Tablets running Windows 8 on Intel architecture may be priced too high to succeed in the tablet market, with rumoured pricing hitting the $600-$800 ball park because neither Windows nor chip-maker Intel are willing to drop their prices.
In the UK, that converts to £400 to £530 (but likely to be higher with tax). While this kind of price point works if you're hawking, say, an iPad, Microsoft will have a pretty tricky job on its hands to lure Apple slate-lovers away from iOS and over to Windows 8-lite for the same money.
The reason neither company wants to go lower on prices is partly good old-fashioned greed, but also because they are loathe to "damage" pricing in the PC market; cheaper tablets could force down the prices of PCs, notebooks, software - otherwise known as Microsoft's bread and butter.
Cash poor
Digitimes reckons that if Intel isn't careful, manufacturers are likely to opt for ARM-based architecture from Qualcomm, Nvidia and Texas Instruments to avoid the higher prices.
While this might be a more wallet-friendly approach, it may leave you feeling a bit short-changed on specs and performance.
Not that any Windows 8 tablets have actually launched yet, despite a glut of prototypes hitting CES 2012; check back in the latter half of the year.
