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From: declan@portia.stanford.edu (Declan McCullagh)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Future NeXT Rumors (was: Next NeXT rumors...)
Keywords: future next
Message-ID: <1990Aug15.212634.29710@portia.Stanford.EDU>
Date: 15 Aug 90 21:26:34 GMT
Sender: declan@portia.Stanford.EDU (Declan McCullagh)
Organization: Olympic Technologies
Lines: 56

In an earlier message, Ross Cutler posts:

>Hello netland...Has anyone else read the bit in PC-Week a couple of
>weeks ago about the next NeXT?  I saw a message about that time in
>this group asking the same question I am now, but I saw no reply/summary.
> 
>I particular, I'm interested in the $5000 monochrome unit they mentioned;
>supposedly, it will have a 100 MB HD, 2.88 floppy, 68040, and cased in
>a pizza-box style case.  Can anyone verify these rumors?  Can anyone
>elaborate on the specs (e.g. does it have the DSP)?  Will the student
>price be less?
> 
>Thanks in advance...

The problem (as I see it) with rumors like this is that anyone who actually
knows anything concrete about a future NeXT product has already signed a
nondisclosure agreement or something similar.  The people who aren't
"in the know" about a future product are free to speculate, but often are
more than slightly incorrect...

My own reaction to that rumor is: there's a reasonable chance that it
may be true.  $5,000 for such a system is a *very* competitive price,
but the 68040 chip itself costs considerably more than the 68030 and
may drive the price up a few hundred dollars to $5,400 or so.  In any
case, producing a system this powerful for such a good price is
something that NeXT should *want* to do - even if there are differing
factions within NeXT that have divergent opinions as to what is a
"good price."

From what I understand of NeXT's philosophy, I would expect them to
include a DSP chip in even a supposedly "low-end" NeXT configuration.
After all, what's the purpose of raising the "least common computing
denominator" if you suddenly lower it again?  Besides, the 56001 isn't
very expensive in the kinds of quantities that NeXT would buy it in.

A different case design might help sales considerably.  First, the
1'x1' cube is a bit heavy to carry around, especially with two
full-height mass storage devices inside -- a lighter case might be
nicer in some environments.  Second, it would presumably be cheaper
for NeXT to manufacture.  Third, it would look a bit like the (very
well-received) SPARCStation, and be priced similarly.  Fourth, it
would be physically easier for colleges and universities to fit into
their computer labs.  Finally, it would announce that "NeXT has a new
product," and direct the media's attention to the company.

Since that kind of system for anywhere near $5,000 is such a good
price, I'd guess that $5k would be the academic/developer cost, with
Businessland prices a bit higher.  After all, NeXT has to make money
somewhere, too - even if their margins aren't anywhere near as high as
Apple's...

-Declan

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