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Via plans PCs below 
20,000 in India
Friday, 04 October 2002, 19:30 IST
PANAJI: Global chipset manufacturer Via Technologies Inc. is hoping to make inroads into the price-sensitive Indian market by coming out with cheap personal computers (PCs).
"It should be possible to come out with a sufficiently powerful personal computer for less than 
20,000," Via Technologies Inc. country manager for India Ravi Pradhan said.
The former IBM Corporation technologist points out that costly and high-powered computers are not really the need of the average Indian user.
"We want to bring the price of a computer to the sub-20,000 rupee range, that too offering every function that the user requires, including 256 megabyte memory and a CD-writer," Pradhan says.
"There is no need for higher-end personal computers for the vast majority of users. Almost any task can be done by a computer (with a chip speed of) 600-700 mhz," he adds.
One can do most of one's work on a lower-power computer, whether it is word-processing, working on spreadsheets, access the Internet, send and receive e-mail and even chat on the Net, says Pradhan.
In spite all the talk of computer prices going down, the international market has been focussing on a business model that gives PC buyers more powerful but costly models. Lower-powered brands and models simply get pushed out of the market, leaving the cash-strapped middle class buyer with few options.
"Lower-cost PCs would really help the common man, who has a dream of giving a good education to his children and having a PC in their home," argues Pradhan, who graduated from Indian Institute of Technology-Madras and returned to India after spending 26 years in the U.S.
According to industry estimates, there is a total of six million PCs in India, and just 1.5 to 1.8 million are sold each year in the country.
Via started making chipsets for PCs in 1993-94. "Three years ago Via purchased the Cyrix CPU company to form National Semiconductors. Today we do both CPUs (central processing units, the heart of the PC) and graphic chips," says Pradhan.
Via, he adds, is keen to promote free and open source software, given their stability and affordability.
"We see no need for the Indian market to pay huge amounts for software. We would like to work very closely with the huge Linux community in India," says Pradhan. "Linux is most affordable, most stable and a lot less prone to hacking and virus."
Source: IANS
20,000," Via Technologies Inc. country manager for India Ravi Pradhan said.
The former IBM Corporation technologist points out that costly and high-powered computers are not really the need of the average Indian user.
"We want to bring the price of a computer to the sub-20,000 rupee range, that too offering every function that the user requires, including 256 megabyte memory and a CD-writer," Pradhan says.
"There is no need for higher-end personal computers for the vast majority of users. Almost any task can be done by a computer (with a chip speed of) 600-700 mhz," he adds.
One can do most of one's work on a lower-power computer, whether it is word-processing, working on spreadsheets, access the Internet, send and receive e-mail and even chat on the Net, says Pradhan.
In spite all the talk of computer prices going down, the international market has been focussing on a business model that gives PC buyers more powerful but costly models. Lower-powered brands and models simply get pushed out of the market, leaving the cash-strapped middle class buyer with few options.
"Lower-cost PCs would really help the common man, who has a dream of giving a good education to his children and having a PC in their home," argues Pradhan, who graduated from Indian Institute of Technology-Madras and returned to India after spending 26 years in the U.S.
According to industry estimates, there is a total of six million PCs in India, and just 1.5 to 1.8 million are sold each year in the country.
Via started making chipsets for PCs in 1993-94. "Three years ago Via purchased the Cyrix CPU company to form National Semiconductors. Today we do both CPUs (central processing units, the heart of the PC) and graphic chips," says Pradhan.
Via, he adds, is keen to promote free and open source software, given their stability and affordability.
"We see no need for the Indian market to pay huge amounts for software. We would like to work very closely with the huge Linux community in India," says Pradhan. "Linux is most affordable, most stable and a lot less prone to hacking and virus."
Source: IANS