LSAT 157 | Section 3 | Logical Reasoning: Q18

LR Question 18 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Consumer demand for personal computers continues to increase…

QUESTION TYPE: Paradox

PARADOX: Demand for personal computers increases every year, which could indicate that profits earned by selling retail computers are very high relative to the number sold. However, the profit margin on personal computers is very low compared to other popular high-tech items.

ANALYSIS: This is an except question, so we will have to look at the answer choices. We can’t prephrase something that doesn’t resolve the paradox, because there are an infinite number of things that don’t.

That said, we should make sure we understand the stimulus. PCs are popular, so we might expect that the profits per PC are high. However, margins for PCs are lower than comparable high-tech items. The correct answer choice will not tell us why.

___________

1. This resolves the paradox. New, improved computers keep coming out, so a store needs to sell its stock before it loses its worth.
2. CORRECT. It doesn’t matter if consumers tend to be loyal, because that doesn’t explain the low margins. It could even give a reason for stores to increase prices, since people will remain loyal to a brand.
3. This explains how profit margins per computer are so low. The store is paying employees for the time spent helping customers, so it profits less.
4. This explains why computer profit margins are kept low – the stores try to upsell consumers using other items.
5. More competition would require stores to have lower profit margins so consumers would pick them. This resolves the paradox.

Recap: The question begins with “Consumer demand for personal computers continues to increase”. It is a Paradox question. Learn more about LSAT Paradox questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.