Toshiba and Lenovo increase presence in retail stores

Chicago (IL) - Toshiba today announced a new tablet PC that will be sold through retail outlets in the US. The Portege M405-S8003 will be available in only one configuration, but carries a substantially lower price than comparable tablet PCs currently offered on Toshiba’s website. Also, Lenovo announced to make Thinkpad notebooks available at BestBuy.

Re-discovered by Gateway recently, more and more system builders are approaching the retail segment once again to increase product sales. Both Toshiba and Lenovo today announced to expand their presence in retail locations across the country in order to improve the visibility of their brands and products to business customers.

Toshiba’s Portege M405-S8003 can be compared to the M400 tablet PC currently offered through the firm’s direct sales website, but offers more horsepower for slightly more money. Priced at $2000, the M405 includes a 1.83 GHz Core Duo processor, 1 GB of system memory, and Intel’s GMA950 graphics accelerator which uses up to 128 MB of the PC’s system memory as graphics cache.

The device comes with the M400’s 12.1" screen providing a maximum resolution of up to 1024x768 pixels (XGA) and increases hard drive capacity from 40 to 100 GB. Among the standard components are also Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, a DVD burner, a multi-card reader and a "spill-resistant" keyboard. Toshiba promises a battery running time of "up to" five hours. A similarly equipped M400 tablet PC currently lists for about $2300 on Toshiba’s website.

Toshiba said it will sell the new tablet PC at "major consumer electronics stores nationwide."

Lenovo will also be a more common sight in retail stores as the company will be selling its Thinkpad X-, T-, R- and Z series through BestBuy stores. However, the firm decided to pursue a Dell-like model : rather than selling devices on-site, customers will be able to play and configure notebooks in the store and order the devices through overnight delivery.

Lenovo will be also offering access to ThinkCentre and 3000-series desktops.