dba+@andrew.cmu.edu (David Anderson) (10/30/90)
Mon, 29 Oct 90 07:08:40 -0500 (EST) Computer makers are set to loose an avalanche of notebook-sized computers as powerful as today's desktop machines in a bid to grab a piece of the hottest segment of the personal computer business. Texas Instruments Inc. will weigh in today with its 5.7-pound TravelMate 3000, which contains a state-of-the art electronic brain and costs about $5,500. TI's introduction follows by just two weeks a new model from Compaq Computer Corp., a leader in notebook technology. At the computer industry's Comdex trade show next month, Epson America Inc., Toshiba Corp. and AST Research Inc. are expected to roll out their versions of the smaller and faster machines. Even more are expected next year. Computer makers hope these notebook-sized machines will boost their sales in coming months as the maturing market for desktop computers sags and the economy slows. Sales of laptop and notebook computers surged 58.6% this year, while the total personal computer market grew just 5.3%, according to StoreBoard Computer Intelligence, which tracks PC sales through retailers. Next year, International Data Corp. predicts, laptop sales will jump an additional 40% to about $3.9 billion. What sets these new notebook machines apart from existing portables are their smarter brains, centered on the Intel Corp. 80386SX chip, and their ability to display fancy charts and graphics and store huge documents, just like their desktop brethren. Often costing twice as much as desktop machines, at $4,000 to $7,000, these notebook PCs fit in a briefcase, weigh just five to seven pounds and run for about three hours on a single battery charge. The new laptops also have the power and graphics capability to run Windows, Microsoft Corp.'s popular operating program. Laptops aren't expected to supplant desktops anytime soon. Their battery life is limited, and they need about two hours or more to recharge. Their keyboards aren't full-sized; thus, the keys are closer together and one key may have to perform several functions. They don't have color screens or a permanent link to the computer network at work. But computer makers are working on these problems. Intel is developing a chip that could increase a machine's battery life by 50%. And companies such as Compaq, which gets 15% of its sales from portables, are offering adapters that, in effect, turn notebooks into desktops: "docking stations" that cost about $1,000 and allow users to pop their notebooks into units with regular keyboards, color monitors and a connection to the company network. If the new laptops prove as popular as analysts expect, also-ran computer makers such as Texas Instruments and Epson could experience a revival, while market giants without popular laptops, such as Apple Computer Co. and International Business Machines Corp., could suffer. TI dropped its own desktop personal computer a few years ago after dismal sales. TI's first laptops, introduced last year, led to a distribution deal with Ingram Micro D Inc. TI laptops have sold reasonably well, partly because the company took up the slack left when Toshiba dropped Ingram to pursue a different distribution strategy. TI's new machine is two pounds lighter than Compaq's latest offering, almost $1,000 cheaper and sports a screen that measures 10 inches diagonally rather than nine inches. Epson, meanwhile, is hinting that it may try to undercut competitors' prices by offering its base model for as little as $4,000. Epson says its notebook model will weigh only 5.8 pounds and include a removable hard disk. Meanwhile, Apple hasn't been able to produce a popular portable version of its Macintosh computer. But the market is so tempting that the company has hinted that it may break a longstanding tradition and sanction a portable Macintosh that it didn't build.