AST RESEARCH LAUNCHES AST CUSTOMER CARE:
COMPREHENSIVE SERVICE AND SUPPORT FOR ALL PC SYSTEMS

IRVINE, Calif., March 1, 1993 -- Distinguished by quicker response times,
lower prices and improved convenience through longer operating hours, AST
Research Inc. today introduced AST Customer Care, the industry's most
comprehensive user protection program for its line of file server, desktop
and notebook PCs. With a broader and more extensive selection of services
to choose from, the program reaches beyond service and support programs
offered by other PC manufacturers, including direct-mail marketers.

AST Customer Care is designed to offer owners longer and more thorough
protection for their PC investment. It refines and expands AST's warranty
coverage and technical support programs, both of which have been operating
for more than 12 years -- longer than most other PC companies have been in
business. Additionally, it extends the company's commitment to offer its
customers the highest quality of ownership satisfaction, recently
recognized as excellent by a Readers Choice Service and Reliability award
in a survey of more than 17,000 PC Magazine subscribers.

AST Customer Care will enhance the company's existing service and support
offerings. Effective in March, toll-free technical support will be
expanded to 24 hours per day, seven days per week, while on-site and/or
carry-in warranties are extended to three years.

"The programs under AST Customer Care combine to provide after-sale support
that is unsurpassed from any major PC manufacturer," said Don Leighton,
AST vice president, worldwide product services. "As service and support
becomes the next frontier of manufacturer differentiation, we intend that
AST will continue to set the standard for service and support and be the
benchmark for other companies to follow. Other companies have begun to
duplicate programs our customers have enjoyed since 1988, such as
custom-configured programs, four-hour service and in-house training for
users that self-maintain their PCs."

AST Customer Care Delivers Lasting Value 

AST Customer Care is a collection of service and support programs offered
to serve users of the company's file server, desktop and notebook PC
systems. Elements include: 

* On-site, carry-in, mail-in and replacement warranty programs 
* Lifetime toll-free Technical Support hot line for PC systems
  (24 hour access) 
* AST On-Line! bulletin board (24 hour access) 
* AST Info-FAX facsimile services (24 hour access) 
* Technical support agreements (TSA) with leading network and
  operating systems companies such as Novell, Banyan, The Santa
  Cruz Operation and Microsoft for one-stop support in 
  multi-vendor networked environments. 

"The collective sum of these individual programs establish AST Customer
Care as unequaled in delivering total satisfaction," added Leighton. "From
large networked systems to single-PC home-office situations, our users can
access a menu of services to resolve virtually any situation. We are also
the only company to provide technical assistance at no charge to any
networked peripheral component, such as Novell or Banyan, attached to an
AST system.

On-Site Service Enhancements

Three years of free on-site warranty service will be provided for all
Manhattan SMP and Premium SE server systems. Premmia, Power Premium and
Bravo desktop PCs will also receive free warranty coverage for three
years, with on-site service provided for the first year and carry-in
service provided nationwide at more than 1,400 AST Authorized Service
Centers during the second and third year. Extended on-site service can be
purchased for an additional one year at $59 and two years at $99, making
it one of the most flexible and cost effective programs in the industry.

Advantage! desktop and minitower systems will receive one year of on-site
service, with optional on-site and/or carry-in service in the second and
third year available starting at $110.

Systems purchased after January 1, 1993 will qualify for the new on-site
repair program. Server and desktop systems purchased from January through
December 1992 can be upgraded to on-site service for $49 for the remainder
of their respective warranty periods. AST's on-site service programs cover
only AST systems that are equipped with a factory installed hard disk
drive. Systems purchased without factory-installed hard disk drives will
receive three years of carry-in warranty service.

Once a call is placed to the AST Technical Support hotline, a technician
will arrive on-site with the correct parts to service the system within
two business days. Quicker response -- as fast as four-hours -- can be
purchased as an option from an AST Advanced Systems Support Center or
through AST's Authorized Third-Party Maintenance organization.

Portable PC Protection

AST Customer Care also provides comprehensive protection for notebook users
through its ExeCare Plus program. Under ExeCare Plus, PowerExec notebook
users receive one-year of carry-in service to any AST Authorized Service
Center, concurrently with one-year of 48-hour expedited factory repair
with overnight freight pre-paid by AST to and from the company.

AST, the service and support leader, is the only company offering the
option of upgrading to 24 hour replacement. Users have the option of
choosing which service they want to access during their warranty period.
ExeCare Plus can also be extended for an additional two years for an
annual fee, beginning at $99.

PowerExec EL and Advantage! notebook users will receive one year of
carry-in coverage. Priced from $89, users can upgrade and/or extend their
ExeCare Plus coverage to 48 hour repair or 24 hour replacement for up to
three years.

On-Line Technical Information

AST offers two additional 24-hour services -- AST On-Line! bulletin board
and AST Info-FAX -- which allow access via modem or facsimile machine to a
broad selection of technical support documentation. AST's leadership is
further demonstrated by being the only company offering a worldwide
electronic bulletin board system. Under AST Customer Care, these two
services have been enhanced to allow for increased call capacity.

Premium and Premium Plus Support Programs

End-users who have a large installed base of AST computers and internal
information centers providing service and support within the organization
can take advantage of AST's Premium and Premium Plus support programs. The
Premium Support Program features priority toll-free technical support, a
video-based core service training program, subscription to AST Technical
Publications, and the ability to purchase spare parts directly from AST.
Premium Plus Support Program subscribers enjoy all of these benefits plus
labor reimbursements for warranty repair work performed on AST systems,
significant discounts on spare parts, expedited spare parts
cross-shipments, spare parts inventory balancing and a

Company Background

Ranked number 431 on the Fortune 500 list of America's largest industrial
companies, AST Research Inc. is a prominent market share holder in
desktop, file server and notebook computers. Revenues for calendar year
1992 totaled more than $1.1 billion.

AST's product lines include the Power Premium, Bravo, Advantage!,
PowerExec, Premium SE and Manhattan SMP which allow users to choose from a
full range of price and performance options. The company is represented in
100 countries and operates 34 international subsidiaries and sales
offices.

The company reported record sales of $346.3 million for the second quarter
of fiscal year 1993, ended Jan. 2, 1993, representing a 60 percent
increase in unit shipments over the comparable year quarter. Fiscal year
1992 revenues were $944.1 million, compared to sales of $688.5 million for
fiscal year 1991. AST Research corporate headquarters is located at 16215
Alton Parkway, P.O. Box 19658, Irvine, Calif. 92713-9658. Telephone: (714)
727-4141, (800) 876-4278. Fax: (714) 727-9355

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