A new report this morning states that Microsoft will cooperate with Intel to offer subsidies to promote Windows 8.1 with Bing for entry-level desktops starting at retail prices of US$199 to compete with Apple's Mac mini and Google's Chromebox that starts at around $229 from HP and others.

The second kind of new PC will include a non-touch 18.5-inch screen based all-in-one PC model starting at US$349, equipped with Celeron J1900 quad-core processors (Bay Trail-D), according to Taiwan-based supply chain makers.

With desktop demand expected to return to around 130 million units in 2014, Microsoft is hoping that the new desktop solutions will help it defend its market share.

The solution using Intel's Celeron J1900 and Windows 8.1 with Bing has already received orders from players including Acer, and the devices are expected to come with 2GB of DDR3 memory, a 250GB hard drive and a DVD-ROM.

Since Chromebooks have already become a threat to Windows-based notebooks in both the enterprise and education markets, Microsoft is aggressively offering solutions in an attempt to suppress Google's rise in the PC industry, the sources claimed.

But the supply chain sources noted that they're concerned that Microsoft has only taken defensive measures and that if the company isn't able to launch a strong counter attack with its upcoming Windows 10, the software giant could be in serious danger of losing its market share despite their aggressive new pricing solutions.

While that may be a concern of Taiwan's supply chain, Best Buy's CEO gave us a different accounting this summer stating that they saw a rebound in PC's brought on by stronger 2-in-1 computer sales that can now compete with tablets for basic needs like web-surfing, social media, email and so forth.

Yet with that said, it's clear that Microsoft is seeing Apple and Google gnawing away at their desktop business and that has Wintel teaming up to initiate a counterattack. This is also likely Wintel's first move towards introducing a cloud-based desktop next year  once Windows 10 arrives. It would be much like what HP is introducing for the holidays via their stream notebook this year.

For now, Apple's iDevice revolution may be winning new converts over to Apple's entire ecosystem which in turn is fueling the Mac's recent leap in sales. With Apple partnering with IBM to push the iPad further into the enterprise, Apple's one-two punch is getting Microsoft very nervous. Will Apple's "halo" effect continue to win PC converts or will Wintel's emergency measures finally stop the boat from leaking. Only time will tell.

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