Does anyone actually sell computers in retail stores anymore? Dell, Compaq, Gateway, and now IBM aren't so hot on the idea it seems... profit margins are higher online, where the computer makers can sell direct to the consumer. So IBM recently became the latest company to all but abandon the malls of america for the internet. After all, its not easy to make a profit when your PCs sell for 600 bucks a piece. Even Dell Computer, which sells millions and millions of dollars worth of computers each day is having a tough time.

It used to be that folks needed to see the machine they were buying -- to kick the tires a bit. And while that's still the best way to buy a monitor, there is really no need anymore to see the rest of the computer. All you need to do is a little research about the features you want and find a computer maker with a good track record for reliability and support... its become like going to the salad bar... one of these, two of those, and some of that unknown stuff over in the corner. All for $2.95 a pound.

As a result of this "commodification" of the personal computer, shopping for a PC has become one of the most dreary experiences of the 90s. I defy you to tell any one of the major computer makers apart when looking at or using their machines. No, a Dell looks like a Gateway which looks like a Compaq which looks like an IBM. Trolling through the Windows PC market in search of excitement is like trying to find the best Yugo car dealer. Without even the simplist differentiating factors, these companies are left to compete on price alone... driving prices lower and lower. That's mostly a good thing for shoppers -- but you really do get what you pay for.

So its also no great shock then, that IBM has decided to bail out of the retail PC market. Unable to create the kind of excitement Apple Computer has created around its iMac and iBook, the major PC makers are fighting a losing battle for the hearts of American consumers who time and again opt for flash and style... thus relegating the home computer to a place beside the toaster oven.

It would't surprise me to see a consolidation of the major computer makers in the next couple years, as the commodification of the PC goes full tilt. That is unless these companies give us some reason to be excited about our computers -- like Volkswagen did with the new beetle, or Plymouth with their hotrod the Prowler, or yes, Apple's iMac. Its not rocket science... its called style and design and people pay money for it. But bore me with your beige boxes and I'll guarantee your PC will become just another low-cost low-profit appliance cluttering up my house.

Rich Dean is Director of E-Commerce at MysteryNet.com.