Compaq Computer Corp. became the first major personal computer maker to update its consumer line for spring, introducing models at new prices Monday and offering a keyboard with a built-in scanner.
Compaq's new Presario computers include a model with a rewriteable optical disc drive, the first to be built-in to PCs by a major manufacturer.The lowest-priced model in the line will be the Presario 7212, which will have a 75 MHz Pentium chip, eight megabytes of main memory, a one gigabyte hard drive, four-speed CD-ROM drive and 19,200-speed modem. It will cost just under $1,500 without a monitor.
The most expensive will be the Presario 9660, which features a 166 MHz Pentium chip, 16 megabytes of main memory, a two gigabyte hard drive, six-speed CD-ROM drive and 28,800-speed modem. It will cost about $3,000 without a monitor.
Compaq, based in Houston, sells monitors in a price range of $400 to $500.
The scanner keyboard will be a feature in the Presario 7232, which costs $2,200. Scanned documents can be faxed, copied, stored or incorporated into other documents and software. Compaq will sell the keyboard separately to work with an PC for about $350.
The $2,800 Presario 9240 will have the rewriteable optical compact disc drive, which will be able to hold 650 megabytes of data. The cartridges used for storing data cost about $30 each.
Several other PC makers are expected to announce new models in the coming weeks. The new models generally carry the companies into late summer or fall, when more sweeping changes are made for the busy holiday sales period.