Posted 11/20/08 at 08:17:07 PM by Mark Edward Soper

This holiday season, Microsoft is taking aim at arch-rival Apple's iPod - and its companion iTunes software. This week, Microsoft cut the retail prices on 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB Zunes as well as on the Car Pack, Home/AV Pack, and Dock Pack. With the 8GB Zune now selling for $139 (was $149) and the 16GB model now selling for $179 (was $199), Microsoft is undercutting the price of comparable Nanos by $10 (8GB) and by $20 (16GB). The 4GB Zune anchors the lineup at $99, down $30 from its old price.

The Car Pack now sells for $69 (was $79), but the Home/AV Pack, also formerly $79, is now just $59. The Dock Pack is also cheaper at $39 (was $49).

To find out how Microsoft plans to use Zune software to drive hardware sales, join us after the jump.

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microsoft, Software, digital music, Zune, hardware, consumer electronics, digital media player, price cuts

Posted 11/14/08 at 02:45:15 PM by Paul Lilly

A report by Jon Peddie Research (JPR) earlier this week confirmed that AMD's recent success with its Radeon 4000 series has helped the company take back some market share from rival GPU maker Nvidia, while also forcing Nvidia and its partners to lower prices on the recently released GTX 200 series. It appears even more cuts are on the way.

DigiTimes, citing un-named sources at graphics cards makers, says that Nvidia "is planning to cut its graphics card prices in an attempt to curb further loss of market share" to AMD. For its part, AMD isn't finished taking it to Nvidia and anticipates grabbing 50 percent of the market following lowered prices on its ATI Radeon HD 4000 series.

In short, it continues to be a great time to be a PC gamer, and it only looks to get better as AMD and Nvidia battle on the pricing front.

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amd, graphics, videocard, nvidia, gpu, rumor, price cuts

Posted 09/19/08 at 05:45:02 PM by Paul Lilly

More price cuts are on the horizon from Intel, with some processors soon to reach their end of life (EOL), say motherboard makers. As DigiTimes reports it, Intel will announce product discontinuance notices (PDNs) for the Core 2 Extreme QX9770 and QX9650 in the first quarter of 2009. PDNs will also be sent out for four quad-core chips, one of which is the Q9450 and ten dual-core CPUs, including the E8300.

Specific numbers haven't been released, but come October 19, Intel is expected to cut the price of the Core 2 Quad Q8200 and Q6600, Core 2 Duo 7300, and Pentium E2220 and E2220 CPUs. Around the same time the chip maker will launch its Core 2 Duo E7400.

In November, look for Intel to release a Core 2 Quad Q8300 clocked at 2.5GHz, Pentium E5300 clocked at 2.6GHz, and a dual-core Celeron E1500 at 2.2GHz. Prices in thousand-unit quantities will sit at $224, $86, and $53 respectively.

And finally, on January 18, 2009, Intel plans to launch the Core 2 Duo E7500 (2.93GHz, $133) and will make the following price cuts:

• Core 2 Quad Q8200 from $193 to $183
• Core 2 Duo E7400 from $133 to $113
• Pentium E5200 from $84 to $76
• Pentium E2200 from $84 to $64
• Celeron E1400 from $54 to $43

Keep in mind that none of this is official, with Intel declining to comment on the price cuts and product launches.

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intel, cpu, processor, hardware, build a pc, roadmap, price cuts

Posted 09/10/08 at 03:02:05 PM by Paul Lilly

It can be argued that AMD didn't start to build an enthusiast following until the Barton days. Back then, the company's efficient processors not only held their own in performance, but destroyed Intel when it came to the bang/buck factor, both in regards to processor pricing and the overall platform (you could pick up a high end AMD motherboard for under $200). Ever since Intel finally responded with its Core 2 architecture, AMD has had a tougher time competing on the performance front, forcing AMD to slash prices, and that's what happening again. In addition to price cuts, AMD is also expanding its tri-core line.

The newly announced Phenom X3 8450e comes clocked at 2.1GHz and the Phenom X2 8250e putters at 1.9GHz. Both processors sport 512KB of L2 cache and 2MB of L3 cache, and both also come rated with a 65W TDP, compared to 95W for AMD's standard Phenom tri-core line. No pricing information has yet been announced for either model.

On the higher end, AMD's Phenom X3 8750 Black Edition will bring an unlocked multiplier to the table and cruise along at 2.4GHz. It will come with the same amount of L2 and L3 cache as the 8450e and 8250e processors, but rated at the aforementioned 95W TDP. Pricing has been set to $134 for bulk orders.

So what about the price cuts? AMD will drop it's X3 8450 (without the 'e' designation) down to $104 and X3 8650 down to $119, both in bulk.

Anyone plan on upgrading?

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amd, cpu, hardware, Phenom, tri-core, x3, build a pc, price cuts, 8450e, 8250e, 8650, 8750, Black Edition

Posted 09/03/08 at 12:06:13 PM by Paul Lilly

Perhaps a bad economy is to blame, or maybe consumers are more concerned with getting outside this summer than going online. But whatever the reason, broadband operators are struggling to sign up new customers. Twenty of the largest cable operators and phone companies in the U.S. managed to snag just 887,000 new subscribers in Q2 '08, and according to Leichtman Research Group, the comparatively anemic numbers mark the lowest level of growth seen in the past seven years.

That's good news for consumers, as the lower than expected growth might have sparked a broadband price war. Verizon has said it offer six months of free DSL service to new customers who agree to a one year commitment and also grab a landline package. By taking advantage of the promotion, consumers can pay as little as $45 per month for high-speed DSL and phone service, compared to $65 per month.

But Verizon isn't the only one looking to entice new customers, and AT&T has kicked off a new promotion that guarantees customers its current pricing for two years. Prices range from $20 to $55.

As the broadband market continues to saturate, cable companies could feel the pinch too. Comcast added 278,000 high-speed internet subscribers in Q2, which represents 18 percent fewer customers than the company signed one year ago.

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Internet, broadband, Verizon, at&t, price cuts

Posted 08/25/08 at 07:28:14 PM by Pulkit Chandna

The general consensus at the Intel Developer Forum 2008 in San Francisco was that netbook makers will have to slash prices in wake of increasing competition. True to that prognostication, Acer slashed the price of its Aspire One and Linpus Linux Lite netbooks by $50. The former can now be bought for $349 and the latter for $329. The bigger PC manufacturers that have long held sway over the PC market are still to fully embrace this particular segment.

But as the tussle gets more cacophonic, netbook manufacturers will have to cut prices just to be heard by customers over the din. Richard Doherty, research director for a market research firm, Envisioneering, expects majority of netbooks to sell at $299 in the foreseeable future with the possibility of prices plummeting down to $249 by the holiday season.

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asus, hardware, Acer, eee PC, netbook, Aspire, price cuts