Intel Slashes Pentium 4 600 Series Pricing

The Santa Clara, Calif.-based chipmaker dropped the price of its Pentium 4 660 processor from $605 to $401 in 1,000-unit quantities, a cut of more than 33 percent, according to prices published on its Web site Sunday.

It also dropped pricing on its Pentium 4 670 from $851 to $605, a drop of almost 29 percent; its Pentium 4 650 was cut from $401 to $273, a drop of almost 32 percent; its Pentium 4 640 was cut from $273 to $218, a drop of more than 20 percent; and its Pentium 4 630 was cut from $224 to $178, a drop of more than 20 percent. All prices are based on 1,000-unit quantities.

The price cuts follow Intel price reductions earlier this month in its Centrino lineup, as well as cuts by rival Advanced Micro Devices, Sunnyvale, Calif., throughout its product line. At that time, Intel partners indicated the company was also on track for the most recent price reductions in its Pentium 4 lineup.

An Intel spokesman was not immediately available for comment on the price moves.