The Big "Apple" for $99 (Clone)...$85 Coby Netbook PC "Midget" At CeBIT Show

MOBY AND COBY

- The Big Apple Killer: Marvell's Tablet ("Moby") for $99.
People are crazy to pay Apple's prices. They will be really crazy to pay through the nose for an Apple iPad when they are able to get a suitable replacement for $99 -- if not the Marvell Moby, then something else. Price breaks like this, when it actually happens, are market breakers. This will kick the floor out from under Apple. Read more at http://hothardware.com/News/Marvells-99-Moby-Tablet-Might-Just-Change-The-World/ .


- Coby Netbook PC NBPC722 should even run Linux, as shown by the link below:
http://www.cobysz.com/newEbiz1/EbizPortalFG/portal/html/ProductInfoExhibit.html?ProductInfoExhibit_ProductID=c373e91fae986c488fea6cf251e6dcb6&ProductInfoExhibit_isRefreshParent=false

You will see below why the $100-laptop phenom is unstoppable though most everyone in the computer field does want to stop it.

Today's news comes from the CeBIT exhibition (European show for consumer electronics and telecommunications, with emphasis on suppliers as well as users), ongoing in Hannover, Germany, March 2-6, 2010. http://www.cebit.de/search?srchopts=ZGRmBQt0ZQDjAmcypaMapzH9AFM2pG0kZQN3Amp0AQbkZwL3AwHmZmZ4

We reported on this over a year ago while some famous gadget sites (I won't name Engadget.com or anything like that) were still in denial on this -- http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/08/cobys-sub-200-netbooks-handled-at-ces/ . :) (Do Engadget and Ross Rubin ever say they were wrong?)

You see, everyone who makes their living in the computing game is loath to admit what they loathe. And, oh, how they loathe supercheap computers, because commoditization of computing will cut revenue streams from it, make it less profitable for all -- and that includes stores like Best Buy and product pointers like Engadget and CNet.

The Coby NBPC-722 (Netbook PC, 7-in. screen) is claimed to sell for well under the famed "$100-laptop" price barrier, as Engadget now admits (a year late) -- actually $85.

Unfortunately, I doubt that. The sweet spot for ultracheap computers is about $129. You can sell tons at that price if you have wide distribution channels, as Coby does. You couldn't get a similar device for less than $66 wholesale in quantity, FOB China, which tells me that's about what it costs to make these. So a $99 retail selling price probably is doable for Coby but by no means necessary. I would estimate the introductory price as $119 to $129. But the competitors for these will get much more expensive, making the Cobys attractive indeed.

LET'S MAKE IT OFFICIAL

Here is Coby's page showing the 7-in. netbook PC: http://www.cobysz.com/newEbiz1/EbizPortalFG/portal/html/ProductInfoExhibit.html?ProductInfoExhibit_ProductID=c373e91fae986c488fea6cf251e6dcb6&ProductInfoExhibit_isRefreshParent=false You can see the specs and a photo there.

1. The BIG Deal: YOU WILL BE ABLE TO FIND THEM "EVERYWHERE"!

2. The OTHER BIG Deal: There Will Be DOZENS OF IMITATORS!

By finding them everywhere, I mean they will be in unusual venues for selling laptops, notebooks, and such: at GROCERY stores, HOME IMPROVEMENT stores, DRUG stores. We won't have to rely on conventional electronics sellers like Walmart, Best Buy, and Fry's, who hate to sell cheap PCs. They just won't do it until they have to. Incidentally, I have seen the Augen Netbook for just a little over $100 at a TA truck stop. It also was available at the grocery chain Albertson's and the home-improvement store chain Menard's, last November (Black Friday) for both of them.

Out-of-the-ordinary-channel distribution is essential for the sub-$100 laptop phenom to take off and fly.

100s of Brands Even Now

A city in China, Shenzhen, is the source of literally hundreds of brands of similar mini-laptops or EPCs, as the Chinese are wont to call them. Here are some between $50 and $100: http://www.aliexpress.com/category/702/laptops.html?minPrice=50&maxPrice=100&quantity= .
Here are many more for a little over $100: http://www.aliexpress.com/category/702/laptops.html?minPrice=100&maxPrice=200&quantity= .

