Samsung 're-exported' the US notebook market

Electronic manufacturer Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said it is returning to the US computer market with a range of products built on its strength in providing computer components.

The Korean company will introduce ultra-light notebooks and small "netbooks," designed to appeal to potential customers from Apple's MacBook Air and Asustek Computer.

Attending the crowded US market will mean taking market share from more reputable firms. The Korean manufacturer sees other Asian brands as dangerous competitors, especially Toshiba Corp, Sony Corp and Lenovo.

Samsung also launched new models aimed at businesses and the large-scale laptop market, known as the "desktop replacement," a Samsung executive said.

Like Apple's MacBook Air, Samsung's ultra-light X-Series notebook offers customers two options: hard drive (HDD) or hard drive (SSD). But Samsung's X360 costs $ 2,499 using a 128GB solid-state drive, double the 64GB capacity of MacBook Air (priced at $ 2,598).

' These products really follow Apple and Sony. This is the killer of MacBook Air, 'said product manager of Samsung US computer division, Bret Berg, in an interview.

The X360 weighs 2.8 pounds with an ultra-slim, elegant design with a magnesium frame, aluminum front and a 'quartz stone' keyboard.

Samsung's X460 version (which starts at $ 1,899) uses a 160GB vertical drive, twice the 80GB capacity of the MacBook Air (priced at $ 1,799). The X460 weighs less than 4.2 pounds (about 1.8 kg).

Netbook - new "cake"

Its high-end NC10 netbook, white or blue metallic casing, starts at $ 499, has a 10.2-inch widescreen display and a 160GB hard drive. Netbooks are a small, low-cost line of personal computers that can sell for $ 300 or less.

This is the intermediate product line between low-cost EEE computers from Asustek and the smallest notebooks. Samsung's models are similar to an 11-inch notebook that Sony has sold since the early 2000s, which is quite popular among businesspeople but has a price of up to $ 2,000 at the time.

The cheap advantage of Samsung is because many computer components are made from semiconductors and genuine products. Among these components is the SuperBrite screen - LCD screen using back light and light-emitting diodes.

An estimated 80% of components in these computers are Samsung products - everything, except microprocessors and graphics chips. As the world's largest memory chip manufacturer, storage hard drive is Samsung's largest weapon.

The relationships that have been established with distributors, wholesalers and retailers of TV to monitors and phones will also support Samsung's entry into the fierce computer market in the US.

In the first quarter of 2009, Samsung intends to accelerate its distribution plan, cooperating with distributors such as CDW or Newegg, retailers like Best Buy and Fry's local store system. Electronics or The Wiz of America.

Samsung's announcement, which has been deployed for more than a month, coincides with an announcement by Apple later on Tuesday about upgrading notebook models. Analysts say Apple will introduce a new line of notebooks for under $ 1,000.