Free Linux Laptop with every inkjet printer?
I am bit slow between the ears sometimes. Sometimes things take a long time to sink in and when they do, I have a "duh!" moment. I had one recently in an outlet of well known, computer chain store. I wandered up the printer aisle marvelling at the inventiveness of the printer manufacturers in conjuring up so many mutually incompatible containers that all serve to delivery streams of cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink. Such diversity in a such a small amount of shelf space.
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It would seem to me (barring
It would seem to me (barring anticompetitive actions on Microsoft's part) that a Linux machine that does the basics and is easy to use would lead to higher margins in contrast to a Windows machine because of the lower costs of Linux to resellers (again, barring illegal actions by the Monopolist).A service business and other follow-up businesses based on Linux offers more possibilities because of the greater transparency of Linux and lower dependence on Microsoft. So sell Linux at OK margins to then open up higher-margin revenue streams.
Why wouldn't a retailer want to sell their own Linux retailer branded machines? It would provide a fully controllable and cheap vehicle/channel for reaching out to their customers. Why keep around the Microsoft middleman who is charging monopoly prices and hiding information from the retailer that the retailer could otherwise leverage to gain further access to their own market? The future shows full custom Linux distro environments being run like application are run today (with the full environment being more powerful than mere third-party second-hand Windows apps). What is the retailer waiting for?
Without their various interlocking monopolies, Microsoft would have less leverage over their resellers. Who besides Microsoft would consider to be bad news the breaking of their monopoly control? When Linux grows, everyone (except for Microsoft) wins.
Ink Jet printers are cheap
Ink Jet printers are cheap because the manufacturers are able to earn money with the cartridges. Since there is no never-ending big revenue stream for laptops, you will simply not see their prices drop to a level that can be compared to the ink jet printers. This is no mystery at all, shops and manufacturers need to earn their money based on sheer sales volume and that's it. Heck, they do it with all that consumer stuff you can find at your local store, see DVD players for instance.There are still a lot of people out there without a laptop and they probably will want one sooner or later (see the "I do not need a cell phone, gah!" stories a couple of years ago) and a cheap 10" lightweight probably has a better chance of being sold than a big expensive chunk of a 17" monster - just because it does what most people require, needs less battery, can be used at home with a decent TFT monitor and regular keyboard and are really mobile devices when you need them to be mobile.
Linux or Windows is not a big question for the shops, they just sell what people ask for. If the Linux version comes a little bit cheaper, some will probably be tempted to buy them instead of the XP Home version. Most of the time you will buy a Windoze laptop when you are familiar with Windows or simply know someone who is. The same applies to Linux ... I am very optimistic that Linux will beat Windows in the long run - not because of the price but because of the feature-richness and ease-of-use of the various GUIs.
Cheap printers subsidised by
Cheap printers subsidised by recurring cartridge revenue ==Cheap WWAN laptops subsidised by mobile carrier plans
We in the UK are starting to
We in the UK are starting to see laptops subsidised heavily by wireless dongles with attached 18 month contractsThe mobile carrier dimension
The mobile carrier dimension is an interesting one for where "laptops/notebooks" are headed. The established players - both in OS and h/w terms - are making smaller and lighter machines but the mobile people are coming at it from the other direction : making "phones" bigger and better to basically encompass common PC tasks.Then there are the dark horses : the e-book reader manufacturers...
Sean
this would do it: $98 dollar
this would do it:$98 dollar laptop"
Computer, ninety-eight dollars cash.
Printer, fourty-eight dollars on short term debt.
Promotional price, two hundred one dollars to the consumer.
Long term value on selling toner, cases, bigger keyboards and other gadgets, Priceless.
laptops
I haven't heard about that offer yet, but I surely know that we have some great discounts on notebooks lately and you simply can't resist buying one, especially if it is that cheap.laptops
I haven't heard about that offer yet, but I surely know that we have some great discounts on notebooks lately and you simply can't resist buying one, especially if it is that cheap.laptops
I haven't heard about that offer yet, but I surely know that we have some great discounts on notebooks lately and you simply can't resist buying one, especially if it is that cheap.replica bags
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