Microsoft's Upcoming Cheap Windows Laptops to Counter Chromebook Threat

Microsoft appears to have no intention to cede the low-end PC market to Google's Chromebook offerings, as it has announced HP, Acer, and Toshiba will soon unveil inexpensive Windows OS-based laptops at $199 and $249 price points.

The news came from Kevin Turner, Microsoft COO, during the firm's Worldwide Partners Conference (via The Verge) held on Monday in Washington D.C.

The cheapest of the announced laptops is HP's 'Stream', with a $199 price tag. Turner did not provide any details on the HP Stream's specifications, but did reveal the low-cost upcoming Acer and Toshiba laptops will feature 15.6-inch and 11.6-inch displays respectively. The Acer laptop will be powered by a 2.16GHz Intel Celeron processor, feature 4GB of RAM, and a 500GB HDD.

Toshiba's inexpensive 11.6-inch Windows laptop offering on the other hand will feature a 32GB SSD onboard, and weigh roughly 1.1kgs.

Turner also added that HP is planning to reveal 7-inch and 8-inch versions of its Stream PCs for a super-low $99 price tag.

"We are going to participate at the low-end," stated Turner in the conference. "We've got a great value proposition against Chromebooks, we are not ceding the market to anyone."

Notably, Acer last week revealed its refurbished C720 Chromebook with a starting price of $349.99, powered by an Intel Core i3 processor instead of a Celeron one.

Similarly, HP also launched its refreshed 11.6-inch Chromebook PC in June with a starting price tag of $249 for the Wi-Fi model.

One of the other threats that Google might be facing in the low-end PC segment is Microsoft reduced licensing fee for Windows OS and Windows Phone OS.

In April, Microsoft said it was giving away its Windows licences to makers of smartphones and small tablets for free in order to make more of an impact on those fast-growing markets and counter the massive success of Google's free Android platform.

In February, the Redmond-based firm was reported to have slashed the price of its Windows 8.1 OS licences by 70 percent, aiming to get a strong hold in the low-cost PC segments. It was noted that the manufacturers will now be charged only $15 instead of the usual fee of $50 to get the Windows 8.1licence and sell it pre-installed on devices costing less than $250.

Android Sneaks Onto the Desktop in Giant HP Tablet

It's a tablet! It's a desktop PC!
Actually, the new Android-powered HP
Slate 21 is a little of both. Featuring a
Nvidia Tegra 4 processor and a
kickstand to prop it up on the desk,
the device targets primarily home
users. "This is the rich experience
consumers really want," said Jim
McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias
Research. "I would expect to see more
of this."
T he line separating the mobile and
desktop computing worlds has
become increasingly blurred in recent
months, and HP on Monday unveiled a
brand-new all-in-one PC that
continues that trend.
Announced during its HP World Tour
event in Beijing, the HP Slate 21 tablet
is powered not by Windows but by
Google's Android. It's also designed
for use on the desktop, with a
kickstand in back to prop it up.
The HP Slate 21 is due to begin
shipping in September; pricing will be
US$399. HP did not respond to our
request for further details.
'A Great Laptop Replacement'
Equipped with a Nvidia Tegra 4 mobile
processor, the Slate 21 features a full
21.5-inch HD touchscreen that
supports intelligent 10-point touch
functionality. The device's "memory
hinge," meanwhile, allows users to
adjust the viewing angle by hand
between 15 and 70 degrees.
Android 4.2.2 is the operating system
for the device, which also includes
8GB of memory, an SD card slot, three
USB 2.0 ports, built-in dual speakers,
a webcam and wireless printing
capabilities. KingSoft office software
comes bundled with the device.
The Slate 21 is aimed primarily at
home users interested in
entertainment and content sharing, HP
said. As many as five user profiles
can be maintained on the device,
enabling each to keep their apps and
files separate.
"As tablets are becoming more
powerful and useful, it becomes
natural to attach keyboards to
supplement the touch screen," Roger
Entner, principal analyst at Recon
Analytics, told TechNewsWorld. "Once
you do that, the tablet become a great
laptop replacement for playing casual
games or word processing."
The most likely users of the Slate 21
are consumers and "light-computing
professionals who value high
mobility," Entner added.
'They Hate Waiting'
Indeed, young consumers are more
likely to take to a device like this
because they are "more accustomed
to using their mobile devices as their
primary computing platform," Jim
McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias
Research, told TechNewsWorld.
"My sons would probably love it
because I started them out on Google
Apps rather than Microsoft Office, and
they would rather use a mobile device
because they hate waiting for a PC to
boot," he explained.
It's about time someone came out
with a device like this, McGregor
added.
'Expect to See More'
"You have to remember that computing
is changing drastically," he said.
"When you think about computing
devices these days, the best are really
our smartphones and tablets."
This move, then, essentially "extends
the same experience no matter what
the architecture, to desktop or
clamshell PC or TV or whatever."
Users will still be "stuck with apps
that were really designed for mobile,"
McGregor pointed out.
Still, the use of a Tegra 4 is
compelling, "not to mention integrated
Nvidia graphics," he said.
In short, "this is the rich experience
consumers really want," McGregor
concluded. "I would expect to see
more of this."