LOTS OF $100 LAPTOPS, THAT'S a KEY.

3. AND THE COUP DE GRACE (for $300 - $3000 PCs): The BLISTERPACK PC

When you see these on blisterpacks, you soon will see them in dollar stores (all kinds of dollar stores).

Breaking through the price floor will lower the price of all personal computers. Even Apple and Sony will not be able to hold the line. The bottom price point drags down the bottom line of all computer marketers and those companies and people who feed on them. It is very simple.

My opinion right now is that "computers" eventually will be offered for few tens of dollars. However, bear in mind that that is in 2010 dollars, not the inflated ones we will have when computers get into dollar stores, which might themselves change into "$5 Stores."

MORE FROM ENGADGET.COM

Engadget finally got on the ball with this and it is worth looking at: http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/03/coby-85-smartbook-feels-like-a-hundred-bucks-hands-on/ .

How About a 32-inch Notebook for $150?

Details at the link below:

http://www.hktdc.com/sourcing/company_product_detail.htm?companyid=1X041954&productid=818453&pathid=55&isothernode=false&isinventorynode=false&isstockofnode=false&isstockofothernode=false&entryPoint=1&locale=en

Live in NYC? Check out the Electronics Store where Celebs Go for Bargains

Well, you know the old saying: "Everyone likes a bargain -- the rich *love* a bargain." Actors, politicians, stars, and has-beens ... you'll see them all at J&R Music and Computer World in Downtown New York (yes, NYC has a "downtown").

If you can't make it to the City, you can check out J&R's educational web site and get FREE SHIPPING.

While you're it in New York, also check out some of the smaller stores, typically run by recent immigrants who can offer knockoffs at a much lower price sometimes.

But J&R graduated from a hole to a city block (photo) and is well worth a look, as they can offer some of the lowest prices around.

They are at Park Row, between Beekman and Ann Streets, one block south of City Hall and two blocks north of Fulton Street, in Downtown New York. (New York's billionaire mayor Michael Bloomberg shops there.)

23 Park Row
New York, NY 10038
(across from City Hall Park)
Phone: 1-212-238-9000

How About a13-inch Notebook for $250?

Meet the Hanbo. (Is there no end to these Chinese brand names)? http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/277051766/2010_new_netbook.html

It's around $250 direct from China, FREE SHIPPING, your payment protected by Alibaba (no delivery, no payment of your money).

As far as a day-in-and-day-out deal, one you can always get anytime you want it, this probably is about the best we can do for right now on a netbook computer of this size.

ANSWERING JOE WILCOX' ARTICLE IN "BETANEWS"

I couldn't resist commenting on Joe Wilcox's blog article "Sony shows how to lift Windows PCs out of the low-price doldrums" http://www.betanews.com/joewilcox/article/Sony-shows-how-to-lift-Windows-PCs-out-of-the-lowprice-doldrums/1265139557 , which is the antithesis of the content on my blog:

Clayton Hallmark
Feb 2, 2010 - 5:03 PM [EST]

Well, Joe, you make a good argument, but you got it right the first time: What we are seeing is commoditization.

I have a whole blog dedicated to this, to the Alpha 400 and other cheapEST computers. If you live in New York City, you can prove to yourself, by visual observation, that maintaining ASP in PCs is the Impossible Dream. Go into any of the hole-in-the-wall cheap-electronics storefronts in Midtown (mostly) and you will see mini-laptops -- not worthy of the name, some would say -- that you can buy for around $100 any old day, no contracts and no strings attached. This might be true in other big cities as well, or soon will be.

There are literally thousands of sources for these cheap ARM-based notebooks in mainland China, hundreds of *manufacturers* even, all making basically the same no-name product -- that is, usually with no brand-name at all. Some have even set up shop in the USA, online and on the street.

Cheap products for the Chinese market can be sold cheaply here as well. They will flood the market and drag all ASPs down with them. You can even order these direct from China, often with the seller paying your shipping cost, on a single-unit basis, and your payment is even protected by something similar to PayPal (no delivery, no money). Unstoppable. (I am not giving my web address, but I had to respond to the very interesting article.)

