Best time to buy a PC may be now

Zardon · Jan 2, 2003, 11:19 PM

So you decided not to buy a personal computer before Christmas? Not to worry. You were not alone. Sales were weak during the holiday season, and that means you can expect plenty of hot deals as companies try to unload their inventories.

PC PRICES TYPICALLY FALL when new technology hits the market. That decline is magnified after Christmas as stores look to push older models out to make room for the new. Only the most advanced gear is likely to stay pricey.
The danger of falling into the trap of buying outmoded technology has also decreased as companies have gotten better at stocking PCs with the newest technology. Most PCs can also easily be upgraded down the road.
Before you set out to shop, however, you should figure out exactly what you want and how much you want to spend, whether its $399 or $1,999.
“I tell everyone, ‘Understand exactly what you’re going to do with the computer, what you want, and what your budget is,’” said Stephen Baker of NPD Techworld, a firm that tracks personal computer sales on a weekly basis.
“‘Follow the ads, check the manufacturers, choose who you want to buy it from. And then, when the price gets to where you want it, go ahead and buy,’” he advised.

For buyers who only want to send e-mail, do some Web shopping and aren’t picky about how fast the computer is, the next few weeks are an especially good time to buy.
If initial indications are correct, Christmas wasn’t very merry for PC makers like Dell Computer Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Gateway Inc. or retailers like Best Buy Co. Inc. and Circuit City Stores Inc.
Sales didn’t measure up to already low expectations, which could mean stockrooms have extra PCs in them. If that’s the case, bargain basement prices may show up as retailers unload inventory.
“That’s a good trick — knowing how much of what to have at what price and at what time,” said Roger Kay, an analyst for Framingham, Massachusetts-based research firm IDC. PC makers and retailers have gotten better at doing it, he said, but ultimately they are still making a bet on what demand will be.
One of the hot promotions ahead of the holiday was a “free” computer being given away with the purchase of a more expensive one at Gateway. If sales were weak, the “free” computer from that promotion may show up for sale on its own, if with an extra low price tag, Kay suggested.

Maybe a super-fast microprocessor — the brains of the computer — is still on your wish list. Or you’re craving gobs of computer memory for smooth editing of holiday videos. Perhaps an extra-large hard drive to store a library of digital photos is your must-have.

With the latest technology, post-holiday discounts may not be enough to get the price into your range.
“The new stuff is never cheap. If you want the new stuff early, you have to pay a premium,” Kay said.
He advises buyers to avoid the latest technology and buy something that’s been on the market for a few months. Or, he said, wait until the desired specification, or spec, has been around for a while and drops in price.
Let’s say you were shopping for a microprocessor with a speed of 3 gigahertz, or 3 billion cycles per second, one of the faster processors on the market. “If you wait four months or so, there will be a much higher performing machine out and the 3 gigahertz will be more shopworn. At that point you can get it for less,” Kay says.
Worried that the machines marked for post-holiday sales could be made with last year’s DVD drive or microprocessors that limp along as you surf the Web?
That happens less and less. And when it does, there is a way out, NPD’s Baker said.
PC makers have been managing their inventory better, so it’s tough to buy a computer that is out of date, he said. And sometimes you don’t need to buy the latest DVD drive or a huge hard drive — older components may be good enough for now and new technology makes it much easier to replace them later on.
During the last six months almost all of the PC makers have built easy-to-use high speed connections — like USB 2.0 or FireWire — into their machines, which make it easy to plug in a bigger hard drive or a different type of DVD drive down the road.
“Even if something has a smaller drive than what you wanted or what you think you’re going to need in a year and half, you can probably buy what you want in a year and a half and just plug it in,” Baker said. reuters

DriveEuro · Jan 3, 2003, 04:48 AM

Yup, all the prices seem a little lower than usual right now...at least where I check prices.

diamud · Jan 7, 2003, 04:53 PM

There are some really great deals right now, for sure. Wish I had waited two months to get my new system.

