Let’s all think back to our Econ classes to the section on economies of scale, especially as the theory pertains to purchasing production materials in bulk. That’s what Acer’s able to do thanks to its sheer size and that’s the reason that its FOB price (free on board — total cost it takes to get one unit loaded onto a boat somewhere) for its Eee competitor will fall between $250 and $300 versus Asus’ $300 to $350.
Asus has said that it won’t try to battle Acer on price. It’ll have its 8.9-inch Eee ready to go almost a month before Acer, though, so it should give it an okay head start. The average selling price for the Asus is expected to come in at around $400 to $500 (probably closer to $500), while the Acer is expected to be around $350 to $400.
Early reports have indicated that the 8.9-inch Eee will go for $500 here in the US, so if Acer were to somehow put out a comparable machine at $350, it’d really give Asus something to think about. Even $400 could cause problems — problems in a good way.
Acer low-cost PC expected to be cheaper than second-generation Eee PC [DigiTimes]