CE-Oh no he didn't! Part LXI: Acer chief says Japanese PC companies "the weakest today"

We're pretty sure we've heard Acer CEO Gianfranco Lanci say PC industry consolidation resulting in fewer players and lower component prices would be a good thing before, but he dressed it with a side of smackdown today: speaking to the New York Times, he said that Toshiba and Sony's PC businesses would be the first targets, since "the Japanese for sure are the weakest today." Ouch. It's especially harsh since Sony just broke down and released its first netbook this morning after claiming that the low-cost machines were a downward spiral, but that wasn't enough blood for Gianfranco: he also said that ASUS and Lenovo need to "think long and hard" about remaining independent companies. Yow -- sounds like someone's planning to do a little shopping, don't you think?

[Alex @ Jul 7th 2009 8:49PM]

Seems pointless for a CEO to poke another company in the eye like that....

[Anticrawl @ Jul 7th 2009 9:38PM]

Well considering Acer recently took the number 2 spot and turned two of the worst computer names (Gateway and eMachines) and turned them completely around I'd say this asshole has deserved the right to be an asshole.

[Techie @ Jul 7th 2009 10:26PM]

Yeah but he's still an asshole....

[iphonerulez @ Jul 7th 2009 10:59PM]

Sony knew netbooks were a damn downward spiral, but they had to jump on the netbook bandwagon to boost their sales. They caved and are going to pay for it in the end. These people seem to be unable to grasp the facts about netbooks being an unsustainable business model until the costs rise back up standard notebook levels. Asus and MSI pulled a fast one by introducing those early 9" models that are now growing in size and features every few months. Watch as netbook sales start tanking once the economy gets back on track. We'll see how large this supposed market is for netbooks will be in the U.S.

Too many people are being fooled into thinking a netbook will serve them as well as a notebook and are likely unsatisfied with the resulting product.

[Temple @ Jul 8th 2009 1:18AM]

Its pointless because the PC industry is in shambles, and Acer i The profit margins are razor thin for everyone due to the downward pressure of netbook prices. Nobody needs a $3,000 PC or laptop anymore. People nowadays think a $999 laptop or desktop is expensive nowadays, the sad fact is there is little money to be made selling computers.

Acer themselves are an example, in 2008 they sold more computers, Income was up 39%, but they made less money; profits were down 23%. They are selling more, and making less. That's a horrible trend. Netbooks price are going to continue to fall, and Microsoft is going to charge significantly more for Windows 7 over XP, profits are going to be squeezed even further from PC makers.

[Cash @ Jul 8th 2009 3:43AM]

@iphonerulez

Really? Even though my desktop is rocking a quad core with 8 gigs of ram and a couple terabytes of storage in a raid array, I find that my Samsung NC10 suits me perfectly in class and on long business trips. It is light weight, easy to carry, and the 7+ hour battery life blows the crap out of dual core centrino based laptop it replaced. I wouldn't want to encode HD video on the thing, but I can play it back without so much as a stutter, which is very handy on those long flights.

As you can see, I'm the definition of a power user, and the standard netbook works for me exceptionally well. While I wouldn't recommend the 10.1 inch screen to someone who had poor eyesight, the fact that I can respond to your post while waiting for my connecting flight in the C concourse of SeaTac is proof positive that this is a very usable platform.

[WS @ Jul 8th 2009 4:10AM]

@Cash

LOL... how are you the definition of a power user? You take a netbook on a flight and watch a movie? Wow... total power user.

And iphonerulez is absolutely right on the money. Netbooks have no place, except in landfills and third-world countries, as it sounds to me that your only complaint is battery life. If all notebooks had 7+ hours (ala MBP), netbooks wouldn't anywhere. They are nothing more than gateways to the net and word processors. Just another system to micromanage your workflow. Sony had it right, but the idiot masses ultimately have the money and ergo, the power. You know, the same idiots that walk into Best Buy looking for an Intel CoreDual with a hardrive to store at least 400,000 pictures (or 200,000 songs)...

Netbooks are far too specialized to be worth anything.

[Wwhat @ Jul 8th 2009 9:03AM]

If you see what various CEO's of big companies say I'm guessing all these companies remain big by them being out to lunch a lot and not interfering with the running of the company, lunches with journalists perhaps.

[Darrell @ Jul 7th 2009 8:49PM]

He's right though. I've never owned or considered buying Japanese PCs. And the Japanese are getting destroyed by the South Koreans (particularly Samsung) in the components market. Would the world shed a tear if the Vaios disappeared? Probably not.

