Telco-subsidized Netbooks?

There’s this huge buzz in the US where Radio Shack is offering the Acer Aspire One for just $99.99. This reminds me of what Asus reps said during the netbook forum organized by CyberPress a couple months back.

The Radio Shack offer is for a $99.99 netbook but with a 2-year contract for mobile 3G internet. The Acer Aspire One is originally priced at $499. The data plan with AT&T costs $60/month.

We are familiar with this one mobile phones but not with laptops. Local telcos used to do this too before on a limited basis with some laptop brands (was it HP or Lenovo?). Asus Philippines shared that a huge bulk of their netbook sales come from buyers applying for DSL connections.

Given that they have some success on that front, I guess they might also have the same if they sell their mobile 3G plans with a netbook in it.

We could be looking at a Php2,500 monthly fee for an unlimited 3G plan plus a new MSI Wind, Asus Eee PC or Acer Aspire One. Seems like a good offer. Would people bite this offer?

Abe Olandres

Abe is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of YugaTech with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. He is one of the pioneers of blogging in the country and considered by many as the Father of Tech Blogging in the Philippines. He is also a technology consultant, a tech columnist with several national publications, resource speaker and mentor/advisor to several start-up companies.

https://www.yugatech.com

10 Comments

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14 years ago

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owens says:

16 years ago

a 2500 monthly fee for a netbook is very expensive.whats probably reasonable is a 600 peso monthly fee (unlimited) locked for 24 months all in (service and mobile pc) parang cellphone plan . thats what im willing to pay for unlimited 3g surfing. that is what i call sulit. thats a real value for my money if that happens.
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Tolits says:

16 years ago

Maganda yan give ko lang ang pldt landline at mydsl subscription worth 1700+ pesos para sa deal na yan hindi ko naman need na ang telephone kaya kung meron ganyan deal dagdag nalang ako ng mga 800 pesos eh di meron na akong netbook at internet connection. Ngayon pa 2 years na halos ang subscription ko sa dsl kaya out na ako sa lock-in period :)
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Erin says:

16 years ago

normally not. a lock-in means just that: a lock in the agreement. there are very few cases wherein the provider will allow you to void the contract. in my case with destiny cable internet, they were not able to provide reasonable service as stated in the contract and the cost of the marketing black-eye is worth more than my monthly subscription payments.

ciao!
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mocs says:

16 years ago

just askin :) what would happen if i don’t complete the lock in period, say..bayad lang ako for 12 months and return the thing….hehehe. Would that be OK?
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Erin says:

16 years ago

let me see (brings out the calculator and some assumptions):

Bundled deal:
3G Plan+Wind = Php2,500 @ month x 24 months (2-year lock-in period) = Php60,000
TOTAL = Php60,000

Per piece:
Wind = Php 22,000
Unlimited 3G Plan = Php1,500 x 24 = Php36,000
TOTAL = Php 58,000

Going per piece will save you Php2000 in the span of two years and that is assuming that the bundled netbook is not the basic configuration type. And you get continuous signal on most places you frequent. Our house in Binangonan has spotty signal for regular mobile needs and hoping for 3G signal is a pipe dream.

Opting for the 3G prepaid might be more economical if the user is only going to use the service at an average of 1-2 hours per day.

But if they are going to bundle a telephone line on that service then I am willing to be locked in for another 2 years. :D

ciao!
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pinoycontests says:

16 years ago

The Php2,500 monthly fee ain’t a shoddy deal, but not a lot of people will avail of it. It’s not pang-masa, who would still prefer an affordable internet plan or surfing at a net cafe. Just my two cents.
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Abe Olandres says:

16 years ago

Yeah, they used to do it with the EeePC 701 but don’t know if they continued doing it with the later 9 and 10″ models.
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Andre Marcelo-Tanner says:

16 years ago

doesnt smart 3g or globe broadbane offer with the eeepc?
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raymac says:

16 years ago

imho…nada! netbooks are for mobile users…thus netbook is mobility with internet access. P2500 a month with telco’s 2-year contract is expensive given that the netbook access internet at most is 2 to 3 hours in a cafe/day….unless of course you stay there the whole day.
for me, it is worth it if i’ll use my netbook for the whole day for several without powering off while downloading movies. hehehehe… that’s a bang for a buck.
as intel announced recently, atom processors are for light users only and not for hardcore users…they are not recommending them for whole day use.
i’m not sure for the bloggers like yuga….i think it would be worth it. just my two cents….
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