Component costs keep PC prices up

In case you hadn't noticed.

Figures put out by the technology market research group Context show that the costs of PCs are still being affected by component price increases bought about by the recession.

Context explained that although initially prices had dropped in the first six months of last year, they spiked in the second half, an upwards trend that continued into this January and will carry on throughout the year.

Causing IT buying departments to hover their pens over any upcoming renewal contracts, pricing analyst Mathias Knoefel at Context, added, "We should expect to see further price increases. Component manufacturers have been very cautious and have scaled back both production and investment. This has lead to a cost increase in key components necessary for PC configurations."

Consumers have suffered the worst by all accounts, as vendors have attempted to keep enterprise buyers happy by keeping their prices low, so far. Context explained that these same firms would look to change their pricing, in order to take themselves out of the 'loss making level' they currently reside in.

Consumers appear to have escaped some punishment by choosing to buy low-priced netbooks and the like. But other must-haves we didn't know we needed, such as Windows 7 multitouch systems, might tempt punters into buying new kit this year.

"While the pressure is on to provide consumers with affordable home technology, gamers, power users and serious surfers are frequently willing to pay more with sales driven by the new multi-touch all-in-one systems based on Windows 7, seen by the success of, for example, the HP Touchsmart and Acer Aspire," said Marie Christine Pygott, European PC analyst at Context.

"Going forward, we can expect this trend to continue as Windows 7 fully embraces the multi-touch functionality," she concluded.