[Haha @ Jul 7th 2009 8:51PM]

I would. I've had my Vaio for 5 years now and still works like a charm.

[Jeebus_ @ Jul 7th 2009 9:12PM]

Answer: No.

[bucorraba @ Jul 7th 2009 9:14PM]

This comment is not selfish, is true. If they want to survive, they have to sell on this side of the ocean. As for Vaio... Well, one scored. Something else, huh? Nothing?

[Fr0 @ Jul 7th 2009 10:03PM]

Although I like my current Toshiba much better than my previous Gateway, I will have to agree with his remarks:

Honestly, the Japanese PC makers are WAAAAY too dependent on the Japanese market for their sales (where they GOUGE the hell out of consumers), and don't focus as much on competing effectively with HP/Dell/Acer, probably again because of the lack of inroads that those companies have made into the Japanese market. That said, I can't imagine them consolidating because of their other business.

As for the other two companies, Lenovo doesn't sell in big box stores, and Asus is just starting to break into the U.S market with the eee pc. It would make sense that they would be weaker players in the notebook/desktop space and need some consolidation to become stronger.

[bigcow05 @ Jul 7th 2009 11:25PM]

My girlfriend's Japanese, and her sister bought a standard 15 inch Toshiba last year with a Celeron processor and nothing special for $1200! No wonder they aren't doing well.

[Cy Starkman @ Jul 7th 2009 11:53PM]

No, they wouldn't shed a tear but they probably should.

Japan makes great WinTel boxes, some of my earliest computers were from companies like Sharp and Toshiba. The Japanese have an eye for quality that Acer and friends are clueless on, the only American main player that has a clue is Apple. (Main player is the key word there, there are some boutique shops that still release excellence)

Sony VAIO's are excellent, with great software suites and top engineering. My previous dream unit was a Sony CLIE NZ90, it's battery still goes like a champ, not a glitch and its feature set is on par with the iPhone but it came out in late 2001, 6 years before the iPhone.

[JohnTitor @ Jul 7th 2009 8:53PM]

There were some many other CE-Oh no he didn'ts in between this and the last official time

[vance @ Jul 7th 2009 8:55PM]

After a weak first offering, Toshiba now has arguably the best netbook on the market now.

[Chris @ Jul 7th 2009 9:09PM]

no kidding, i have one and its great

[Gad Get @ Jul 7th 2009 11:50PM]

Acer + ASUS = ...


...ASer!


...or maybe AcUS.

[Gad Get @ Jul 7th 2009 11:51PM]

Oops, sorry. That wasn't supposed to be a reply.

[Totalfixation @ Jul 7th 2009 8:57PM]

I wouldn't disagree. The CEO is right, the Japaneses are getting killed in the consumer electronic markets. Samsung is just dominating. So are the Taiwanese most of the chips used nowadays probably come from Taiwan.

[dagamer43 @ Jul 7th 2009 9:01PM]

PCs are the one area American companies have done well in. I just find Toshiba's designs to be too bland and Sony's lineup too expensive for my wallet. We'll see what the future holds.

[get real @ Jul 7th 2009 10:36PM]

are you kidding me?

do you think HP/Dell Notebooks are US designed?

they all are designed and made by the Taiwanese or Korean ODMs...

Wistron, Inventec, Arima, LG, Samsung....

Wake up...

[Brian @ Jul 7th 2009 11:31PM]

@get real

Yes, HPs are US designed. I happen to have met many of the people who do design work; for example, workstations are designed in Fort Collins, CO.

Now, is there significant ODM involvement? Yes. Whether it's Asustek, Tyan, Quanta, Compal, or someone else, it's the ODM that produces the first PCB revisions and handles the manufacturing.

But to say that there isn't a lot of design work involved is just false. The BIOS is done in-house at HP, major changes to the PCB are requested so that the product meets specs, the chassis is designed largely at HP, as are many of the features.

Go buy a generic Compal laptop. I've owned two. Then go buy an HP. You'll notice that shit that Compal gets wrong (like proper ACPI tables) works correctly on the HP. You'll notice that you can get parts for the HP. You'll notice that the HP is easier to service. You'll notice that the HP looks better.

There's a big difference between an ODM doing design work under contract and an ODM trying to do everything on their own. That's the difference that a company like HP makes.

