Computer Firms Make Pilgrimage to Comdex Show

For Allan C. Chang, president of Topline Technologies in Placentia, a trip to the giant Comdex computer show here this week is a necessary evil.

It cost Chang’s new computer company more than $150,000 to rent a small plot of space amid a sea of larger rivals at the Sands Expo and Convention Center.

That’s a lot of money for a company that hopes to hit sales of only $2 million to $3 million next year, providing it doesn’t get hurt too badly by the expected economic recession.

“I am concerned. But we’re introducing two new computers that will compete with some very big companies,” he said. “So we have to get Topline’s name out there.”

Chang’s company was one of 80 Orange County computer companies showing off their goods--from big data storage systems to tiny notebook computers--at Comdex, the world’s largest computer show, which began a five-day run Monday in Las Vegas. The trade show is expected to draw 120,000 people.

While Topline’s exhibit was relatively sedate, some big companies went to great lengths to draw attention.

Odetics Inc., an Anaheim firm, displayed its six-legged robot, Odex, as well as a prototype of a robot-controlled machine that fetches videotapes and can hold enough data to store a copy of Margaret Mitchell’s “Gone With the Wind” for every person in the world.

Merisel, a computer products distributor based in Torrance, didn’t have a robot. But it brought the next best thing: A mime who mimicked the motions of a robot. Microsoft Corp., a Redmond, Wash., computer software firm, was showing off its new Windows 3.0 computer graphics interface in a huge booth with 48 television screens that dazzled onlookers with sophisticated computer animation.

But beneath all the glitter, there was worry among some Orange County firms about the industry being dragged into a national recession.

Howard Lewis, chairman of Archive Corp., said the Costa Mesa computer tape drive company has instituted a hiring freeze in anticipation of flat sales this quarter.

“We’ve brought (fewer) people to the show, but we haven’t cut back on exhibit space,” Lewis said. “This is still a very good opportunity to show your wares.”

Irvine-based Western Digital Corp. scaled back on its Comdex exhibit, opting instead to display its products in hotel suites instead of renting expensive space on the exhibition floor.

Safi Qureshey, co-chairman AST Research Inc., an Irvine personal computer maker, said his firm’s sales remain strong despite recession fears. “We are out of sync with the rest of the industry and don’t see any signs of a slowdown in our business,” he said. “But there’s a lot of hype here and you wonder who is going to be around for the long term.”

AST, which was showing off two new notebook computers, leased 60% more space in the main convention center than it did last year. AST’s notebook machines, which weigh 6.5 pounds and are designed to compete with more-expensive offerings from Texas Instruments Inc. and Compaq Computer Corp., were attracting the attention of Richard Cuthbert, a Toronto business executive who was shopping for a new computer Monday.

“I haven’t decided which (notebook computer) I’m going to get, but I’ve decided I need one to take from meeting to meeting,” Cuthbert said.

Notably absent was AST’s expected introduction of a PC that would use multiple processors instead of a single processor. Qureshey said AST still expects to enter the fast-growing multiprocessing market, possibly by the second half of 1991.

Meanwhile, AST’s cross-town rival, Advanced Logic Research, was touting its multiprocessor machines. Gene Lu, ALR’s president and chief executive, said the company spent more than $300,000 on its Comdex exhibit, which featured a tropical setting.

“We spent about double what we spent last year,” Lu said. “That’s a reflection of our growth. We’re about twice as big as we were last year.”

But despite the excitement about the notebook and multiprocessing offerings and the expected software boom to support the introduction of Microsoft Corp.’s Windows 3.0 graphics interface, few attendees believed the industry had introduced any “killer” products to carry it through a recession.

“The industry has a lot of horsepower, but it isn’t insulated from the rest of the economy,” said Doug White, spokesman for Irwin Magnetic Systems, a subsidiary of Costa Mesa-based Archive Corp.

As Chang noted, most firms consider money spent on Comdex to be a necessity. CMS Enhancements, the Irvine-based maker and distributor of computer storage products, leased more space than last year and gave free jackets to attract potential customers.

Even Memory Media Products, a small Tustin firm with 140 employees, couldn’t pass up the opportunity to catch two or three new customers at Comdex, said Edward A. Conti, president.

“For us, three new customers could boost sales by 10%,” he said.