HERE IS JOE WILCOX'S BASIC ARGUMENT, BUT GO TO HIS WEBSITE TO GIVE HIM A FAIR CHANCE:

http://www.betanews.com/joewilcox/article/Sony-shows-how-to-lift-Windows-PCs-out-of-the-lowprice-doldrums/1265139557

"Sony shows how to lift Windows PCs out of the low-price doldrums"

"Windows PC vendors can effectively raise selling prices -- not that it will be easy, particularly as long as they sell netbooks. One Windows PC OEM shows the way. Today, Sony announced new E-series laptops packing Intel i3 and i5 core processors and boasting, brashy colored exteriors. The $799.99 price is about $326 more than the average selling price of laptops sold at US retail in fourth quarter, according to NPD data."

"Selling Prices in Free Fall"

"US retail average selling prices fell for both Macs and Windows PCs during 2009, but for different reasons. For Windows PCs ..."

"Their wicked toll: In fourth quarter, notebook ASPs (including netbooks) declined to $473 from $604 a year earlier. Desktop ASP: $488 down from $533 year over year. Thank you, netbooks. May you burn in hell."

"By comparison, also during fourth quarter, Mac notebook ASP was $1,359 down from 1,507 a year earlier. Interesting trend: Mac laptop ASPs also fell below desktops. The desktop ASP was $1,366 down from $1,471 a year earlier."

"To Acer, Dell, HP and other Windows OEMs pushing cheap PCs, I say this: If you don't offer a premium brand with premium features at a reasonable premium price, your customers' next computer purchase will be a Mac. Get it?"

Again, Joe Wilcox's article is well worth the time to read it, and you can do so here: http://www.betanews.com/joewilcox/article/Sony-shows-how-to-lift-Windows-PCs-out-of-the-lowprice-doldrums/1265139557

ORDER $100 PCs DIRECT FROM CHINA -- You are protected by Alibaba payment, meaning you get delivery before the payment goes through.

There are hundreds to choose from, but they are all the same!

Here is an example. This link http://www.aliexpress.com/product-gs/284166570-7inches-UMPC-Netbooks-Mini-Laptops-Laptops-Notebooks-Laptop-Computers-VIA-ARM-VT-8505-SSD-2GB-Memory-wholesalers.html takes you to the 7-inch mini-laptop in the photo, offered by Shenzhen Dongdai Industry Co., Ltd., in Shenzhen, China.

FINALLY ON THE STREET: The other photo shows one of the ubiquitous cheap-electronics stores in Manhattan. This is where it all typically starts. Best Buy and other store chains (even Walmart) hate these cheap laptops. The reason is, they are making so much money on selling laptops for 4-10 times as much. You will find these stores in downtown Chicago, Los Angeles, and other really big cities.

FREE SHIPPING FROM CHINA: Dongdai offers the laptop in the photo for $118, and they will pay the shipping cost from China to you.

The procedure is, (1) you go to the above site, (2) make your payment for $118 with your credit card to Alipay, a service of the well known Alibaba Chinese e-commerce site. You pay securely with your credit card without exposing your details. (3) Alipay holds your payment in escrow until your notebook is delivered. They forward your order to the seller / manufacturer, Dongdai. (4) Dongdai sends your computer. (5) You receive your computer and confirm delivery. (6) Alipay forwards the payment to Dongdai, the seller, after you get the product.

This service even provides a tracking number for you to track your order.

The laptop is like the other ARM computers we have been covering recently in posts like this: APPLE TABLET CLONE -- and Dozens of OTHER CHEAP PC'S .

There are literally thousands of sources in China for these ARM laptops, among which there are hundreds of manufacturers. There are even dozens of Chinese people in the US who have established online stores for cheap electronics in the United States.

WHO NEEDS BEST BUY? By now, I would expect laptops for $100 or close to it are available on the street in the US. They should be found in the many cheap-electronics storefronts in Midtown Manhattan, especially near Times Square. Soon these will be available in stores everywhere. Chicago, Los Angeles -- on the street in all the biggest cities.

However, don't look for these in the big chain stores. Again, who needs Best Buy, Microsoft, Fry's, or Geeks.com?