Jan 2, 2003, 11:19 PM	#1
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	Best time to buy a PC may be now So you decided not to buy a personal computer before Christmas? Not to worry. You were not alone. Sales were weak during the holiday season, and that means you can expect plenty of hot deals as companies try to unload their inventories. PC PRICES TYPICALLY FALL when new technology hits the market. That decline is magnified after Christmas as stores look to push older models out to make room for the new. Only the most advanced gear is likely to stay pricey. The danger of falling into the trap of buying outmoded technology has also decreased as companies have gotten better at stocking PCs with the newest technology. Most PCs can also easily be upgraded down the road. Before you set out to shop, however, you should figure out exactly what you want and how much you want to spend, whether its $399 or $1,999. “I tell everyone, ‘Understand exactly what you’re going to do with the computer, what you want, and what your budget is,’” said Stephen Baker of NPD Techworld, a firm that tracks personal computer sales on a weekly basis. “‘Follow the ads, check the manufacturers, choose who you want to buy it from. And then, when the price gets to where you want it, go ahead and buy,’” he advised. For buyers who only want to send e-mail, do some Web shopping and aren’t picky about how fast the computer is, the next few weeks are an especially good time to buy. If initial indications are correct, Christmas wasn’t very merry for PC makers like Dell Computer Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Gateway Inc. or retailers like Best Buy Co. Inc. and Circuit City Stores Inc. Sales didn’t measure up to already low expectations, which could mean stockrooms have extra PCs in them. If that’s the case, bargain basement prices may show up as retailers unload inventory. “That’s a good trick — knowing how much of what to have at what price and at what time,” said Roger Kay, an analyst for Framingham, Massachusetts-based research firm IDC. PC makers and retailers have gotten better at doing it, he said, but ultimately they are still making a bet on what demand will be. One of the hot promotions ahead of the holiday was a “free” computer being given away with the purchase of a more expensive one at Gateway. If sales were weak, the “free” computer from that promotion may show up for sale on its own, if with an extra low price tag, Kay suggested. Maybe a super-fast microprocessor — the brains of the computer — is still on your wish list. Or you’re craving gobs of computer memory for smooth editing of holiday videos. Perhaps an extra-large hard drive to store a library of digital photos is your must-have. With the latest technology, post-holiday discounts may not be enough to get the price into your range. “The new stuff is never cheap. If you want the new stuff early, you have to pay a premium,” Kay said. He advises buyers to avoid the latest technology and buy something that’s been on the market for a few months. Or, he said, wait until the desired specification, or spec, has been around for a while and drops in price. Let’s say you were shopping for a microprocessor with a speed of 3 gigahertz, or 3 billion cycles per second, one of the faster processors on the market. “If you wait four months or so, there will be a much higher performing machine out and the 3 gigahertz will be more shopworn. At that point you can get it for less,” Kay says. Worried that the machines marked for post-holiday sales could be made with last year’s DVD drive or microprocessors that limp along as you surf the Web? That happens less and less. And when it does, there is a way out, NPD’s Baker said. PC makers have been managing their inventory better, so it’s tough to buy a computer that is out of date, he said. And sometimes you don’t need to buy the latest DVD drive or a huge hard drive — older components may be good enough for now and new technology makes it much easier to replace them later on. During the last six months almost all of the PC makers have built easy-to-use high speed connections — like USB 2.0 or FireWire — into their machines, which make it easy to plug in a bigger hard drive or a different type of DVD drive down the road. “Even if something has a smaller drive than what you wanted or what you think you’re going to need in a year and half, you can probably buy what you want in a year and a half and just plug it in,” Baker said. reuters

Jan 3, 2003, 04:48 AM	#2
DriveEuro HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Gurnee Illinois Posts: 4,677 Rep Power: 0	Yup, all the prices seem a little lower than usual right now...at least where I check prices. __________________ [color=orange]ASUS P4P800 Deluxe [color=black]-[/color] 2.4C --> 3300mhz [color=black]-[/color] Mushkin PC3200 at 220 5-2-2-2 (cpu limited) [color=black]-[/color] BBAti 9800Pro at 430/375 [/color] [color=black]3[/color][color=gray]D[/color]M[color=black]a[/color][color=gray]r[/color]k[color=yellow]01[/color] [color=black]3[/color][color=gray]D[/color]M[color=black]a[/color][color=gray]r[/color]k[color=yellow]03[/color] 16001200 12801024

Jan 7, 2003, 04:53 PM	#3
diamud DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Dunedin FL Posts: 14 Rep Power: 0	There are some really great deals right now, for sure. Wish I had waited two months to get my new system.