Ron Schenone

Acer To U.S. Computer Companies – ‘We Will Bury You’

Posted by on Jan 19, 2010 | 10 Comments

The founder of Acer seems to believe that U.S. computer brands may be gone in 20 years. His message has the same ring as when Russian Premier Nikita Khrushchev made the famous statement ;we will bury you’ to the United States. What ever happened to Russia anyway? But that is another story.

According to the Acer founder the U.S. can not compete with the cheaper knock offs being made in Taiwan. He states that:

US computer brands may be gone in 20 years’ time due to an inability to produce the low-priced PCs the market demands, the Taiwanese founder of computer maker Acer was quoted as saying Tuesday.

“The trend for low-priced computers will last for the coming years,” said Stan Shih, high tech entrepreneur and founder of the island’s leading personal computer brand according to the Taipei-based Commercial Times newspaper.

“But US computer makers just don’t know how to put such products on the market… US computer brands may disappear over the next 20 years, just like what happened to US television brands.”

Acer outperformed US-based Dell as the world’s second-largest computer vendor last year and is likely to replace Hewlett-Packard, also of the US, as the No. 1 vendor in 2011, according to Taipei-based industry publication Digitimes.

I am somewhat confused. I thought that companies like Dell and HP had their computers built in Taiwan?  If that is the case, how will Acer be able to sell at a lower price? Is it because the American corporations are top heavy in management and love big fat bonuses? Just a thought.

What do you think?

Comments welcome.

Source.

  • http://www.twitter.com/_mark _mark

    And one day the world will be comprised of one great land under one great nation named ‘Taiwan (copyrighted by Acer)’.

    Yeah right.

  • vassilis

    “I am somewhat confused. I thought that companies like Dell and HP had their computers built in Taiwan? If that is the case, how will Acer be able to sell at a lower price? Is it because the American corporations are top heavy in management and love big fat bonuses? Just a thought.

    What do you think?”

    Fat bonuses ??? something like the bankers for instance ??? :D

  • Ryan Farmer

    We will bury you…….once we figure out how to make laptops that don’t overheat.

  • Ryan Farmer

    “But US computer makers just don’t know how to put such products on the market… US computer brands may disappear over the next 20 years, just like what happened to US television brands.”

    We’re already there. I bought from a small OEM called ZT Systems and got a better PC dollar for dollar than Dell, HP, or any of the other big guys offered.

    And only one piece of crapware (Norton) which took 2 minutes to get rid of.

    These big OEMs have the worst customers service as well. My last PC, a Gateway, bought it in 2006 and by 2007 they wouldn’t answer my questions because the warranty was up, ZT has lifetime tech support even if your warranty is up.

    I was deeply offended by Gateway, not only that their system was unreliable, but that they wouldn’t even tell me what model number and brand the wireless card was.

  • Steve Clark

    Time to face the music…and you younger guys ain’t gonna like it, but pullup a chair….and listen to Pops.

    I am 56. I remember Jack Kwacheck’s Menswear, and Hicks Shoes and Guidry’s Hardware and Piggly Wigley and Ike Saks and a bunch more. I remember PF Flyers,too,and there were all made in The United States of America. We made and bought the best, then sold the rest. We had jobs.

    Then we decided that less was more. We spent less money and had more. Oh really now. Almost no clothing is made in the US. Name me a couple of bicycles still made here? Cars? Some, but you wanted cheaper so Detroit got beat at thier own game. Google ‘lost jobs in US since 1975′. The Google real incomes in US against US dollars 1975″.
    We taught these people Free trade economics, then welcomed the destruction of or economy- for cheap.
    Thank you for warning me about Acer. I’ll go out of my F**king way to buy a Dell or and HP – or go back to building my own.
    I’m awaiting the curve. There always is one. Amwericans will soon sense The Green Weenie and suck it up and buy American. Oh yeah, I will cost me more, but someone like Michael Dell or another wiseass with a pocket protector will see a flicker of light and we’ll get it right.
    Acer can kiss my a** .

