International Business Machines (IBM) announced Thursday its entry into the sub-$1000 Personal Computer market, with the introduction of a 166 MHz AMD K6-based Aptiva E16 system. The Aptiva E16 also includes 16 MB of RAM, a 2.1 GB hard drive, a 20X CD-ROM drive, a 56 KBps modem, 2 MB of video RAM, and two free drive bays. IBM is coming late to the sub-$1000 market, with other major players already offering similar machines.
"This market is growing fast," said Jim Bartlett, marketing VP for Aptiva at IBM. "Clearly we are late to the party, but I think we're the best dressed."
Though the Aptiva line is clearly aimed at home users, IBM will eventually offer a similar price point on business PCs as well, according to Bartlett.
"It's not a matter of if IBM will reach that price point in commercial PCs, it's a matter of when," he said.
