jac@gandalf.llnl.gov (James A. Crotinger) (03/19/91)
david@kessner.denver.co.us (David Kessner) writes: > Yes. I view Amiga UNIX as an _OPTIONAL_ OS for a good system. But if I want > a UNIX system then I will buy a _UNIX_ system-- like one of the new SPARC > clones that I saw at COMDEX. To improve the A3000UX to the point that it > can compete with the SPARCs would put it into the price range of them... I'm not sure the A3000UX can even compete with the Sparc machines (Sun's or anyone elses) as things stand. I am, quite frankly, very disappointed with the A3000UX pricing. Why would I buy an A3000UXD for $7K when for $3K more I could have a SparcStation IPC *with* a 16" color monitor (1152x900 resolution, 8 bit color). I suspect that the A3000UXD with the ULowell card (when it comes out) and the same 16" monitor will actually cost more than the IPC! This just doesn't make sense. Even if the Amiga had an '040 in it, I don't think this would make sense. And Sun's discount prices are much more aggressive. We (LLNL) get a 40% discount, putting the IPC only $900 above the educational price of the A3000UXD (that's the Amiga individual price --- institutional pricing may be somewhat better, but I suspect it won't be enough to matter). What would be the right price? Sun's SLC lists for $5K without a hard disk. So the A3000 with a A2024 monitor [I think that's the number--the Hedley monitor] ought to be less than that. And to get us to buy it, the discount price ought to be under $3K. With a 16" color monitor, the Amiga ought to list for under $7K ($6K would be better), which, at Commodore's current edu. discount rate, would put it at around $5K. I still don't know if we'd buy them, since the $1K extra to buy an IPC gets you a lot more horsepower. Seems like I've seen a lot of discussion about how the A3000UX isn't stacking up well against '386 UNIX boxes. But I think the comparison to the SPARCs is the one to really be worried about. Don't take this as a flame. I may still end up buying an A3000 because I want a better Amiga than my trusty old A1000. But if CBM's expecting to sell this thing as a UNIX box to big institutions, I think they're in for some surprises. Jim -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- James A. Crotinger Lawrence Livermore Natl Lab // The above views jac@moonshine.llnl.gov P.O. Box 808; L-630 \\ // are mine and are not (415) 422-0259 Livermore CA 94550 \\/ necessarily those of LLNL
dlcogswe@vela.acs.oakland.edu (Dan Cogswell) (03/19/91)
jac@gandalf.llnl.gov (James A. Crotinger) writes: >david@kessner.denver.co.us (David Kessner) writes: >(Sun's or anyone elses) as things stand. I am, quite frankly, very >disappointed with the A3000UX pricing. I have to agree. A $4000 educational price for the cheapest unix 3000 doesn't seem competitive to me. What's the educational pricing on the NeXTstation (did I get the stupid capitalization right?) Mono? Under $3500? I don't want to compare the two machines, but I just sold my 2000, and I was seriously considered buying a 3000. But I could run UNIX on a 386 MUCH cheaper. In all, I'm pretty disgusted with the situation and I'll be holding on to my 3 grand. >James A. Crotinger Lawrence Livermore Natl Lab // The above views >jac@moonshine.llnl.gov P.O. Box 808; L-630 \\ // are mine and are not >(415) 422-0259 Livermore CA 94550 \\/ necessarily those of LLNL -- Dan