Intel cuts push PCs down price war path

The price cuts on Pentium Pros predicted by PC Dealer again sent PC prices into a downwards spin as Intel released its 1 August prices last week.

Although there were few surprises, the major shock is that more cuts will come in November when Intel reduces Pentium and Pentium Pro prices, condemning the Pentium to the embedded Gulag.

Sources at Intel are also leaking details of the P7 as the CPU giant is forced to sell more chips to finance its next-generation processor.

Insiders said Intel is talking about speeds of 1400MHz, although the technology involved is probably impossible to manufacture using wires and buses.

Last week HP slashed its Pentium PC prices by 24 per cent, following other vendors that previously cut their prices.

The deep cuts in Pentium prices pre-empt a price war involving Pros and Microsoft operating systems including NT and Windows 95.

Intel has insisted its major chip distributors, which some analysts claim include Dell and Gateway, have slashed prices and undermined the channel route to market.

Intel's price pressures have forced chip clone firms such as AMD and Cyrix to cut prices by similar amounts just to stay in the market.

Dealers can expect Pentium and Pentium Pro prices to drop steadily until the end of December when Intel is expected to announce its proprietary Klamath architecture(PC Dealer, 26 June).