[PCIV @ Jul 7th 2009 9:03PM]

Personally, I'd prefer Asus over Acer, as I've linked Acer to something like Hyundai. Then again, Americans are used to crap (i.e. Dell) so they don't notice the quality stuff they can get. (IBM i.e. Lenovo, Toshiba, etc...)
If I wasn't using a Macbook, I'd get a Toshi or an Asus, or Sony if they set the price reasonably (which their latest $800 laptop has, keep it up, Sony).
I just don't trust Acer, it's an inferior brand in my mind, and that's all that I need to know.

[Ray @ Jul 7th 2009 9:54PM]

I have an asus, it works so much better than my last laptop. I had an hp and literally, every 6 months, one of its components was broken.

[bartoron @ Jul 8th 2009 7:31AM]

PCIV, I see what you mean about mentally assocating Acer with Hyundai. I have an Acer laptop (I'm using it right now) and I still think of Acer as somewhat of a cheap brand.

However, the Hyundai Genesis is a very nice car.

[Epsilon-Not @ Jul 7th 2009 9:17PM]

Lenovo? As long as buisnesspeople want black laptops with colored enter keys and red nipples, Lenovo will be safe.

[Jeebus_ @ Jul 7th 2009 9:19PM]

Acer is NOT an inferior brand and its Taiwanese. I had a laptop and ya it was cheap, but worked great. Hyundai's aren't bad cars u obviously haven't had one or are talkin bout 8+ years ago. Tiburons are nice and I wouldn't mind a new Genesis.

[digoxin @ Jul 7th 2009 10:44PM]

Acer's not a top brand either.

[C4-M↨ke @ Jul 7th 2009 9:28PM]

Oh hell no he didn't!!!

[Alistair loveless @ Jul 7th 2009 9:31PM]

is it just me or does the whole "CE oh no he didnt" sound like a Martin Lawrence "hit new comedy movie" something like ANY Paulie Shore movie meets Trading places with Eddie Murphy.

Man it really feels 1992 in here .

[technewb @ Jul 7th 2009 9:40PM]

Who buys Acer products? And yes, netbooks are lame. Sony is right.

Why use an miniture laptop when you can have an ipod touch that does virtually everything in a package that fits in your pocket. Netbooks are silly.

[patrick @ Jul 7th 2009 9:50PM]

I don't think netbooks are silly. I think they're fun. I want one and I already have a Macbook unibody. Why do I want one? They just seem like fun and they're light unlike my Macbook. I do love my Mac tho...

[Epsilon-Not @ Jul 7th 2009 9:51PM]

Because the iPod touch doesn't have a keyboard.

Note-taking in class is the main thing I use my netbook for... an iPod touch simply couldn't keep up, and electronic notes are more convenient than written notes.

[nowayman @ Jul 7th 2009 10:01PM]

i'd get a proper laptop to do note taking AND movie watching AND gaming AND.. the list goes on.

netbooks are totally pointless.

[VyX @ Jul 7th 2009 10:19PM]

So you want a real laptop that'll pretty much burn through wood and in some cases your pants to do note taking? I dunno about everyone else, but I've got an Acer with a dedicated video card and this thing heats up like mad. It's like rendering my desktop takes serious power, even when I tone all my settings down.

Netbooks are definitely attractive for note taking in class, and an actual PC is good enough for gaming.

[o29 @ Jul 7th 2009 10:28PM]

For those of you who don't understand netbooks, you are clearly missing the point. If you don't think netbooks are for you, then don't buy one. But for some people, the portability and price tag are reason enough to own one.

In fact, I'd argue that the average consumer doesn't need anything better than a netbook. I know plenty of people who use their laptops exclusively for browsing the internet. Are you saying that these people should instead buy an overpowered $2000 laptop? There's obviously a (quite large) market for netbooks, so your assertions of them being "silly" and "pointless" better represent your comments than the netbook market in general.

[newjaruz @ Jul 7th 2009 10:30PM]

He is being an asshole. But it does not mean that he is wrong. He could sugar coat the statements but he for the most part spoke the truth and Sony does need to lower is prices to be more competitive and remain relevant.

