Shown at MWC this hear, this Fujitsu netbook gives us a hint at how early devices could be pitched.
With a basic N450 CPU the MH300 offers a no-frills netbook experience with a 3-cell battery for a local, price of $322 in Malaysia (RM999) which seems, to me, quite expensive. Any Malaysia readers care to position this in terms of price?
More details at this link
http://www.lowyat.net/v2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4225&Itemid=1
Thanks @erlern
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#technology Fujitsu launches Esprimo MH300 Meego netbook in Malaysia: Shown at MWC this hear, this Fujitsu netbo… http://bit.ly/etDc1J
RT @umpcportal: Fujitsu launches Esprimo MH300 Meego netbook in Malaysia http://www.umpcportal.com/?p=23581
Fujitsu launches Esprimo MH300 Meego netbook in Malaysia: Shown at MWC this hear, this… http://goo.gl/fb/OfovH
Fujitsu launches Esprimo MH300 Meego netbook in Malaysia: Shown at MWC this hear, this Fujitsu netbook gives us … http://bit.ly/ft7Cou
I wonder if the price could be affected by the lack of bundling options. That is, no norton or nero includes on the drive image…
I noticed something similar back when Dell launched both Windows and Ubuntu netbooks a few years ago. Basically the Windows version with same specs where cheaper then the Ubuntu version (and then Dell had the audacity to throw a $100 mail in rebate onto the Windows versions so that even the higher spec Windows version became cheaper then the Ubuntu version).
You raise an interesting point. A strong business case can be made to support your reasoning. The other thing to remember is that if you as the OEM are licensing a cost-based operating system like Microsoft Windows, then your business needs a support structure in place to do things like handle the ordering, process the billing and payment, handle reps from Microsoft, etc. This all adds cost to your business and creates an incentive for your business to strike deals with third-parties through which you pre-install their bloatware in exchange for a fee. The cost savings to an OEM of offering a free and open source operating system in this ecosystem are somewhat nullified by all of this overhead, leaving less savings to pass on to the consumer. Moreover, there’s always the ongoing speculation that Microsoft might have a hand in artificially inflating the cost of the Linux-based devices or artificially deflating the cost of the Windows-based alternatives (I think people forgot that even though Microsoft is an evil company, it does Business-to-Business Evil with consumer injury as a side-effect. This is where Google and Apple have really innovated: Direct-to-Consumer Evil.) In fact, I know of one OEM who pressured Microsoft into giving them a better deal on licensing by threatening to add Linux as an option in its lineup.
Ironically, MeeGo exists specifically to address this situation. It is Intel’s way of shortening the product-to-market life cycle for its hardware partners. Perhaps one day soon we’ll get to the point where the OEMs can dispose of much of the overhead needed to deal with software companies. I think people sometimes forgot that it takes, time, money, and resources to produce another physical copy of a device, but software can be copied with as little overhead as possible. Computers are built with the specific ability of making copies of files. There are very few communities out there developing mature, stable, feature rich hardware at no cost to you, but a massive software community exists that does exactly this. I’ve never managed to clone a single material item in my house, but I can duplicate files on my computer all day long. The extent to which we layer encumbrances from the material world on to the process of obtaining another copy of the same software defines the extent to which we all lose the very advantages that technology enable. Any company that has made the switch to FOSS products for its mission critical applications knows exactly what I’m talking about.
Also, it’s worth pointing out that the N450 is probably THE sweet spot for many (not all) netbook purchases. The single core N-series Atom processors use less power than the newer dual core variants. Of those which use the very least power, the N450 is the fastest. Surely, many people might be better served by a dual-core Atom (or by a better processor), but what one gives up in extra muscle one gets back in extra stamina.
WOW Aftermath,
An excellently written piece and spot on, in my opinion. There is more interest in Windows so product promoters will pay to get their trial samples on Windows machines. The fees they pay could go to make the product cheaper or straight to the manufacturers bottom line. If Meego develops an app ecosystem where a developer could make a profit, then those developers might also pay to have their trial samples included. We call it “bloatwareâ€. The manufacturer calls it “Icing on the Cakeâ€.
Samsung N145 with an N450 can be bought at RM850 and yet you get a 6 cell battery and Windows 7 Starter OS. How come this 3 cell and MeeGo is selling for RM999?
Also Samsung NF310 with dual core N550 is selling for RM1050. And thats dual core with a 5900mAh 6 cell battery with Windows 7 Starter OS.
Asus 1015PEM with N550 and 2GB RAM sells for RM1030 with Windows 7 Starter OS.
One can also go for the Asus 1015B with a AMD C50 CPU which sells for RM950 also. 6 Cell battery also.
The above prices are accurate as I went to Low Yat and shopped the other day.
So what is so great buying the Fujitsu? It should be priced far lower, say RM700.
That’s what I suspected although this could be a recommended price with street and bulk prices coming in way cheaper. Even.so, the message coming across here isn’t that exciting.
Fujitsu as a brand typically is on the higher end of the price scale. They are similar to Sony in that regard. I am not surprised that this netbook, despite its meek specs, is priced a little high.