  • http://wp3.lockergnome.com/nexus/blade/ Ron Schenone

    Hi Steve,
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts. You forgot Gallenkamp shoes stores. I still remember the dumb joke about them. The shoes would Gallop during the day and camp at night. I told you it was a dumb joke!

  • joeg2

    Oh, lets not forgt the biggest anti-american devil, Wal-Mart. They want to buy, but they sell inferior merchandise for pennies less, and the rednecks love wally ! Just take a black and decker (I know, they are cheap anyway) apart from walmart, and then get one from somewhere else – same model, and see the difference. Thinner insulation, shorter brushes, etc. bang-for-buck you think you are getting a deal, but you are not. And if it goes bad – oh well, get another one in a year and on it goes ! And lets kill all the independant stores just to move in a wally, so they can close down and move 5 miles down the street in 5-8 years.
    Thank you for pointing out the evil from across the sea, because we will hurt ourselves to appear to save money. When the chairman od Sony came to the US in the early 80′s, he told us our flaws – but no one listened then. Let’s see if they will listen now.

  • http://www.blazintech.net/ MariJewel

    This is a good thing to point out. Articles like this helps non-techy savvy consumers to be more alert and careful especially when buying such products. Oh well, I still do hope that computer makers will not just be made with high quality in a more economical price.

  • Giterdone

    Well the first computer I ever purchased was an AST Adventure 200,which was built in the U.S however many of the parts were also made in Malaysia,it still works,they wen’t out of business because they could not compete due to knock off versions being made in China,and illegaly imported back into the United States.
    For several decades we have been fed to beleive that imports are cheaper,but I’m out to prove this is simply a lie being put forth to the U.S consumer.
    Speaking of Wal-mart did you know that Rob Walton the son of the founder Sam Walton made 2.4 billion dollars in 2008?
    to put it into perspective if they hired more cashiers which everyone knows they need,it would be enough to pay 10,000 full time employees at minium wage.
    Now the arguement that any one individual is worth more than 10,000 or can contribute more to the interests of the stock holders than 10,000 individuals then I would say they are a lier.
    Why should Rob Walton be shown any financial privilages merely because his father opened the first Walmart store? the fact remains that while Wal-mart is indeed a corporation they are given that status as a privilage via licensing under the commerce clause,and as such they opened sales of stocks to their store publicly in the 1970′s thus they are a public company so no such privilages should exists,since such a high salary effects the dividend payouts of the stock holders.
    It’s no wonder the Wal-mart stock has halted in the last decade.
    However the mentality is that corporations want to be the rulers of all,public and private,political governments are being controlled.
    A nation that depends upon corporations are at the mercy of the corporations.
    They can destroy an economy by shutting down at any moment they wish.
    They can target specific areas in which they regard as an enemy of interests.
    It isn’t the creation of money that builds wealth,but products to trade is the commodity.

  • Giterdone

    Also to joeg2,I wanted to point out that they are very crafty indeed,for example the Snapper brand of lawn mowers used to be available at Wal-mart stores,the CEO awhile back wen’t to have a meeting with Wal-mart exec’s,the CEO intention was to pull their brand off of Wal-mart shelves stating that the store was driving the price of their brand down,simply because Snapper could not compete with a Murry brand that was imported,the CEO of Wal-mart thought that the CEO for Snapper was wanting to expand their lines and were surprised.
    Snapper pulled their brand from Wal-mart,then Briggs bought out Weedeater brand,which then bought out Snapper.
    In addition Murry is also owned by Briggs,so Weedeater brands are available in the Wl-mart stores s well as Murry.
    Snapper has not yet returned as far as I know,but could very well.
    I do not know if Briggs is still making Snapper in the United States,but I do know under the previous owner it was and had always been made in the State of Georgia.
    I have a Snapper riding lawn mower,it is over 20 years old and it’s still going with not a single problem.
    So anyone who would say that there is no quality in U.S made goods I would challenge you on this.
    And a good starting point is for those of you whom really beleive this go to the consumer index recalls,and you will find out that the vast majority of defective and dangerous goods are being imported from China.
    I remember when Japanese companies made things in Japan,they would last and last without problems,now Japanese companies such as Sony and Nintendo is having their products made in China,since then I have had two nintendo DS systems stop working for no reason,about a dozen dvd players made in China stop in the last 10 years,add in 5 VHS players,including a Go-Video,as well as a number of televisions,and a 37″ LCD that wen’t out after 8 months ($1,000.00 at the time).a couple of Sony playstation 2′s that broke,two home theater systems stoppedworking(the first one never did work correctly)two more televisions that lost their picture all of which were made in China.

