Under proposed changes announced in the federal budget in Canberra last night, small businesses with a turnover of less than A$2 million (US$1.5 million) will be able to write off 50 percent of the purchase price of assets including computer hardware, purchased within the a year from December 2008 and installed by 2010.

The changes extend a previous announcement that the government would allocate a 30 percent tax break for eligible assists bought from the six months from December last year.

Dell SMB division services business manager Kush Naidu said the tax break, set to go before federal parliament with the next two weeks, will not result in an explosion of hardware sales.

"From my experience SMBs are still resistant to spend," Naidu said. "Some of the feedback we get that businesses are reluctant because they still need to come up with the remaining 70 percent."

Naidu said the incentive will still be attractive to businesses and said the company previously used the government's 30 percent asset deduction in marketing materials.