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[William Su @ Jul 7th 2009 10:47PM]

wow that guys a definate dumbass

[William Su @ Jul 7th 2009 10:47PM]

lol he said "think long and hard" we wants ppl to think about "think long and hard" items lol

[THEMACDADDY @ Jul 7th 2009 11:01PM]

I have to agree with this one. As I look at the various options in the PC realm, Sony and Toshiba are the computers I'd choose dead last. Not that they're total suckage and not that they're useless but they're the worst of the bunch. Broaden "PC Realm" to actually include Macs (which are ALSO personal computers...) and Sony and Toshiba look even more ghetto. Factor in build quality, actual specs (like memory clock rather than just included memory) and reliability and the story tells itself. I had 2 Vaios before I went Mac. Nothing but headaches...LCD badness, dead optical drives, a dead speaker system, a Q on my keyboard that just popped off (WTF?!?!?!?....). My brother has sent out his Toshiba for repair twice.....the horror story goes on and on....

[Dude-X @ Jul 7th 2009 11:20PM]

When I think of Japanese PC's (Sony, Fujitsu, Toshiba, NEC?) I don't really think to well of them. So I am not too surprised that the Acer CEO says the Japanese firms are in trouble.

Though I like some of the Toshibas and Sonys, to me, it's a gamble to own a machine like that since I may get stuck with something that has terrible support.

[npa191 @ Jul 8th 2009 12:06AM]

If sony made a nonbullshit tower PC that you could upgrade yourself (that really wouldn't be a sony would it?) I would buy it, I admit it I would buy something just because it had a name I like on it.

[Covarr @ Jul 8th 2009 12:39AM]

Oh, he must be referring to the piece of shit laptops that Acer makes. Horrible batteries (no explosions, but no life), mediocre screens, terrible keyboards, etc.

I can't believe he's got the nerve to say something like this.

[sr @ Jul 8th 2009 12:43AM]

Yeah those Japanese laptops that you people buy at Best Buy are garbage. But go and order a decent Toshiba Portege and you'll see. They cost some money but they are worth it.

But for me, only Thinkpad. I will settle for nothing less.

[Chatboy 91 @ Jul 8th 2009 12:43AM]

Sorry, but personally I have to disagree. Both Lenovo and ASUS are arguably the two best manufacturers of laptops. In the case of Lenovo, their laptops have amazing build quality for their price, both the Thinkpad and the Ideapad lines are excellent. ASUS, is easily the best manufacturer for gaming laptops, the only company that comes close is Alienware, and they are ridiculously overpriced. I would never want Acer to get their fingers on either Lenovo or ASUS, everyone knows it, Acer is pure crap.

As for Sony, I think they're fine, good build quality and anyone I know who has one has only had minor problems if any, but, they're overpriced. Toshiba is a great company, their laptops also have excellent build quality and design and aren't too pricey either.

But, for the owner of the shitiest set of companies, he should really realize that he's just an asshole. Acer is pathetic, Gateway is just as bad with desktops but their laptops can be a bit better, and eMachines? God no. Pure junk.

The only reason why Acer makes money is because they specialize in cheapness. In a year or two I expect their numbers to go down when people need to replace their crap from Acer, and don't want to go through the same hassle.

As for netbooks? Pointless. Sony is right, people will start to notice that they have no use in buying a netbook and think about upgrading. They are purely for internet usage and nothing else. I don't think everyone should get a crazy $2000 laptop, but a netbook is just never worth it. Save up a bit more and get a midrange laptop so you don't need to replace it and you can use it for more than just surfing the internet. Lets not forget, even the CEO of Intel said that netbooks are just for an hour of use and after that you wont need it.

[someone @ Jul 8th 2009 1:07AM]

his comments aren't quite fair simply because the japanese pc makers were never dominant to start off with, so to say that they are weakest today is a bit misinformed.

furthermore acer shouldn't compare themselves against sony, because sony very obviously operates in a niche segment of the market that acer simply doesn't compete in

[JRM @ Jul 8th 2009 8:35AM]

The Toshiba and Sony computers they sell in Japan are miles ahead better (and of wider variety) than what they sell at Best Buy in the US. That said, they are all way overpriced. Also, there are smaller local OEMs that sell their products for much less, but almost no one outside of Japan would know about it (For example, I'm using a japanese "Mouse Computer" brand laptop). So, a lot of the best Japanese stuff usually stays in Japan. Like, how many people outside of Japan would think that Fujitsu has just as big a lineup of laptops/nettops as Sony or Toshiba? You'd have to be in Japan to see it for yourself.

As for netbooks: I don't know how netbooks could possibly convince the japanese consumer, as their cellphones practically do everything a netbook can--and they're smaller, and more customizable. Hell, just passing your cellphone through a sensor pays for your subway ticket! When a netbook can do that, that's when the Japanese will buy one!