    Ok I bought a Quazar vhs recorder that was made in the U.S it lasted well over 20 years.
    A couple of years ago we bought a few new furnishings,a recliner and a sleighbed.
    Well within a year the recliner (after having many bolts break)lost it’s padding as it moved around inside the fabric thus a thin peie of fabric was all that covered the wood fram,which may I add was made of the knottiest cracked looking wood I have ever seen was retired to the landfill and guess what it had the little cheap gold label “Made in China” on the bottom.
    Now the sleighbed after getting it home and unboxed had the made in China label as well($1500.00) the wooden support legs that was shipped for the bed was 1×1 that is in inches, in tota there was three that was used top middle end and that’s all that was included to support the box spring and mattress which weighed nearly 400 pounds by themselves.

    So I had to go and buy 2×4′s and make a better support structure because it was so shacky.
    It’s sturdy now but no way would it have lasted if not fixed correctly.
    Upon looking closer at the bed I noticed how it lacked quality in the staining, and uneven gloss.

    Well the story doesn’t end here a couple of years ago I bought my wife what I thought was a really nice foot chect,intricate designes a lutrious shine in cherry stain,well at least that’s the version on display,when I got ours the top had a bad spot in which the wood was not sanded down(the know was risen),they simply stained and polished right over it.
    Then came the hardest to swallow it was real wood,nope it was that old paperboard,but how could this be since the store display advertised the product as Handcarved,and it was assembled either,geeze one would think for the price you would get better quality.
    Well frustrated and about to the point of returning the chest,I decided it’s just for storage right,and since my wife appreciated the thought she did not hurt my feelings in any way about it,but I noticed good greif when it closes it simply drops down by it’s own weight,they didn’t put any soft closing hinges,nor did they at least provide any felt pads for the corners,so of course I had to go buy the pads to attace to the top and bottom so it wouldn’t slam shut so hard.
    A lesson learned time and time again,this is one of the reasons as to why some of us have decided to actively seek out made in the U.S products as well as services.
    I’m tired of worrying whether or not the paint,or stains isn’t lead based,or fabrics met the fire code,or that the metal will be dependable for a descent life of the product.
    I’m tired of buying electronic equipment that fails within a short period.
    I built a computer a few years ago buying all the parts and assembling them,I even wen’t as far as to buy a graphic card that met the specs of both the motherboard,and had the same manufacturer of the graphic card onboard memory match with the system memory both running at the same speeds by the same manufacturer,but the card wouldn’t work but sporadic,I had to buy another graphic card because the memory didn’t like eachother though they were the same.
    The computer worked for about two years when all of a sudden the LAN connection started having problems by losing connections,and not connecting,and even locking up the browser.
    Yes I’m fed up with these junk products,as far as I’m concered I have had my fill of them,I did fine without them,and can do so again if need be.
    It’s time we concentrate or or local initiatives to improve the economies one community at a time.
    Trade whenever possible with locals and support those mom and pops they may not be able to compete at the first bottom line price,but overall in satisfaction,and sincerity there is nothing better than Bob at the Fixall hardware,or Betties Bakery.
    At least I know their name as well as their face.