Prices of Windows RT tablets drop, point to failure of OS Prices have dropped for Dell's XPS 10, Asus' VivoTab RT and Lenovo's IdeaPad Yoga 11

Prices of
Windows RT devices have
started falling, signaling an
attempt by PC makers to
quickly clear out stock after
poor adoption of tablets and
convertibles with the
operating system.
Microsoft released Windows
RT for ARM-based devices
and Windows 8 for Intel-
based devices in October last
year. The price drop is an
acknowledgement that
Windows RT has failed,
analysts said.
Prices of popular products
usually don't fall, but
Windows RT devices were not
in demand, and prices fell,
analysts said.
The starting price for Dell's
XPS 10 is now US$449 for a
32GB model , scalping $50 off
the original launch price. The
64GB model is $499, which is
a drop from the original $599
price. By comparison, the
price of the Latitude 10 tablet
with Intel processors and
Microsoft's Windows 8 OS
remained stable at $499.
Asus' VivoTab RT, which is
largely sold through retailers,
is being offered by
Amazon.com for $382 with
32GB of storage, which is a
heavy discount from the $599
launch price. Retailers like
Best Buy, Staples and Office
Depot have also dropped the
price of the tablet by $50,
now selling it for $549.
Newegg is listing VivoTab RT
as having been discontinued.
Asus did not respond to a
request to comment on
whether the company was
still offering the tablet.
Lenovo is offering the
IdeaPad Yoga 11 for $599 as
part of a seven-day deal,
which is a drop from the
original $799 price. However,
TigerDirect is offering an
IdeaPad Yoga 11 model for $
599 on its website, while
Amazon is selling a model for
$499.99.
Samsung did not ship its
Windows RT tablet, Ativ Tab,
to the U.S. market.
However, the starting price of
Microsoft's Surface RT
remained consistent at $499
on its online store . Microsoft
also offers Lenovo's IdeaPad
Yoga 11 through its store,
but has stopped offering
tablets like the VivoTab RT
on its website. The company
last month said it stocks its
store with RT devices based
on availability and demand.
Though Microsoft has not
publicly acknowledged the
failure of Windows RT, there
is already growing concern
about the fate of the OS. IDC
earlier this month said that
Windows RT tablet shipments
have been poor, and that
consumers have not bought
into "Windows RT's value
proposition."
PC and chip makers have
acknowledged poor adoption
of the operating system.
Nvidia's CEO, Jen-Hsun
Huang, last month said he
was disappointed with the
poor response to Windows
RT, and Acer executives have
said that Microsoft needs to
improve the usability of RT.
Prices usually drop if
products are made in volume,
or if there is poor demand,
said Jack Gold, principal
analyst at J. Gold Associates.
  
    "I think you're seeing
discounting based on user
demand. I never thought RT
was going to be that
successful," Gold said.
Windows RT was doomed
right from the start, and
devices with the OS had no
chance to compete with the
more established Apple iPad
and Android tablets, Gold
said.
A price drop may be an
attempt to stimulate demand,
said David Daoud, research
director at IDC.
"A lot of it is pre-positioning
for the summer season,"
Daoud said. "Do price
reductions stimulate
demand? Sure they, do, in the
right time."
A price drop could help clear
out inventory ahead of the
back-to-school season, when
new devices typically ship,
Daoud said. Companies also
want to get rid of excess
inventory as it can be costly
to hold products for long.
The analysts acknowledged
that Microsoft did little to
spread awareness about
Windows RT. People could
not understand the purpose
of the OS as it was
incompatible with existing
Windows applications, and it
wasn't a complete operating
system like Windows 8.
"RT will fade away over time,"
Gold said. "It's not a full
Windows 8 experience. That
said, why wouldn't I spend
more and get a full Pro
version of the device?"