate different sizes of networks,
will be priced between $4,397 and $6,595. While available for ordering
starting today, there is a 14-day lead time on delivery.
Working with microprocessor maker Intel Corp. for the last 10 months,
Digital has designed the new PCs "from the ground up," according to Wright.
Digital has traditionally not had much success in the PC market - it relies
on other companies to manufacture its offerings - and these new products
likely will not make a dent in its financial woes. Last week the computer
maker announced an operating loss of nearly $300 million in its fiscal third
quarter.
"It will take a while for them to become a major player in the PC business,
but these computers are significant," said Stephen Widen, senior analyst at
WorkGroup Technologies Inc., a market researcher.
"These really broaden DEC's high-end PC products."
Digital's stock gained 3/8 to 45 5/8 in heavy New York Stock Exchange
trading.
--
James J. Reisert Internet: rei...@mast.enet.dec.com
Digital Equipment Corp. UUCP: ...decwrl!mast.enet.dec.com!reisert
146 Main Street Voice: 508-493-5747
Maynard, MA 01754 FAX: 508-493-0395
Pierre VonKaenel
>
> {The Boston Globe, 14-Apr-92, p. 39}
>
> Digital Equipment Corp. wants to be a contender.
> With today's introduction of its most powerful personal computers yet, the
> Maynard company is making a serious bid to gain respect in the PC market.
Yeah, right!~$%^%&#
Consider one of their recent ads:
DECpc 433 "Workstation" : 33 MHz, 486 with 8 MB and 40 MB Hard disk.
I have absolutely *no* respect for a company that tries to hawk a 486
with a 40 MB hard disk. Talk about bait and switch tactics. I
run into an occasional post from some innocent user complaining that
he can't install OS/2 or whatever because it's too big for his small
hard disk on his new 486. Sure, the guy should have researched more
carefully before buying hardware, but it's ads like this that show
complete irresponsibility on the part of a company. And don't flame
me by suggesting that some people don't need much disk space because
they're on a network. I would venture to guess that *most* buyers of
a 486 NEED large disks. [ time to let the blood pressure drop......]
> Digital has traditionally not had much success in the PC market -
Their marketing skills have not improved....
> "It will take a while for them to become a major player in the PC business
..... as long as they sell stuff like this, yes,.... quite a while...
--
Pierre von Kaenel | Skidmore College | pv...@scott.skidmore.edu
Math & CS Dept. | Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 | (518)584-5000
Ext 2391