Ultrabook prices dropping before 2nd-Gen Ivy Bridge launch

Unnamed sources from retail channels claim that recent price drops of ultrabooks provided by the likes of Acer, Lenovo and HP are due to the upcoming launch of Intel's second-generation Ivy Bridge processors. Ultrabooks based on the new platform are expected to arrive shortly after Intel's CPU launch. The reduction in price is obvious: to push the older 1st-genration models off store shelves to make way for the newer, spunkier models. This is nothing unusual, and typically a sign that the next-generation models are getting ready to invade retail shelves. That said, now would be a good time to purchase an ultrabook before the newer, pricier models arrive. As DigiTimes points out, Acer's Aspire S3 HDD-equipped ultrabook was reduced to $799 USD here in the States. Lenovo and HP's ultrabook prices also saw a price cut, costing 25-percent and 21-percent less respectively. HP is reportedly geared up to launch its new ultrabook, the Envy Spectra 14, in Taiwan this week. Acer and Lenovo's new ultrabook offerings are scheduled to arrive in the second quarter of 2012. Retail channel sources add that ultrabooks will probably not achieve Intel's goal of a 40-percent share of the notebook market by the end of 2012. But as more new ultrabooks begin to appear in the retail channel, the average price will quickly dip down into the $699-$799 USD realm in the second quarter. Maybe Intel will grab its 40-percent of the notebook market in 2013 instead? Probably not if AMD has anything to say about it with the imminent release of the “ultrathin” form factor.

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