APPLE TABLET CLONE -- and Dozens of OTHER CHEAP PC'S

Over 40 Computers UNDER $200 -- to buy from many online stores: CLICK LINK BELOW

http://www.bizrate.com/computers-software/products__absoluteMaxPrice--150000__absoluteMinPrice--0__keyword--computers__maxPrice--200__minPrice--0__priceRangeSubmit--yes__start--0__zipcode--zip%2Bcode.html







APPLE Tablet CLONE, SPECIAL NOTE:

Yesterday Apple introduced its coyily delayed tablet computer / reader, which they call the "iPad" and hope to sell for $500 (!). Lots of luck, Steve Jobs, because there already is a cheap Chinese version of this in the works (tablet photo), from a company that sells mini-laptops / notebooks for $66 to $80, depending on quantity, (laptop photo). The supercheap computer, which you can buy below, is based on Anyka's AK7802 processor, which is ARM based.

The King of Cheap, Sungworld, which offers the above, will also offer an Apple Tablet clone at a huge discount over the grossly inflated price Apple is advertising. No small computer should cost more than about $100, including anything from Apple.

PHOTO (laptop, above): $66 (quantity price) Mini-laptop from Sungworld. Click for more. The Chinese can have one. You can't. Ask yourself why.
If you want a sample of the above, quantity of one, Item E70002-5, it will be $80 plus shipping from China. The contact at Sungworld is Daniel Zhang, at direct line 86-755-89580577 , extension 8577.
FAX: 0755-89580501 URL: www.sungworld.com
E-mail: yw03@sungworld.com or daniel_dan2008@hotmail.com

If you want to distribute this, you can sell it for a lot less than $100. Quantity prices are: $73 in quantities of 500, $71 for 1000, $69 for 2000, and $66 for 3000. Larger quantities are negotiable.

And consider the following, which you can have right now, any day. Only extra cost is the usual, the shipping from US / Canada location to you (except for the Lightinthebox, see below).


Name / Price / Op System / CPU: Speed, make, CPU # (architecture, i.e., x86, ARM, MIPS, etc.)

(Low-cost shipping from US or Canada.)

Merimobiles "No Name" / $99.99 / 7-inch / Windows CE / CPU: 533-MHz VIA, VT8500 (ARM) / WiFi, Yes
Order at Every Day Low Price: http://www.merimobiles.com/Cheapest_7_inch_Mini_Notebook_Laptop_WIFI_Windows_p/meri0190.htm Telephone 1-800-204-0883

LightintheBox "No Name" / $99.99 / 7-inch / Windows CE / CPU: 300-MHz ANYKA, AK7802 (ARM) / WiFi, Yes
Order at Every Day Low Price: http://www.lightinthebox.com/index.php?main_page=shopping_cart&products_name=Mini-Netbook---7-TFT-ANKY-7802-300MHZ-256MB-DDR-2G-Storage---Laptop--SMQ4097-
Shipping $27.01, sales@lightinthebox.com

Inner Circle (phone with keyboard) / $94.99 / 2.2-inch / Windows CE / CPU: Unknown / WiFi, No
Order at Every Day Low Price: http://www.merimobiles.com/S73_Keyboard_dual_sim_TV_phone_p/meri0091.htm Telephone 1-800-204-0883

Cherrypal Africa / $99 / 7-inch / Linux / CPU: 400-MHz Ingenic, unknown number (MIPS) / WiFi, Yes
Order at Every Day Low Price: http://www.cherrypal.com/openstore/product_info.php?products_id=9&osCsid=c3e9349a07c665d1b83674256ddd88a8 Telephone: (650) 319-8300

Airlife / $119.99 / 7-inch / Windows CE / CPU: 533-MHz VIA, VT8500 (ARM) / WiFi, Yes
Order at Every Day Low Price: http://www.merimobiles.com/Airlife_7_inch_Notebook_Laptop_WIFI_Windows_CE_6_0_p/meri0189.htm Telephone 1-800-204-0883

Y'allStore.com "Mini-laptop" / $128.99 / 7-inch / Windows CE / CPU: 300-MHz VIA, (ARM) / WiFi, Yes
Order at Every Day Low Price: http://www.yallstore.com/laptops-notebooks-c-720.html
(518) 632-6888
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