price

Intel lists new low-cost processors

Intel updated its processor pricing list with low-cost quad-core and Core 2 Duo desktop processors. A new Celeron D model was also listed.

Intel lists the Q8200 at $224, one of the least expensive quad-core chips that the company now offers. The venerable Q6600 is the only Core 2 Quad that is less expensive.

The 45-nanometer processor has a core clock speed of 2.33GHz and 4MB of cache memory. This is a relatively small amount of cache memory as most Intel desktop quads offered now come with 6MB, 8MB, or 12MB of cache memory. Generally, the more cache memory … Read more

Kelley Blue Book launches site optimized for iPhone

Kelley Blue Book (KBB), the popular Web site that rates and provides information on motor vehicles, launched on Wednesday its new version that's optimized for iPhone's display (both the original and the iPhone 3G). The new site also works with iPod Touch.

iPhone users now can easily access KBB's new and used vehicle information on their device anywhere they go. The site appears as a Web application that looks and feels very much like an independent application that you buy from Apple's Apps Store. In addition, iPhone users also have the ability to view the Web … Read more

Blu-ray players rumored to hit $249 by autumn

Sony will be dropping the prices on its standalone (non-PlayStation 3) Blu-ray players by $100 in September, according to an anonymous source cited by CE insider Gary Merson on his HD Guru Web site.

Around the same time, the source claims that budget players manufactured by Funai and sold under the labels Philips, Magnavox, Sylvania, and Insignia could drop as low as $249. Specifically, the Sony BDP-S350 would drop from $400 to $300, and the as-yet-unreleased step-up model, the BDP-S550, would be introduced at $400, instead of the $500 price that was previously announced.

Now, anonymous sources are a dime a dozen on the Internet, but our normal degree of "beware stuff you see on a blog" cynicism is tempered by two points. First: Merson's had a good track record on getting the inside scoop on forthcoming price drops in the past (example). Second, the fact that prices are coming down as we approach the all-important holiday buying season just makes sense--we'd be more surprised if the prices didn't fall. … Read more

Xbox 360 price cuts imminent?

According to gaming blog Joystiq, all three Xbox 360 models will be getting a price cut in the next three weeks. According to the AOL gaming blog:

A few of our retail contacts, some of whom have given us good intel in the past--and who all work for separate corporations--have sent us identical information regarding a price drop.

Adding significant gravitas to the claim is the inclusion of an authentic-looking Radio Shack newspaper circular dated September 7. The ad shows price cuts across the board for all three Xbox 360 models: the 120GB Elite for $399 (down from $449); the … Read more

eBay to lower sellers' fixed-price fees

eBay will reduce the fees it charges to sellers to list fixed-price items, the online auctioneer is set to announce Wednesday.

The move, which will take effect September 16, is intended to help eBay compete better with online retail rivals such as Amazon.com, as well as reduce its dependency on auctions.

Under the new pricing plan, sellers who offer fixed-price items in eBay's "Buy It Now" format will pay only 35 cents to list an item for 30 days, a 70 percent reduction in upfront fees. The online auctioneer is also expected to announce that most … Read more

Shoeboxed and Price Protectr partner to save you cash

Shoeboxed and Price Protectr, two sites we've written about in the past, joined forces on Monday in a partnership that's downright helpful to deal hunters. Any receipts sent in to the receipt scanning service will be parsed over for product names, then sent over to Price Protectr. If something you bought goes down in price within the return or exchange date, you'll be notified--potentially saving you some cash. That is as long as you've manually entered that item into Price Protectr.

Since Shoeboxed keeps copies of all your receipts, you can simply print out a copy … Read more

Intel cuts chip prices up to 31 percent

Intel has cut processor prices up to 31 percent, though overall cuts are limited in number and degree.

The desktop Core 2 Duo E8500 (3.16GHz) got the largest cut, from $266 to $183 (31 percent) on the new pricing list, dated July 20.

The next biggest price reduction was the desktop Core 2 Duo E7200 (2.53GHz), reduced 15 percent, from $133 to $113.

Other price cuts include the popular quad-core Q6600 (2.4GHz). It drops 14 percent, from $224 to $193. The desktop Core 2 Duo E8400 (3GHz) falls 11 percent, from $183 to $163.

Xeon server processors … Read more

Oracle avoids SaaS to keep margins up, raise prices

Oracle is a shrewd, shrewd company. As reported by Sarah Lacy in Businessweek, Oracle long ago recognized the potential for Software-as-a-Service, both to liberate customers and to decimate its profits. Noting that the two may very well go together, Oracle has demurred from jumping into SaaS:

On-demand software has turned out to be a brutal slog. Software sold "as a service" over the Web doesn't sell itself, even when it's cheaper and actually works. Each sale closed by these new Web-based software companies has a much smaller price tag. And vendors are continually tweaking their software, fixing bugs, and pushing out incremental improvements. Great news for the user, but the software makers miss out on the once-lucrative massive upgrade every few years and seemingly endless maintenance fees for supporting old versions of the software....

Why isn't Oracle a bigger player in on-demand software? It doesn't want to be, Ellison told the analysts and investors. … Read more

Zebra Technologies introduces G-series thermal printers

Zebra Technologies just announced their new "G-series" line of thermal printers. These little guys fall under the four-inch desktop printer category and, while not specifically for the consumer market, will still appeal to industries that deal with printing labels, receipts, price marking tags, shipping and return labels, boarding passes, ID wristbands and tags, and admission tickets.

The new offerings from Zebra include the GX420t,GX420d, GX430t, GK420t, and the GK420d. Across the board, these printers feature a wide range of convenient, easy to operate printing solutions in the work or home office. Notable specifications include:

Wireless: 802.11g … Read more

Nvidia cuts prices on GTX 260, 280 graphics boards

Nvidia has slashed the price of products with its newest GTX 260 and 280 graphics processors only a few weeks after it launched the chips, in response to stiffer competition from Advanced Micro Devices' ATI unit.

Nvidia said Sunday night that the GeForce GTX 280 is now available for $499 and the GTX 260 for $299. The high-end GTX 280 was originally $649, while the 260 was priced previously at $399. Both products were rolled out less than a month ago.

Nvidia's graphics boards are now more in line with ATI's newest offerings. At $299, the GTX 260 … Read more